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RE: to mat or not
When I trip the shutter and create a photo, the only thing I'm
concentrating on is the image on the groundglass. When I make a print,
anything beyond the border of the image is distracting, extraneous garbage.
So why show it? Do jagged brush strokes, wavy borders, torn paper edges,
etc... really add to the image? I don't think so! Why draw attention away
from your work (the image).... unless it's too weak to stand on its own
accord?
The fact is that 99.99% of the people (including many professional
photographers) who look at photographs have no clue as to what they're
looking at. They really don't care if it's a gum print, platinum,
Cibachrome, conventional B&W silver print, or (heaven forbid!) a photocopy.
So why bother proving to the uneducated masses that your prints are
'handmade' by shoving the evidence (torn paper edges, scribbled notes and
brush strokes) in their face? Will they understand or appreciate what
they're looking at? Not likely. (Yes, I understand the comeback to that
question.... "we need to educate the masses"!!!). Better to wow them with
the image itself.... isn't that what really mattered anyway when you tripped
the shutter?
Just one man's opinion.
Ciao,
Cactus Cowboy
Big Wonderful Wyoming