Putting on a show: Tips for exhibiting your work

Photographer Darran Leal and his son Frazer have launched a new exhibition at St Helens’ Panorama Hotel, Tasmania. Tasked with setting up a large-scale exhibition, we sat down for a chat to discover how he tackled the challenges of putting on a dedicated show with a tight timeframe and a small budget.

AP: How did you choose the images for exhibition, and how many made the cut?

Darran Leal: It started with a request for help from my oldest son, Pearce. “We’re looking at an exhibition. What would be a good theme?”

I suggested Earth, Wind, Fire.

“Too old hat!,” was his comment.

He encouraged something less obvious, offering ideas like Salt and Freshwater, Forest and Quiet, Rock and Sky. This also allowed for a natural flow between the themes.

Frazer and I have hundreds of thousands of images from around the world. Some stand out as unique, while others required careful searching to fit the themes.

At the same time, the images would be displayed in different parts of the hotel, which suited having different themes.

AP: Can you talk through your shortlisting/selection process of the images?

DL: As curators of our own exhibition, we had the freedom to decide which images best represented the themes. Both Frazer and I quickly narrowed our selections to about 100 images each. I then took the lead on the final choices, though input from a team was invaluable—so I ran some images past Frazer and my wife Julia for their opinions.

We aim to process each day on the road for just one hour. Thanks to that routine, the images were already 90% ready—sorted, rated, and processed, and just needed a quick check over.

Ultimately though, we have different styles, and Frazer’s eyes are younger than mine. I love strong colours and high contrast; he prefers subtler tones. In the end, we narrowed down to a selection of 54 images.

AP: You’ve had to carry many of the printing/framing costs yourself. How did you keep costs down?

DL: This will be my fifth major exhibition and Frazer’s first, and I knew that any support we could get would be key to make it viable.

Epson was the first to help, as I have been an Ambassador for them for many years. I decided to print all the images myself using the Epson SC-P906 with a roll paper holder. All the exhibition images are 80 cm × 40 cm panoramas, chosen to match the hotel’s name.

The hotel owner contributed to some of the framing costs in exchange for some of the images, and I also reached out to the local council and secured a grant to help make the exhibition a new attraction for the region.

Keeping the framing and print sizes consistent has also helped with the costs.

We don’t expect amazing sales, as those days are rare. But we do anticipate recouping our financial input within the first month, with the rest of the year offering some profit, with a bit of luck!

AP: Can you talk through how the images were prepared for print?

DL: I use Adobe Lightroom Classic for over 90% of my post shoot workflow. The printing dialogue setup is easy and based on the same engine that runs in Photoshop.

From base folders, I created Collections matched to the exhibition themes and simply dragged a thumbnail into the Collection as required.

This created a Virtual Copy and one that I could treat as print for that image without making changes to the base file.

That said, it wasn’t all plain sailing. Technical issues caused by computer upgrades had made the system default to the basic print driver that all computers include as standard.

When we started printing, and without realising, images were printing at lower resolution, and some colours were not correct. Then I had a conflict issue, as it would not default to the ‘full’ driver. A few days of hair-pulling and eventually we got it all sorted.

AP: How did you approach the framing?

DL: We used a local gallery, Whitelaws Picture Framing in Launceston. While we liked the idea of a more traditional matte and frame use, the hotel wanted something more modern, so we ended up with black frames with a direct print-to-frame edge and no matteboard.

Keeping with the local theme, we also used local Tasmanian business Henger (henger.com.au) to hang the frames.

AP: What are your favourite images in the exhibition?

DL: I have three that stand out for me personally. Three Giraffes, captured in 2006. Water Drops, captured in 2007, and a more recent image of a Platypus with autumn colours captured this year.

AP: Why do you think it’s important to print your work?

DL: While I think social media, and photo competitions can offer you some gratification, I think adding images to your wall at home is the most rewarding part of photography.

You get to enjoy them everyday, and in many cases control the end result. It’s a great challenge. ❂

You can see the Panorama's exhibition at Panorama Hotel, St Helens.