A mat (or matte) is the border of white or colored space surrounding the photo within the frame which creates a layer of space between the edge of the image and the frame. This space allows photos to “breathe” within a frame and protects them from coming into contact with the glass. The separation occurs because the mat, which is often thicker than the photo print, will layer over the top of the outside edges of the photo.
The mat plays a supporting role to the frame and the artwork inside, so it should be carefully chosen. Mats have the power to affect balance and help direct the viewer’s eye based on the size, color, and weight that you have selected.
For your matting project you will need your photograph, one backing board, and one or more matboards.
The first decision you need to make is deciding on the size for your mat project. Some prefer for their photograph to be centered under a mat with a two or three inch border around their photograph. This approach certainly looks very professional but almost always requires a custom frame, which can increase the cost. A cheaper option is to use standard frame sizes frequently found in home and garden stores, first cutting the mat to fit your frame and then cutting an opening to fit your photograph. This frequently results in a mat with a different border width around the photograph. Because you can use a standard frame you can save some money, and it can still look professional.
When I sell my photographs at art shows, I use the mat and a plastic sleeve as a form of packaging for my print, which allows the print to be easily transported to the art show and allows for people to easily flip through my collection of photographs in a bin with their hands. In this situation I cut the mat to fit standard frame sizes, which allows people to buy a packaged photograph from me that is matted and which will fit inside a standard sized frame. (Of course, the person who purchased the photograph can always remove the photo from the packaging and have a custom mat cut to display within a custom frame.) For my art show prints I usually cut my mat to fit in a standard 16 x 20 inch or 20 x 24 inch frame, both of which appear to be popular art show sizes.
For my 16 x 20 inch matted photos, I print my photo on 11 x 14 inch photographic paper. Complicating the matter is that an 11 x 14 inch photo doesn't match the aspect ratio of the photographs taken by my camera. If I were to print my uncropped photograph as an 11 x 14 inch photo I would lose a little bit from each side because a photograph from my camera, which fits perfectly on a 4 x 6 inch or a 16 x 24 inch photo, just doesn't fit on an 11 x 14 inch photo.
To get around this limitation I start by creating an 11 x 14 inch white JPEG 300 dpi sRGB graphic file and then center my photograph on top of this white image. If I didn't do any cropping to my photograph I will now have an 11 x 14 inch printed photo that fully bleeds on two sides but has a ⅝-inch white border on the other two sides. The size of the photograph without the white border is 9-½ x 14 inches (on top of an 11 x 14 inch white image).
I don't want any part of that white border to be visible through the cut opening on my mat. And, since the 14 inch side runs from edge to edge, I want a little bit of the mat to overlap those full-bleed edges to help hold the photograph in place.
Therefore, I am going to cut a 9-¼ x 13-¾ inch opening in my mat (which is one quarter inch smaller than the visible portion of my photograph on each of the four sides). This will allow almost all of my photograph to be visible under the mat, with a little bit of mat overlapping the edges to help hold the photograph in place.
I use the Logan 350-1 Compact Elite Mat Cutter to cut my mats, but cutting mats really does take a little bit of practice. Buying mats custom cut at an art supply or mat shop can be expensive but there are also reasonable places to buy mats cut to your specifications if you shop around. In the past I have ordered cut mats from MATSHOP and they offer resonable pricing. I also have ordered their acid-free coaster board as backing boards for my matting projects.
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