02/05/09 My Layouts & Class Update

So here I am... in this digital scrapbooking class (jessicasprague.com), and I'm thinkin'.... I have SO MUCH TO LEARN.

Photoshop never ceases to amaze me at all the wonderful, amazing things it can do! I can't even list them here yet, because I'm not quite sure yet of all that I've done! I'm gonna have to go back to my tutorial for the references in order to get a list compiled, sheesh!

For a minute I thought that maybe this class was a bit over my head. But only for a minute.

Or less.

Because I then realized that, Hey, I can do all this stuff~ I just need to do it over and over and over and over again. Until it all sticks!

Somehow I keep forgetting that part. ;)

We're now into Week 3, so I have a couple of layouts to show you! This first one here was a speed scrap with a 30 min. time frame... from start to finish. Including the photo that was to be used. And I must admit that this was very first speed scrap...E.V.E.R. (So be kind.) I kept going back and forth with myself about whether or not to be intimidated.

I'm happy to say though that the non-intimidation side of myself won out in the end. And I turned it in just how you see it below, without drop shadows as I ran out of time at the end.

And I have absolutely no info whatsoever for this layout.
I know~ I'm so sorry. Very not like me.
(And if you were wondering, that's a diorama my daughter made for school for the walrus.
Yep, that's supposed to be a walrus.)

Then there's this wonderful looking page next. (As opposed to the above layout...)

Week 2 NKOTB 2008 From KPertiet: Papers Cotton Easter-red, GraphNotepaper, KingMePaper,
Overlays GraphicSunPrintsOV, Elements StickPinzRndTag
From Jessica Sprague: JSprague_4_squareTemplate, JSprague_grungeFrame1
Fonts: Asman, Century Gothic

This is what we made for Week 2, and we learned how to:
Create a grungy-edged focal photo
Clean up color casts on photos
Practice hotkeys for opening, creating, and closing documents, and creating new layers
Use a four-square template to create a circular photo block
Create reversed-out journaling strips
Darken paper edges for dramatic effect
Re-color and blend an overlay


Then to bring you current~ here's last Monday's layout.

Week 3 Super Fly 2009
From KPertiet: FairyDreamer-8, BotanistNo7-2, BrownStitching,
OntheEdgeFluorishes2-1G, OntheEdgeFluorishes3-6G, SnapFrames, Katie_Quotes
From JSprague: RedSolid,
Brushes: DD_MWISE_A_LA_MODE_Brushes_Scroll3, Jack-n-MeAlpha_blank
Fonts: American Typewriter

And this is what we made for Week 3, where we learned how to:
Create a layout using a sampled color scheme
Cut patterned paper without cutting
Sharpen photos
Create a mask with a combination of brushes and drawing tools
Cut and paste to resize frames
Create a custom brush from an image file
Add a semi-transparent photo to the background of our layout

Seriously, I *love* this class. I'm learning a lot, and a bunch of shortcuts (finally), and creating some rockin' layouts in the process.

Thanks for lookin' and listenin'!
~Amie

1/23/09 Layout

So I'm completely taken with all of the classes available for digital scrapbooking!

Check 'em all out over at jessicasprague.com! I'm currently in a class called 'Now We're Rockin' with Photoshop', a digital scrapbooking class for intermediates.

LOVE IT!

This week was only week 1 and I'm already SO glad I signed up. And just look at what I did!

Always Remember Papers: Trish Jones
Torn Paper: KPertiet
Alpha: mfen september afternoon alpha
Heart Element: JSprague
Brushes: JGaylor Valentine, JSprague Rounded Corners
Font: Century Gothic
Actions on Photo: Pioneer Woman Set 1; Fresh & Colorful, Pioneer Woman Set 2; Bring On the Eyes
Photoshop CS2

Ye-heya! We did a ton on this layout here. The coolest part was that it was all on a video tutorial! Can I just say, "TH-HANK YOU!"? Because I am, oh so very much so, a hands-on-learner.

Do as I do. Ever heard of that? Yeh~ that's it. That works. (for me.)

