The main reason why are photos picture framed with a window mat In this moisture-damaged example photograph, moisture o
r water has caused the water-soluble emulsion (the top part with the actual image) to partially liquefy and adhere or stick to the picture frame glass. This would probably not have happened had the photo been framed with a mat (or window-mat) to keep it away from the glass. Picture frames with photos should always .. be matted or have window mounts which, as well as visually enhancing the photo, help prevent photos from sticking to glass. Glassshould always be kept away from and not touch the photograph.
If this is not done, any moisture or condensation trapped inside, can react with and melt the emulsion (the thin photographic film) making it stick to the glass. When this happens we see "wet" marks under the glass because the photograph is actually wholly or partially stuck fast to the inside of the glass usually ruining it for good. While matting the photograph with a single or double mat certainly helps to prevent these accidents, there are also other strategies that can be adopted to minimize these risks.
Perhaps the first of these is to allow a photograph to "cure" or to properly dry in ambient temperatures. We sometimes receive freshly printed photographs tightly bound in a tube which are stick together because still "wet" after printing. Letting photos "air" in ambient air would obviate this risk. Another thing we can do is to print photos in a matte finish instead of glossy. The high-gloss, or high-lustre finish is smoother and more even than the matte and is more likely to "stick" to glass than matte.
A last point is to make sure we properly tape, with genuine archival tape, photographs to mats. Quite often we get framed photos where people have used cellophane tape or stationery tape to secure the mat. Just as often these tapes dry out, the photos fall out of position, move around inside the picture frame and come in contact with or touch the glass. In conclusion, the adoption of all these tips listed above will almost certainly prevent the dreaded "Help! My photo is stuck to the glass" syndrome. thank you for reading thise post "Why you should get photos picture framed with a window mat or window mount".
When photos stick to photo frames glass the moisture is caused by condensation. This is the same causE and effect one sees when you get in the car in the morning and the windows fog up or when you get a cheap watch and it fogs up in the inside. Basically, warm air trapped inside a photo frame hits the colder air outside and condensation, moisture particles of water from on the warmer side. This doesn’t happen that much with photo frames or picture frames in the sourthern states of Australia. It tends to happen more as one goes north, to the warmer states and climates of Australia. Still it’s always a good idea to put mats on photos that will go inside photo frames to help prevent this
But photo frames with mats, or matted frames, can cost double of the ones without. So I I use plain frames all the time anyway because I like lots and lots of photos on my walls. And if one photo gets stuck to the glass, as you say it might, I can always print another one. It’s so cheap with my laser colour printer to print another photo! So there, you don’t -always- have to have mats around photos!