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Organize Your December Album by Theme This Year

Debbie Hodge — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 23:07:32 +0000

We now have the freedom to take as many photos as we like, and probably more than we need, especially during the holidays when we tend to overindulge in capturing the magic of the season.
The task of choosing photos for any project can quickly become overwhelming without a system in place for anticipating, assessing, organizing, selecting and managing your holiday photos.

an alternative to daily December scrapbooking

I struggle to keep up with any sort of daily scrapbooking project but like the idea of capturing moments when inspiration strikes. This year I will be doing a simple holiday album which is less chronological than a “December Daily” approach and showcases my holiday photos grouped by theme as opposed to date. I anticipate this fresh approach will allow me to capture our memories and keep my interest throughout the season so I not only complete a meaningful project, but also have fun doing it.

With the help of Katrina Kennedy’s Capture Your Holidays Through the Lens workshop, I’m banking on taking better holiday photos and intend to showcase them sprinkled with all my favorite holiday memories for 2011 using a collection of templates, The Holiday Album No. 1.

Katrina Kennedy scrapbooked "the lights" of her Christmas with one of the templates from Anna's "The Holiday Album No 1."

The tags on each template suggest an aspect (or theme) of the holiday to scrapbook, including: the lights, the food, festivities, preparations, details, gifts, and people. You can add your own topics, too. Read on for my tips for taking, organizing and choosing the photos to scrapbook this December.

Tips for choosing the holiday photos to scrapbook

1. Anticipate

If you know you’re going to be doing a holiday project, then anticipate and plan ahead for the holiday activities, events, moments, and scenes that you want to capture. Make a list and have this on hand to keep you focused on your photography goals this holiday season. Use the title prompts in The Holiday Album to help you formulate your list.

2. Assess

Download your photos often and look at those photos one by one so that you can see exactly what photos you’ve taken. This allows you to keep track and plan for those shots that you’re missing. It also breaks down the task of going through the photos all at once at the end of the season. I like to use my Windows Picture and Fax Viewer to view my photos and I usually run through any given batch of photos a number of times to be able to give them the attention they deserve.

3. Organize

I use a folder system on my computer to begin grouping and organizing my photos. Create a new folder in convenient location on your hard drive and create 10 or more subfolders within that folder. I will name mine *Holiday album 2011* and rename the subfolders using the title prompts on each page of the The Holiday Album. You can also come up with your own list. Each subfolder co-ordinates with a double page spread in the album and will help me categorize and house my photos according to theme until I’m ready to populate the templates. You may also consider creating 2 more subfolders within these subfolders to accommodate the photos for each side of the double page spread.

4. Select

I copy my favorite images into these subfolders according to theme. It’s important to use a copy of any given image and leave the original photo your library of photos for safe keeping. The criteria used to select an image will depend on your personal preference. What constitutes a favorite or meaningful photo is completely in the eye of the beholder.

I personally like to ask myself the following question as I assess each image: a great quote by Julian Barnes:

Does it interest the eye, excite the brain, move the mind to reflection, and involve the heart?

These words always lead me to selecting the most meaningful photos for my pages.

Life gets a little crazy during the holidays and a little forward planning in your life can go a long way in making the holidays less stressful and more enjoyable. The same is true for your scrapbooking. Don’t let some of the best moments and interactions of the year pass you by. This time of year signals the end of a year, regardless of whether you even celebrate a Holiday. How you spend this time, the reflections you make, the relationships and interactions you have with the ones you love, are all core to this sport we call scrapbooking.

This is absolutely an opportunity not to be missed.

Take Control of Your Photo Volume

askings03 — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 08:16:01 +0000

By Katrina Kennedy

You open your computer and scroll through your photos and like most people, your hard drive is bursting at the seams with images you’ve taken. They are all special, meaningful and scrap-worthy.

“Is it possible to manage the volume of your photos without missing out on memories?”

