With our home freshly painted in neutral tones, we’re excited to fill the walls with meaningful art. Neutral walls provide the perfect backdrop for photographs and pieces that add personality, so we’ll be sharing more posts about art finds and simple DIY projects you can use to display memorable shots. This first piece is a little project we did ourselves—an easy, affordable way to turn a favorite photograph into a polished piece of wall art.
It all started on our Alaskan honeymoon last July. We took countless photos during the trip, but a few stood out as especially striking. One of our favorites was taken during a private seaplane flight to a remote volcano a few miles outside Anchorage. The scene was unlike anything we’d seen before: a glacier in the foreground, streaked with dark deposits of volcanic ash, and a dramatic sky above. It felt both raw and otherworldly.
After getting home, I experimented with the photo in Photoshop. On a whim I desaturated the image to remove most of the color, which transformed the photo into a more graphic, almost abstract composition. The glacier’s textures and the contrast between the ice and ash became far more pronounced, and the entire image took on a refined, timeless quality. The result felt like it could stand on its own as a simple, modern art piece.
We decided to make it into a small framed print. Choosing a square frame and a 12″ x 12″ print gave the photo a clean, gallery-like appearance. For this project we used a local print shop—Kinko’s—to get an inexpensive, high-quality print for about $10. Framing the print in a simple square frame and adding a white mat helped emphasize the image and gave it a professional feel without spending a lot of money. To personalize it, we wrote “Alaska, July 2007” lightly on the mat in the bottom right corner, which makes the piece feel like a true keepsake and adds a subtle provenance to the display.
The finished piece now hangs above Sherry’s desk, where it brings visual interest to the space and complements the neutral walls. The black-and-white treatment contrasts nicely with the soft tones of the room, creating a focal point without overwhelming the area. It’s proof that with just a little editing, a modest print, and a simple frame, you can create elegant, original artwork from a personal photograph.
This DIY approach is a great option for anyone looking to decorate with personal photos. A few suggestions if you want to try something similar:
- Choose high-resolution images so prints remain sharp at larger sizes.
- Experiment with editing—desaturation, contrast adjustments, and cropping can dramatically change the mood.
- Pick a frame and mat that match your room’s aesthetic for a cohesive look.
- Label the mat or back of the frame with details like location and date to give the piece a personal story.
We’re thrilled with how this turned out and plan to create more framed pieces from our travel photos. With neutral walls as a blank canvas, these curated keepsakes can be an easy, affordable way to add character and visual interest to any room.