Someone recently emailed to ask what method I use to create the frames for the photographs that I post here and elsewhere on the web. There are quite a few ways to do this – there are even products available for creating frames. I’ve adopted a method that works well for me, and my basic explanation is found below.

You’ll notice that I use two variations on the same basic frame format, one being black and the other white — though for the past few years I have used the white border exclusively. Both place a narrow line around the photograph, surround that with a larger matte in the primary color (black or white), put one more narrow band around this, and then add some branding and copyright information.

In Photoshop CS3 I use the IMAGE –> IMAGE SIZE… dialog box as my basic tool. With a bit of experimentation you can probably make a frame that is more or less like mine and then customize to your heart’s content. (The process is essentially the same in CS4.)

After sizing your image appropriately for the web and doing any final sharpening and so forth, the basic approach with the “Canvas Size” dialog is to select “pixels” from either the Width or Height popup menus – selecting in either one will also change the other. Then enter an appropriate pixel width for your frame. Since this dialog adds pixels to the vertical and horizontal dimensions, you’ll need to double the dimension that you want on top or on a side since it will be split among the top/bottom or right/left. To state that a bit more simply, if you want a 50 pixel border around your image, you’ll select 100 pixels for height and 100 pixels for width. Choose the “Canvas extension color” from the popup at the bottom of the screen. Finally, click the OK button to apply this to your image.

(I like to place a 1 pixel gray border around the photo – remember to choose 2 pixels from the popup to do this – and then add the main border in black or white around that, followed by another 1 pixel gray border around the outer edge.)

Once you have determined through experimentation what your preferred border sizes and colors are, you should make a Photoshop action that automatically does these steps for you. I have two, one for the black border and one for the white border.

While we’re on the subject of actions, I’ll mention that I use them extensively for converting my large Photoshop original files for web use. Here’s a list of the actions I have created and how I use them – after flattening a duplicate copy of the image:

1. I first run an action that resizes the image to either 600 pixels high or 600 pixels wide, depending on whether the photo is in landscape or portrait orientation. (After resizing I do a unsharp mask operation, but not with an action since the settings vary depending upon the image.)
2. I then run one of the frame actions – either the black frame or the white frame.
3. The next action actually runs several “sub-actions”:
   • The first creates the “name and URL” text for the bottom of the frame and places it in close to the correct location. (I make some manual adjustments to position it correctly at this point.)
   • The second adds the copyright notice. Since the position, orientation, and opacity will vary depending on image content I typically have to make some manual changes.
   • A third adds a watermark to the image, and this one always has to be edited for position and opacity, etc.

Using actions to do this has several advantages. First, the results will be much more consistent since almost all of the parameters are “replayed” by the action without variation. Second, the process is quite a bit faster than if I did it manually.

Footnote: I know that some people prefer to view photographs without frames. I understand, but there are some good reasons to add frames to images that you place on the web. Most obviously, it is unwise to release your photographs “into the wild” without clear and unambiguous indications that you possess and retain intellectual property rights to your work. (In some situations I embed a visible watermark into the file.*) Second, your photograph may well be viewed out of the context in which you originally posted it – for example, some search engine results will display your image file directly. Unless you include identifying information (copyright, name, URL) in the image itself there will be no easy way for viewers to know where it came from. Third, placing a frame around the image gives you some degree of control over the background of the image and separates it a bit from surrounding clutter on the screen.

(Questions or comments: Join this site and leave a comment and/or join the forum and post there.)

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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