June 17, 2009
pictures of the boys
Summertime is here! We've been spending a lot of time on the go so we decided today to just stay home. Now I know why we've been on the go so much. Staying home ALL DAY with two kids (one of which is teething and the other gets bored every 5 seconds) makes for a long day. But we survived. =) I've been in a major creative slump lately. Trying to break out of it, I broke out the camera and tried shooting in full manual. With two kids that won't be still for more than 2 seconds it made for a creatively challenging experience. LOL Here are some of my favs. These are two crazy boys!!
May 26, 2009
a girl after my own heart
For those of you that enjoyed the "small pictures" tutorial that I posted a few weeks ago, here's something even better. This is a girl after my own heart. If you haven't checked out CoffeeShop Actions you MUST run to her site. This girl has so many PS actions and is now doing templates for storyboards. Wahoo!!!! She just posted a template for 4 wallets on a 4x6 image. Yay!!!
wallets template
In other news, we've survived Jackson and Dylan's birthdays and parties, hosted a fun little shower for Lelia and enjoyed graduation. (Need to post those pics, btw.) This is the last week of school. I'm not sure whether to be sad or happy about this. I look forward to not having to get up every morning to get the boys ready but I'm not looking forward to being home ALL DAY EVERY DAY with two kids (one of whom gets into anything and everything). So, yesterday I went and bought a Wii. I'm hoping it'll keep Dylan and me occupied this summer (such a great Mom, huh?). We'll see.... I'm also hoping to get some scrapping done this summer. I just got in a HUGE stack of pictures to scrap and put in albums so that'll keep me busy for a while if I can just find my mojo. =)
wallets template
In other news, we've survived Jackson and Dylan's birthdays and parties, hosted a fun little shower for Lelia and enjoyed graduation. (Need to post those pics, btw.) This is the last week of school. I'm not sure whether to be sad or happy about this. I look forward to not having to get up every morning to get the boys ready but I'm not looking forward to being home ALL DAY EVERY DAY with two kids (one of whom gets into anything and everything). So, yesterday I went and bought a Wii. I'm hoping it'll keep Dylan and me occupied this summer (such a great Mom, huh?). We'll see.... I'm also hoping to get some scrapping done this summer. I just got in a HUGE stack of pictures to scrap and put in albums so that'll keep me busy for a while if I can just find my mojo. =)
May 13, 2009
in the blink of an eye...
This little guy has gone from a teeny tiny baby to a "grown up" 5 year old. It happened so fast but I've enjoyed (most) every minute of it. =) Happy Birthday to the sweetest, most tenderhearted, unselfish, creative, fun, and cutest boy I know!! Thank you so much for making me a Mommy. I love you, Dylan!
April 22, 2009
gallery wrapped canvas contest
“I am entering this photo in the MCP Actions/Color Inc. Win a Gallery Wrap Canvas Photo Contest at http://mcpactions.com/blog. I certify that I took this photo and give both parties permission to use this photograph on their blogs/sites.”
Wish me luck! =)
Wish me luck! =)
recent scrappiness
I've been on a small scrapping role lately. Yay!! It feels soooo good to be creative. =) I did these all for Scrap4Life (either for a crop or DT work). Thanks for stopping by!
April 15, 2009
"small pictures" tutorial
I've had several people ask me how I get small pictures printed at photo labs without paying an arm and a leg for "wallet" size. I'm going to attempt a tutorial here. Please keep in mind I am NO photoshop expert at all - I just learn as I go. And I research a lot on the internet. =)
1. Open your photo editing software. I use Photoshop Elements 7. You can also use any version of Photoshop but you'll need something that uses "layers."
2. Go to "file" and then "open."
3. Open the 4 photos you want to print in the smaller size. At this point I minimize all the photos just because having a cluttered working space drives me insane! =)
4. Go to "file" and then "new" and then "blank file." In the window that comes up, you're going to need to give the new file the sizes you want. In our case, we're going to be printing a 4x6 inch picture so change the dimensions to 4 inches by 6 inches. (Make sure you're using inches and not pixels!)
5. At this point you'll want some grid lines on your new file so you'll know where to place each picture. Go to "view" and then "grid." The new file should be divided by lots of lines. (You can also turn on the ruler to help you measure each small picture, just click on "view" and "ruler.")
