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Tips for Printing & Displaying Your Family Photographs

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Family portraits aren’t just for Facebook and Instagram. There is something to be said for printed photographs hanging in your home. Everyone is all about digital images, and I’m all for that. However, printed family portraits in your home make it so much homier.

All around my house, you’ll find photographs of my family in almost every room. I have small prints on my refrigerator and canvases in my living and bedroom. My entire entry is filled with old photographs of our parents, grandparents and great grandparents in unique frames.

There is no shortage of photos in my home. It’s not just because I’m a photographer. I find that not only I enjoy looking at these little gems, but so do all the guests that come into my home. They will slowly walk along the living room walls looking at each photograph. They even stop in the entry way to take a glance.

If you’re a novice to hanging photo walls or displaying family portraits, fear not: I have five tips for you to create your own beautiful photo displays.

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Why Print Your Family Portraits?

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Studies have shown that children who grow up in a home with family photos on display give them greater confidence and a better sense of belonging and understanding of where they come from. Displaying photos of your kids lets them know you are proud of them.

It also reminds them of happy times spent with their family and hopefully a pleasant experience from your photo session. When we look at photographs, we remember how we felt when that picture was taken.

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Print Your Photos With a Pro

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I encourage my clients to print their photos through my professional print lab rather than on their own or at their local drug store, for a few reasons. For one, my computer and editing is calibrated with my print lab. This means that when I print your images, they’ll be printed exactly the way they are meant to be seen.

My prints are actual photographs, meaning the image is burned into the professional light-sensitive paper. This makes for a much better quality than any ink print you’ll get from a quick-print service elsewhere.

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Choosing The Right Size Print

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Start by measuring the wall to see how much you actually have to work with. You want your photo(s) to take up a large portion of the wall. If you use small photos, it will make your space seem smaller than it really is.

Think of the curtain trick, when you raise the curtain rod higher than the window to make the window seem more grand. As a guideline, you want about 4-12 inches of wall showing around your photo(s). If hanging multiple photographs in a wall cluster, you want roughly 1-3 inches of space between each photograph.

Pro tip: The standard 8×10 inch prints aren’t “big prints” as a lot of people may think. I don’t suggest having a single 8×10 on your walls alone; they look better in clusters or multiple photographs on the wall.

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Mix and Match Styles

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Don’t be afraid to get playful with your style. Mix up your choice of frames, print sizes and film color. The way you display your photos should be as beautiful and charming as what’s in them.
Pro tip: You can find lots of inexpensive but beautiful, high-quality frames at vintage and thrift shops.

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Stack Family Portraits on a Frame Ledge

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If you want the freedom to change out photos with ease, or want a more modern look, try a frame ledge. This is a great alternative to individual wall hangings, while keeping photos out of reach of little hands.
Pro tip: You can get the frame ledge I use from IKEA.