Offering prints of your artworks is a fantastic way to get your art noticed and drive sales. Art prints are a nice thing to have in your home. They can make your walls look beautiful and inspire you every day again to create your own art.
Whether its digital art, color or black and white photos, wedding photos or any other piece of art – they all look great in a framed picture!
There are lots of different photo finishes out there, but the most common ones are Matte and Glossy.
So if you’re an artist or an art lover, the question whether it’s better to use a glossy or matte finish for framing has surely crossed your mind more than once.
If you’re looking to make prints of your art, you want your art prints to look their absolutely best in all life situations and as authentic to the original as possible.
Therefore, making the right choice between Matte vs Glossy matters.
In this blog post, I’m looking into the differences between glossy and matte to help you decide upon the best photo finish for your needs.
So, let’s kick things off by looking at what makes matte and glossy photos different!
Matte vs Glossy Photos – There’s not much difference!
Even though matte and glossy photographic papers make your art prints look very different, they actually don’t differ much in the way they are manufactured…
Actually, the photo finish manufacturing process of matte and glossy photographic papers is pretty much the same. You might find that astonishing because matte and glossy papers look very different and also feel very different to the touch.
But fact is glossy paper has the same chemical coating as matte paper. It’s just that glossy paper has more of that coating applied to it than matte paper.
This extra layer of resin coating is what brings about the different surface qualities of glossy and matte photographic papers.
Although the surface of matte finish papers looks smooth to the eye, it has a slightly grainy texture compared to glossy paper. This unevenness gives the surface refractive properties. That means all light that hits the surface is scattered in different directions.
Glossy papers work just the opposite way. The glossy finish is designed to be as shiny as possible. The additional layer of gloss doesn’t absorb light at all but reflects all light off the surface. It’s non-refractive.
These qualities of the coating are what eventually makes either matte or glossy better for framing art.
With this info, you might still be wondering about the best photo finish for framing your art prints. While the manufacturing process of the two paper types is quite similar, the differences become obvious when it comes to glossy vs matte photos for framing.
So let’s look a bit deeper into the advantages and downsides of both photo finishes.
matte photo finish
Matte photo finish paper has a semi-gloss coating. You can use it to produce high-quality art prints. Actually, matte paper is what professional photographers use the most to create decorative and durable art prints. This of course includes framed photo prints!
So, there's one thing we can nail down here: matte is considered the best photo finish for framing in the professional industry!
But let’s get down to the actual advantages and disadvantages of this printing paper.
Advantages
- Minimal Glare for the best viewing experience
One big advantage of matte prints is that they reflect very little to no light. They offer you the best viewing experience.
Their semi-gloss finish ensures that you can admire the print from all angles without any disturbing light reflections. They are perfect for rooms with lots of lighting.
- Longest life with Resistance to fingerprints and handling
Matte print papers don’t have an extra layer of coating as compared to glossy papers. This makes them less prone to attract fingerprints, dirt, and dust. It also makes matte papers more resistant to handling and mounting.
All in all, this means a better viewing experience and a longer life of your matte framed art prints.
- Matte finishes won’t stick to the glass frame
This is also a result of the missing extra layer of coating. Because the surface of matte prints is not sticky, as opposed to the glossy option, the print will not cling to the glass of the frame.
Matte finish paper works well on any glass application. If you decide to change the framing, you can easily remove the image without any damage to either the print or the glass frame.
Ergo, a matte photo finish is the best choice for you if you want to display your artwork behind glass.
- Matte works great for Black and white photos
If you’re wondering whether to use glossy or matte for black and white photos, let me tell you… A matte finish is a great option for black and white as well as sepia photo prints.
The matte photo paper enhances the monochrome colors and gives the typical vintage feeling to old-fashioned sepia pictures.
Disadvantages
- Dull looking colors and lacking vibrancy
Matte paper can lack the vibrant effects of the glossy finish. The colors may look dull and images may not appear as sharp as they would under a glossy finish.
However, these two issues will most likely be fixed when you display your print behind glass!
Glossy photo finish
As I mentioned earlier, glossy paper has a thicker resin coating layer that makes its surface smooth and shiny.
However, exactly this shininess that makes glossy photos appealing also brings about quite a couple of disadvantages, especially when we’re talking best photo finish for framing art prints.
But let’s start with the good things first.
Advantages
- More color vibrancy and detail
Glossy prints make the color pop! The gloss enhances the optical appearance of the colors and makes them look vibrant and vivid. This also creates the impression of more detail and makes the image appear sharper.
These qualities are especially useful if you have images that are not perfectly sharp and clear, e.g. snapshots. Under a glossy finish, such photos can look awesome as well!
- Glossy creates the typical photo feel
Glossy finishes are what most people are used to in photos. The typical photo you would get from the shop around the corner has typically a glossy surface. Glossy photos are also what you would expect in an old-fashioned photo album and to come out of your Polaroid camera.