So we got down and dirty and up to our elbows in techique and everything!

This is what we did:

Changed a color pic to a sepia tone
Created a mask and let color peak through at the focus point
(the ball in my case above- not *that* great, I know... I'm working on it.)
Used the curled edges paper over the photo
Created guidlines for the columned jornaling (nice and handy technique there)
Used an overlay for the outside edges
Stamped with a brush (white hearts on the photo)
Copied and Pasted the Alpha
Rounded Corner Edges (w/a brush)
And more that I'm sure I forgot to add here.
A few more things.
I'm just goin' off the top of my head here.

So! Fun stuff, right?! Now I've gotta go and practice some more on my own so it all sticks. Isn't there some saying or study out there that says if you use repetition 7 times it'll be committed to your memory?

Right.

I'm gonna go get busy then!

Lesson #3 Going Manual

Ahhhhh!!! Going full-on Manual! I thought it would be scary and hard, but really, after the first 2 Lessons, it makes *total* sense, and I wonder at how scary I thought it was going to be!

For those of you just joining me, I've been taking an online photography class hosted at jessicasprague.com by none other than the brilliant Canice Stringham, called Oh Shoot! Digital Photography. And I am really *loving it!* I remember back in 1998 and 1999 when I was in college and I'd enrolled myself in an online class. It was so strange to be doing it all on the computer and there was never any face-to-face interaction with the teacher.

In today's world, I find it amazing at how connected and personable we can be. Even professional! And all from the comfort of our own homes, in whatever attire we may be in at the moment, and still be a few clicks away... from work, from family, from friends...from whatever! It can be real great! And handy!

So taking this online photography has been a *blast.* I've been able to view and download all my Lessons at my own leisure, and there's even video tutorials, so I can see the lessons with a hands-on approach! (Which is just perfect for me.) So at least I can see the teacher, and still learn from her. And since it's a vid, it's less time consuming for the teacher! For in future classes the lessons can be re-run, so to speak, for the next classes! How efficient!

Some of you may be thinking, "C'mon Lady! It IS the 20th century after all!" But I just can't help but think back and see how far we've come. It's pretty cool.

And now... I think I'll be getting my money's worth out of that new DSLR Mother's Day present after all. With time. And practice. Must always practice. Which I really don't mind at all as I think it's a lot of fun. Bonus!

So here's what I posted as my Assignment (to see past assignments, search keyword 'Photography')... and then I've also posted some others here that I debated handing in as well. And be forewarned~ for online posting reasons, they're not the *best* quality (so I don't have to wait 2 hours to upload them on Blogger. I know~ totally selfish of me, but hey, it's getting late, but I'm doing all for you!). And one more thing~ all my photos here for my assignments have not been Photoshop'd. They're just what came straight out of the camera.
LOL~ Isn't he great?!! I thought so. This was just after my kids and I had left the house in a whirlwind to get to school on time~ which we were, I'm happy to say. (It's been a challenge as of late.) But really~ my son's lunch bag is there in the back, along with a used cereal bowl and spoon, a toy car, and last, but most certainly not least, 'Dino' ~ right there in front and center. Also, note the crumbs on the counter-top. They never seem to *ever* go away! No matter how many times a day I wipe them off, they somehow keep re-appearing...

Anyways, here are the others I toyed with sending in as my Assignment:

I like how this one looks like a star to me. And you can see the seeds still attached, almost ready to take flight. It reminds me of Flick from A Bug's Life when he takes off to go find his fighter bugs. :)

This red leaf one was a close runner up to submission. I just loved the warmth emitting from it in the early morning light. It was just after dropping those rascally kids off to school, and I went out to my back yard and found this lone leaf still alive on this barren branch coming out of my fence. And the exposure captured was *just right* in my opinion.



Even though I've already turned in my assignment... which one(s) do you like best? Do you have any critiques? Any useful advise? I'm all ears and open-minded, ready to drink it all in like a sponge, so let me know! Feedback is good! Thanks ya'll!

