Designing Your Wall Art: Choosing the Proper Size

Being a photographer, you would think that I know the correct size to order for wall pieces for my self.  This was not the case a few years ago when I ordered a canvas of a photo I took at a workshop in Death Valley.  I can’t remember if it was shown in inches or feet, but what I MEANT to order was a 3’ x 4’ - what I ACTUALLY ordered was a 4’ x 6’.  It is bigger than me (not too impressive since I’m pretty short but still)!  The box was even bigger, and I remember it being tough to maneuver through our 700 sq foot basement level apartment.  It was rather comical with our short ceilings and cramped bedroom, but we made it work.  It works pretty well in our new house though!

So I absolutely understand when people don’t know what size wall pieces to order!  Enter my ordering software.  Before you come in for your viewing and ordering appointment, I ask that you send me an image of anywhere in your house you are even thinking you might want to hang an image, with an 8.5x11 piece of paper taped to it.  Sounds odd, but I then take that image and enter it into my software; I tell the software how big the paper is that you taped to the wall, and then it can show you exactly how different sizes will look and fit on your own walls.  Pretty cool, huh?

Here is a real life example from a client - I used this software for a recent viewing and ordering sessions.

Image of the clients wall, with a standard 8.5 x 11 piece of paper taped to it.

Easy, quick, and takes out all the guesswork. This works for collages, frames, multiple wall pieces - it really is a powerful tool that can help make your decisions a no-brainer. Here is the final product hanging on the clients wall: