When organizing an exhibition, one of the most important parts is labeling your photographs. This process can be tricky because some people may have fun with it!
Photographers often times are not the best labelers of things. They are more focused on taking pictures and creating art than showing up and writing down what they took their photo of.
This can sometimes make it hard to identify a photograph unless you know something about the artist or the setting. Luckily, there are ways to help you organize all of this!
There are several good software programs that can easily edit photos as well as create new labels for them.
Prepare labels in the different shapes and sizes
When it comes to labeling your photographs, there are two main things you need to know! The first is how to prepare the labels yourself before putting them up. The second is what shape and size of label to use for each photo.
When it comes to preparing labels, you will want to make sure that they are very clearly identifiable. This means using your photographer’s name or creating your own so people can easily find them later. It also means including any important information such as event dates or times.
There are several ways to organize all of these labels. Some artists like to put all their labels in one place, while others have a basket system where they store individual items by color. What works best for you depends on how organized you are and what style of exhibition you plan to hold.
As for choosing the length and width of label, remember that longer doesn’t always mean better. A short, catchy label may be enough to describe the photograph.
Buy labels in different shapes and sizes
For your second section, you will want to buy some photo album or sleeve-label material. These can be flat printed images that hang from the wall, sleeves that hold photos inside of another container, or plastic covers for protecting the surface of the table or shelf where the new exhibition would sit.
Any of these three types of label material is fine! They all do the same thing so it does not matter which one you choose. The main difference is in how they are attached to the final object.
For example, if you put a picture into a sleeve, then you need to find matching sleeves and glue them together properly. If you use plain paper albums, you just stick the pictures directly onto the pages of the book.
But if you have a protected tabletop or shelf, then you need to find latching coverings or protections for the surfaces. These are designed specifically to fit tightly over the top of the object and release easily when you take the photograph or move the display.
Peel or use sticky labels
For those who are creating their first exhibition, there is something that many people do not know. You do not need markers to label your photographs!
There are two main ways to label your pictures. The easiest way is by using peel off paper stickers. These can be found at most grocery stores where you would get recipe cards for making snacks and drinks. They are very cost-effective and easy to use.
The other method is to use printer designed self-labeling plastic sheets which have “for print” markings and adhesive covers. These are slightly more expensive, but they last longer than the paper ones.
Use colored or crayon labels
It is very helpful to use pre-existing pictures as references for how to label your photographs. You can find many of these online, or make some yourself!
Some people prefer using typed notes instead of drawing their own, but either way works well. If you are too creative at labeling, it may be hard to remember what each one means. Using pre-made ones helps reduce this.
Colorful or crayon-style markers work best since you can just go over them with glue before attaching to the photo. Make sure to only pull off about half of the color layer before gluing so that it does not peel away completely.
Personalize the labels
It is very common for artists to use generic, non-descript titles for their works. These titles typically do not tell anyone anything about the work!
Artists should be using their own personal style when labeling their paintings or sculptures. Each artist has a unique way of drawing attention to a part of the painting or sculpture.
Their audience will also have different styles in how they look at art. Some may only know what kind of artwork looks familiar to them, while others may recognize famous pieces or people that are included in the painting.
By using your own artistic style as label material, you increase the chances other people will understand the piece more clearly.
Create a label maker
There is one very important step in labeling your photographs that many novice artists often skip! You will need to create a label maker. A label maker is a device used to print labels or stickers for things such as documents, gifts, or anything else you can think of.
By having a labeled document, you can easily organize all of your photos according to what year they were taken, who was in them, and where they are being displayed. This makes it easy to find each photo quickly!
There are several ways to make this happen. Some people use index cards, some use paper with pen and numbers written on it, and some have computer software designed to do it for them.
Create your own label
It is very common for people to not put up proper labels or markers when organizing their photographs. This can sometimes be because they do not have time to create good-quality ones, or due to lack of knowledge on what makes a good one.
There are many ways to make your own photo album dependent on your budget. If you would like to add some additional decoration to your albums, there are websites and apps that offer free artistic designs that you can use as a cover for your book. These covers can easily be customized so that it fits your style!
Overall, creating your own photo album marker is a fun way to organize your pictures and show off your creativity.
Take down the labels when it’s time to end the show
When you are done with your exhibition, take off all of the decorations! This includes removing the mats that were used to protect the work space from dirt, taking away the masking tape you use to label the photographs, and tearing up the paper tags where each photograph was assigned a number.
Once everything has been taken down, leave the room for at least 24 hours so that people have time to process what they just saw and to discuss their reactions about the artwork and/or the exhibitor. Then, start labeling your new materials!
This is an excellent opportunity to do some pre-labeling. For example, if your exhibition was focused on still life paintings, then begin labeling pots and pans in your kitchen.
