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Three Things : Tools

Following up on last week's words + photos series I wanted to feature three things today that have become staple tools for me:  

Crop-A-Dile : This is probably my most recommended tool. I use it mainly for the hole punch feature (it will go through just about anything: chipboard, metal, some acrylic, etc.). The best part is that you don't have to squeeze hard at all to punch the holes. Check out We R Memory Keeper's website for a how-to and other creative uses.

Basic Grey Rub On Roller Tool : Do I really need a rub on tool? That was the question I asked myself when I first learned about this device. I was skeptical at first but after testing it out I found that it really works well. The best part about it is that there is some "give" in the ball tip that especially helps when rubbing on some of those "tougher" rub ons (rub ons are definitely not all created equal).

Fiskars Desktop Rotary Paper Trimmer : I went for a long time using just a craft knife + metal ruler for all my cutting (cardstock, patterned paper, photos, everything). I had tried a couple different trimmers when I first started scrapbooking and was completely dissatisfied with the results - nothing cut straight. I decided to try again this past year and started with this trimmer. I love it. I love that I can see where I am cutting (a clear plastic piece makes this super easy) and it cuts straight. I use this one all the time now.

[ Three Things is a weekly product series : check out the archives here. ]

Is this New Hampshire?

I think I am finally getting just a glimpse into what it would be like to live in New Hampshire or Iowa during the primary season in presidential election years.

Being in Oregon we rarely get much attention from presidential candidates in the primary. Our primary is coming up on May 20th (the only other ones left after us are Republican primaries in Idaho & New Mexico, a Democratic primary in Montana, and both parties primaries in South Dakota and Puerto Rico): the airwaves are congested in with political ads, the phone is ringing with pollsters on the other end of the line, and the candidates are actually visiting cities all across the state (and not just stopping in Portland).

Senator Obama was here in Eugene on Friday night speaking to a crowd of about 8000 at the University of Oregon. I just heard on the radio that he will be back to Oregon again this weekend. Senator McCain is here today. Senator Clinton was in Central Point on Thursday and in Portland at OHSU on Friday. President Clinton was in Pendleton last night and is traveling all over the state today promoting a "Bring Your Ballot" events (Oregon is the only state with a complete vote-by-mail system.). We are still hoping for the chance to see Senator Clinton here in town.

For our little family who is interested in the political process, government, public service, current events, history, etc, this is really quite exciting.

Before Senator Obama spoke on Friday night we had a chance to go behind the scenes with a small group and welcome him to Eugene.

Chris got his book signed.

Simon got to shake hands.

I got a blurred shot to go along with my collection of blurred favorites.

And Simon's favorite part of the night was acquiring this flag that he was able to wave like crazy (thanks Emily). He was super serious about his job as a flag waver and made sure that we were all cheering at the appropriate times.

It's a pretty amazing time in the history of our country.

On another note, I hope you all had a fantastic Mother's Day. We got to have lunch with my parents on the coast and dinner with Chris' here in town. We are pretty darn lucky: both our Mother's still love us and listen to us talk politics even though we are on opposite ends of the political spectrum (they definitely don't sit quietly though - lots of lively, interesting discussions).

Love you Mom!

words + photos : friday + weekend creative

The project this weekend is to create a layout using only words + photos. Maybe one other embellishment? That part is completely up to you.  

What is a story you have been wanting to tell?

Remember this photo from earlier in the week?

That photo + words printed out on textured cardstock + a bit of ruler ribbon (and a smidge of ink) =

[ cardstock: Bazzill; font: Avenir; ruler ribbon: Papier Valise; ink: Stampin Up; date stamp: Staples ]

Here's a couple things that ran through my mind as I was putting this page together:

1. Use journaling as a chance to speak to your audience. In my case my audience is often Simon. I write as if I was talking with him, telling him the story. This is real language and more personal.

2. Remember that there are lots of different ways to get words onto a page: handwriting, type, stamping, letter stickers, typewriter, etc.

