Buying Art Online: Photo or Fine Art Paper? Canvas, Acrylic Glass or Metal Prints?
I know buying art online can be difficult, and having lots of different print options to choose from doesn’t make things any easier. To help sort things out, here are some facts about each of the print surfaces that I offer:
Matte Cotton Rag Paper: My #1 choice for my fine art prints
My favorite paper for every image. The fine art paper I use is a heavyweight 100% acid free archival cotton rag that has a matte, smooth surface without reflections and glare. Images printed on this paper are slightly subdued, but still have brilliant colors, deep blacks, contrast, and perfect reproduction of details. The look and feel of this paper is artistic and luxurious. The cotton rag paper is perfect when you want a classic fine art look.
travel art prints: Matte cotton rag Paper
I previously used a more lightweight photographic paper for my travel art prints, but as of spring 2025, I use the same matte archival cotton rag paper as for my fine art prints. It’s such a beautiful paper and the prints are absolutely gorgeous!
Canvas ART PRINTS: Traditional, with more muted colors
Canvas prints are lightweight, easily portable and an economical alternative to traditional framed prints.
My canvas art prints are created by printing the photo directly onto museum-quality canvas with premium archival inks. The full image is shown on the front; the part of the image that wraps around the sides is mirrored from the original so that there is no need to crop the image or have a solid color on the sides. The print is then hand stretched and wrapped around a 1.5 inch wooden artist’s stretcher frame.
The surface of canvas prints have a classic canvas texture, and the images come out more subtly colored than on any of the other options here. I think canvas works best for my black and white and more muted color images, like the Sandpiper series, for example.
Metal ART Prints: Perfect for outdoor areas
Metal art prints are great when you want a frameless, modern look, and because they are weather and water resistant, they are a perfect choice for bathrooms, kitchens and sheltered outdoor areas (but avoid hanging them in direct sunlight outdoors).
Metal prints are created by infusing dyes directly into a specially coated aluminum sheet, resulting in vivid, luminous images with brilliant colors and clarity.
Because the image is infused and permanently bonded to the surface, metal prints are very durable, with an ultra-hard scratch-resistant glossy surface. They are also thin, lightweight, and easy to clean.
My acrylic glass prints have 1/8″, 1/4”, or 1/2″ thick glass and come ready to hang with wall mounts installed on the back. They are gallery quality and professionally handmade in the US.
Acrylic glass prints are great when you want a sleek, modern look with wow factor and colors that really pop. I especially love acrylic for my more colorful and vibrant images, like the Magoito series, “Turquoise Water”, and the Caribbean Sea prints.
Acrylic Glass art Prints: A contemporary vivid pop of color
Acrylic prints are light, shatterproof and resistant to UV light and temperature fluctuations. Acrylic (a.k.a. plexiglass) is unique in that light refracts within it (instead of passing through as it does with glass), resulting in an almost backlit appearance with the right light, and the polished edges give the image an almost 3D look.
There are a few different ways to create acrylic prints; mine are face mounted, meaning they are created by mounting a print between acrylic glass and aluminum DiBond (a rigid plastic core surrounded by two thin sheets of aluminum, very sturdy but still lightweight). The face mount is a more difficult process, but well worth it – the result is a clean, borderless and really vivid, vibrant image with rich colors and depth.
If you’re still having a hard time choosing between metal and acrylic glass prints, this post might help: Acrylic vs. Metal Prints. It has a lot more details and pros and cons of each.
