Archival Photo Mounting Part 1 | Photo Corners using a Hinged Double Mat

This is part one of our 4-Part Series on Archival mounting principles. In this video, we will cover:
- Materials
- How to hinge a mat
- How I approach choosing Mats/Color
- How to Apply Photo Corners

[@drb9705]

Very helpful information, thanks! And it’s great to see you back!

[@MrNegative]

Haha yeah I was slacking for a bit. Fell way behind. Hoping to be caught up soon :)

[@cfalzerano1]

I would appreciate your advice. I am mounting a valuable vintage photograph that unfortunately was exposed to moisture in the past and is now wavy. I thought of mounting it directly behind the UV glass with no mat, allowing the glass to flatten the photo but was told this process may eventually cause the photo to stick to the glass due to condensation. All the KZbin DIY videos regarding "flattening" the photo seem too aggressive. Please advise. Thanks

[@MrNegative]

Do you by chance know what kind of paper it is?

[@MrNegative]

Ah, okay so likely a fiber based paper. I definitely agree mounting it to glass is a bad idea. I’d recommend you find somebody with a mechanical dry mount press. Flattening fiber based prints is fairly simple with heat and pressure. I’d recommend taking it to somebody that has experience doing this, given the fact this piece is not replaceable. I wouldn’t take the risk of doing it yourself if you don’t have a dry mount press. If you can’t find someone to flatten it for you, I’ve seen people use an iron. Assuming it’s a small print, you may be able to try that with some kraft paper to absorb moisture and protect the print surface. I still don’t recommend it, and haven’t tried it personally, but know others have had success with the method.

[@cfalzerano1]

@@MrNegative Thanks for the advice. I've decided to live with it as it is and use your archival mounting process. Even "somebody with experience" could make a mistake and as you say "the piece is not replaceable" (an autographed photo of a 1930's jazz star). Thanks again.

[@MrNegative]

I think that’s a great decision. Working with something that old would be very tricky and quite frankly terrifying haha.

[@cfalzerano1]

@@MrNegative 👍❤