3. Don't forget a date. Man, this is such an easy thing to forget. I scanned this layout in before realizing it was missing the date. Depending on the story I am telling I may include that date I wrote the jouranling as well as the dates for the photos (in this case they were the same).

4. Maybe my next ten layouts will be as simple as this and maybe not. Bringing yourself back to these basics for a bit and then moving forward gives you perspective once again. So worth the effort.

Thanks to everyone for all the kind comments this week. It has been cool to delve deeper into the real heart of scrapbooking. Going through the process of gathering all the content has solidified my belief in the power of words + photos. They are what truly matter to me in the long run.

There is also something very powerful about the process of creativity. I was reminded this week that there are so many different ways to be creative.

Focusing energy on words + photos is a creative act. My creativity comes into play big time when I take photos (setting up the shot, following the emotion, capturing moments that otherwise go by in an instant) and when I sit down to write the story.

Again, thanks you for your interest and time this week!

[ The full words + photos series can be found here: monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday ]

words + photos : thursday

You've got some photos + you've got some words. Now what?

Here's 10 ideas for keeping the focus on the words + photos in your projects:

1. Create most of your design on the computer (can also be called hybrid-scrapbooking: a mixture of traditional steps and digital/computer steps). Here's an example of a layout where the content was created in Photoshop, printed at home on photo paper & adhered to a piece of patterned paper. A patterned strip stitched between the words + the photos "grounds" the content.

This same foundation could easily be created without a computer as well: crop photos, adhere in a square on a piece of white cardstock, handwrite journaling below and then adhere the piece onto patterned paper. (For a tutorial on creating a gathering of photos in Photoshop go here - scroll down a bit within the newsletter to locate to how-to.)

[ from Life Artist ]

2. Get the look of an over-sized printer with a regular one when you have a lot of words. Create journaling on the computer (in Word or whatever word processing program you use), set the paper size to legal under page set up, and run the cardstock through a your printer (make sure to set the print size to legal as well). Legal size is 8.5x14 so keep this in mind as you are adding your text. This layout definitely keeps the focus on the words + the photos: an older one but a classic in terms of pinpointing the heart of what we do.

[ from BHG, Scrapbooks Etc, June 2004 ]

3. Use a computer tablet to add handwritten words onto your layout or right onto your photos. I use this one for design work, but depending on what you want to do with the tablet this one would totally work as well (I prefer the larger work space on the first one). Usually I will write my words in Adobe Illustrator but Photoshop works just fine too. Words like you see below can be added right onto my photos or as a title for my journaling.

4. Add type directly to your photos (either in Photoshop or with letter stickers/stamps). Photoshop includes a Type tool that allows you to add words onto your photo before printing them. The sample below is a spread from a minibook where each photo included the words "today you" and then tells a piece of the story. I really liked the combination of computer and handwritten text.

[ from Creating Keepsakes Studio A June 2006 ]

5. Print journaling on a transparency to layer on top of more than one patterned paper (or on top of a photo). I also like the look of the photo frame on the right (layer a bunch of photos that touch the edge of the cardstock and place your journaling on top in the center to create the look of a photo frame).

[ from Creating Keepsakes 2006 ]

6. Make a photobook. There are quite a few options out there for photobooks. I have been working with Shutterfly, through CK Media, and have had a great experience with them. They have a vision and a philosophy and understand the heart of telling our stories. You can order photobooks, like this one I designed, that are a "built" scrapbook where all you have to do is add your photos and text. Or you can go simpler with something like iPhotos "book" feature.

[ 8x8 Shutterfly Celebrate Everyday Life Photobook ]

7. Get your handwriting mixed in with those photos. One of my favorite ways to include handwritten journaling is to frame my grouping of photos (+ other elements). In the case of the layout below I drew a single-lined box with a ruler and used that as a guide for adding my handwriting.

[ from Life Artist ]

8. Let the photos take over, literally. Cover background cardstock with photos and add word stickers to tell the story. Contrast a large photo with smaller photos for added interest. Most of the word stickers below are Wordfetti from Making Memories (you can find some of those here, here, and here). You could also use a white pen to add hand-written journaling directly to the photo.

