1. The First Hello – Being Held By Mum For The First Time

After nine months of waiting (and god knows how long of huffing and puffing), your baby has finally arrived! Brief your partner (or someone in the room) to capture the moment you see your baby for the first time. It’s a photo you’ll treasure forever.

A First Hello For Mum - Image: Anna Todd Photography, Sydney.

2. Skin-On-Skin

You've probably read about all the benefits of holding your baby skin-to-skin. It not only calms your baby and helps to stablise their vitals, but it’s also one of the best ways to bond with them outside the womb. Capturing that moment when they curl up on your chest like a little joey, is sure to make you weep for years to come.

Mum and Bub Skin-to-Skin Bonding - Image: Lauren Douglas Photography, Townsville

3. First Feed

Whether you're breastfeeding or using a bottle, feeding your baby is on of the most natural things to do in the world. This is a great moment to capture, because not only has baby arrived, but you have too as a mother.

Mum and Baby Feeding Time - Image: Grateful Heart Photography, Melbourne.

4. Meeting The Family

Capturing the moment grandparents or siblings meet baby for the very time is magical. Be a fly on the wall and try to take candid shots to show the raw love, wonder and awe in the room. Both you and your children will look back on these shots in years to come, like the moment was only yesterday.

Big Bro Meets Little Br - Image: Flickr: ben_grey

5. Dad With Baby

They may not have been able to share the same with baby as you did throughout the pregnancy, but the moment a father holds his son or daughter for the first time is very powerful. Be sure to capture it!

Dad Holds His DaughterFor The First Time - Image: Mellawler Photography, Melbourne

6. Mum With Baby

Once you’ve recovered from the physical and mental verest of childbirth, ask someone to take a photo of you bonding with your baby. Mums are so often the ones behind the camera, but having shots of you and baby together is priceless and important for curious children in years to come.

Mum Bonding With Newborn - Image: Liane Bourke, Melbourne

7. Newborn Yawn

Bright lights, loud noises and funny smells! Life outside the womb is a lot to take in for new babies. It’s pretty common to see some pretty impressive yawns throughout their first day on earth, so have your camera ready and pounce when you see one launching.

Being Born Is Exhaustin - Image: Sara Bresser Photography, Perth

8. The Deep Sleep

There is nothing sweeter than seeing your little sweet sleep. Most babies are pretty sleepy for the first day - I remember thinking I had a 'great sleeper', needless to say that all changed! When you have them bundled up and tucked in, take a few shots of their precious resting faces before grabbing some shut eye for yourself. Bonus, you’ll also have proof of your amazing new swaddling skills...or fails in my case.

The Deep Sleeping Newborn - Image: Tracey Weaver

9. Tiny Feet

Everybody loves to look at tiny baby feet. Capture memories of those wrinkled tootsies before they're huge, stinky and running amuck in your house.

Newborn Feet -Image: Grateful Heart Photography, Melbourne.

10. The Finger Grasp

One very specific moment I wish we photographed, printed and framed, is my son’s minute-old hand holding my husband’s finger. It may have been a primitive reflex, but it was so special...and the first of many hand holdings to come.

Newborn Baby Finger Grasp -Image: Mel Lawler Photography, Melbourne

11. Mum's POV

A mother’s love is very difficult to capture. One way to get close is by shooting from mum's POV. Ask your partner to shoot over your shoulder to freeze frame those loving emotions you feel as you look down at your best achievement yet.

Newborn Snuggles From Mum's POV - Image:Sheridan Nilsson, Sydney

12. A Family Photo

This one might sound obvious, but getting a photo of the moment two became three is definitely a photo for the mantle.

The New Family - Image: Rushes and Waves

Ready to get started? We’ve rounded up the best tips and techniques for taking better photos with your iPhone.

Let’s go!

1. Clean Your Lens

It may seem obvious but cleaning your iPhone camera’s lens can dramatically improve your photos. Use the side of your shirt to clear off any dust and smudges before every photo you take.