6. Now you need to go back to the first picture you opened. In PSE7 you can very easily just look at in the "work bin" section of the screen. In older versions of PS, you may need to click on the picture to view it bigger.
7. Hold the left mouse button down over the first picture and drag it to your new blank file. Now, you should have a copy of the first picture "pasted" onto the blank file.
8. Next, line the bottom right corner of the photo up with the middle point of the new blank file. (This is where the grids and ruler come in handy.)
9. If you have PSE7 you can then click on top left corner "box" of the photo and drag it to meet up with the outside lines of your new blank file. In PS you'll need to click control+T and then drag the corner box. Once you've gotten your picture resized, press enter or click on the checkmark.
10. Repeat steps 7-9 for each picture.
11. Now you should have 4 smaller pictures on one screen put together like a collage. Now you need to click on "layer" and "flatten image." This will flatten the pictures down to create one file.
12. To save your file, simply click on "file" and "save as" and name your file. (Make sure you're saving it as a jpeg file and not a psd file! =)
**A couple tips - Make sure all your pictures are turned the same way when you're printing them as a 4x6 or 6x4. I usually like to turn mine horizontally which would make my new blank file a true 4x6 and it's just bigger on the screen which helps my tired eyes. =)
**If you're wanting to leave a white border around each small photo you'd just resize them a little smaller when you're adjusting them on the new blank file.
Ok, I hope that actually made sense. If you have any questions just post a comment here and I'll get them answered ASAP! =)
EDITED TO ADD: Kari Ann suggested putting even more pictures on an 8x10 print. That girl is so smart!! =)
1. Open your photo editing software. I use Photoshop Elements 7. You can also use any version of Photoshop but you'll need something that uses "layers."
2. Go to "file" and then "open."
3. Open the 4 photos you want to print in the smaller size. At this point I minimize all the photos just because having a cluttered working space drives me insane! =)
4. Go to "file" and then "new" and then "blank file." In the window that comes up, you're going to need to give the new file the sizes you want. In our case, we're going to be printing a 4x6 inch picture so change the dimensions to 4 inches by 6 inches. (Make sure you're using inches and not pixels!)
5. At this point you'll want some grid lines on your new file so you'll know where to place each picture. Go to "view" and then "grid." The new file should be divided by lots of lines. (You can also turn on the ruler to help you measure each small picture, just click on "view" and "ruler.")
6. Now you need to go back to the first picture you opened. In PSE7 you can very easily just look at in the "work bin" section of the screen. In older versions of PS, you may need to click on the picture to view it bigger.
7. Hold the left mouse button down over the first picture and drag it to your new blank file. Now, you should have a copy of the first picture "pasted" onto the blank file.
8. Next, line the bottom right corner of the photo up with the middle point of the new blank file. (This is where the grids and ruler come in handy.)
9. If you have PSE7 you can then click on top left corner "box" of the photo and drag it to meet up with the outside lines of your new blank file. In PS you'll need to click control+T and then drag the corner box. Once you've gotten your picture resized, press enter or click on the checkmark.
10. Repeat steps 7-9 for each picture.
11. Now you should have 4 smaller pictures on one screen put together like a collage. Now you need to click on "layer" and "flatten image." This will flatten the pictures down to create one file.
12. To save your file, simply click on "file" and "save as" and name your file. (Make sure you're saving it as a jpeg file and not a psd file! =)
**A couple tips - Make sure all your pictures are turned the same way when you're printing them as a 4x6 or 6x4. I usually like to turn mine horizontally which would make my new blank file a true 4x6 and it's just bigger on the screen which helps my tired eyes. =)
**If you're wanting to leave a white border around each small photo you'd just resize them a little smaller when you're adjusting them on the new blank file.
Ok, I hope that actually made sense. If you have any questions just post a comment here and I'll get them answered ASAP! =)
EDITED TO ADD: Kari Ann suggested putting even more pictures on an 8x10 print. That girl is so smart!! =)
April 6, 2009
12 months
Finally...Jackson's 12 month post. I still can't believe my baby is a year old! How did that go by so fast??