[ from Creating Keepsakes Studio A May 2006 ]

9. Grab bits of this and that for journaling blocks. Leftover paper works great for this as well of a plethora of products available on the market these days. They are perfect for quickly jotting down those words and pairing them with photos. There are lots of Etsy shops right now that sell little journaling cards (or you can always just make your own). Here's a couple shops to check out: Elle's Studio, Living Room Floor, Shim & Sons, and every jot and title. The only downside...sometimes I find not enough of the story gets told when I use these small pieces. They often make it to easy to quit when you just get going into the story - maybe when the real story is coming out. Be choosy. I am trying to use them now when I really don't have much to say (which requires a bit more thinking through during my process time).

[ from AEzine 2006 ]

10. Words + photos. Just keep repeating that to yourself. What is the story I want to tell and how can I simply focus on that? So much of this is just saying no to the excesses that have the potential to get in the way. Tell your story. 

[ from A Designer's Eye for Scrapbooking ]

Check back tomorrow for a weekend creative project focusing on words + photos.

[ The full words + photos series can be found here: monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday ]

words + photos : thursday : coming soon

Today's post will be up at noon, pacific. Have a great morning!

Thanks for participating.

Thanks for all the wonderful photo tips - lots of great things to check out there in the comments.

The winners of the WorldWin gift packs are:

1. Guess my photo tip would also have to be to have your camera with you. It's always those times that its not there that the cool shot gets away. Love looking back and seeing how far I've come and how far I have to go.
   thanks for the inspiration.

   Posted by: carrie p | Tuesday, 06 May 2008 at 03:01 PM

2. My tip is to just keep taking photos the more you pratice the better you become at it. I love photos

   Posted by: Tracey Clouten | Wednesday, 07 May 2008 at 02:11 AM

3. always charge the battery!!! and try to take more photos of everyday ordinary stuff and not just "special times"

   Posted by: carolyn streeter | Tuesday, 06 May 2008 at 05:33 PM

Please email me with your contact information. Happy Wednesday.

words + photos : wednesday

Today I want to focus on the words.  

• What if you collected stories the same way you collect supplies?
• What if you did your journaling first, rather than last, in your creative process?
• What if you began paying attention to your life in a way that enabled the stories to free-flow from your fingers onto the page?
• What if you encouraged your kids (by example and through encouragement) to be the kind of people who grow up telling their own stories?
• What if you truly valued your individual story and life experiences and were brave enough to share them with others?

[ this is scrapbooking : part of a series on Simon's journey from Life Artist ]

I am one of those people who actually enjoys the process of adding the written story to my layouts. I begin most of my pages with something to say or a specific story to tell. Sometimes the words have been thought out (or written out) in advance and other times they are gathering together as I am grabbing my supplies and printing my photos.

Overall, what do I want to say?

1. I want my stories to be real. Real to me means that I leave a part of myself within each story. I want to leave evidence of my existence in the words I chose.
2. I want some stories to be long and complete. I want other stories to be quick - maybe just a few words to complement a photo that really needs few words to communicate a message.
3. I want to tell stories that celebrate our everyday life as well as stories that deal with our challenges.
4. I want to grow as a writer. I know that writing helps me know myself better.
   
5. I don't want to be bound by fears of misspellings, grammatical errors, etc. I just want to tell my stories.
6. I want my stories to show that I was paying attention to my life.

What do you want to say?

[ MacJournal screenshot ]

How do I keep track of the stories I want to tell?

1. Blog Posts : I have talked some in the past about using your blog posts as the content for your layouts. This has become routine for me. Remember you don't have to create a public blog - most programs give you he option of creating a private blog. Writing while you are living through an experience (even everyday life) is completely different than going back and trying to document something after the fact.
   
