Creative ideas for photo displays By Alfred DeBat (February 2006) Don’t limit your photographic images to only photo albums; there are many alternatives to dramatically display your photography.             One of the most ingenious ideas is having real U.S. postage stamps made from your pictures. What would be more appropriate than using a portrait of your newborn infant for the stamp on the mailed birth announcement? The same concept can be employed for birthday and anniversary party invitations, or any festive family occasion.             Compared to ready-made U.S. postage stamps, photo postage stamps are expensive. For example, 20 regular 39-cent stamps cost $7.80. A 20-stamp sheet (the smallest number you can order) of personalized photo stamps will cost from $16.99 and $17.99. The stamp manufacturers can produce photo stamps in any popular postage denominations, and the per-sheet price drops after more than one sheet is ordered. Two leading photo stamp makers are www.zazzle.com and www.photo.stamps.com, and with orders of 10 or more sheets, the cost per sheet drops to $14.99 and $12.99, respectively. Lower per-sheet prices are available with large volume orders. The two companies have prices, complete instructions for uploading your photo to their websites and tips for how to design an attractive stamp. Only “appropriate” images will be accepted. Shipping is extra and non-rush orders are typically turned around in three to five days.             It is easy to turn an empty wall into an attractive family photo gallery. The trick is to buy sets of plain black or white matching photo frames. For example, hang three of your photos together horizontally or vertically. Another approach is to buy more frames to make a larger statement on the wall. Interior decorators say that simple, square picture frames are best for this purpose, since they don’t draw attention away from the photos. Also, the uniformity of the frames placed relatively tightly in a square or rectangular space indicates without a doubt that this is a photo exhibit. Since you will probably intermix vertical- and horizontal-format photos, it is best to have natural-tone mats around the photos in the square frames to provide décor unity.             One source of photo frames is www.potterybarn.com, which also provides great illustrations online and in its catalog of such photo walls. Your photography will be more fascinating when a variety of different images is displayed, such as close-up faces as well as family group shots. Since it is easy to remove and replace prints in the frames, the project can be ever changing and updated. Although size can be important, probably 8-by-10-inch prints are best for viewing, and certainly nothing smaller than 5-by-7 inches.             Another tip to provide a classic photographic print look is to have your photos printed in black and white or in sepia tone. Although color prints are exciting, viewers are often entranced by the antique look of monotone images. You may be surprised how different and captivating your snapshots look when converted to black-and-white images. By selecting the grayscale setting on your computer using photo editor software, you can view your digital color photos in monochrome on the computer monitor. If you like the effect, take your digital images, via CD or memory card, to your local photofinisher or one-hour lab and ask that black-and-white or sepia-tone prints be made from the color images. Or you can check with online photofinishers to discover if they provide that service.             It is best to have glass in the frames to protect the photos, since glass reduces the amount of ultraviolet light reaching the prints, which can make them fade. If you make your own prints using an inkjet printer, be careful not to place the prints in a location where there is all-day direct sunlight. Often one-hour labs can make perfect black-and-white or sepia prints on normal photographic color print paper. Some color photo papers, such as Fujifilm Crystal Archive paper, have an image life, without noticeable fading, of 70 years.             What if you run out of wall space at your home? Take a look at the three-panel folding wood screens designed to display 15 vertical 8-by-10-inch photos, or smaller size matted prints. These screens are often seen at general merchandise stores, such as Target, or in department stores. All the suggestions and rules for framing prints apply here also, but you have the added advantage of a portable display that can stand in a corner of a room, or be used to screen off a doorway for privacy.             Digital photographers have another advantage with new technology. The digital picture frame, a desk-size photo frame, can hold scores of images that can be constantly changing. The digital photos are downloaded into the frame from a computer or from a camera memory card, and provide a slide-show-like display on the frame’s bright LCD screen. Several outlets market these digital photo frames, which you can check out online.