Glossy tends to work best on smaller prints. Despite the light reflections on the shiny surface, small images still look nice without having too many distracting light reflections.
- Less expensive
Actually, matte is more expensive than glossy. So if you’re looking for budget prints, glossy photos can be a good alternative.
Disadvantages
- Extreme shine makes it difficult to view the image
Glossy prints reflect light back all over the surface. These reflections make it difficult to view the print from certain angles. There will always be some light reflections, no matter from what angle you look at the picture.
The larger the print, the bigger the light reflections and the poorer viewing experience. This can make it extremely difficult to view huge prints clearly. So when it comes to matte vs glossy poster and canvas prints, matte paper is what you want to go for.
Of course, you can frame glossy photos. However, a glossy photo finishing is not the best choice for framed art. Here’s why:
- Sticky and shiny – Not the best photo finish for framing
Typically, glossy finishes don’t go well with glass frames. The glass will only intensify the shine of the reflections that already come along with the extra gloss itself. This will make it even harder to view a glossy image that is displayed beneath a glass pane.
Besides these higher levels of reflection behind glass, glossy prints will stick to the glass due to their naturally sticky coating. This is a huge problem if you decide to change the photo frame because stripping of the stuck print from the glass can ruin both the artwork and the frame.
Apart from that, framed glossy prints tend to look like they have a bit of an oily residue on those areas where they stick to the glass.
- Text on glossy photos is super-hard to read
If your art print contains text, a gloss coating will make it very hard to read that text, even more if the print is behind glass. The surface reflections will always cover up some parts of the text, depending from what angle you’re viewing the picture.
- Prone to attract fingerprints, dust, dirt and scratches
As a result of the thick layer of sticky gloss coating, glossy prints are more likely to attract dirt and dust than matte photo finishes. Their glossy surface is also less resistant to fingerprints and scuff. This can be an issue in particular during handling and mounting, and when unframed photos are often being viewed and touched.
When can you frame glossy photos?
If you have a glossy art print and you absolutely want to frame it, you should keep in mind that the gloss coating sticking to the glass might ruin the artwork.
Apart from that, you should carefully consider where you hang the print. Make sure to choose a spot where there’s not much light hitting the image surface. You want to have the least reflections possible so that you can view your image nicely from all angles.
If possible, put an artificial source of light right above the framed glossy print to avoid diffused light.
However… Glossy is actually the best photo finish for framing art without glass!
The glossy surface already has many of the properties a glass pane would add to the print. Hanging a glossy picture framed without glass in a place with decent light conditions can be a great alternative to a glass-framed matte print!
I hope these tips were able to help you choose the best photo finish for framing your prints according to your custom needs. If you like to learn more about the different paper types and other photo finish options, you check out my post about the Best Paper For Printing Digital Art.
Frequently Asked questions
→ is matte or glossy better for black and white photos?
The answer to the question whether to pick glossy or matte for black and white photos is pretty simple and straightforward: Matte paper is the favored print paper for black and white photography!
It makes black and white prints look more natural and appealing to the eye and gives the typical vintage feel to old-fashioned sepia pictures.
→ Why is matte more expensive than glossy?
Matte finishes tend to require more ink to give the colors a good saturation. That’s why they are more expensive than gloss.
→ A matte vs glossy poster – which one looks better?
Glossy is prone to light reflections. The larger the size of a poster, the bigger the light reflections. This can make it difficult to view poster prints. If you want to display a poster behind a glass frame, a glossy finish will be particularly problematic.
However, for displaying posters without a glass frame, the glossy texture makes the image more pronounced and helps bring out colors and details.
→ glossy or matte finish for wedding photos – What’s recommended?
A matte finish looks professional and classic, particularly for portraiture and framing. Matte offers the best protection against fingerprints and accidental nail scratches.
Glossy photos are more reflective and feel ‘sticky’ to the touch. Their tendency to attract fingerprints can be a problem, especially if you view and touch your wedding photos a lot.
→ Are matte or glossy photos for album collections better?
Glossy paper is a good finish for everyday snapshots and other random (non-professional) photos. It enhances the details, which is particularly useful for slight blurry pictures. Matte works best for black and white album photos, while glossy is the best option for colored shots.
Keep in mind that glossy photos are more prone to fingerprints, dust and scratches. This can be a problem if your photo album doesn’t have protective foils. On the other hand, a glossy surface is more likely to stick to the protective foil. Removing the foil might cause damage to your photos.
→ what is pearl finish on photos?
A pearl finish is a semi-gloss finish that is also called luster. It’s a happy medium between glossy and matte and combines the good qualities of the two of them. For more information about pearl finish photo printing and whether to choose luster or glossy for framing, jump over to my post Best Paper For Printing Digital Art.
