Love Your Pictures, Love Your Pages

I am grouping the last three layouts here together because I forgot to post them earlier!  I'm really learning how to play with my camera since starting the class with Shimelle.

The first layout shows depth of field with the flower in sharp contrast to the out of focus background.

Credits: Template by Katie Pertiet; Paper by Jen Wilson from One Haute Momma Kit, and Crystal Wilkerson, July 09 Thinly Striped Papers; Journaling PNG by Heather Watson--Doodle A Day; Blooming Sunflower Tag by Anja Schemau, Scrappers Guide 08/09; Fonts used are Impact and Century Gothic.

The second layout shows how different the sky can look from one moment to the next.

Credits:  Template by Debbie Hodge; Background Paper by Kelly Walker, Moments to Memories Kit; Striped Paper by Crystal Wilkerson, July 09 Thinly Striped Papers; Orange photo mat by Al Heimann, Come Out & Play Kit, Scrappers Guide 1/09; Fonts:  Myriad Pro, Chopin Script, and Century Gothic.

The third layout uses a bubble texture with a blending overlay.  It's supposed to enhance the photo.  I hope so!

Credits: Template based on Jessica Sprague's Template #12, Alphabet and Single Stitch also by Jessica Sprague; Papers by Summer Driggs, Thanks for Giving Kit; Hot Pink Bokeh Texture by pareeerice on Flickr.

Love Your Pictures, Love Your Pages

It's been an interesting week for me experimenting with my little point and shoot camera.  I have it doing things I never even thought about. 

Do you use a tripod for your camera?  I don't, but now thanks to Shimelle I realize it would be nice to use one.  However, there is a way to do it without a physical tripod.  Just use the ground, a step, even your knee and set up the shot from that point.  Have you ever seen a flower from a ground view?  It looks quite different.  Here's a couple to prove it:

I balanced the camera on a step to take this photo.  While it's not that exciting, it is a different view and one I never thought to take.

Here's another one:

The wild rainstorm we had last night snapped a branch on my rose bush resulting in the rose laying on the ground.  I perched the camera on the ground and it took a photo of the rose and my next-door neighbor's house.  It looks very different from this angle.  Notice how badly I have to weed around the rose bush!

Love Your Pictures, Love Your Pages

Now that I am down to one class, I can concentrate on Shimelle's class.  Our 6th assignment was to add a title to a photograph.  Since I photograph mainly flowers (those with no grandchildren know all about this!) here is my photograph of a hydrangea.

Our next assignment (prompt 7) is to take a photograph with a blurred background.  Now I never thought my Canon point and shoot could do this.  I always thought you needed a camera with depth of field capability.  No so, as Shimelle pointed out.  All you have to do is turn on macro mode (that's the one with a little flower symbol), press the shutter button down half-way to focus, and then click it down all the way.  I took lots of photos in my chiropractor's garden this morning and think this one is my favorite.  Notice the tiny rose bud in the left hand side of the background?  It's blurred, but the one up front is nice and sharp.  Oh, happy day!

Computer Tricks for Cards -- Lesson 11

I'm sorry to see this class end tomorrow because it has been so much fun to create cards using both digital and hybrid methods.  I think tomorrow will just be a review of what we've learned so this will probably be my last card to show you all. 

The card is a gift card holder that can be embellished in so many more ways than I am showing here.  I decided to keep it simple and just use an organdy ribbon.  It's quick and easy to do--just print the outline of the card holder onto double-sided card stock, cut it out, and fold it. 

Inside of  holder:

Folded card holder:

Now I can concentrate on Shimelle's class, Love Your Pictures, Love Your Pages.

Love Your Pictures, Love Your Pages

Our latest task for Shimelle's class is to do a simple layout.  It's kind of nice to use just one photo, a few embellishments and make a quick layout.  It would have been if I hadn't agonized over each little element of the layout!

 

Credits: Background Paper: Vera Lim, Memories Kit; Journaling Mat: Michelle Shefveland, Mission Possible Kit; Mini Frame: Amanda Thorderson, Millcreek Mini Kit Freebie Frame 5; Cardboard: Irene Alexeeva, Rule My World; Lips Brush by Katie Pertiet 2pm iTunes Kiss 1; Heart: Anna Aspnes, Art Play Obsession No. 1; Key: Vintage Valentine by Derek M. Design.