2. Not all our stories are shared on this blog. Many of them go into a program I use called MacJournal. I use it to keep track of daily thoughts, stories, lists, etc. I have folders for me, Chris, Simon, Family, etc. Many of those words will end up on a scrapbook page or in a minibook. An easy way to do this if you don't have a Mac is to set up a Word document (or a folder with other topic folders inside) just for stories. Keep it on your desktop for easy access. Does anyone have a journal-type program they recommend for a PC?
3. I also carry a Moleskine notebook with me for on the go thoughts. Over the last couple of weeks I think I finally made the move to one notebook (it was just getting to crazy with too many random books).
4. If my notebook isn't with me I have also been known to use my phone to jot down story ideas as well.
5. I don't write everything down. I tell stories I am inspired by at the moment. Sometimes I will be reminded of something to document at a random time - this is when a notebook or a computer file really comes in handy for jotting those things down before they are gone.

[ from A Designer's Eye for Scrapbooking ]

Writing techniques:

1. Start each sentence in your journaling with the same word. In the layout above about my Grandpa I used a bunch of choppy sentences that say things such as, "A family man. A farmer. An educated man." Inside the pocket is a note he had written me. Another favorite of mine was a minibook recently where each page began with the word "sometimes." There is no right or wrong for documenting your stories with words.
2. I journal both on the computer and by hand for my layouts and projects. It often depends upon the length of the story and how much I care about getting the details right. I tend to be more organic when I write by hand (both in sentence structure + overall feel) and more structured when I use my computer.
3. Make friends with your thesaurus. I refer to my computer version often.
4. I aim for a combination of feeling + fact. Sometimes it is heavier on one or the other but in general I like to include some of both. The facts ground the story and the feeling gives it heart.

[ from CK  Studio A February 2007 : read the journaling from a blog post here ]

Things to keep in mind as you focus on the words:

1. You only have to tell one story at a time. Tell one story. Move on to the next one.
2. Break your story down into manageable chunks. Some stories are super overwhelming. Where do you even begin? When you are documenting a story remember that you don't have to start at the beginning. Start in the middle. Start at the end. No one will ever know where you began your process. Write the easy part first and then move on to the tougher portions (or vice versa).
   
3. It's ok to begin a project without knowing what you are going to say. It's ok to create layouts that  have just a few words. Often the process of creating the page can help you identify what is most important and what you want your words to communicate. The key is to make sure you add that story before you move on to the next project.
4. Keep writing. Confidence comes with practice. Confidence comes with accepting your own personal voice.
5. Everyone has their own issues related to writing. It is a very personal thing. Telling our stories is a very personal thing. Identify your own biggest writing challenge and begin working through it. Practice and patience with yourself are a couple things that will help you tackle those issues.
   
6. Your family will thank you for taking the time to include the words (even if you are not there to receive the thanks).
   

For more on this topic check out AEzine Issue Two : Words.

Tomorrow : bringing the words + photos together with some practical techniques.

[ The full words + photos series can be found here: monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday ]

3 Things : playing with printing + a giveaway

Staying in the theme of words + photos this week I wanted to experiment with a couple different inkjet printing surfaces. I took that photo of Chris & Simon and the tie and printed it on each of the following using my HP Photosmart D7360:

[ Warning : any of my experiences below could very well be operator error. ]

WorldWin Inkjet Printable Translucent Vellum : Quick and easy. Great result. See sample below. It's been awhile since I last used vellum and it was fun to reintroduce it into my supplies. Definitely want to play with it more: thinking about layering with transparencies and text and photos.

EQ Printables Peel & Stick Fabric Sheets : love the idea of this. My first issue is that the paper got stuck in my printer (grumble). Round two, stuck again. What seems to be happening is that the fabric is peeling back and getting stuck inside the mechanisms of the pinter. I am thinking to myself as I go through this process: how long do I mess with this before I just quit? Round three, stuck again (and yep, I am trying different settings as I go). Ok, after a couple more tries (and the passage of half-an-hour) I am done trying - I am not enjoying the process and there is no simplification happening here. It's such a bummer - would love to see how this would work with my photo. I may try again on another day. Anyone else tried this and had success? Tips?

