As we described in a previous issue of the newsletter, we're going to offer tips, how-tos, tools and other resources to make the decorative, design and installation aspects of displaying photographs more understandable and easier to pull off. We realize that our customers are the best source of ideas and advice, and we're kicking things off this week with a few examples from a professional photographer, a restaurant, two advanced amateurs and an organization.

We're also extending an invitation to our customers to contribute your own examples. More about that after the examples.

Decorating a photo studio

Carol Parker is a professional photographer located in Tucson, Arizona. She recently remodeled an old adobe home to use as her studio and workplace.

Carol told us she found fotoflot.com to be "elegant and very user friendly". She wanted to have a display wall of photos and change the gallery periodically to feature different subjects without changing the overall layout.

Carol decided that fotoflot was ideal for her need. The result is a perfect venue to display her changing galleries of images.

More images in the blog post.

Decorating a restaurant - As seen on TV

The popular Chicago WTTW PBS restaurant review show Check Please ! received a brand-new set for the 2010 season. Furniture and accessories from Crate & Barrel as well as many realistic props create the impression of a functioning restaurant when host Alpana Singh talks with three guests about their restaurant recommendations.

But something was missing only days from the start of taping of the new season: the appropriate wall-art a modern restaurant would have on display. Chicago based professional photographer Michael Roberts provided the perfect digital images, but they still had to be converted into impressive wall art pieces.

We helped out and created four gorgeous 30"x20" fotoflōts . Michael Roberts' images now float off of the studio wall and create a stunning display.

There are several installations of fotoflōts in restaurants similar to this one. More detail and additional images in the blog post.

Decorating a home - An organic arrangement

Ross Peebles is an excellent photographer and long time fotoflōt customer who has put up several fotoflōt arrangements in his home. This one in particular caught our eye.

The arrangement seems to flow around the light switch and door. Its organic design creates a beautiful effect and demonstrates that not all arrangements have to be structured on a formal rectangular grid.

Displaying customer logos

AtHoc is a leading provider of emergency notification systems to military, government and commercial organizations and serves many large organizations that need to be comfortable with their ability to deliver and maintain high-quality systems. Displaying the logos of current customers helps establish their credibility.

AtHoc had been printing the logos and slipping them into plexiglass holders mounted to a wall in the lobby area where they are visible to customers, visitors, technology partners and the press. They learned about fotoflōt and realized that it would enhance their credibility by displaying the logos in a more professional manner. They ordered all the logos on 10"x10" fotoflōts for a consistent look and mounted them in their lobby.

Once they had the logos up on the wall, they realized that fotoflōts provide another benefit: the magnetic mounting system makes it easy to rearrange the logos. Now they can change and reorder the logos in seconds to modify their appearance or tailor them to a particular visitor.

Hiding an eye sore

Before
 

After

Kerry Ellis describes the problem she was trying to solve:

"I'm sure we all have those little (or not-so-little) eyesores in our home that we'd like to conceal somehow - in a not-too-obvious and kind'a pretty way. In my home, this is the circuit breaker box, which greets visitors to my home immediately after they walk in, nestled awkwardly between the main entrance and a bathroom door on a narrow strip of wall."

As you can see on the left, Kerry solved her problem with fotoflōts and a few extra magnets. She says:

"... my mother was simply floored by the idea when she visited my home during Christmas!

Let us know if you have situations, where fotoflōt panels need to be mounted on metallic surfaces. In many cases, a set of extra magnets is sufficient to hold the panels in place. Some of us have fotoflōts attached to refrigerator doors!

Send us your examples

We are working on a place for our web site where we can easily share more of these kinds of examples as well as tutorials and tools. We'd love to publish the experience and ideas other customers had in decorating with fotoflōt .

It's an opportunity for you to share your knowledge and experiences with others, and to gain broader exposure of your photography and/or your organization as well. We're interested in collage designs, wall arrangements, or tips on how you created a stunning image that benefited from flōting. Let us know if you're interested in sharing your work and/or tips.

Photos, writing and short videos are all welcome. Send them via email, or you can use the fotoflōt dropbox if they include large files. Of course we'll never share your images or information without explicit permission and you retain ownership of your work.