Which print should you choose for a home office?

Your office wall may be visible during breaks, behind the screen or in the background of a video call. These viewpoints show different parts of the room and can lead to different choices.

Here is how to choose a print, check its size and find its hanging height. This article’s comparison keeps the desk, green chair and plum wall in place: adding the abstract picture lets you see what a print brings to the space.

Behind you: check the camera view

Open your camera preview from your usual position. Look at the visible section of wall, the light and the objects within the frame. A detailed print may lose some of its subtlety in a small video thumbnail, depending on the picture and call conditions.

Large shapes and flat areas of colour provide an easy direction to compare on screen. Abstract prints and the abstract office selection offer curves, blocks of colour and graphic lines. Choose a picture you enjoy seeing at home, then check what remains visible behind your silhouette.

A typographic print can also work, but some of the text may be cut off or too small on screen. Try it before drilling: move a template, sit down and check the camera framing. You do not need to centre the print in the camera if another position works better in the room.

In front of you: choose a picture you enjoy looking at

The wall in front of your desk accompanies the moments when you look away from the screen. Some people prefer a quiet composition; others enjoy a map or a landscape full of detail. No subject guarantees concentration or suits every working day.

Minimalism, line art and black and white offer lines and contrasts to compare. Botanical subjects bring foliage; a Japandi influence can guide the connection with wood and other materials. Focus on the individual picture without assuming its style has an automatic effect.

Maps can recall a journey or a familiar place. Hang them close enough if their fine details are part of the enjoyment. They can also appear behind you on video calls: simply check the camera view and the balance with the objects already there.

Switch on your desk lamp and screen before choosing the position. Our photographic paper has a semi-matt finish, but a window or the frame’s glazing can still create reflections. The article on fine art and photographic paper explains how the material affects the result.

Find the right height from your seat

The height of the desk, screen and your eye level provide the most useful references. Make a template matching the frame’s external size, then move it until you can see the picture without obstruction. For example, above a desk that is 75 cm high, placing the lower edge at 105 cm puts the centre of a portrait 30x40 print at 125 cm, before adding mouldings. A 50x70 would have its centre at 140 cm: the size therefore changes the result.

For width, measure the space between shelves, the window and storage. Two portrait 30x40 prints with a 5 cm gap span 65 cm before adding the mouldings. Compare this group with a single picture using the frames’ actual dimensions. The guide to print sizes above furniture explains this method.

One main picture or several frames?

A single print focuses your choice on one subject. Three portrait 30x40 prints separated by two 5 cm gaps span 100 cm before adding the mouldings and create a different rhythm. You can replace one picture if the new one retains a connection in colour or design with the others. Our gallery wall guide suggests several arrangements.

The frame adds an outline and protects the print. Compare oak, black and white with the desktop and accessories. Then check the weight and suitable wall fixings. Leave enough room to adjust a task lamp or move the screen without hitting the framed picture.

Four compositions to compare as video call backgrounds

Four subjects to enjoy from your desk

Connect the office with the rest of the room

If your desk shares the living room or bedroom, also look at the print from the sofa or bed. The office selection can provide a starting point, but the picture also needs to sit comfortably among the existing furniture and colours.

In the visualisation, The Sun Behind the Curves brings orange, olive and cream tones to the plum wall. The oak frame connects the picture with the desk’s materials, while the green chair retains its presence. At home, a single repeated colour in the print may be enough to connect several elements without matching everything.

Our paper prints are made to order in Fayence on 270 gsm semi-matt photographic paper using pigment inks. To furnish several workspaces, the offices and coworking page offers another starting point. Specify the positions, quantities and sizes you need to build an arrangement suited to the premises.