Computer scrapbooking – lots of articles on the internet say it’s easy to do. Being a professional designer is not necessary, either. Creating computer scrapbooks has gotten easier now that more and more computers have the adequate specifications, digital photography has gotten easier and cheaper, and so many software programs are available.
Computer Scrapbooks are Making History!
Computer scrapbooking has a history that is tied to the innovative developments in the computer graphics industry which have been taking place over the past 40 years. As history goes, it was only a very short time ago that a few elite artists were using computers to create designs. In the late 1950s, computer graphic technology was being developed and the term “computer graphics” is credited to first being used in 1960 by a graphic designer working at Boeing Aircraft Co. By the 1970s, work began to be done to create personal computers, of course they weren’t affordable until the late 1980s and even then, they didn’t do many graphics (they were more like expensive word processors or calculators). Personal computing came of age in the 1990s when the competition between companies creating Macintosh and PCs promoted the creation of better and better machines. And the computer chip has become so small and powerful that now cars and many everyday appliances are computerized (refrigerators and even washing machines).
Along with the growth of the computers, the graphic arts community was able to benefit from more capable software, such as Photoshop, Corel PhotoPaint, Adobe Illustrator, CorelDraw and many others. These programs’ awesome digital graphic design capabilities have changed the face of the advertising and corporate graphics industries. Computer generated artwork has become more widely available on the internet with all kinds of photo sharing websites, stock photo sites, clip art, and craft and scrapbook communities. Now there are online scrapbook-making websites, too. But the real growth in digital scrapbooking is due to the brave scrapbookers who have started using their computers to create their layouts and pages, instead of only making albums using traditional methods (with paper, glue, embellishments, pen and ink).
Major considerations for achieving the desired results when making a computer scrapbook (assuming you already know the basics of using a computer and have a printer to print your pages out) include:
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Read about what other digital scrapbookers are doing and what they recommend
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Determine which software you want to use – you may need to try a couple (using the free trials, you can download and try them out)
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Find online tutorials or forums where you can ask questions if you get stuck (so you won’t give up too quickly). There are so many great people that will help you (for free!)
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There are also courses you can buy on DVDs or classes you could attend at a local scrapbooking store, if you don’t like online learning courses.
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Look at other layouts and designs that people have posted online to get ideas
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Plan your scrapbooks out before just “diving in.” You can make a list of what you would like to include (photos, poetry, journaling, etc.). Or, come up with a theme for your album and design around the topic or theme (such as a childhood memory book, baby scrapbook, wedding scrapbook, summer vacations, pets or any other idea you might come up with.
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Last, but not least, just go for it! You only live once, so try those things you’ve always wished you could do – with the right amount desire, anything can be accomplished!
