Which image should I select as my wall portrait?
We get this question each and every day. While, there is no right or wrong answer, there are some guidelines that I like to follow.
PS: This is only MY opinion :-)
1. You never want the head(s) to be LARGER than life size.
It could be the most beautiful image in the world of this child, however, if it is larger than life, it just looks TOO big. Close up portraits are great for your desk, piano, wallet or in a small grouping. Full body images make better large wall portraits such as this example.
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| Too Big of Head size |
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| Good Head Size |
2. You want to select an image you will love today, tomorrow and forever. I like to think of it as capturing the "spirit" of the subject and not just a "roadmap" of the face. In other words, I want the image to capture WHO they are as opposed to WHAT they look like.
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| Although this is a beautiful image, save this one for the Christmas card and 8x10 desk portrait. You may tire of looking at yourself smiling back at you after a few years. |
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| The action going on between parents and child captures a moment of innocence and sweetness that will not last forever. As this child grows, this portrait will only grow more valuable. |
3. Give the subjects room to breathe in the image. In art, rarely will you see the head at the top of the canvas and the feet at the bottom. There is usually scenery to give them some space and show the "scene" that they are in.
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| An old Masters painting. Love the use of space. the posing and the use of light and shadow. |
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| We are often asked to crop the image in, losing the space and scene that gives the image a pleasing composition. They seem crowded in this crop and make me feel a bit claustrophobic. |
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| The image cropped as designed and shown during the Order Appointment. Using the rules of composition and design, this image has a much more pleasing look than the cropped version above. |
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