2. Swipe Left For Quick Camera Access

They say the best camera is the one you have on you. To avoid fumbling around with passwords and face recognition, simply swipe left from your lock screen and your camera will automatically open.

3. Tap To Focus

Setting the focus is probably the most powerful tip to adopt when shooting with your iPhone. It's also the easiest! Just tap on your camera screen to place the ‘yellow box’ where you want your focus to be – typically this should be on your main subject. The area inside the yellow box will appear crisp and sharp.

4. Adjust The Brightness (Exposure) Of Your Image

One of the biggest letdowns of iPhone photos is that they are too bright (over-exposed) or too dark (under-exposed). But fear not, adjusting the exposure of your photos is super simple. Just tap the screen to set your focus and when the yellow box appears, move the toggle down to make the image darker, or up to make it brighter. You’ll know you’ve hit the sweet spot when you see vivid colour and lots of detail in your image.

5. Use Burst Mode To Capture Movement

Kids, pets and sports – some of the best moments to shoot involve movement. When taking photos of moving subjects, hold your finger down on the shutter button to activate burst mode. You’ll capture every step in the sequence as a series of action shots. Open up your camera roll and choose the frame you like best.

6. Create Symmetry With The Grid

The ‘Rule Of Thirds’ states that you should position your subject off-center (i.e in the left or right third of frame) – rather than smack-bang in the middle. An easy way to achieve this is by turning on the grid feature in your camera’s viewfinder. To do so, go to settings → photos and camera → grid → toggle it on. Now when you use your camera you will have four gridlines to help you take a more strategically composed shot

The Rule Of Thirds - Image: iPhone Life

7. Start Using Portrait Mode

If you’re not shooting with Portrait mode on your iPhone, you are missing out. This impressive (and easy to use) feature creates depth by sharpening your subject while keeping the background dulled. For best results, make sure you’re in a well lit area and stand between two to eight feet from your subject – when you see the words ‘Natural Light’ display in yellow, you are ready to shoot.

Using Portrait Mode On the iPhone - Image: Picr

8. Capture Stills While Shooting A Video

Did you know you can take still images while recording a video on your iPhone? When your video camera is rolling, simply tap the opaque circle on the bottom left of your screen to take a photo as well. When you are done recording, check your camera roll and you will see your full video plus all the still images you took. Best of both worlds!

Taking Stills From A Video on iPhone - Image: Jan Kopřiva on Unsplash

9. Zoom The Proper Way

This may come as a shock, but you should never zoom in by using two fingers to ‘pinch’ the screen. Shocking, we know! Pinching and zooming actually degrades the quality of your photos, seriously limiting how big you can print your images (if at all). The better way is to make use of your iPhone’s telephoto lens. If you have an iPhone XS, X, 8 Plus, or 7 Plus, simply tap the 1x icon at the bottom of the camera’s viewfinder. The icon changes to 2x which means you’re using the 2x telephoto lens. If your iPhone does not have this feature, you should zoom with your feet, or not at all.

How To Use The iPhone Zoom Function - Image: iPhone Photography School

10. Shoot From A Low Angle

Shooting from different perspectives can make your photos more interesting. One of the best ways to do this is by shooting from a low angle looking up, which will remove unwanted distractions and make your subject pop against an empty sky background. Shooting low also allows you to capture cool details in the foreground. For example, flowers, ripples, shadows and reflections

Shooting Up On the iPhone - Image: Edgar Chaparro on Unsplash

So there you have it, 10 simple ways to take better photos with your iPhone. Don’t forget your new (and improved) iPhone photos are able to be blown up and printed at large scale. Print and frame your best photos online here.

Bring The Outdoors In

Framing your photos and art is a great place to start as it instantly makes your place feel fresh and alive. A vibrant photo of nature will bring energy into your space. If your stuck for ideas, why not keep it local and photograph your favourite beach, hiking trail or other happy place yourself?

