 i've been staring at this photo book since october 2007 and decided that it's probably about time i did something with it -- and like everything else that i do, i seem to thrive on doing things the hard way as opposed to the easy*breezy way
naturally, i picked this time to tackle this project using photoshop - i didn't want to just print the photos, oh no, i want to embellish, crop, color, the works.... hmm, what was i thinking... my first digital scrapbooking project using photoshop? am i insane? i'm not really a photoshop expert, but know enough to crop, drag, move things around, change colors, so my photoshop manual is right next to me, just in case! yup, i do have some "nerdi-ness" about me...
oh yes, think big, i say, why not, afterall, everyone seems to be doing it - why can't i? i wanted to see what the big fuss is all about with digital scrapbooking... and now i know.......i absolutely love it --- i'm hooked!
let the fun begin...
(make sure you watch the how-to-video on the right)
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pick the pictures you want to include
in your photo book the hardest thing to do is selecting your photos. for this project, i must have looked at a minimum of 100+ photos - remember the colors of your pictures may influence the digital elements that you choose to construct your pages. take your time when selecting your photographs. oh yes, my pictures are 300 dpi.
this is my niece isabella - she looooves the camera and the camera loves her! can you tell she loves disney? | | |
arrange the scrapbook pages using photoshop or photoshop elements once you've selected your pictures, you can begin to arrange the pages using photoshop or photoshop elements. i used the simple memories layered template book from www.designerdigitals.com . i liked the layout of this template - it's simple, clean and i like the stitched edging and the postage stamp element that holds the pictures. this template actually comes 12x12, so i modified the size to a 5x7 so it fits the photo book. the focus is really isabella's face, so there was a lot of cropping.
here are sample pages that i've created: | i was amazed to learn that there's a ton of digital scrapbooking websites online - i must warn you - be prepared to peruse thru lots of fabulous art work! spend the time to figure out which digital elements you could use - what colors, what brushes, what ribbons and miscellaneous embellishments.
also, before you make a purchase of these digital elements,
check out sites that give digital freebies. another favorite site is www.twopeasinabucket.com- you'll find that there are lots of places willing to give free stuff hoping that you'll want more - it's a matter of taste and really depends on the theme of your book - the prices of these elements range from $2.50 to $25+-
the great thing about these digital elements is you can use them over and over again for personal use. ...and the best part of all is that someone already did all the hard work of designing the art work! i'm loving that! that saved me lots of time!
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printing your pages
the pages were printed on 8-1/2x11 HP brochure paper glossy using my HP Photosmart D7360- i like the feel of this paper, it's a little bit more flexible - slippery like the pages of a magazine but just a tad thicker. by the way, the HP Photo Book kit comes with 12 photo paper, and as you can see, i like to make things difficult for me and didn't use the pre-cut photo paper that came with the kit. it figures!
cut the pages and you're ready to arrange the pages in your photo book. you're almost done! | |  |
inserting your pages in the photobook an interesting aspect of this photo book is the binding system - it's like a clamp which pinches all the pages in place, making it really easy to swap pages in and out - make sure you check out my video so you can really see how simple it is to finish your photobook. there's no gluing, just arrange and you're done! |  | |
finally! it's all done! my first digital scrapbook |  | |
- digital scrapbooking elements from www.designerdigitals.com
- Simple Memories Layered Template Book
- Jungle Gym Stickers
- All About the Girls Word Art
- Monkey Do Stickers
- Fresh Flowers Brushes-n-Stamps
- FREE HP Online Classes (check schedule)
- Getting started with Digital Scrapbooking
- Adobe Photoshop for Photographers (not offered at this time)
- Intermediate Photoshop CS2
- Touch up digital photos with Adobe Photoshop Elements
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