Where To Start With Digital Scrapbooking

I have to tell you that I'm really having a lot of fun getting all caught up on my blogging. The only thing wrong with that it that I might not be posting for a couple of days afterwards. So please be sure to scroll down and see all I've posted today. There's a TON of freebies I've found for you and you won't want to miss out on them.

So here's the thing~ I know some of you have been wanting to know where to begin when it comes to digital scrapbooking. Well, here's what I wish I did. Jessica Sprague has *a bunch* of classes going on her site. It used to be, and still is this way for some classes, that you had to know the register date and stay up late to hurry and sign up for the class you wanted to get into, before it fill up within the first 10 minutes!

Although NOW~ the beginners class, called Up & Running With Photoshop, is now completely video tutorials, and thus now purchasable for downloading, right then and there. They are self-paced classes, which means that if you don't quite *get* something, you need not worry about falling behind the rest of the class! I *love* the idea of it, and am contemplating taking the $45.00 class, simply to see if I missed anything and so that I can then tell you from first-hand experience what the class is like.

What I *can* tell you from first-hand experience is that when I started out on my journey of digital scrapbooking, I started using *only* Jessica's magazine, Computer Tricks for Scrapbookers, put out by Creating Keepsakes.

And I got pretty far! I'll admit that I also used my husband's knowledge of Photoshop as well, but really, he didn't know how to apply it all to scrapbooking... So off I went, digi-scrapping with just me and Jessica!

But now there's this class! Someone to show you step-by-step with the newest versions of Photoshop and Photoshop Elements! Yeah! So read up on this, and see if it's for you!

P.S. Jessica now has a second volume of her afore mentioned mag available for purchase; Computer Tricks for Scrapbookers 2

Here's what Jessica has to say:

START YOUR PHOTOSHOP JOURNEY TODAY!

Chances are, you've been collecting digital photos for a few years. If you have ever wanted to do something special with those truly special photos you have, learning Photoshop or Photoshop Elements is the answer.

I love Photoshop Elements because it's a great balance between ease-of-use and the power to get things done and have a great time. BUT there's a learning curve involved (as you might have discovered if you've ever opened the program and tried to do anything with it).

That's why I started this class. Up & Running with Photoshop will take you on the first steps of a great adventure in learning skills that will benefit you for the rest of your life. In this four-lesson, video-based course, You'll learn all the basic tools and how to use them to manipulate the materials of the digital scrapbooking craft: digital patterned paper, brushes, embellishments, and type.

You'll leave class with the ability to make gorgeous pages you can print and slip into albums, embellish with traditional supplies, or print in bound photo books.

Up & Running with Photoshop is a four-lesson, video-based, SELF-PACED course just for beginning digital scrapbookers. This class is JAM-PACKED with information, inspiration, free goodies, and VIDEO lessons that put me right there beside you as you begin your Photoshop journey.

Let's summarize some of the features of our class:

• I'll walk you through four video layouts, and show you how to use Photoshop's basic tools and functions along the way. Each video lesson is between 35 and 60 minutes long, and is divided into bite-size, do-able tasks that will have you improving your skills in no time!
• My step-by-step video lessons let you see and hear the techniques, at an easy-to-understand pace, with techniques that build on one another. You can stop, rewind, and restart the videos as many times as you need to.
• You'll get a downloadable digital kit that contains everything you need to be successful in your class, including all the page backgrounds, embellishments, patterned papers, ribbon, brushes, and more!
• You'll receive four bonus assignments with extra free downloads to further hone your skills.
• We'll also discuss additional bonus material about topics of interest to every digital scrapbooker, including organization, fonts, your computer, and photography.
• You can register at ANY TIME, no need to wait for a class date!
• If you have questions during your class, our warm and friendly community on the General message board is ready and eager to help!
• You'll get INSTANT ACCESS to the entire course.
• All of the videos you'll see will be available forever from your course home page at JessicaSprague.com. No expiration, EVER

For a Course Overview or to purchase this class, view it here.