Computer Tricks for Cards -- Lesson 10

Love this card.  Have I said that about most of the cards in Jessica Sprague's class?  She just seems to come up with the most fabulous designs.  I'm keeping all these cards as samples so I can make them over and over again.  So here is the latest--a gate fold style card with a flourishy label, and twill tape with Hello Friend printed on it.  Who knew you could put twill tape through the printer?  It takes a few steps but it does work!

Love Your Pictures, Love Your Pages

I'm taking another class with Shimelle Laine and hope to take lots of pretty pictures.  Here's my first layout.  When I uploaded the layout to the forum, I saw that I was the only one doing digital layouts.  I hope that changes because I'd like to see how other digital scrappers are handling this class.

The journaling reads--

We’ve been having quite a heat wave here in Pennsylvania. Temperatures are reaching 100 to 103 degrees. Many of my flowers have withered and died but these hearty plants are still producing and thriving. They must come from really strong stock!

Credits: Crystal Wilkerson July 09 Papers; Staple Pair by Katie Pertiet; Template by Elizabeth Johnson based on a sketch by Shimelle Laine.

Computer Tricks for Cards -- Lesson 9

So far, this is my favorite card.  I took the photo on one of my walks and had no idea how to use it.  This card is perfect for it!  I'm showing two cards because one of them uses an aged paper underneath it with a blending mode of Multiply.  The other is just plain.  I've also included a photo of the back which is used to write a message. 

With blending mode and aged paper beneath.

No blending mode or aged paper beneath.

Back of card to write a message on.  Sort of like a post card but it goes into an envelope because otherwise the flower would be messed up.

Computer Tricks for Cards -- Lesson 8

I made this card for my niece who will soon be celebrating her 50th birthday.  She was my first niece and I will always love her the most.  I don't think she has ever seen this photo so it will be a nice keepsake for her.

Computer Tricks for Cards -- Lesson 6 and 7

I love the watercolor technique taught for this card.  It's something I'll use again.  The watercoloring is subtle but if you look real close you can see the orange color.  I painted the watercolor onto a piece of rubber shelf liner and then pressed it against the watercolor paper.  Unfortunately, I glued the front down a bit crooked so I'll use it as a sample.

I made so many mistakes on this card!  It was supposed to use gel medium and an inkjet transfer sheet.  The gel medium dried out before I could even place the transfer onto it.  That didn't really matter because my printer chewed up the only transfer sheet I had!  So...I just printed out the image on a piece of cardstock and distressed it.  The circles were supposed to be 1-1/2" but I only had a 1-3/4" inch punch.  It would have looked much better with the smaller circles, but that's they way today has been going!

Computer Tricks for Cards--Lesson 5

This card took me a really long time to make.  It's complicated!  We learned a new brush technique using vintage cameras as brushes (used like a rubber stamp as traditional scrappers would do.)  Once a brush was selected and loaded into PSE, we learned to hold down the shift key and then move the brush across the card.  The shift key keep the brushes in a straight line.  We had a choice of several vintage cameras to use so each student's card looked different from the others.  After doing the brushes on the front, that portion of the card was adhered to a card base.  As I said it is complicated.  Holes were punched along the top edge and embroidery thread was used to tie a bow to hold all the layers together.  There is also an inner layer of lined paper to write a message or to use the one Jessica Sprague already imprinted on it.  Attached to the front of the card is ribbon and twill and an embellishment with Smile printed on it with more cameras. Embroidered cross-stitches are used to hold it in place.
The card was fun to make and a real learning experience!

Computer Tricks for Cards--Lesson 4

Love this colorful card from our fourth lesson.  The inside has a pop-up with a small forest of trees.  Since I couldn't figure out how to scan a pop-up, and I didn't feel like getting my camera out, I am only showing the front.  First time I ever made a pop-up and it's easy as can be -- once someone shows you how to do it!!!
Anyway, here's my card: