Printed Family Photos have Power
Very excited to be sharing this guest post by Edmonton photographer, Kelly Marleau, of Fiddle Leaf Photography. Both of us believe that we need to actually print those amazing images that we have so that they can truly be enjoyed on a regular basis. One of my favourite ways to have physical copies of my photos is to create photo books. I have one for each trip we’ve taken and it’s so nice to flip through them and relive our adventures. Take a read below for her tips for printing and displaying your photos!
Printed family photos have power
If I had read that line even just a few years ago, I would have rolled my eyes.
"Here we go, another photographer preaching about how prints matter."
Hang in there with me though, ok?
Over the past 7 years that I've been in business as Fiddle Leaf Photography, I’ve heard stories from my clients of how their photos matter to them, and I've experienced the power of prints first hand.
Here’s one such story:
A few years ago, after living an amazing 99 years on Earth, my Grandpa died. I reached out to my family to see what I could do to help, and they asked if I’d make the slideshow for the funeral service. The next day a bag arrived with HUNDREDS of photographs piled in it.
Black and white photos with white borders, yellowed on the edges from the 1940s.
Small photos with rounded edges and faded colours from the late 1970s.
Glossy 4x6s with the red date stamp in the lower right corner from the early 2000s.
The stack of memories that had been lived in fractions of seconds was almost too much to take in.
To hold frozen moments of time from someone’s entire life in your hands might not seem like much at first, but stop and think of the weight of it all and it can be overwhelming. It’s nothing like using your arrow keys to flip through files on your computer screen or scrolling endlessly on your phone.
Nothing like it.
Prints have power. They’re tangible and heavy, and simply can’t be compared to pixels.
Do you remember the days when you'd drop off a roll of film at the drug store, then pick it up the next day, so eager to see what you managed to capture? It was exciting and an event. You'd open up that paper envelope and flip through your 4x6s, reliving the memories and deciding which ones were the keepers.
As digital photography became the norm and phones lived in our pockets most of the day, with thousands of photos at our fingertips, the excitement and power of the snap started to wain.
But, even more than having the ability to snap us back to a moment in time, did you know that having prints of your family displayed in your home can boost your kids' self-esteem?
Seriously.
Psychologists have done studies which show that kids seeing themselves displayed in photos can help place value and importance on their position in the family unit.
Psychologist David Krauss says, “I am very conservative about self-esteem and I think placing a family photo someplace in the home where the child can see it every day without having to turn on a device or click around on a computer to find it really hits home for that child's sense of reassurance and comfort. They have a certainty about them and a protecting quality that nurtures a child. It lets them know where they are in the pecking order and that they are loved and cared for."
I bet you hadn't thought of that before, right?
Printing photos isn't just something that we should add to our 'to-do' list - it's our responsibility to recognize the value of printed photos for our children now, and as heirlooms for our grandchildren in the future.
Ok, so, I have you convinced to print (I hope!), but now there's the challenge of figuring out what to do with your prints.
Here are a couple of my favourite ways to display family photos in your home.
Eclectic Gallery Wall
Gallery walls can be all matching and straight, but if you're ready to infuse your personality into your home, consider an eclectic gallery wall that allows you to relive multiple memories. Mix and match printing methods (canvas, metal prints, framed prints, both matted and unmatted) to give your display texture and visual interest. You can use photos from multiple different photo sessions or choose photos from only one photo session, but still use different frames and print mediums.
In order for your gallery wall to feel cohesive and representative of your family, ensure that:
Your final display has a mixture of detail/close up shots mixed in with wider angle shots. You don't want every print to be of just faces or of everyone standing. Think about mixing images where the subject fills the whole frame alongside photos that show the whole body.
Your family is equally represented. I can guarantee that one of the first things your kids will do after they see their new wall (and oooh and aah) is count how many times they see their own face. Then, their sibling will do the exact same thing. So, best to ensure they're close to even! When I'm suggesting prints for families, I ensure there's equal representation and groupings that feel natural for that family. For example, Mom with Kid 1, Dad and Mom, Dad with Kid 2, the whole family, the kids with the dog.
There isn't one lone black and white or one lone colour photo. I'm all for mixing black and whites with colour photos (I even do it regularly in albums), but my one hard and fast rule is that there isn't only one of anything. You don't want 7 colour photos and 1 black and white on your wall. Instead, consider 5 colour and 2 black and white. Then hang the black and whites so they have a bit of breathing room between them.
Square Prints
Square prints have the ability to feel modern and classic all at the same time. They're often printed on a matte paper with a white border and their heavy weight lends itself to all sort of uses.
I'm a fan of displaying square prints in a really casual way that requires minimal effort - so that you can change them out frequently.
Keep them as a stack displayed in a clear glass box (like this one) on your coffee table so that you can pull them out and look through them.
Hang them using an open photo display like this one or this one.
Paint a small wall or area with magnetic paint and then use fun magnets to hang them in a grid or lines.
Stand them in a wood picture ledge, as I did below in my daughter's mermaid themed room (this is a floating ledge with a small slit cut into it).
A quick google search will give you many results of where to print square prints, but my favourite place is Artifact Uprising. The colour quality is always good and the paper is gorgeous. They do ship to Canada and I recommend signing up for their newsletter and following them on Instagram as they often have sales of 25 free prints. Another great option is Parabo Press.
In the end, remember that printing your photos should be fun, not overwhelming. Stick with the memories and printing methods that make you smile, and then run with it. Your family and future self will thank you.
Through her company, Fiddle Leaf Photography, Kelly Marleau offers in-home lifestyle newborn and family photography in Edmonton and surrounding communities. Kelly is a busy working mom who gets that it's easy to let things like 'book family photos' slide down the priority list, which is why she's obsessed with making photo sessions flexible, fun and efficient. Because immortalizing this time in your life should be an enjoyable experience that you actually look forward to.