It takes some thought and practice but you can do it. Below are seven steps to help you along your way to taking control of your photos:

1. Shoot with intention

You’ve seen the mad snapping away at school events and soccer games. Before you click away, think about what you want to capture. Consider what it is in your frame. Is your subject obvious? Have you eliminated extras? Unless you are shooting a high speed, action sport that you’ll never witness again, consider adjusting the drive mode on your camera to take fewer photos per second. Change it when you have action you really want to grab.

2. Upload frequently

Get your photos off of your cards as fast as you can. Make it a habit to clear your card weekly or daily if you are a frequent shooter. The fewer photos you are handling with each upload, the easier managing them will be.

3. Delete with precision

When you upload, really look at your photos with a critical eye. If you have two that are virtually identical, delete one of them. Did you snap something that doesn’t mean anything to you and no one will love? Delete. This is difficult at first, but gets easier over time.

4. Keyword and tag every photo worth keeping

Give your photos a home and a name. Get them into a file system you understand and tag, tag, tag. Adding keywords can help you find your photos and when it comes to memory keepings, you’ll appreciate the saved time. Consider tagging emotion, color, location, objects, and events.

5. Tag the people

Tag every person in every photo you take. Four people? Four tags. You’ll be glad when you need to find that special photo of Bobby from last year.

6. Mark your next action

Do you want to scrap a special story? Know it is a great photo to give to grandparents as a gift? Do you have photos you want to print?

Mark them accordingly. A quick star coded to your preference can work– anything with 3 stars means print, 4 stars means scrap, 5 stars means grandparents. Or you could add keywords like print, scrap, or gift to find them easily when you get your print order together or have time to scrap.

7. Stick with a process

Create your system and stick with it! The more routine it becomes the easier dealing with the volume of photos becomes.

Including context in your photos

askings03 — Mon, 02 May 2011 11:33:19 +0000

By Katrina Kennedy

After reading a few comments on a recent photo of one of our family dinners that I posted on my blog, my mind set off thinking about the idea of context and “the overall picture” of our photography. Sometimes, in working towards the perfect photo–with a lovely blurred background and the right composition–it can become easy to ignore the details that provide us with the time, place and memories associated with that same photo.

I love my childhood photos with the green countertops, funky wallpaper, and odds and ends in the frame. These details help us to recall, and in some cases relive, a particular moment in time or a related memory. These details provide our photos with context–for our own purposes, as well as for the benefit of our audience. But how do you capture context in an appealing way?

It’s all about focus. Focus on a strong subject in the frame so the viewer knows exactly the story you are telling. In the photo above you can really get a sense of what one of our family dinners entails. The table is set, the family gathered, surrounded by all of our comforting belongings. While the focus of the photo is most certainly placed on the set table–telling the story of a family dinner–all of the other details come together to really set the scene for a treasured memory.

In this photo, Ian performs his version of the chicken dance. While the story is definitely about him and our new chickens, you can see so much of our life at this moment in the frame. In the foreground is the potato bed, a favorite place to dig for breakfast, lunch and dinner. In the background you can see his fort, the compost pile where we’ve witnessed a skunk and a snake, and on the left side of the frame, one of our 17 tomato plants sneaks into the frame. Zooming in on just him wouldn’t have lost all of those details.

Here’s another favorite of mine. Ian is playing Plants Versus Zombies on the iPhone. I’m certain it will be a favorite childhood memory for Ian. In the details of the frame you can see our location, our meal, and the fun art that Ian loves about Capital Dog.

Finding the Perfect Photo for this Year’s Christmas Card

askings03 — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 14:57:21 +0000

By Amy Kingsford
Around this time of year we all start to scour our photo stash for a family photo to grace the front of our annual Christmas card. And around this same time…some of us come to the conclusion that the last decent photo we had taken of our family was used on last year’s Christmas card! Now my definition of decent and yours may be quite different…but I’m usually willing to settle on a photo that we’re all in and looking in the same relative direction! To the left, you’ll notice that one of the last suitable photos we took as a family, was in 2006–before our son was even born! If you are like me and have managed to avoid a worthy family photo for the past 12 months (or longer…eeek!)—then here are a few ideas to help you find the perfect family photo for this year’s Christmas card!

Read Katrina Kennedy’s article Holiday Cards and The Family Photo! She’ll share six quick tips that will have you arranging the perfectly “imperfect” family photo in no time!
Skip the trip to the photographers and have a neighbor, family member or friend snap a photo of you and your family in your home or yard. It will be quick and painless and over before you all knew it!

Noticing a trend in your family photos—like you’re not in any of them? Unfortunately someone has to take the pictures right?! To remedy this, test out your camera’s self timer…or you can get creative with your current photos by piecing a couple of them together with Photoshop!
To take the distraction out of your family photos with busy backgrounds—or even just to bring a touch of the holidays into your average everyday photos you’ve already taken—why not try out a fun frame or photo treatment.

Ask yourself: “Do I really need the entire family in one photo to capture the spirit of Christmas?” Maybe like me, you’re almost 9 months pregnant and not exactly thrilled at the idea of posing for a family photo that will be immortalized on a Christmas card and sent out to 50 or so of your closest friends and family members…Or maybe the task of getting everyone in one place at one time was simply too daunting! Think about using a fun seasonal photo of your children, pets or even holiday decor.

And finally, if all else fails and you must resolve to using a photo of a family other than your own on this year’s Seasons Greetings—I’d recommend against using the family portrait that came with the photo frame you just bought and sticking with the family that brings us all together this time each year ;)

25 photos to take this December | Katrina Kennedy’s ideas for December Daily shots

Debbie Hodge — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 13:59:00 +0000

by Katrina Kennedy

December! It’s here! If you are taking part in Ali Edwards’ December Daily project or just documenting your month one day at a time, finding inspiration for a photo everyday can have its challenges. There are days you are just too tired to mess with your camera. Days you forget to take a photo until the last minute and there might even be days where you just feel stuck for an idea. The tree? Again?

Here is my 25 December Daily Photo Ideas downloadable pdf for a little inspiration!I am going to use it as a scavenger hunt through the month and maybe even a page title or two! Enjoy!

I’d love to hear which you find and which inspire you the most!

1. Something Red

2. A list

3. The Christmas tree

4. Presents wrapped under the tree

5. Something warm and tasty

6. A candy cane (or many)

7. A wreath with a red bow

8. Stamped and addressed Christmas cards

9. Santa Claus

10. Away in a manger

11. Ribbons and bows

12. Something sticky

13. Reindeer

14. A decked hall

15. Silver bells

16. A hippopotamus

17. Under the mistletoe

18. A cup of cheer

19. Toys in every store

20. A winter wonderland

21. Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow

22. Holiday greetings

23. A shining star

24. Children, sleeping

25. The number “25”

30 Photos to take this Thanksgiving | Katrina Kennedy’s list

Debbie Hodge — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 17:18:09 +0000

by Katrina Kennedy

What photos will you be taking for Thanksgiving?

I plan on photographing small details, faces, and the entire table. This is the year I get a photo of my husband, his dad, and Ian, a long over due photo.

Here’s my Thanksgiving shot list — and you can download a printable pdf of it for your own inspiration: Katrina Kennedy’s Thanksgiving Shot List.

1. The kitchen before cooking begins
2. Pie ingredients
3. Pie before entering the oven

4. Pie from above

5. Pie from the side

6. Fresh cranberries

7. The can of cranberries (ok, its not Thanksgiving without

the can)

8. The green cranberry dish (a family heirloom)

9. The table set, ready for everyone to be seated

10. An individual place setting

11. Place markers

12. Candles

13. My favorite cook book propped between ingredients

14. My dinner plate, filled

15. Ian’s plate (fun to compare how he changes over time)

16. Everyone seated at the table (if they cooperate)

17. The clock (to mark the time we eat dinner)

18. Our special turkey centerpiece

19. Our thankful leaves

20. My In-laws

21. A three generation shot of the boys (I’ve needed to take

this one for a long time)

22. A piece of pie on a plate

23. Brussel sprouts

24. Green beans

25. A glass of wine

26. A bottle of wine

27. An empty wine bottle

28. Our traditional, family self portrait

29. The kitchen aftermath

30. My happy, sleeping child

Understanding Your Metering Mode

Debbie Hodge — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 13:19:38 +0000

by Katrina Kennedy

HAS THIS HAPPENED TO YOU?

Have you ever taken a photo with a perfectly lit background but a dark subject? Have you wondered how you can get more even tones throughout a photo?

HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW!

Your camera uses reflected light to create a photographic image. Your camera records more light from the bright areas in a scene while dark areas reflect less light for the camera. The metering mode you choose tells the camera how to measure the light in your scene.

Camera makers use different names for their metering methods. Essentially, they fall into three categories:

1. Evaluative/Matrix Metering

Evaluative/Matrix Metering uses the light from the entire frame, averaging the light to determine the correct exposure for a photo. Evaluative metering may also be called multi-segment, pattern, zone or overall metering.

This mode works well in even light without a lot of contrasting light in your frame. Many photographers use it as their default mode because it reads from the entire frame. It is not as effective when your subject is backlit.

2. Spot Metering

Spot metering determines the exposure based upon the light in a small area of the frame. If your subject is dark against a blue sky, you will likely expose your subject correctly but “blow out” the sky making it white.

Spot metering works well in high contrast situations and when your subject is backlit or in a tricky lighting situation like candlelight. The key is selecting the spot on your subject to meter from.

Use exposure compensation together with spot metering for great results in tough situations. Photographing snow? Switch to spot metering and bump your exposure compensation up +2. Dark clothing? Move your exposure compensation down -2.

3. Center-weighted average metering

Center-weighted average metering works similarly to spot metering but evaluates the light from a larger area than spot metering, concentrated around the center of your focal point.

A quick trick for remembering which one to choose on your camera is to match the shape of the indicator to the area of light you want it to read.

In Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority and Manual modes you can choose your metering mode. For the location of your specific buttons for changing your metering mode check in your manual under “metering” or “exposure.”

SO WHAT DO I SET MY CAMERA ON?

Typically you’ll find my camera set to Spot Metering, I prefer the results I get with the light read from my subject’s face, but I do switch it as the light changes.

Play with the three modes to see the results you get. Part of choosing your metering mode is personal preference.

Holiday cards and the family photo

Take a tour of Katrina Kennedy’s home photography studio

askings03 — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 09:00:56 +0000

By Katrina Kennedy

As is often the case with scrapbookers and artists—every photographer’s space in which they create, differs based on their style and their surroundings. Some of us may have expensive equipment and a professional set-up–but the rest of us aim to make do with what we have! So here’s a peek at my photography studio and the equipment I use on a daily basis.

First, here’s the kitchen studio…

Notice the $5.00 cutting board in the back. It is a great background and serves as a reflector in a pinch. The wooden cutting board can be maneuvered easily on the counter top. Light comes in from the window behind the set up. Not the ideal light set up, but we make it work.

Here’s how I’ve used this space and these helpful pieces of equipment, in capturing the following photos:

Now onto the main studio, where much of my work takes place…

The side lighting works nicely for smaller subjects I want to photograph. I’d like to try a newborn shoot here. It’s the perfect height and size for a little one. Maybe with it running, I could lull them to sleep.

This is the location where I took the following shots and yes, I get the laundry done here as well!

So, now that you’ve seen my studio–care to share your favorite/quirky studio spots?

