Are borders non -cool?

[owithrow]

I go back and forth with my opinion of it and think it honestly depends on the picture.
I've been DYING to figure out how to make a cool splatter looking border I've seen on some of the pics I've come upon and just last night found the action in PS to do it (I'm goofy).

[lizziebelle]

I find them very distracting, and more times than not I feel they detract from rather than add to the picture.

[KodiakStar]

I like simple, thin, black borders, but generally never use them.

[kairos]

Right then is that a yes or a no to borders?
Joking aside thank you for all the replies so far. I feel that I have certainly hit on a controversial subject.
I have found the comments most useful:

To put a border round a print is a definite no,no.
To add a border to an image that is to displayed on the Net may enhance the picture if done with taste but certainly will not be acceptable to all critics of your picture.
Maybe there just is not a definitive answer.
For me I think I will leave the border at just a few pixels or no border at all.

Thanks again for all your comments,
Richard.

[jjohnsen]

In my opinion borders never ad anything to a photograph, and usually detract from them. When I belonged to an online critique group I automatically subtracted a point from any photo that had a border. Unless it's actually part of the composition, to me it looks like an attempt to make your photo look more important than it actually is.

It's a distraction.

[RePete]

What about the "drop-shadow" effect? In an attempt to give depth to the picture? Do you think they add or distract?

[peeperita]

tacky and uncool are definitely a matter of opinion....

i generally don't use them here, but i have been known to do them for myself at times when my framing calls for it....

there are some folks here that use them and use them well....i have always thought that windrider does a nice job with them......

peeper

[Taallyn]

I think it depends on what you are using the picture for. If you are posting a photograph for a critique of its photographic qualities, then a border is a distraction that takes away from that purpose. If though, you are using a border as part of the final presentation of a photograph, then that is as much part of your artistic/personal decisions as was your composition in the viewfinder when you took it. In that regard, borders are similar to matting when you frame a picture. The matting or border can help, or detract from the picture. However, if it suits how you wanted to present it, then it isn't really "wrong".

[wulf]

Originally Posted by RePete

What about the "drop-shadow" effect? In an attempt to give depth to the picture? Do you think they add or distract?

It can look good when presenting pictures but I still prefer shots that have no decorations - that allows suitable borders to be added at the framing stage when the images are printed or presented via a website. The problem with adding a drop shadow to the picture itself is that you don't know what background colour the shot will be presented on - for example, on DPS, a drop shadow to a white background would look all wrong.

Wulf