Journaling in lists

I like to say that my main source of inspiration comes from my family. Yet I've realized that it's really been all about my kids, specifically. In the process, I've neglected the one who got the whole thing going. I guess the reason is that my kids are a little cuter (no offense, Steve) and they change much more quickly, which makes me desperately want to capture every fleeting moment.

Yet I've known my husband for longer than I've known my kids (of course), so I should have just as much to say about him. In fact, I've made a deliberate effort to focus some scrapbooking time on him. I took several photos of him last weekend when we went out by ourselves. The funny thing is that it is almost as hard to get him to smile for the camera as it is my two-year old daughter. You can tell in this picture that I told him to turn and smile for me. This is his half-hearted effort, but I'll take what I can get.

When trying to decide what to write about him, I drew a blank. All I could think of was a bunch of lovey-dovey cliches, and I don't really like to write in that kind of language. I wanted to do something more simple and original.

That's why I often write in lists. Using lists, I can jot down whatever random things come to mind. Unlike a narrative, a list doesn't have to expand on one idea. Lists are more fun, they're spontaneous, and they save time and energy. It took me just a few minutes to create the journaling and required minimal editing. I spent most of my time on the visual layout.


The journaling reads:

Top eight things that I love about you:

• How you made me want to have kids.
  
• How you call from work just to say hi.
  
• How you handle problems so maturely.
  
• How you deal with my mood swings so patiently.
  
• How you are committed to your health.
  
• How you are a great hiking partner.
  
• How big and manly your chin is.
  
• How great your cooking is!

(Paper is by Michelle Coleman of scrapartists.com.)

Why did I choose eight for this layout? For one thing, I thought of this great way to incorporate the number “8” into my word art. For another thing, I wanted to highlight the things that stood out most. I could have done 100, but it would have seemed repetitive and people probably would not read the whole thing.

So, if you're afraid to write because you don't feel like a poet, try writing in lists. It's much easier when you're not constrained by a narrative structure and you're free to throw out whatever comes to your head.

Highlighting Part of Your Photograph

Using large photos for my layouts gives me the ability to re-frame images to my liking. Here, I've highlighted the most important part of the image -- my husband and daughter walking hand-in-hand. I've seen many other digital scrapbookers use this technique very well, and I wanted to give it a shot.

I took this photo last spring at Rome Point in Jamestown, Rhode Island. My daughter was a late bloomer and was just starting to walk well at 16 months old. The beach at Rome Point is very rocky and she definitely needed to hold a adult's hand. I thought it was so sweet to see them walking together like this.

Here, I simply darkened the remaining area to get the desired effect. However, I can think of several other ways to de-emphasize the background. Here are some other possibilities:

-Lighten the area.
-Reduce the contrast.
-Apply a pattern over the area, reducing the opacity to get the best effect.
-Blur the area.
-Apply any "artistic" filter (Filters > Artistic).
-Any combination of the above.

Another advantage of using this technique is that it allows plenty of room for journaling. Most landscape photographs have large areas of low contrast, such as the sky or water. This provides a great background for text. After darkening the water and sky in my layout, the white text became very easy to read.

So, this is one way to enhance your landscape shots with your family. There are many possibilities, so play around with it and have fun!

Making lemonade from lemons

Sometimes, those less-than-perfect shots CAN be perfect for the right layout. A dark shot can create a somber mood, a blurry shot may be good for a background, or a goofy face may go well with humouous journalling.

For anyone who doesn't have kids, let me tell you that two-year-olds don't pose. They don't smile just because you tell them to, either. For this reason, I'm becoming an expert at making due with the shots that I get.

I was trying to get a picture of her to send out for our Christmas cards, which was a very difficult task indeed. The shot was in focus, but she was not looking at the camera, the picture was inproperly framed, and it was underexposed because she ran into a shadow.

Yet I had written a few heartfelt words about her, and wanted a photo to convey the somber mood. This one couldn't have been more perfect. The journalling reads:

I wish

I wish I could prevent you from making the mistakes I've made
I wish love could banish all pain and sorrow from your life
I wish you could stay in you childhood forever
I wish I could shelter you from reality

But I can't

So I will teach you all that I know
I will arm you against the evils of the world
I will tell you that what is popular isn't always what is best
I will show you that no one and no movement has control over you,

So... I will.



Before hitting that "delete" button on your camera, try to think of interesting ways to use those imperfect shots.