5 tips for scrapbookers on taking everyday life photos

Debbie Hodge — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 06:30:50 +0000

by Debbie Hodge

Think about this next statement and let it guide your everyday photography:

The photos you take of everyday life are not necessarily pictures from memorable events, but, rather, they are representative illustrations of your life.

What I mean is: you don’t snap that photo of taking out the garbage because it was one very special garbage night, but rather to have a snapshot of a recurring activity in your life.

photo by stock.xchng / CWMGary

Now that I’ve shared my profound thoughts on taking everyday life photos, here are some practical tips:

1) Keep the batteries charged, the card empty, and the camera handy so that it’s easy to take photos.
What’s more – if you’re photographing people, hand the camera (ready to shoot) to them, and ask them to take a couple pictures of you. Get your kids, spouses, and friends in the habit of including you.

photo by stock.xchng / ugaldew

2) Consider and include context.

That living room décor is going to change eventually, so let parts of it get into the photos. The same goes for parks, restaurants, and other favorite haunts. Take some photos that are farther back to reveal the location.
If the activity has relevant items, tools, props, get a photos or even ask someone to pick them up.

These photos are from a lunch outing with one of my best friends, her daughter and my youngest son. We ate at a restaurant maintained by the university’s hospitality school that just happens to have been (and now is again) a train station. Close-up shots plus others from farther back let me remember the place as well as the outing.

3) Be the wall(flower).

Try to be unobtrusive so that your subjects continue what they’re doing naturally. Shoot for a while without saying “look here!”
Use your zoom lens to stay back and still get closer-in shots.
Listen to what’s going on—and maybe use it in your journaling.

From past experiences, I knew that while the action here was incredible, the photos probably wouldn’t be. When I suggested a group shot at the end, the group was happy to oblige and now I have a strong focal-point photo to go with the action shots.

4) Make sure to get one good shot.
It can be really hard to get good group activity shots (at the pool, on the basketball ourt, having a snowball fight, playing ball in the yard). You want to capture the moment, but the photos end up with small subjects and lots of landscape. While you should absolutely capture that energy and context, try, also, to take the time to get one good shot. This could be a close-up of one or two subjects, a group pose at the end of the event, or a picture of something important in the environment or activity (i.e., a mittened hand holding a snowball). When you have this one good shot, it will focus your page and make clear what the activity is.

5) When you’re not going to be at the main event take a photo before or after with some indication of what’s coming and use that with journaling– the concert tickets, the sleepover bag packed, the golf clubs in the trunk. The photos here show my youngest son just before he left for his first sleepover.

I didn’t get to go along on my youngest son’s first sleepover, but it was a big deal for all of us. These shots of my son with his pillow and stuffed animal ready to go help recall this milestone.

Before You Press the Shutter: Four Ways to Improve Your Photography

Debbie Hodge — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 15:04:45 +0000

by Katrina Kennedy

Taking photographs is about telling your story. Capturing the moments, the events, the pieces of your life that make it uniquely yours. What kind of photographer are you? Do you want to capture the details? Or the events? Do you like landscapes? Or portraits? Are you capturing the running child or the old dog snuggled in its bed? Or perhaps a little bit of it all.

Knowing what you want before you push the shutter will improve your photography dramatically. Consider four things.

1. What do I see?

I could see the entire bicycle or I could see the road where it meets the wheel and the pure potential it possesses.

2. How does it make me feel?

I could snap quickly and capture my son’s smile. Or I could stop, consider it a bit longer, and grab that connection between a dad and his son as they experience a first two-wheeled bike ride together. The feeling of connection captures the moment best.

3. What meaning does it have for me?

A drop off at preschool turned into a quick moment to capture. In this image my son is clearly important, but, even more important were the too-big shorts and the little feet jumping through the numbers, calling them out as he moved.

4. What does it make me want to do?

I want my photos to capture a feeling that reflects what I was feeling in the moment, but I also want them to compel me. Compel an emotion. Compel an action. Create activity. Provide inspiration.

What do your photos say? What questions do you ask before you press the shutter?