Be sure to read our Top Ten Tips for Outdoor Phone Photography before you get started.

Get Green With Indoor Plants

Indoor plants are a quick and easy way to breath life in your space, literally. From cacti and rubber plants to fiddle leaf and palms, there are indoor plants available to suit every interior style. According to Better Homes and Garden, in 2019, the theme for indoor plants is ‘the bigger is better' so it's best to choose mature plants that already stand 1m+ tall to maximise their impact.

Another trend for indoor plants in 2019 is to mix up how your plants are displayed. Use different coloured pots in different sizes, play with scale by using plant stands, bookshelves and existing shelving, and hand indoor plants from the ceiling with macramé hangers.

Pop With Colour

Add a pop of colour to your bare walls with some vibrant art prints. This fun Apricot Rainbow print by Apricot Memoirs is a guaranteed mood-booster and is conveniently available as a digital download. Simply upload the digital file to Framer and we will professionally print it and custom frame it to order.

Go On Vacay Again

Remember those million photos you took on your last holiday? Pick out your favourites and frame them as beautiful pieces of art that will keep you relaxed all year round. Choose our Instagram frame for a neat little accent for your bedside table or bookshelf.

Choose Light Coloured Frames

Lighten the look of your space with beautiful white and blond timber frames for your photos and art. Our picks:

Whiteley

Winton

Beachley

Namatijira

1. Clean Your Lens

Image: The Organised Housewife

Food smudges, fingerprints and grime. Chances are, the lens on your camera phone is pretty grubby. Before you shoot, wipe away any excess dust and grim with a microfiber cloth to ensure you don’t get distorted, or blurry-looking photos. Learn how to give your phone a proper spruce up here.

2. Don’t Zoo

Camera phones use the “pinch zoom” method to enlarge your shots, which degrades the quality of your image. To avoid getting grainy, low-resolution shots, try moving closer to the subject by foot. And when this isn’t possible (hello whale breaching out the sea), take the photo from where you are and crop your image later using a photo-editing tool.

3. Flip To Landscape

As the name suggests, landscape orientation is best for photographing, well landscapes! Capture the grandeur of coastal cliffs, beach scenes, mountains, bush and vineyards by shooting them wide and capturing their full surroundings (not just a portion of the story).

4. Turn Off The Flash

The flash on your camera phone is never going to have the ability to properly light up the subject and you’ll end up with something unflattering due to the harsh light. Where possible, make use of natural light where possible, as it is rather beautiful.

5. Work The Angle

Many people photograph everything with their subject smack bang in the middle of their frame. Experimenting with angles and perspective can give you photos that are much nicer and more interesting to look at. Try walking around, standing up or lying down to play with perspective. Or shifting your subject off to one side to capture more of the surrounding context. It can make for a far more interesting story.

6. Hold It Straight

A killer outdoor photo usually comes down to angles. Before you shoot, take a quick look at the horizon to check it looks straight in your viewfinder. The result is a more balanced, professional looking photo.

7. Mind The Sun (Or Don't)

Whilst the sun might feel glorious on your skin while out shooting, too much light flaring from the sun can produce distracting light shards across the entire photo and ruin the image’s colour and contrast. To get around this conundrum, try cupping your camera phone lens with your other hand or changing positions completely to limit the sun exposure in frame. That being said, deliberately capturing lens flares and incorporating them into the visual can leave your photo feeling whimsy and beautiful.

8. Shoot In HDR mode

When photographing high-contrast scenes with bright daylight (did someone say beach?), try switching to HDR mode on your camera phone to balance the photo’s exposure. It won’t be perfect, but it will definitely help reduce those blown out feels from the bright sunlight and hidden shadowy areas.

9. Add A Sense Of Scale To Your Shot

Sometimes conveying how epic something looks is rather tough. Try including a secondary object —a person, an animal, a tree etc. in the frame to give the viewers an idea of scale.