Grafix Rub Onz - Create your own rub ons. Super cool idea. I wanted to see if this would work with a photo + some words...and at least in my case it was a challenge. This is a multi-step process that includes printing, then placing adhesive paper on top, and then adhering your image to final paper. The real challenge is getting the adhesive paper onto your image without bubbles. The second challenge is in the choice of the paper you rub on to. I tried it on textured cardstock and it didn't seem to work - it just tore the paper. I will probably try this whole process again to see if I can make it work.

[1] EQ Printables Peel & Stick Fabric Sheets (notice the pulled up edges). [2] Photo printed onto WorldWin Inkjet Printable Translucent Vellum - I wanted to see what it would look like with the KI lace cardstock in the background (right now it is just held on there with a paper clip). [3] My attempt at using the Grafix Rub Onz onto cardstock (this could have been part of the problem - maybe it needed a slicker surface for it to adhere) - all it did for me was rip the cardstock. [4] The original photo printed on photo paper.

And now, the giveaway:

3 readers will receive the following from The Papermill Store/Worldwin:

• 1 pack 27 lb WorldWin Inkjet Printable Translucent Vellum
• 1 pack 40 lb WorldWin Inkjet Printable Translucent Vellum
• 1 pack 12x12 WorldWin Doublemates Cardstock
• 1 pack 12x12 WorldWin Rouche Cardstock

For more information on The Papermill Store/WorldWin, check out their blog here.

For a chance to win this selection of papers leave a comment below with your favorite photo tip or what you want to work related to taking photos. Winners will be drawn tomorrow at 5pm Pacific.

Don't miss today's words + photos post below.

words + photos : tuesday

[ Three Things will appear later today as a separate post. ]

I am not a professional photographer. I just like taking photos. I like documenting my life's experience with photos that reflect the emotions and the relationships and that celebrate everyday life. When I create scrapbook pages I am striving for a complementary balance between words + photos. They are equally important to me in the process.

Today I want you to think about the way in which you take, and deal with, your photos - your own personal process.

• Do you "see" stories through the lens of your camera?
• What parts of picture-taking are you struggling with?
• What parts are you trying to make perfect when in reality everything you are doing is just fine?
• What, if anything, do you want to learn about photography?
• In what ways could you simplify your photo-taking, photo-organizing, or working with photos?

My personal photo basics:

1. I use a Canon Digital Rebel.
2. My everyday lens is a Canon 28-105 (recommended by Tara who is super smart). I also have a Canon 50mm 1.4 (I used to have the 1.8 which was great until it died + I upgraded).
3. Handing Chris the camera and letting him go for it is one of the best things I have ever done. One of the results has been that I actually show up in our collection of photos. I am a part of the story too.
   
4. Going in with my brother and sister a couple years back to buy my parents a Digital Rebel was also really great in that they supply me with lots + lots of photos.
5. We all shoot in automatic. My preference is the "running man" or action setting.
6. Taking photos is a part of my lifestyle. The camera is kept out in our house. Sometimes Chris grabs it, sometimes I do, and Simon is becoming a fan as well. I don't take it with me everywhere I go, but often enough to capture some pretty cool moments.
7. I use Photoshop CS3 to resize, adjust, add text to my photos.

What do I think about when taking photos?

1. I look for emotion. I look for life. I look for connections between people, places, and things. I look for things that will support stories I currently want to tell and others that will spur me on to telling new ones.
   
2. I take a ton of photos and then a ton more. I am not overwhelmed by them because I am ruthless in winnowing them down to the best five or less in a series of shots on the same subject. I don't need 50 photos of Simon playing Star Wars because it is entirely possible that I will take 50 more shots tomorrow. Read more about being ruthless below.
3. I am conscious of light (the lack of or the excess amounts) but will take the shot even if it doesn't seem like it will come out because interesting "accidents" occur all the time.
   
