The Digital Scrapbooking Alternative

 The digital scrapbooking alternative: 

As digital artwork is making its way into the mainstream; so is digital scrapbooking. For sure, we have a certain understanding about digital art, but what about the digital scrapbook? 

Traditional scrapbooks are made by hand with materials such as papers, pens, letter cut outs, adhesives, and any other embellishments you can think of. The main principle is  to create a wonderfully decorated page that would give a creative meaning to the message you want to present. Digital scrapbooking works on the same principle. You create unique page with decorations to enhance the meaning of the massage you want to address.

What sets the two apart is the method of achieving this principle. As mentioned, traditional scrapbooking uses material such as papers, pens, letter cut outs, adhesives, and other embellishments. Digital scrapbooking on the other hand uses computer graphics that replace  these traditional materials. You may say it is harder to work on the page design on the computer than on the actual page (traditional scrapbook), but  to be honest once you learn the techniques, it is almost the same.

Take the following for example:

The traditional scrapbook will work on a background or layout (sometimes called a template),  with pictures, texts, and embellishments. The process goes like this: you place the pictures on the background, place some embellishments related to your theme,  and write some text.

The digital scrapbook works on software with all the available digital embellishments and texts. You have scanned pictures to be placed on a chosen background. Put some texts and add some more designs. Then, with some more editing on the colors and borders, you have created a scrapbook page.

(Speaking of software. There are several software that would let you create digital scrapbooks. These are Microsoft® Digital Image Pro, Photoshop® Elements or Adobe® Photoshop®, Ulead PhotoImpact®, or Jasc Paint Shop Pro®, to name a few.)

Oftentimes, it is much easier to create a digital scrapbook than a traditional one. This is because software that lets you create digital scrapbook has ready to use templates for texts and backgrounds, not to mention the editing tools you need. These features make it easier to create  unique pages. Downloadable templates are readily available over the internet to widen up your choices on text, embellishments, and backgrounds. This is unlike traditional scrapbooks where everything depends on the products and color shemes you have on hand.

To further illustrate how a digital page is created, here are the steps to follow:

·  Create a new image from a blank canvas

·  Define the size of the page you will use.

·  Enter the settings you want to adapt.

·  Add the photo

Photos determine the color scheme of the layout, therefore, you may want to see first what picture will you going to use before determining the mat of the canvas.

To add a photo, you must first save one on a file. You can either scan pictures or take them from your digital cameras.

·  Create the background

Now that you have a determined canvas and photo, it is time for you to select your background. Here, the choices are endless. You can download images from the internet or use your photos to be the background itself. You can edit the texture of the background to match the theme you want to achieve.

·  Create the photo mat

Photo mats let the background and the photo meet on a certain point.

·  Add the text and embellishments

Ready made texts and embellishments are one good feature of digital scrapbooking software. This helps you to put important touches fast and easy.

·  Apply some finishing touches

Final editing is as important for placing everything in order. Make use of built in features such as shadows, embossing effects, and others. This would help your page look more attractive as it highlights whatever you want to show off.

Adding Journaling to Your Scrapbooks

Many people like to add words to their scrapbooks. Words help to tell the story behind the picture. There are several ways to add words to your scrapbook pages.

One way to journal is through premade words and phrases. You can find stickers, diecuts and word cutouts, all with different phrases. You can also use alphabet sets to create words on your pages. One page I did has my daughter’s four high school pictures, one from each year. Down the middle of the page I put the letters DPHS. In 50 years, when she looks at the page, she’ll know those 4 pictures were her four high school pictures.

Other folks enjoy writing in their albums.  If you are going to write on the pages, choose an ink color that matches the color theme of your page. You can write directly on the pages, or you can write on paper and then attach the paper right to your scrapbook page.

How much, or how little you journal is completely up to you. In some cases, I just wanted a year attached to my pages, so that my kids would have a general idea of how old they were at the time.  In other cases I wanted a city name or building name to remind me of where I took the picture.  In yet other instances I wanted to put people’s names and a little bit about the people in the pictures.

I know some folks who included song lyrics or poems with their photos. They believe the song lyrics or poem truly tell the story of the photos on that particular page.

I have several photos of my own grandmother. On page one, I have just one photo of her, and then a lot of journaling, speaking of where she was born, what year she was born, where she grew up etc. On other pages, I put many photos of her, with very little journaling.  It really depends on why you are making the album, who the album is for and what information you want to add with your photos that will determine how much journaling you’ll do.

If your children are young, or your grandchildren are young, it’s fun to ask them to write something each year and include that in the album so they can see their writing as they grow up.

Sometimes, if I have a lot to say, I’ll type it on acid free paper and then cut out what I’ve typed and add it to the page. Typed words will allow me to say a lot more than if I write the words.

Often, we want to include a photo or article from a newspaper on our scrapbook pages. My suggestion is to copy the article onto acid free paper, as the newspaper will yellow and crack with time.  One friend has a son who was on the high school football game during his 4 years in high school. He was often written up in the newspaper. She copied every picture and story written about him and he now shares those stories with his own son.

Another technique I use with journaling to cut shapes; ovals, hearts etc. and then journal on those pieces of paper and then attach to my scrapbook page.