10. Frame Your Photos Online

Cracking outdoor photos should not be wasted in your cloud. Get them printed and framed and hung on your walls to enjoy year round.

Framer is the easy way to frame your photos. Print and frame your favourite outdoor photos online in minutes. In three easy steps you’ll have your photo off your phone and into a beautiful frame. They also make a great gift for the nature lovers in your life. Get started, frame your photos online now.

We recently teamed up with Interior Decorator, Zoe Gilpin aka The DIY Decorator, to custom frame a selection of her stunning maternity photos taken by the very talented Natalie Wood. Juggling motherhood and a thriving online decorating business, Zoe needed a fast and stress-free way to print and frame her favourite photos to display in her beautiful Perth home.

Above: Small (A4) // "Namatjira Slim" // Full Bleed (No Mat)

Above: Natural timber frames "Flannery", "Namatjira Slim", "Winton", "Hoges"

The DIY Decorator is the creation of Perth based Interior Decorator Zoe Gilpin. Over the years, it has become a popular social media platform for sharing all things interior related for the every day home decorator. Blogs, mood boards, personal style, small business support, shopping finds and much more. Zoe believes that everyone can afford to decorate their home within their budget and to their own personal style with a little guidance.

Create your own beautiful maternity photo frames in minutes! Simply upload your photos, choose your size and design your frame. We'll handmake it to order in our Melbourne studio and deliver it to your door within days.

These days, you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to fill a nursery with with gorgeous art. There are plenty of websites offering free art prints that can downloaded as digital files to your computer.

We've put together our top FREE picks from around the web. To get your favourite piece sitting pretty in your little one's room, simply upload the digital file to Framer and design a frame - you'll be able to preview the art in over 50 frame styles, which makes it easy to pick the style that best flatters the art. Then, we will professionally print the art on quality art paper, hand make your frame to order and deliver it to your door.

It's hands down the cheapest and most stylish way to hang beautiful art in your children's bedroom.

Little Gold Pixel

If you want impressive wall art infused with cuteness and personality on a shoestring budget, look no further than Little Gold Pixel.

A little bit beach, a little bit rock 'n' roll, the fun artworks of Little Gold Pixel tend to gravitate toward clean, minimal and sassy designs. As well as having a shop full of cute, affordable artworks to purchase, Little Gold Pixel also has an unmatched collection of free printables to download.

Our pick is this beautiful (and free!) Geometric Diamond printable art print.

Suggested frames: Whiteley, Blanchett, Lurhmann.

Mr Printables

Mr Printables is a quirky website offering stylish, creative and educational printables for children. There are fun games, cute stationary, genius party decorations, timeless craft activities and a range of gorgeous posters for kid’s bedrooms. When it comes to their free art printables, our top pick is this cool Alphabet Poster, available in English, French or Spanish!

Suggested frames: Bromley, Seidler, Winton

Free Vintage Posters

Free Vintage Posters offers free, high-quality downloads of printable, you guessed it, vintage posters. Choose from vintage advertisements, travel posters, retro art, movie posters and a lot more. It’s worth checking out if you want something unique and specific to you child’s interests. Who knows, you might even find something for yourself!

Our pick is this vintage French Motorcycle Club poster.

Suggested Frame: Jackman, Ned Slim

Other Printables We Love

In addition to these fabulous free library-style resources, we’ve put together a selection of our favourite one-off (and free) printables.

Good Vibes Flower Print from Sugar & Cloth

Suggested frame: Whiteley

Bonjour Print from Lost Bumblebee

Suggested frame: Jackman

Rainbow Alphabet Printable from Star Haus

Suggested frames: Whiteley, Beachley, Priscilla, Muriel

Pretty In Pink Flamingo from Oh So Lovely

Suggested frames: Whiteley, Seidler Slim

Anchor Print from Open Art ProjectOpen Art Project

Suggested frames: Whiteley, Fanning, Barnsey, Kenny Slim

His work consists of intriguing faces, repetitive shapes and stunning single line drawings, which look absolutely stunning hanging on a wall in a beautiful minimalistic custom frame.

