other photography sources
- Large Scale Photo-Based Murals Need Very High Resolution Images
- Photo-Based Murals need high quality, high resolution images to produce a successful mural or large scale art work. For this reason we are proud to offer Panoramic Images collection of very high resolution panoramic photos. Because these images were shot with specialty high end panoramic cameras, by the best photographers in the business, they are ideal for large scale mural uses. For most murals over 15 feet (4.5 meters) they are the only affordable choice to guarantee a successful mural.
- Hiring a Panoramic Photographer
- Sometimes a project calls for a specific shot or location for a photo based mural. We can provide access to photographers near the location who specialize in shooting panoramic images suitable for your project. This is the most expensive way to acquire an image, but may be needed if the panoramic image is not available othewise. You may also have professional photographers on your staff or local to the location you may wish to consider using. Please Contact us for image guidelines based on your wall size before seeking to use or hire your own photographer.
- Historical Photo Sources
- While Panoramic Images has some collections of historical photos, sometimes a project calls for a historical photo of a certain bygone era or a particular city/location. There are a quite a number of historical photos taken up until around the 1920's that can be suitable for murals. Early photography shot from the mid 1800's up until around the 1920's utilized large boxy type cameras that produced negatives ranging from 8 inches (200mm) to 13in (330mm) size. When compared with photos taken with modern 35mm film, they have many times the relative resolution and the ability to be enlarged for modest mural sizes. Check with historical societies in the locality to see what images they have available that might be suitable. You can work with these sources to obtain high resolution scans and we can provide the digital retouching services to remove scratches, dust, or even to digitally reconstruct portions of the photo as needed. Keep in mind that photos taken after 1920 may still require rights to be obtained for use as printed murals. Please Contact us for negative scanning or digital file resolution guidelines based on your wall size before acquiring your image.
- Library of Congress
- The Library of Congress also has a large collection of historical photos that may be suitable for murals. As their online existing digital files are not sufficient resolution for most murals , there is usually the need to have the original negatives scanned to obtain high resolution files. You can work with the Library of Congress to obtain high resolution scans and we can provide the digital retouching services to remove scratches, dust, or even to digitally reconstruct portions of the photo as needed. Again, keep in mind that photos taken after 1920 may still require rights to be obtained for use as printed murals. Please Contact us for negative scanning or digital file resolution guidelines based on your wall size. Scroll down for Library of Congress contact info and a guide for browsing their picture archives.
- Stock Image Sources for Smaller Murals or Printed Art
- For smaller murals under 15 feet (4.5 meters), Plexiglas displays, or window film art, there may be royalty-free images available on some of the better stock photo sites that could be of sufficient resolution. Refer to the Photo Resolution/Size Guidelines below to first determine the minimum number of pixels needed for the longest dimension of your art. Once your know the minimum pixels needed, browse the stock photo sources to select candidates from images that meet these mimimum requirements. Avoid photos that are of poor quality, grainy, or have out of focus elements. We have had success using good quality royalty-free photos from Shutterstock and Getty Images (scroll down for guidelines for selecting images from these sites).
- Library of Congress Browsing Guide
- Library of Congress Picture Collections
- Below is step by step guide for browsing the Library of Congress:
- Library of Congress contact for scanning and duplication services is:
- Library of Congress Office of Business Enterprises Duplication Services - Customer Service Unit
- duplicationservices@loc.gov (email)
- (office) 202-707-5640 (fax) 202-707-1771
- Shutterstock
- After reviewing guidelines and step by step below, click here to go to Shutterstock.com
