Guidelines In Getting The Best Use Of Picture Frames

by Chris Channing

The picture frame is a multi purpose tool that holds a picture to a wall, and enhances the images it holds visually. Over the years wood and metal have been used most when crafting picture frames, but other things have been used as well, including sea shells. Most recently electronics and digital picture frames have been used in addition to standard picture frames.

Picture frames original use was to support and protect paintings that they wished to hang on walls. Instead of puncturing the work of art with a nail or screw, the painting could be preserved by putting four wooden borders around it and nailing that to the wall.

Protecting the picture is a second use of the picture frame. A sheet of glass, now Plexiglas, is put over the picture between the borders of the frame. The glass protects the painting, keeping insects from landing on it, dust form settling, and people from touching or harming the picture.

The picture frame does more than just safe guard the picture it protects; it also enhances the picture visually, by adding to its beauty. In some cases the frame itself can be considered a work of art. Woodcarvings are put into picture frames by artists who like to express themselves in that fashion. Metal workers can do likewise by molding designs in to the surface of metal frames, thus adding to the beauty of the painting.

Not all pictures are used to house beautiful works of art in the modern age. Our family portraits, baby pictures, and baseball team photographs can be contained by picture frames. Most of the time simple wood or metal is used for our household pictures, as no one wants to spend the money for a professional to craft them an original picture frame.

With modern technological advancements the picture frame has greatly changed in the modern household. Electronics have been added to the frames, allowing light bulbs to be put inside. A person’s favorite Christmas picture can be displayed with red and green colors around the outside.

The most modern advancement in picture frame technology is the digital picture frame. By using digital frames a person is not required to physically have the picture within the frame. A person can take a digital picture with their house hold camera and display it on the digital picture frames. These frames can even display more than one picture. The frame can be set to slide show the pictures and show several pictures one after the other.

Some say that these factors make the basic picture frame inferior to the digital camera because it can do the work of dozens of picture frames by itself. MP3 audio files can also be uploaded to the digital picture frame allowing a person to enjoy a song while they enjoy the pictures. Others say that the traditional picture frames are not comparable to the digital because you are not truly able to see the picture, just its image displayed on a screen. These things are for the consumer to decide on their own accord. Which one best meets their needs and their preferences.

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