“I enjoy working with the one-line drawing technique as there is no right or wrong way to do this, and often the mistakes or imperfections become the most appealing part of the drawing” explains Angus.

As an art enthusiast, there is nothing better than knowing that your piece is completely original and unique to you. When you purchase from Angus, all artworks are unlimited original copies, not prints. Meaning the original piece you take home has been recreated by hand and completely unique in it's own way.

Angus draws inspiration from music, often listening to a song on repeat whilst painting, allowing him to hone in on a particular memory or feeling. “Music can resurface a lot of memories, and if I am drawn to a specific lyric or tune, I’m transported to a particular time or place.” says Angus.

Angus says a lot of his work is centred around relationships and the ‘feelings and experiences that follow’. It’s truly remarkable how he manages to capture such a variety of emotions through a humble little line.

The work of Angus Martin is a hit with our hearts and our heads. He is a complete sensation and we can’t wait to see more from his studio very soon.

A gorgeous collection Angus’ work is available now to purchase from Art Pharmacy. When it comes to choosing a custom frame fit for this gorgeous Australian artwork, our advice is go simple, and go slim with your custom frame choices. Opt for light timber frames and black frames to ensure you complement, not compete with his work. Namatijira Slim, Ned Slim are our top picks.

So what does it all mean?

Full-Bleed Printing

Full-bleed printing (or choosing ‘no mat board’) is when your image or artwork goes right to the edge of the frame, without a border of empty space around it. With full-bleed framing only a tiny margin of your image or artwork is overlapped by the frame on each side.

Printing and framing full-bleed (with no mat) is very trendy within interior design circles, with it being the preferred choice for many artists, photographers and stylists.

Customer image: Little Nicki // Featured frame: Whiteley Slim // Mat Board: Full-bleed (no mat)

Customer image: Concrete & Honey // Featured frame: Winton // Mat Board: Full-bleed (no mat)

Framing With A Mat Board

Mat board is the cardboard-like material, which sits as a border around your photograph or artwork. When framing with a mat board, your photos and art sit behind the mat board and are visible through the mat board opening, which has an angled (bevelled) inner edge

Above Image: Mat boards sit over your photos and art, with the image opening having an angled (bevelled) edge.

Framing with a mat board gives your photos and art some breathing room, and is a great way to focus the eye inward towards your centerpiece. It is a great option for personal photos and art prints.

At Framer, we offer two sizes of mat boards – slim and wide. When custom framing with our Slim Mat, there will be a 50mm wide border around each side of your art, and with our Wide Mat, there will be a 100mm wide border on each side of your art.

Featured frame: Beachley // Mat Board: Slim White (50mm)

Now for some nerd talk - all of our mat boards at Framer are pH neutral and have a white core. This is important because it means they are nice and thick and won’t turn yellow over time (eww).

If you’d like to discuss alternate mat board sizes or colours, get in touch. We’d be happy to help.

Framing With A Float Mount

Float mounting is a beautiful way to display your artwork. As the name suggests, a float mount means your artwork sits on top of the mat board to give it the appearance that it is floating. Float mounting is a great choice for original art; when you have a piece with textured or uneven edges that you want to show off; or your want to display an artist’s signature.

To achieve this look, instead of layering a mat board with an opening over your art, your artwork is first mounted onto a thin piece of foam board and then mounted onto the mat. This raises your art so that it appears to hover within the frame, with a 50mm white border around all sides of your art.

Image Source: Little House Big City

Image Source: Kristjana S Williams Studio

At Framer we offer one colour and size for float mounting – white and slim (50mm). If you’d like to discuss other colours and size options, please get in touch. A float mount creates a visual effect that can enhance the overall look of your art. If you’re unsure if it is right for your piece, get in touch. We’d be happy to help you decide.

