Laminated photos and posters can be a little tricky to frame when you want an edge-to-edge finish, similar to what you’d see on movie posters at the cinema. Aluminium frames tend to give posters a good-looking finish, in particular with metallic or black profile frames. But you still need to factor in for protection inside the frame, which is where things get tricky with laminated material.
The problem is with sizing because laminated prints tend to have a slight overlap around the edges where the coating is sealed, creating a watertight barrier. One way around framing edge to edge posters is to trim the overlap off, but by doing that, you’re breaking the seal that would protect the print from moisture.
If you are framing laminated prints, glazing can be used to seal the frame and protect the print. There are some instances where people feel that because the print is laminated, the glazing doesn’t need to be there. Whether you need a glazed frame or not depends on whether you’ve trimmed the edges of your print or poster. In cases where you need to trim laminated edges to get the print to sit neatly inside the frame, definitely use glazing to form an airtight seal.
Another reason you may want to include glazing on your frame is for UV protection. Laminating your prints only provides a moisture barrier. It won’t provide any protection against UV rays. Acrylic glazing with a UV filter helps to preserve the ink quality and gives you more choice over where you can display the print without it being affected by glare.
Using mounts with laminate prints
As laminated prints already have a barrier between the print and the glazing, it’s possible to frame the print and maintain protection without using a picture mount. The only advantage you’d have is for aesthetics by giving your print a border, creating distance between the print and the frame. It can help the design stand out, but it won’t be an edge to edge finish.
Generally, posters are framed right up to the edge of the frame so the frame size should match the exact dimensions of your poster or photo.
Types of backing board to use with laminated posters and photos
One of the things you’ll notice with laminated material is they can be slippy and sometimes tricky to get them to stay in place without any wrinkling before you seal the frame by putting the back on it. A way around this is to use acid-free tape to stick the photo down to a sheet of foam board, then framing it. For larger sized posters, such as those that are 24” x 36” a thicker board called gatorboard is stronger and better suited for larger frames than regular foam core backing boards.
Whatever backing board material you use, pressing it onto the board and sticking it in place with acid-free tape helps keep the poster flat inside the frame, preventing creases occurring. If you’ve already framed a laminated print and find there’s movement happening inside the frame, it may be just a sheet of backing board that’s needed to prevent movement.