Keys to create an original poster with your best photos

Do you want to change the decoration of your house without spending a lot of money? Well the best way to do it is by giving new life to your walls. And what better way to do it than create an original poster with your best photos.

With some striking pictures

Anywhere in your home will feel renewed. And is that the eye tends to notice first what is at the same height.

Many times, the best images come with a touch of luck. Use it to print a unique poster that personalizes your spaces.

Take advantage of that spontaneous portrait<nbsp;of your children or that dreamy sunset photo to brighten up the living room or family room.

The easiest option is to print it in a large format, at least 50 x 70 cm and frame it with a simple mount or on a stretcher frame.

How to make an original poster design with your best photos

However, if you dare to play with the design, you can create a piece really stunning even if you are not an expert.

For this you can make use of some of the free software, which will adjust the image, allow you to add text or modify the colors.

Some can be used even from mobile, as they have a very intuitive navigation and even offer pre-designed templates.

We recommend you to try our free program with which you can design a poster. It works on both Windows and Mac.

Following the menu prompts, in just five steps you can make a very original poster, dividing your favorite photo into sections. You can use it both in portraits and in landscapes, creating small posters that together form the image.

At the end of your work it will be saved as a PDF that you can print directly from the Snappybook program with which you created the poster.

Best formats for poster design

If your ceilings are high opt for a vertical format of, for example, nine 30 x 40 cm prints.

Or, if you really want to get attention with your photo, you can make three prints of 70 x 100 cm to place on the sofa.

Posteriza

If you want to add some text to your picture, then you’d better use Posteriza, another free, Windows-only application. It is very similar to Posterazor, but also allows you to add borders, frames and a text layer.

DesignCap

When it comes to posters to promote an event, and you want an effective result. It is preferable to go for the pre-designed templates offered by sites such as DesignCap.

This platform allows you to design posters and flyers completely online, for free and without having to register.

In addition to the hundreds of templates available. DesignCap has thousands of resources such as pictures, cliparts, backgrounds and fonts that you can use and modify freely.

Play as you wish with all the elements, layering them, flipping them or varying the transparency.

The final product is a file in JPG or PNG that you can download in different sizes, between 1587 and 4959 pixels. So they can be printed in large format without losing quality.

Desygner

The application Desygner is also very versatile, as it not only allows you to work from your computer, mobile or tablet. But the designs can be shared by networks or printed out.

It offers a free version, with thousands of backgrounds, stickers and text formats, but what really makes it stand out is its image library, with millions of free photos and vectors.

In addition, you can import your photos and texts from PDF, PSD and Microsoft Powerpoint, and when downloading your poster you can select between PDF, JPG or PNG.

formats.

The application has more than 1.5 million users worldwide and it is estimated that every minute approximately 24 designs are made.

The application has more than 1.5 million users worldwide and it is estimated that every minuteapproximately 24 designs are made.

Crello

Another good alternative is Crello. It has many tools and resources but some of them are paid.
As a previous step you must register to access its gallery of images and other elements such as backgrounds, frames, stickers and icons.

The application allows you to download your posters or share them online, in addition to offering an online space to archive them.

Canvas and BeFunky
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Similarly, the two most popular online design sites work: Canvas and BeFunky

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The first of them allows retouching and editing images and applying them in all kinds of designs. You can work on a blank canvas or by modifying one of its templates.
“Diversity of print formats”
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It allows crop the photos, apply filters and add text. The final work can be downloaded in JPG or PDF format, and is ready to print.

BeFunky also features a wide variety of templates to which you can add or remove elements to adapt them to the design you want to achieve.

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Works with vectors, photos and texts, easily modifiable through its editing menu.

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On finishing your poster you can export it, publish it on social networks or upload it to the cloud in spaces such as Dropbox or Google Drive. Of course, you can also download it to your computer.

Both BeFunky and Canvas require registration of your data, but it is a quick and easy process that is compensated by the variety of resources they put at your fingertips.

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Scribus

For those who want to have a total control over poster printing, Scribus is the best option.

It is an open source application initially conceived for self-publishing. But which works very well for designing posters and brochures.

Its iinterface is easy to use, and requires no technical knowledge of design or printing. And if you have any questions you can turn to the free tutorials and the online wiki.

Allows controlling the display and conversion of CMYK colors, spot colors and ICC profiles. Your creation will be saved as PDF, with various export alternatives.

Choose the best design for your posters

Whether you need to print a poster to decorate your home or a few to publicize an activity, you should pay close attention to their design.

At present, the square formats are widely used because they break with the standard of the vertical poster and allow compositions with complementary posters.

Aspects to consider

Remember that the balance of text and images is key to achieving a striking poster that effectively communicates your message.

The name of the event or the text you wish to add to your photo, must stand out, but without obscuring or detracting from the image.

Use a appropriate font size that can be read from a distance and choose a color that contrasts with the background.

Weighlighting.

Make good use of typography and use bold type to highlight important text. Or increase the spacing between letters to give it more prominence.

You can combine different fonts, and even use one that simulates handwritten text to highlight some information.

“The ideal number of fonts does not exceed 3”

But don’t overdo it, because if you mix too many fonts it could look messy. As a tip, use a maximum of three different fonts.

At least three different fonts should be used in the same font.

If this is an event, be sure to include the date in one position and at a readable size, but smaller than that of the main title.

If you consider it necessary add a subtitle or explanatory text din an eye-catching way.

Care to be precise but brief, so that the sentence has no more than 3 to 5 words. Think about the distinguishing feature of the activity and the target audience

Now you have to choose the best image to create a background according to the theme. The predominant color of the photograph should match that of the text.

Don’t forget the tones

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Choose complementary shades and don’t forget to try effects like duotones in photos. Our recommendation is that you use no more than three or four colors that harmonize with each other.

You can use geometric shapes, such as circles, rectangles or squares to frame the text. But if you apply them with fill graduates very well their intensity or transparency. So that they do not hide the background image.

If you apply them with fill that is, if they do not hide the background image.

“Use photo overlay for unique images”

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There are some resources that work very well and you can incorporate in your design without major complications.For example, the overlapping of two photos, applying transparencies on the front image.

Do not discard the illustrations, either as main image or as a complement to the photograph. The use of this resource is very eye-catching and allows you to create very trendy posters.
But if you need a quick and safe solution, and you don’t trust your design skills. You’d better opt for a pre-designed template and edit it according to your needs.
Yes, if it is a poster for an event or commercial activity make sure you use royalty free images and templates to avoid problems with intellectual property issues.
At the time of printing them, opt for specialized services that guarantee a quality final finish.

“Maintain sharpness with photo paper.”
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The photographic paper is a very good alternative, because it keeps the images sharp and brings out their colors.

At Snappybook you will find very good alternatives of sizes and formats, that work perfectly with any design.