Here are his "stats" for 12 months:
- still drinking out of a bottle; he refuses to use the sippy cup
- went from formula to milk with no problem Yay!!
- took his first steps 2 days after his birthday
- says "Da Da" when he's happy
- says "Ma Ma" when he's not and he needs something
- is starting to venture around the house discovering all sorts of new things to play with (i.e. the cat, Dylan's toys, the carbon monoxide detector, tables, mini albums, window blinds, etc.)
- loves food! has eaten all the table food we've given him except for avacados and mashed potatoes
- Gerber Graduates Lil Crunchers are his favorite snack (he gobbles them up!), cut up banana is a close 2nd with applesauce coming in 3rd
- loves to play with cars, trains, balls (anything that rolls - sound familiar?)
- loves to turn lightswitches off and on
- hates having his face wiped off after meals, putting bibs on, and having buttons fastened on his shirt
- riding in his big boy carseat now and loves it
- "Baby Einstein Baby Galileo" is his favorite show to watch but the opening of any show (including Spongebob) will have him stopping what he's doing to watch and listen
- learned how to throw the ball this month
- pulls up on anything and everything (tables, toys, people, etc.)
- sleeping less during the day (no more free time for mommy!)
And here are the pictures. I took pictures of him all day last week - I think I did 3 separate photoshoots. Oy! I narrowed it down as best I could. Any tips on which pictures to get printed would be greatly appreciated. =)
Random info:
The "birthday boy" onesie is made by Carter's. I got it at one of their outlet stores last summer and I'm not sure if it's still available ornot. The "1" oneisie was made by Shelley at "The Shabby Belle. Isn't it stinkin' adorable!!! She has a bunch of cute onesies, dresses, pillows, and other cute stuff in her shop. Go check it out! She'll even customize your onesie with your choice of number or letter and any fabric you want. Fun!!
Here are his "stats" for 12 months:
- still drinking out of a bottle; he refuses to use the sippy cup
- went from formula to milk with no problem Yay!!
- took his first steps 2 days after his birthday
- says "Da Da" when he's happy
- says "Ma Ma" when he's not and he needs something
- is starting to venture around the house discovering all sorts of new things to play with (i.e. the cat, Dylan's toys, the carbon monoxide detector, tables, mini albums, window blinds, etc.)
- loves food! has eaten all the table food we've given him except for avacados and mashed potatoes
- Gerber Graduates Lil Crunchers are his favorite snack (he gobbles them up!), cut up banana is a close 2nd with applesauce coming in 3rd
- loves to play with cars, trains, balls (anything that rolls - sound familiar?)
- loves to turn lightswitches off and on
- hates having his face wiped off after meals, putting bibs on, and having buttons fastened on his shirt
- riding in his big boy carseat now and loves it
- "Baby Einstein Baby Galileo" is his favorite show to watch but the opening of any show (including Spongebob) will have him stopping what he's doing to watch and listen
- learned how to throw the ball this month
- pulls up on anything and everything (tables, toys, people, etc.)
- sleeping less during the day (no more free time for mommy!)
And here are the pictures. I took pictures of him all day last week - I think I did 3 separate photoshoots. Oy! I narrowed it down as best I could. Any tips on which pictures to get printed would be greatly appreciated. =)
Random info:
The "birthday boy" onesie is made by Carter's. I got it at one of their outlet stores last summer and I'm not sure if it's still available ornot. The "1" oneisie was made by Shelley at "The Shabby Belle. Isn't it stinkin' adorable!!! She has a bunch of cute onesies, dresses, pillows, and other cute stuff in her shop. Go check it out! She'll even customize your onesie with your choice of number or letter and any fabric you want. Fun!!
April 1, 2009
two small steps
Yes, I know it's corny but I couldn't think of any other suitable title...
MY BABY JUST TOOK HIS FIRST STEPS!!!
Watch out world, here he comes!! First birthday party, first birthday, first steps...it's been a big week here!
Here's a picture I took today during his one year photoshoot.
MY BABY JUST TOOK HIS FIRST STEPS!!!
Watch out world, here he comes!! First birthday party, first birthday, first steps...it's been a big week here!
Here's a picture I took today during his one year photoshoot.
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