Dry mounting gives your photos a professional look without framing
Dry mounting a photograph to a display surface, like a mat board or other background, is a clean, professional way to exhibit work without the expense of custom framing. While professional dry mounting equipment can cost hundreds of dollars, any photographer can get the same results using a clothes iron, dry mounting tissue and a few dollars worth of art supplies.
Instructions
1. Pre-heat your iron to 200°F and set it aside. Each iron may have different temperature settings, so check your model's manual.
2. Lay out your cutting mat on a flat, dust-free surface. Using the X-acto knife and metal ruler, trim your photo to the desired size. Depending on the final application, you can choose either to either trim off the white photo border or leave a uniform white edge around the image.
3. Place a sheet of dry mounting tissue on the cutting mat and center the trimmed image on the sheet of tissue.
4. Using the X-acto knife and metal ruler, trim the dry mounting tissue to the exact size of the photo you are mounting. For a cleaner edge, you may want to trim an extra 1/8 inch off the tissue to ensure that no tissue is visible around the print edges after mounting.
5. Remove the cutting mat and cover your work area with the sheet of cardboard.
6. Place your mat board face up on the cardboard and center your photo on the mat board, with the mounting tissue sandwiched between the photo and mat. Be sure that no traces of the mounting tissue are visible from beneath the edges of the photo.
7. Using the art or drafting tape, secure the four corners of the photo and mounting tissue to the mat board.
8. Cover the photo with a clean piece of blotting paper and press the warmed iron to the center of the photo through the blotting paper, avoiding the areas secured with art tape.
Leave the iron in place for 5 minutes. No additional pressure on the iron is needed. The photo and mat board should now be securely fused by the mounting tissue.
9. Remove the iron and blotting paper and carefully peel off the art or drafting tape on each corner. Make sure there is no adhesive residue remaining on the photo or mat board.
10. Recover the photo with the blotting paper, making sure the same side of the paper as before still faces down towards the image.
11. Place the warm iron in the center of the image and slowly slide it out to each corner of the photo. Leave the iron in place over each corner for 5 minutes, then lift and return it to the center before sliding to the next corner.
12. Remove the iron when all four corners have been heated and check to make sure that each is firmly fused to the mat board. If necessary, replace the blotting paper and re-iron loose corners for 3 or 4 minutes to ensure they stick.
13. Remove the iron and blotting paper and allow your mounted photo to cool for 5 to 10 minutes.