If you are making a scrapbook for a friend, it can be fun to share your thoughts, versus just telling a story. For example, maybe you and a friend had a girl’s night out and took some photos. You can share “I remember how much we laughed and laughed this night. My stomach hurt from us laughing so much”.  This shares not only photos but you are also sharing yourself with your friend.

Acid free index cards are great for journaling. They are just the right size to write on and then attach to your scrapbooking pages.

There is no right or wrong way to journal. The key is to have something in words to help tell the story of your photo.

The Best Pens for Creating a Lovely Scrapbook

Crafting a lovely scrapbook is a fun task, and can be accomplished with minimal supplies and cash. Scrapbooks are a storybook combined with pictures, embellishments, documents, and more. Each step you take to embellish your scrapbook will tell an amazing story to the audience enjoying your creation. The photos say a thousand words alone, yet if you add a creative background, stationary, patterns, lettering, titles, captions, stickers, etc, you can liven it up even more to present an outstanding story.

Penmanship is important. If you need help with penmanship, you may want to create your own letters from scraps, such as patterns or stationary. When you create a scrapbook, you want compelling messages, lettering, journals, pictures, and more. You will need a genealogy to start telling the story of your family and their history. Next, you will need pens, paper, letterheads, stickers, etc, to finish your story. You will find archival pens in a variety of styles, colors, etc.

Pens available to create lively scrapbooks include permanent markers/pens, waterproof, non-toxic, fade-resistance, non-bleeding, quick dry, and pigment ink. Black, felt-tip pens are great also, yet you want to be careful not to apply too much pressure when writing. You want to avoid the acid-based pens, markers, etc. Search for the CK OK and P.A.T. approved pens in the craft stores.

How choose pens for writing lettering and journals:

If you choose, the felt-pens make sure that you understand the point size. The sizes range from .005 to .08-mm, depending on the style.

If you want to invent a fancy scrapbook check out the line of inscription pens. The pens are designed to handle captions, titles, etc. The pen tips have broad, flat tips and when used at a “45-degree” slant you can create beautiful letters. Practice first before using the pen if you are not use to calligraphy styles.

When creating borders, captions, or titles for your scrapbook you can use the Zig writers also. The pens were designed by expert crafters, or manufacturers that specialize in scrap booking. You will find the “Zig Memory” Systems, etc. “EK Success” is the creators of these pens, which include the Zig Writers, Calligraphy, scroll tips, fine tips, dense markers, brush pens, and the bullet pens. You have a selection of colors to choose from.

Additional pens include the chisel, colored pens, pencils, and the goof-proof rollers, which are gel based. Chisel comes in a variety of sizes, colors, etc, and will offer you versatile lettering. Scroll is designed to the handle sophisticated letters. The pen is called “Scroll and Brush. If you are familiar with computer fonts, perhaps the closest font to the scroll pens is the CASTELLAR font.

In addition to pens, you can purchase the craft paint pens. You will find a variety of colors and pen-tip sizes are craft stores, online, stationary stores, and more. The gel-based pens are similar to paint pens. In the line of pens, you will find lightning, milky, and more. The pens are ideal for writing journals.

Color pens enable you to color in areas of your scrapbook to produce a nice looking design. You can use the color pens also to draw your own pictures and more. Colored pencils are ideal for designing titles, lettering, captions, etc. The pencils come in a variety of colors. Some of the popular craft brands include Berol Prsima, and the Zig brands.

TIP: When using paint pens make sure that you apply adequate pressure without over doing it. To create letters, i.e. fancy letters large or small use the double “fine n’ chisels.

What is Scrapbooking?

All of us have heard of scrapbook but not all of us have really ventured into creating one. One sometimes really wonders whether creating a scrapbook is something we should attempt. These books filled with pictures, quotes and memories were definitely in vogue when we were kids and most of our parents had one wherein they stored memorable moments of us growing up. With the digital cameras taking over, our parents definitely had many more photo albums than we do.

A scrapbook is a book that aids in collecting scraps of memory to keep them safe till the time you decide to take a walk down memory lane and revisit school or college days.   It is something like a ‘pensieve' in which Dumbledore saves his memories except the one that you have will need to be created without the aid of magic.

Magic or no magic, you can conjure up a delightful scrapbook by a little bit of creativity. It can recount events of certain specific important days, have pictures of your first crush, include dried up petals of the first rose you ever got and be personalized with hand written comments from friends and dear ones.

Each scrapbook is personal and speaks a million words about the individual. Many secrets are hidden in the folds of the book and may be revisited years later. For many it is a fantastic way of capturing memories that you might want to share later with your children and your loved ones at a later time. Scrapbooks can form a lovely intimate gift to give someone you love, be it your kids or spouse.

Some people have the urge to create their own scrapbooks but feel that they are not creative enough to do justice to the concept. For such people many companies have made life easier by providing a solution with easy do-it-yourself guides. There are many pre-packaged scrapbooks available that have various sections to kick-start the creative process. These are fairly inexpensive and can be purchased even if you are not sure whether you shall see light at the end of the tunnel. If you are overwhelmed about the idea of a scrapbook and do not have the time to do it yourself, then hiring someone to do the job can also be considered. Even though the professional might do justice to the individuality that you want to lend to the book, creating a scrapbook on your own has its own rewards.