This idea came as a desire to make a gift for a friend. I wanted to see if I could create a photo using laser etching acrylic and also coming up with an interesting photo frame for it.

Step 1: Sketching/Drawing It Out

I used Vectorworks and Adobe Illustrator to vizualize the photo frame.

Step 2: Results With Laser Cutter

First, I tried doing this with a laser cutter. All the material was cut by the laser cutter and an image was etched using it too. I realized soon that laser etching really shines with images that have high contrast in the dark and light values.

In my experience, you are better of creating such pictures rather than playing with Photoshop filters. It still works, but the results are not very clear.

Step 3: Now With a CNC Router

Quite happy with the previous result, I invested in buying good wood (Walnut) and did the same thing using a CNC router. The wooden frame is 1/2 inch deep. I used Dowel rods to keep everything in place. Its pretty sturdy. Finished off the wood with Tung Oil.

The final outcome is 4.5 inch X 4.5 inch in dimension.

I was too excited to share this. If in the future I ever do this again, I'll probably take pictures of the intermediate steps. Hope You all liked it :)