4. I am conscious of wanting to "be in the moment" as well as "capture the moment."
5. I like photographing objects in my environment. I also like the way things connect with one another - the place where the sidewalk meets the grass, etc. Today I will be heading over to our local farmer's market for my first time this spring and plan to take a bunch of photos.
   
6. I am often thinking of the story I may be able to tell with these photos as I am taking them. This often leads me to take different photos than I may have anticipated in the beginning as I allow myself to follow the story.
7. I move around with the camera. I get close and I move father away. I will walk to one side and then another. Moving around makes it more likely that I will get a shot that will speak to me emotionally.
8. I am completely happy to not have my subjects looking at the camera. I don't always need to have them looking straight into the camera to tell a story. My goal is not to invade the environment with my camera but rather to blend right in in the most unobtrusive way possible.

[ iPhoto program ]

How do I deal with my photos?

1. I use iPhoto for my photo management. Files are labeled with names (for example: Simon On Bike) and I have an external hard drive to archive/backup my photos. I do this at least once a month.
   
2. Sometimes I print my photos here at home on my HP Photosmart D7360 or upload and print from either Shutterfly or scrapbookpictures.com. In general I tend to print at home for the ease of making adjustments as I am creating my projects. When I work on bigger projects (such as a book) I tend to upload photos and have them all printed and work with what comes back. I am currently storing my printed photos in 4x6 card drawers (unorganized as of today) per Stacy Julian's system (Photo Freedom). As you can tell, I don't follow it exactly. I take the parts that work for me and run with them.
   
3. My older photos (such as the ones of me as a child) are scanned in at 300 dpi and often enlarged. I do as little adjustments to those photos as possible. I love that many of them are off color or grainy. They are authentic representations of the original photos. If I do anything at all I may lighten them up just a bit (using levels or curves).
4. One of the things I do most often with my photos is crop them in iPhoto or Photoshop, or with my square punch after printing. I often crop with my focal point either to the left or right of center.
5. I am ruthless when it comes to deleting my photos. As I mentioned above, I don't need more than five (and probably less than three) from a similar series of shots. I simply delete, delete, delete. It makes for a cleaner folder of photos, less to choose from when I create a page (which can be a good thing), and I think I learn a bit about my self as a photo-taker in the process. Obviously this whole process of deleting depends upon the event and the story you plan to tell.
   

[ look for a layout using this photo later this week: notice how it tells a story even without words ]

How do I choose which photos to use?

1. I look for photos that will complete my story. 
2. If I am going to use more than one photo for my story I often look for contrast between the images: some up close + some far away.
3. I love enlargements. When choosing photos for a layout that I know will include a bunch of photos I tend to choose at least one to enlarge. I like the resulting contrast in size and the impact that an enlargement can make on the overall feel of the page. Think about the layout with the boots from yesterday's post - I could have enlarged any of those to use for the focal point but I chose the boots. The boots told a story in and of themselves.
   
4. There's really no right or wrong in deciding which photo(s) to use. Just pick one/some and go for it. Stop worrying about whether it is the "right" photo for your story.
   

[ 12 x 12 photo enlargement on the left : from Life Artist ]

My favorite things to do with photos on a layout:

1. Enlarge. I especially love enlarging to 12x12 and using the photo as one whole page in a spread.
   
2. Add type directly onto the photo in Photoshop.
3. Create photo gatherings where a bunch of photos are grouped together without spaces in between (this can be done by hand or in Photoshop).

[ photo gathering : from A Designer's Eye for Scrapbooking ]

Things to think about:

1. Stop messing with your photos. One of the cool things about the day + age we live in is the advances in digital photography. I know I take a TON more photos than I ever did with film - I am definitely capturing more moments. But what I have found in chatting with people during classes is that people spend way too much time messing with their photos trying to achieve the perfect lighting, perfect color, etc. In many ways it can become another distraction from getting your stories told.
2. If you can, turn off your flash. I rarely, if ever, use the flash on my camera (this is more challenging to do with a point + shoot vs. a SLR)
3. Decide how much you want to learn about photography and go for it. One book I love to reference from time to time is called Seeing Creatively: Design, Color & Composition in Photography.
4. I think I often "see" in stories. The next time you are taking photos, see what sorts of stories you can "see" while shooting. This is just another reason I like to carry a small notebook.
5. Many of my most favorite photos have come from our everyday life. Don't feel like it has to be a special occasion to pull out your camera and capture life.

