NEW MEMBER INTRO/Software Question

[TammyR.]

Hello Everyone,

A little history about my journey in scrapbooking. I just dicovered this site a couple of days ago and am completely intrigued. I was introduced to (paper) scrapbooking two years ago when my first daughter was born. I fell in love with the idea of having my photos tell a story and be preserved right away. With each month of her new life, I imagined my first completed album which would be her babybook. Being new to the craft (not knowing how to do things), a first-time mom and having my second daughter, I fell seriously behind on the scrapbook. Growing increasingly frustrated with the feeling that I will never catch up, I began to realize that if I do not find a time-effective method to create pages, then scrapbooking is not for me. As of today, I am still about 1 1/2 years behind and have not started my second daughter's babybook. I love to play with my photos though and I am still working on completing their babybooks.

I did not even know that digital scrapbooking existed so I know NOTHING about it. I've been doing quite a bit of reading on the site but I'd like input on some specifics. 1) Can I achieve professional looking pages without being a professional in a reasonable amount of time? 2) What is the best software choice? Adobe Photoshop looks great but it seems a bit overkill for a newbie. I like the fact that it can fix pictures taken with the wrong lighting. Can other programs do this? More importantly, do I need that level software to create paper like pages and better? (I want to go for WOW). 3) Do the classes tackle that high learning curve on the software? Please give me your feedback on these questions and your recommendations on which software package I should start with. Thank you. I'd like to hear about your experiences (paper vs digital) too. I look forward learning more and making new friends.

[byrd10is]

I am still considered a newbie because there is so much that I still don't know. Paintshop is a watered down version of Photoshop and cost a fraction of what Photoshop cost. However, I do use Photoshop and love it.

I papered scrapped for many years before I found out about digital. Now I don't know if I will ever be able to pick up a pair of scissors again. I like digital so much more because I am able to easily duplicate my work; unlike paper.

Also, I invested in an Epson 2200 printer that prints 12X12 paper. One good thing to keep in mind is you can create 12X12 pages and print them 8X8 and they really look nice. I am currently working on a 60 page 8X8 mini album for my mom for Christmas. I buy the kits in the store to design my page. It's a lot easier than creating them yourself.

I must warn you. THIS SITE IS ADDICTIVE!!!!!

[Lauren]

In answer to your questions - 1/YES!! - absolutely you can achieve wonderful pages fairly quickly!!
2/ - you dont need photoshop - and you can make good pages with a fairly inexpensive programme such as the Hewlett Packard Creative Scrapbook Assistant that we sell here in the DSP store - however if you really are looking for a wow page then you might want to invest in a programme such as Photoshop Elements which is a cut down version of the full Photoshop programme - Many of our wonderful members use PSE - including members of or Digital Elite Team. - It is much less expensive - has a shallower learning curve and you should be able to make your first page fairly easily.
The classes here are excellent and move at a pace for all to cope with

[shazzt]

I can only agree with what Lauren said - there is a learning curve but once you are over that, you will be able to make professional looking pages in much less time than using paper (I too have some paper based baby books nowhere near completed - but I have done so many digital pages this year I at least feel I am not getting even further behind!). I recommend the classes - I learned so much when I took them. Digital is definately the way to go for busy Mums!!

[TsMom]

Hi, Tammy, first of all welcome to digi-scrapping. You are going to love it. In answer to your questions, yes you can achieve professional looking pages with being a pro. Look the gallery. Most of these pages were created by people who aren't "professionals" and many of them were created in an hour or less. For a newbie, Photoshop probably is overkill unless you already have it in your collection. Photoshop Elements, Digital Image Pro, and Paint Shop Pro are probably the most commonly used and none of them cost $600. All of these packages can do what you've specified and a ton more too. You might really like Photoshop Elements 4 (it's around $100, but you can find older versions for less.) It's a very powerful program and can do a lot. It does have a high learning curve though. But digi-scrappers are quite a helpful lot and the classes here are great.

If you want to skip the learning curve, try Digital Image Pro. It is also a great little program, the one that I started out on.

I used to be a paper scrapper too, and now I've been doing this for about 3 years. It's very addictive. Best of luck.

LaWanna

[Amanda]

The best way to achieve professional looking pages fast is to use the great kits created by the DSP Designers. Their quality can not be beat and you'll get beautiful pages a lot quicker than trying to figure out how to create everything on your own.
The classes are wonderful and I'm sure you won't regret them. We have hundreds of students each month!

[anne357]

I, too, was like you....I had no clue what digital scrapbooking was until I stumbled upon this site. I use PSP9 and love it. I took the online class from here, DSU 130 Intro to PSP, and learned how to use the software and off I went. I have not reached the point yet where I create things from "scratch" myself, it is so much easier and much less time consuming to buy the kits (I started out just using some freebies to get the hang of things). It is also helpful to scraplift or use sketches at first to get the hang of things. Also attending chats, if you have the time, is really helpful to learn about digital scrapbooking.

[elizabethlmccoy]

PLOPPPERS!!!! if you want AWESOME Looking pages in no time at all get yourself some ploppers...you just slip your picture in and add some text if you want and BAM you're done...the ploppers on the store ROCK you'll get layouts that a put together by the designers here at DSP who extremely talented.

[Robin E.]

1) Can I achieve professional looking pages without being a professional in a reasonable amount of time?
Well, depends on what you consider "professional" looking. I'm SOOOO proud of one of my most recent layouts. Of course, I have to give credit where credit is due and give thanks to all the people that gave me constructive criticism (CC) during the just ended New Kids on the Block competition. Take a look, if you like, Kissing (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=63250&cat=500&ppuser=19727). BTW, I highly recommend the New Kids on the Block competitions for REALLY helping you take your work up a notch. The next one is scheduled for January/Febuary time frame.

2) What is the best software choice?
I'm loving Photoshop Elements. I have an older computer and run Windows 98. When I found that PSE 3.0 (4.0 came out just after I started digi scrapping in September) wouldn't run an anything lower than Windows XP, I was upset. I thought digi scrapping would have to wait until we could afford to upgrade our whole computer setup. However, Emma gave me a great idea. Find an old version of PSE. I found LOTS of PSE 2.0 available on eBay and waited for a week or three to find a great deal. I won an auction (was the only bidder) for Photoshop Elements 2.0 for less than $10. I was able to register it (one thing I made sure of) and can upgrade when we do get a new computer.

Anyway, everyone will tell you that THEIR software is wonderful, but you can't beat making beautiful layouts for less than $10 start-up cost.

I am just finishing Emma's DSU 160 Intro to PSE class. I had been digi scrapping for almost two months before taking the class, but I still found it very helpful. I opened up tips, tricks, and tools that I didn't know or only partially knew before. So yes, I think the Intro classes really help you to learn the software.

Of course, I didn't come to digi scrapping from paper. Well, I made three paper layouts years and years ago, but didn't care for the process. So, I feel I'm having more issues with the creative and artistic issues with scrapping than with software issues. So, I've signed up for Lauren's DSU 190 Layout Design class and Tina's DSU 195 Word Art class.

[Robin E.]

I meant to add that you can create papers and elements with Photoshop Elements. I made this Duck Duck (http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=56281&cat=500&ppuser=19727) layout using only papers and other things I made myself with the software. I did this layout only 2 to 3 weeks after making my very first layout, and it is still one of my favorites so far.