Making a digital scrapbooking page can be a lot of fun! This tutorial uses the Celebrate Life’s Moments Welcome Kit created by the DSP Designers. Register now in the DSP forums and check your email to DOWNLOAD THIS PAGE KIT FOR FREE! Or download another free page kit of your choice in the FREEBIES gallery! Then find a few photos and follow this tutorial to easily create a digital scrapbook page in Photoshop Elements 5.0.
1.
Open Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0.
Create a new file (File- New- Blank File).
2.
Enter
the desired scrapbook page size into the boxes as shown below.
(Access inches by clicking on the drop down arrow if
necessary.) For
good print quality, always use at least 200 pixels per inch in the
resolution box.
3.
Open your photos (File – Open).
Browse your hard drive to find the photos you wish to
include in your scrapbook layout.
Then click Open. Your
photos will open in the same workspace as your new file and also
show in the Photo Bin at the bottom of the workspace.
4.
Open your graphics (File – Open).
Browse to find your desired graphics.
Browse your CD drive if you are using a graphics CD such as
one the Scraps
of… lines of CDs. Or
browse your hard drive to find graphics you downloaded to your
computer. This example
uses graphics from the Celebrate Life’s Moments Page Kit created
by the DSP Designers. Your
graphics will open in the same workspace as your photos and new
file and also show in the Photo Bin at the bottom of the
workspace.
5.
To easily access any of the files, click on it in the
Photo Bin and it will move to the top in the workspace.
If you only see one file in the workspace, click the left
icon on the top right of the workspace (shown below) to change to
Cascade Windows mode. This
will show all your files, with the selected one on the top.
6.
Click on your new blank file to bring it to the top of
the workspace. This
will be your layout file.
7.
Then do the same with the background of your choice.
You can move the files around on the workspace by clicking
and dragging on the top bar of the image window, using the Move
Tool (the top tool in the Toolbar).
8.
Using the Move Tool, click anywhere on the background
file and drag the file onto the new blank image.
Then drag it into place with the Move Tool.
You may now close the background file.
9.
Click on your first photo in the Photo Bin to bring it
to the top in the workspace. Using
the Move Tool, click and drag it onto your layout.
10.
You will notice that the image has a “bounding box”
around it which allows you to rotate and resize the image. To do
this, click on one of the small boxes at the corners of the
bounding box and drag in or out to resize.
By default this tool is set to constrain proportions, so it
will resize without distorting the image.
11.
If you wish to rotate your image, hover your mouse
outside the corner of your image.
You will see a small set of arrowed angles appear.
Click and drag to rotate your image in any direction.
To commit your change, click on the small green arrow or
press Enter.
12.
For a scrapbook layout to look realistic, add a drop
shadow to your photo with a Layer Style.
13.
On the right side of your workspace in the Artwork and
Effects palette, click on the icon that looks like a sun and other
shapes. This opens the
Effects Filters and Layer Styles Palette.
Choose Layer Styles from the left drop down box and Drop Shadows
from the right drop down box.
14.
Double click on the “Low” option to apply it to the
photo layer.
15.
You can adjust the amount and opacity of the drop
shadow by clicking on the sun shape (layer style) in the Layer
palette as shown below.
16.
Double click to open a dialogue box with sliders and
adjust the shadow to your desired preference.
17.
Most DSP graphics come complete with an appropriate
drop shadow and need no extra shadow added.
Remember to add shadows to each of your photos for realism.
18.
Now click on the embellishment file you wish to add
next in the Photo Bin. Using
the Move Tool as before, click and drag it onto your layout and
position where you desire.
19.
Repeat this procedure with any additional photos or
embellishments you wish to add to your layout.
Each item will be added in its own layer automatically in
your layout file.
20.
You can move any of the items in your layout at a later
date by clicking on the relevant layer in the Layer palette to
select that item. You
can also move any item above or below another item by clicking on
the relevant layer in the Layers palette and dragging it above or
below another layer.
21.
Often elements are included such as ribbons and
paper clips that you may want to have fun with.
It is easy to make elements look as though they are
threaded, overlapped, or placed partially behind other objects.
22.
To make these beads appear to weave under, then back
over the blue ribbon, place the bead layer on top of the ribbon
layer. Click on the
Eraser Tool and erase any parts of the beads that should appear to
be under the ribbon.
Find more great tips like this in other
tutorials in the Tutorials
section.
23.
To add journaling to your layout, click on the Type
Tool in the Toolbar.
24.
Then click on your layout and drag a rectangle where
you wish to add a text box. Type
your desired text then click on the text layer in the Layers
palette, the Text Tool, or press Control Enter to apply your text
to the layout. You can
alter the color and font choices in the Options Bar at the top of
the workspace. Using
the Move Tool, you can move and rotate your text box just like
other files.
25.
When you are happy with your layout, save your file
(File – Save As) as a Photoshop file (.psd) with a unique name
in a folder on your hard drive. This file will remain with all
layers intact and you will be able to reopen and edit it at a
later date.
26.
To make your layout small enough to upload
to a website or share by email, use the save for web function
(File- Save for Web). This
will open a new window with two versions of your layout, the
original and the new resized file.
In the New Size box, reduce the size to 600px.
Be sure Constrain Proportions is checked and click Apply.
27.
Under Preset, select JPEG from the drop down menu on
the left. Then adjust
the quality slider on the right until your file size is under 125
kb. You will see the
file size under the resized file image.
Click Okay.
28.
A dialog box will prompt you for a file name.
Save with a unique name such as originalfilename_web.jpg.
This version will be flattened and will no longer be
editable, but it will be a perfect size for emailing to friends
and uploading to the DSP
Gallery.
Scrapbook page created by Rene
Bross.
Graphics from the Celebrate Life’s Moments Page Kit by
Digital Scrapbook Place
.
ADDITIONAL LAYOUT IDEAS FEATURING THIS SAME PAGE KIT
Any subject, theme, or style, with
digital scrapbooking, just use your creativity and your computer!
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