A keen surfer himself, Hewy knows the ocean like and old friend, which comes in handy when positioning himself to capture the perfect surf photo. So just how does he take the perfect photo of the Australian coast?

“I started out using the original Nikonos Camera in the 70′s for water photography — and over the last six years really came back to my passion using the Pentax K3, K5, and K7 cameras with Dave Kelly water housing, Pentax 10-17 mm fish eye lens & port, and for land-based work a Sigma 50-500 lens, with the recent addition of a Go Pro 3+ to the arsenal” explains Hewy.

As breathtaking as Hewy’s work is, he is so much more than just a lens bobbing around in the ocean. For over 20 years, Chris has worked with disadvantaged and neglected youth in the coastal town of Nambucca Heads. Stroll into town and mention his name and you’ll quickly learn that he has become somewhat of a role model, mentor and comforting pair of ears for many people in the community.

The full portfolio of surf and coastal inspired photographs from this frothing man-grom is available to view and purchase via the Hewy Surf website.

When it comes to custom framing coastal-inspired beach and surf photography like Hewy's, we recommend natural timber frames to compliment the raw beauty of the ocean. When selecting your photo frame, consider the colour of the landscape and choose a texture and colour that compliments not competes with the photo. Our top picture frames styles to try are our: Fanning frame, Blanchett Slim frame, Winton frame, Xavier frame, Namatijira Wide frame and the Ned Slim for black and white surf photographs.

Despite what you might think, custom framing your photos and art need not be an expensive an expensive exercise. With our prices starting from $49.95 (plus just $4.95 flat rate shipping fee), you can now enjoy the benefits of custom framing without the price tag.

So why exactly should you custom frame your photos and art?

1. Your art is the focus, not the frame

Any good framer worth their salt will tell you the key to quality framing is making whatever is inside the frame shine. Pre-made frames seriously limit your options when it comes to framing your photos and art. Why? Well, you’re at the mercy of what the department store has in stock, and let me tell you, they don’t have your photographs in mind when choosing what to sell. With custom framing, you have the flexibility to choose your the frame style, frame materials and mat board that best compliments what is going inside the frame.

When custom framing with Framer, you're able to tailor all the elements to perfectly fit your project. When it comes to mat boards, you can choose from no mat board, slim mat boards, wide mat boards, black mat boards, white mat boards, off-white mat boards and even a gorgeous float moat. This ensures your final product looks the best version of itself when it’s hung on your wall.

2. Your walls, your style

Another limitation of ready-made frames is their inability to suit the interior style of your home. When framing your photos and art, it’s important to consider the style of the artwork inside and how the finished product will work with the rest of the space. For example, if you’ve got a photograph of a beautiful coastal landscape, you might not want want to be constrained to a black frame or something too ornate. An organic timber frame may be a more suitable look.

When you print and frame your photos with Framer, you have the option to choose from over 50 beautiful frames, which have all been hand-selected by our design team to work with the modern Australian home.

3. Protect your art

Whether you’re framing your degree, a sentimental love letter or a cherished family photo, your keepsakes need to be treated with care. When custom framing, it’s important that anything that comes into contact with your photos and art is acid-free or else you risk deterioration or yellowing over time. All custom frames from Framer come standard with a ph-neutral mat board (that prevent paper-based artwork yellowing over time) and are tightly sealed with a foam core backing to keep out the dust. For our glazing, we use framer's grade acrylic instead of traditional glass, since the latter is a much heavier burden for your walls and is also prone to shattering.

4. Time Is Money

Weekends are for relaxing, having fun and hanging out. Not running around town trying to find a frame to fit your photos or posters. With Framer you can print and frame your photos in three simple steps. Upload a photo for us to print for a guaranteed perfect fit, and we'll deliver it framed and ready to hang.

So there you have it, four reasons why you should choose custom framing online. If you’re still unsure whether custom framing is right for you, we’d be happy to answer any questions you have. Ready to go? Start your custom framing job now!