Evening star., 1948-04-04
Mounting

Any picture that you make which
is worth saving is also worth mount
ing. There Is little value or pleas
ure in . collection Of curling, crack
Ing prints that have been carelessly
stuffed into q drawer or box. Go
through your collection Of prints
and take enough time to evaluate
them honestly. Throw out the ones
that are not worth keeping. Then
60 to work on the good ones and
make them really worth keeping
for exhibition.
Any print that is made will be
improved by q mount, whether or
not 1t is placed in Q frame. The
mount will add immeasurably to the
appearance Of the print by setting
it OF, just as q fine setting will
enhance the beauty Of q precious
stone. But from more practical
viewpoint, mounting will preserve q
print for an indefinite period, If
properly done, by preventing the
curling and cracking that otherwise
eventually will destroy it. Even q
framed print will be more attrac-
tive with q border around it and
the mount viii prevent slipping and
huckling that might occur after the
framed picture Is sealed.
The material used for mounting
Photographic prints is usually a
special type Of cardboard that can
be purchased In several sizes and
colors, each Of which is appropriate
for certain types Of pictures. Ordi-
nary cardboards should not be used
because of certain harmful chem
icals in their makeup that may in
jure the print. There are a good
many different finishes in cardboard
mounts and a careful selection OF
texture should be made to keep the
print and mount in harmony. Don't
be misguided into buying fancy or
frilly mounts, as they will only draw
attention away from the print.
A plain mount Of some matching
or neutral color will be the best for
your print. Dead white mounts are
generally unsatisfactory as they soil
easily, and black mounts are un-
attractive. Select an off-white or
gray mount for a white paper print,
buff mount for buff paper print,
or a light brown mount for q sepia
print. Some photographers mount
all Of their prints on neutral colored
mounts, and much can be said for
this policy, as it eliminates the
necessity Of having several differ
ent varieties on hand.
Allow . Good Margin.
You should determine the size of
the mount by the size OF the print.
A mount should be large enough to
allow good marginal balance
around the print, and to lend the
suggestion of support to the picture.
As a rule margins should not be
equal on all sides Of the print. On
the other hand, the side margins
should be equal, the top margin
slightly larger than the sides, and
the bottom margin even greater.
This applies equally to horizontal
and vertical prints. A 5 by 7 inch
print will look well on an by 10
inch mount, an by 10 inch print
on an II by IA mount, or an IL by
IA print on 16 by 20 mount. A
mount that is just half as large
again as the print will fill the bill.
The same rule may well be applied
to spacing your top and bottom
margins. If, for instnace, your top
margin is inch, the lower margin
should be about an inch and a half.
Just how you will go about mount
ing your prints will be a matter OF
choice, depending on how perma-
nent you wish the job to be. You
can use either Photographic paste.
glue or mllcelage, rubber cement
or dry mounting tissue. The latter
method Is the most popular among
the professional photographers and
advanced amateurs because Of the
permanence Of the job and lack Of
the messy details Of the other meth
DDS. Dry-mounting will call for q
dry-mounting press or, failing this,
a f1atiron will do, where large guam
titles Of prints are not handled.
Tacking With . Flatiron.
To dry-mount q photograph, the
print should be placed face down
on a fiat surface and a piece of
dry-mount tissue the same size as
the print placed so that its edges
coincide with. those of the print.
Next, take the f1atiron and, using
it's tip, tack" the tissue to the back
of the print by drawing the iron for
short distance across the print.
It should be pointed out here that
the iron should be Just hot enough
to sizzle at the touch of q mois-