Technology Information

Using various page designs or layouts can make a digital scrapbook more unique. A typical layout in a scrapbook can use a color and a texture or pattern in the background with a space for a photo on the page. Doing some digital photo editing is essential to create more options of themed images to use in your scrapbooks. More interesting pages include layout or design elements such as:

• Titles in unique type styles
• Names, dates or text on the page layout in a variety of colors and fonts
• Photos arranged in montages
• Notes and text on the page using a font that appears handwritten
• Clip art graphics and images to use as embellishments on the page layouts
• Digitally created special effects such as torn paper, drop shadows or highlights around elements
• Borders or frames around photos
• Layering of background images to imitate layers of paper

You can see how having good skills with photo editing software and learning new computer scrapbooking techniques is essential to accomplish this.

Some of the items listed above are used in traditionally-created scrapbook layouts. Adding your own “special effects” are what makes digital scrapbooking so much fun. Enhancements such as drop shadows and highlights can work well if they are done correctly.

A layout with a specific theme can be very effective to add to the interest of your scrapbook layouts. Themes for scrapbooks are only limited by your imagination - they can be on any topic such as: fishing, vacations, travel, family, weddings, birthdays, holidays, etc. Using a theme that has been pre-designed saves time and adds interest to your scrapbook.

A Scanner is a Computer Scrapper’s Friend

Using your scanner and also photo editing your scans is a good way to add custom elements for your scrapbook layouts. Create your own images by making scans of objects that are flat (depending on your type of scanner). If you made a sports theme - such as soccer - you could scan soccer related items, such as a team logo or pictures of soccer balls.

To get some paper textures to use as backgrounds, try scanning birthday and holiday wrapping paper. Photos or illustrations from greeting cards or postcards work well too. Just know that if you are scanning anything with a copyright, you can only use the images for your own use (you can’t try to sell a kit with those copywrited images in it). Scans of ribbon is a way to add a graphic element to your page.

Scans of scrapbooking chipboard letters or alphabets could also be used. After scanning them, you can revise the colors and arrange the letters to add an accent to a digital layout or make special titles for your pages with the scanned letters.

There are also affordable CD ROMs with clip art available with images for themed scrapbooks. You can get free digital scrapbook kits, too. You can create your own unique digital scrapbook layout elements by scanning paper patterns or tags and other embellishments.

Combine Traditional with Digital Scrapbooking

Just because you’re working on a digital scrapbook doesn’t mean you can’t do some hand writing, drawing or add other embellishments on the pages after you print them out. Hybrid scrapbooking is a when you combine traditional paper scrapbook techniques with digital elements. Using some traditional scrapbook papers and elements that can be added to your digital layout is another technique.