How To Make a Digital Scrapbook

Although you can easily find great deals on decorative paper, patterned scissors, and sticker sets, cutting and pasting just isn't for everyone.  Nowadays, you don't have to be an arts and crafts aficionado to create an attractive scrapbook.  Digital scrapbooking combines technology and personal creativity to help you preserve your family’s most precious moments.  Instead of spending hours planning layouts and fixing errors, find out how to make scrapbooking a breeze with just the click of your mouse.

1. Begin compiling your scrapbook collection by transferring your photos onto the computer.  Most digital cameras can be connected through a USB port, allowing you to instantly upload any photos stored on the device.  You may also have online albums that can be downloaded.  If you have printed photos, use a scanner to transfer them directly into the image or photo editing software on your computer.
2. After uploading photos you can also enhance and edit them.  Enhancing options are typically included with digital camera software, but you should also have a photo editing program, such as Adobe PhotoShop or JASC Paint Shop Pro, to help you make other types of adjustments.  Editing programs offer a range of tools that allows you to draw on photos, crop, re-size, and reshape them, attach multiple photos, insert other objects, and even create animations.  To save cash, look for free software downloads online for programs like Picasa and Photoscape.
3. Just like any other scrapbook, you’ll need decorations and themes.  You can purchase digital kits and templates that include popular themes with great backgrounds, fonts, and accessories to match.  You can even cash in on exciting freebies from websites like ScrapGirls.com and FreeDigitalScrapbooking.com.  To add unique touches, scan your own fabric patterns or hand-drawn pictures from the kids to use as backgrounds.
4. Catchy captions are the best way to set your digital scrapbook apart.  Finish off the decorating by adding text which describes your pictures, along with theme words to complement the scrapbook page.  In addition to the fonts on your computer, the web can offer limitless downloads, including famous television and movie fonts and holiday-themed fonts.
5. Once the decorating is done, it's time to share your work with the world.  Use photo paper to print out each page and organize them in a scrapbook binder, or stay true to the digital format and save the pages as a slideshow.  You can transfer the slideshow to CD or DVD for easy use on a computer, DVD player, or projector whenever the urge to reminisce hits you.  This method also protects your scrapbook from permanent damage and allows you to create multiple copies to distribute to friends and family.