Stay tuned for a second posting today featuring Three Things + a giveaway.

[ The full words + photos series can be found here: monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday ]

Archived issues of the AEzine that deal with photos: Issue Three, Issue Four
 

words + photos : monday

Welcome to the first AE Weekly Feature. Weekly Features will span the course of Monday through Friday - ending with a weekend creative that complements the topic of the week. 

I don't have a set plan for often I will do these at this time. My goal is to go more in-depth on themes/concepts/etc. that I am interested in related to scrapbooking and creativity.

Hello words + photos.
For me, this is really the heart of scrapbooking. When I look back through all my layouts the ones I love the most are the simple ones that really focus on just the photos + the words. As so many of us know, it is way too easy to get caught up in the latest & greatest product, the desire for more, and never feeling like you have "just the right thing" to complete your project.

This week I am going to consider the following: What if I used all my creative energy towards the words + the photos and forgot about the rest of the stuff for one week? Imagine if all that creative strength went into my story (or the way I take my photos) rather than worrying about matching patterned paper and choosing embellishments?

What if I just told the darn story?

Is it still scrapbooking if no "extra-stuff" is present? Of course it is.

Now there should be no doubt that I love to play with products. I love to be inspired by new (and old) stuff and enjoy the creative process of working with patterns and embellishments. By taking a week out to focus on the words + photos I am challenging myself to really pay closer attention to the way in which I tell my stories.

Want to play along?

To begin this week I want to introduce you to my favorite layout. What I love most about it is that it completely tells a story from point A to point B. There is a balance between the words + photos and the only other product on the page are some chipboard letters.

[ from my book Life Artist ]

I love this layout for the design and the concept. It is organized and graphic. There is nothing extra distracting from the subject at hand. The photos show a variety of different angles and distances. These photos are not perfect (especially the one of the three of us which was taken while holding my arm out and pointing down) but they capture our routine authentically and accurately. The colors, the chaos, the winding down, the emotion - it's all there in the photos with support coming from the words.

This is a layout I will look back on in ten years and treasure.

Another thing I love about the above layout is that it is a concept that can be repeated. If I was to complete another page on this same theme this week the story would be similar but different. The PJ's are different now (he has outgrown all the matching sets and now wears big boy pants + white t-shirts to bed), he is doing more things on his own, etc. This is an evolving story. A part of our story I want to tell.

Here's another favorite from a few years back: 

[ from my book A Designer's Eye for Scrapbooking ] 

Again, the focus is on the photos and the words. The photos are the "decoration" as well as the content. They could tell almost as much of the story even without the words. Choosing which photos to take and which to use (and/or enlarge) are a big part of the way in which I tell my stories.

The enlarged photo of the boots was printed on cardstock and the title was added in Photoshop.

And here's a new layout using 4x6 photos:

Each photo was printed using the "white border" option on my small portable Kodak printer. The words for this layout came directly from a blog post back in February 2007. As you may be able to see, I took photos of photos and photos of displays (as well as of the monuments + friends). So many things to capture in DC.

Again the emphasis here is on the photos + the words with just a bit of patterned paper and embellishments - those extras were added mainly because I had left too small of a space for any white bordered photos to fit where the "travel log" embellishment piece was placed.

I created variety with the photos by not lining them all up from one level to another. Also notice that there are no white borders around any of the edges of the layout - any photo that came in contact with the edge had the white border removed along that line.

Over the next couple of days I will go into more detail about the way I choose my photos and the way I choose my words. Come by tomorrow for my philosophy on taking photos and some fun ways to play with printing your photos (and a cool giveaway).

[ The full words + photos series can be found here: monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday ]