A wall is the default and it is not always the best answer — a wall is seen constantly, which means it is also stopped noticing within about three weeks.
Nine other places, roughly in order of how often the print will actually be looked at.
1. Inside a laptop lid, or the back of a phone case
Seen more times a day than anything else anybody owns. A 2x3 fits most cases; a 3x3 fits a laptop lid.
The most-looked-at surface in a modern life, and almost nobody uses it.
2. A wallet, or a pass holder
One print. Seen every time it is opened, and the one place a photograph is genuinely carried.
2x3 is close to card-sized and is the size to choose for this.
3. Taped inside a cupboard door
The unexpected one, and it works because of the unexpectedness. Seen twice a day, and only by the person it belongs to.
4. The fridge
The most-visited surface in a shared house, and the only place where shape does not matter at all. Also the place most likely to be seen by visitors, which is either the point or a reason to choose differently.
5. A desk, standing against something
A monitor stand, a book, a pen pot. 2x3 stands better than square, and a print that leans gets picked up in a way one that is stuck down does not. Which format suits a desk →
6. Inside a book they are reading
As a bookmark. Found once, moved along, found again for as long as the book lasts.
7. A car — the sun visor or the dashboard
⚠️ Laminate anything going in a car. Heat and direct sun through glass are the harshest conditions a print will meet, and an unlaminated one will curl and fade within a season. Lamination on polaroid prints →
8. Slipped into a card, a lunchbox or a bag
The one-at-a-time approach, and it is the version that produces the most reaction per print. Printed photos as a small gift →
9. A box, deliberately
Not everything has to be displayed. A box of prints that gets taken out occasionally is a different and older pleasure than a wall, and it is how photographs were kept for most of the last century.
| Place | Seen | Needs |
|---|---|---|
| Laptop lid, phone case | Constantly | Any size; 2x3 for a case |
| Wallet | Daily | 2x3 |
| Cupboard door | Twice a day | Tape over the corner |
| Fridge | Many times a day | A magnet |
| Desk | While working | 2x3, leaning |
| A book | Occasionally | Nothing |
| A car | Daily | Lamination, ₹3 |
| Given away | Once, powerfully | Nothing |
| A box | Rarely, deliberately | A box |
Why this matters more than the wall question
Thirty prints on one wall is one display that stops being noticed. Thirty prints spread across nine places is thirty small encounters, most of them somewhere unexpected.
At ₹9 a print, splitting a pack across places costs nothing and works better than filling a wall.
Frequently asked
Where can I put photos other than a wall? Inside a laptop lid, a phone case, a wallet, a cupboard door, the fridge, a desk, a book, a car, or in a box.
What size print for a wallet? 2x3 inch, which is close to card-sized.
Do prints survive in a car? Only laminated. Heat and sun through glass will curl and fade an unprotected print in a season.
Is a wall the best place for prints? It is the most visible and the fastest to stop being noticed. Splitting a pack across several places usually works better.
How many should go in each place? One or two. The effect of a single print somewhere unexpected is different from a wall of thirty.
Part of our guide to polaroid prints. See also: polaroid wall layouts and which format suits a desk.
Thirty prints, ₹270: Polaroid Pack · Custom polaroid prints