Advanced Clustering

This is another subject that I feel uncomfortable teaching-maybe that's why this is free!!  I am still learning and expanding my skills as I go, so I will just share what I do, but know that I don't think I'm an expert-not by a long shot!!

Clustering is all about layers, but it is also about balance.  I love to work in 3's when I'm clustering, but even if I do more than 3, I keep it at an odd number!  I know there is design knowledge to back this up, but I can't quote it so I just keep it odd!

I like to build from the bottom up.  I love us use paint splatters, grunge pieces, glitter or bead sprays as my foundation.  Then I like to add stitching or paper I can stitch down to my paper. I also like to scrap with greenery a lot and add those for clusters. By using either the same one but in different sizes or even several different types.

I also like to use journal mats and tags, even if just a corner is sticking out.  It gives dimension and depth!  And when you think you have clustered enough-add three more elements (that is a tip from Kayla--keepscrappin designs)  And she is so right!  You really can't overdo it!

Here is an example of a cluster I made and sell, just as the cluster:

I have the 3 leaves-at different sizes and angles.  Three flowers-even though two of them are stacked.  3 metal elements and then 1 of everything else.  And in all honesty, more could easily be added to this!  Clustering is so fun and a great way to make your layout stand out!

Advanced Shadow techniques

My previous tutorial dealt with basic shadows and how to apply them.  Also, in that tutorial (which can be found HERE), I included a set of layer styles that I created.

Today, I'm going to branch out into some more advanced tips and ideas.  There will be lots of fun things to play with!

First of all, no shadow on anything is the same.  The closer an object is to a flat surface, the less of a shadow and darker that shadow will be.  For example, stitching on a layout is very close and would have very little shadow. I would shadow it different than I would for perhaps some leaves that I would want to give the appearance of them popping right off the page!

So, today, I'm going to break down some basic scrapping elements and talk about how and why I shadow them.  One thing to consider too is that everyone has different preferences so feel free to tweak what I teach here to fit what you like!  This is by no means the only way to shadow!  In fact, I'll be honest, I'm a little nervous to even write this tutorial, because I don't "LOVE" my shadows yet!  They are still a work in progress!

There are two ways to apply a shadow.

1.  Using the drop shadow option in the layer box.

If you notice, I clicked the top box that says drop shadow.  If you then click on that line to highlight it, it will pull up the menu.

The default next to blend mode is usually multiply, but I like to change it to Linear Burn.  This helps to give the shadow a slight tint of the color of the background paper, so I think it is a little less harsh than the multiply.  However, you usually will want to lessen the opacity by quite a bit.

Direction--this is big.  Think about the sunlight hitting an object or several objects close together, the direction that the shadow falls is the same for all the items.  The direction will change as the sun changes, but all the items will change together.  For me, I like the directional angle of -45 or 50.  It puts it mostly towards the left upper side of the object.  So, I make sure on my layout that all the shadows are going in that same direction.  Default is 120 degrees, but feel free to play with this and find what you like best.  But whatever you do-be consistent!

As for distance, spread and size, this is what will vary with the item.  For the stitching above, I kept these numbers very small.  But look how they might differ with a leaf:

Notice how low the opacity is?  The farther away you want the item to appear, the lower you make that.  Also notice how the distance and the spread and the size are all a bit further away.  It gives the look that it is farther off the paper than the stitching.

By customizing each element and paper on your layout, it helps to give a lot of depth to your layout.  Done well, they can actually look like you did the whole layout with real objects and took a picture of it!  There are some layouts so well done, I thought I could reach out and touch the leaves and flowers because they literally popped off the page.

The second way you can do a layer and add even more customization is by not using the style option at all.

First, have the element on your paper and make a copy of it:

Look over on the layer palette.  Notice how I have two flowers there?  I'm going to highlight the bottom one and then go up top to Image>>Adjustment>>Hue/Saturation.  Slide the bottom two sliders (saturation and light) all the way to the left.  This will make the flower underneath black:

Now, you are going to unhide the pink flower on top and zoom way in.  Keep the flower underneath highlighted and make sure you have Auto Select unchecked so that it will stay on the layer you want it.  Ever so slightly move the black in the direction you want and where you want the shadow to fall.  Then just change the opacity to the lightness/darkness you want.

Also, don't forget to link the two layers together (highlight both, right click and choose "link layers" so that if you move the flower, the shadow will follow!

I added this flower layer so you could see it in contrast with the others.  I think this way makes it a little harsher.  For this one, I also changed the bottom flower layer from normal to linear burn as well as lowered the opacity.  But I personally like the little fuzziness around the leaf shadow better.  But I haven't done a lot with the second option, so there are probably things I'm missing!

Play lots with shadows!  I'm sure you'll discover lots of fun things on your own!

Photo Extractions

This is another tutorial that I'm going to show only in Photoshop, but it is pretty much the same process in Pixlr and other programs.

I'll be honest, I don't really do a lot of extractions with my layouts, but they are very popular so I thought I would show how it is done.  I apologize for not having an example though!

So, first, find the photo that you are wanting to extract something from.

Here is the one I'm going to work with today:

Let's pretend I wanted to create a layout with a beach scene but wanted it just him-not the beach in the actual photograph (I wouldn't do this-but again, we're going to pretend here!!)

before you get started, make sure the photo is changed from a background to a layer in the layer palette.  Start by zooming in at 200% and start a long one edge.  Using the polygonal lasso tool and making sure the feather box up top has been changed to 1.  Go along the edge a little at a time and then wrap back around to where you started and click delete.  It will look something like this:

Continue to do this all the way around until the immediate space around your object is transparent space:

I didn't complete finish because his curls began to make it extra time consuming!  But I think you get the point!  Once it is done, you just erase the rest of the background and you have an image to use however you want for your layout!

Layer via Cut or Copy

This is a great item to know and something I use in many areas of digital scrapping!

Everything works in layers and when there are lots and lots of layers for little things, we can move those around easily.  But what happens when something is combined on a layer and we want to move it. For example, let's say that we have a bead spray on our layout, but if we could just have 2 of the beads to move to another spot, it would look better!

I'm showing it in photoshop, but it will be just as easy to use in any other program.

I'm going to get started by pulling some beads onto a piece of paper:

Let's pretend that we want to take that little grouping of four at the top and move them down below.  We would use the rectangular lasso tool (rope looking thing towards the top of the left tool bar) to put marching ants around the ones we want to move:

Now, while that tool is still activated, place your mouse in that section-it will and right click to pull up a drop down menu.  Choose "Layer via Cut". This will cut this off that layer and create its own layer so you can move it where you want:

The other option is to choose "Layer via Copy"  This will leave it how the original layer is but will copy off those four beads and let you move it. Like this:

Blending a Photo

I'm going to show this in photoshop, but it is just as easy to do in any program, using the same basic process. 

I love blending a photo into the background of a layout!  It's a great way to make a dramatic statement.  Here is an example, of a layout I did so you can see what I mean:

Isn't it fun how the blended photo is the same as the photo on the layout, but they really offer a nice contrast!  I also blended two papers together-all of which I will cover here!

First thing you are going to need is a grunge brush set. If you already have one loaded then skip down past this part. If not, then keep reading!

Brusheezy is a site where you can download free brushes.  If you are ever going to use these brushes for Commercial Use, double check each individual TOU, but you will be fine for what we are going to do today!  Here is the link:

http://www.brusheezy.com/search/grunge?from=mainsite

This actually links to their grunge brushes but they have lots of fun ones!  I chose the subtle grunge.  I downloaded and placed it in my brushes folder that I created in my digital scrapping section.  To install it so you can use it in photoshop, click on the paintbrush on the left.  Go up to the top and click on the arrow next to the picture of the brush that is shown.  It will pull down a box like the one below. You would use this to pick a different brush. To load one, click on the arrow I have circled below:

It will pull up a menu, choose "load a brush" from that menu and go to where you saved and unzipped the folder with our subtle grunge brushes.  Click on the ABR file to install.


After grunge brush is loaded!  Let's open up a paper, plain and light colored. 

Now we're going to place a photo on top of this. You want the photo to be larger than these dimmensions-it won't matter if that makes the photo grainy!  It will look like this:

So, I'm thinking that if I use the space on the right for my actual photo and clustering, title, journaling, etc. then I will erase a lot of that, but first, I'm going to blend the photo to see what I need to do from there.

On the layer palette, you'll notice I have two layers-my photo and the paper below it.  Just above that, it says "normal". While my photo is highlighted on the palette, I'm going to change that to soft light or any other one that I think works for my look! Play along with these to find what you like best!

Here is what I get when I only change it to soft light:

You may like it just like this and want to add your other stuff to it-that totally works!  But I'm going to continue to play and share my tips as I go!

Remember those brushes we loaded?  Well, I'm going to click on the eraser and find a brush from above.  These work just like the brushes but in opposite!  So go to the bottom of the menu we saw earlier and choose one of the brushes at the bottom from the grunge set we downloaded.

Erase around the photo as much or as little as you like:

Now, I want to add a little more grunge, so I'm going to place a paper from the kit above this layer:

This was actually a purple patterned paper (as you can see on the layer palette) but I changed the setting to overlay and look at the fun look it gives!  Now I can leave it and add my clusters and stuff or I can continue to play.  I can also leave the purple or whatever other color and not blend that layer and use the grunge eraser to clean away most of the stuff.  Leaving it something like this:

Play lots!  It is fun to see the many, many options that digital can offer!!

Simple Photo Editing in Photoshop

This is just a basic way to brighten a photo in photoshop.

Pull up the photo you want:

First you are going to change it from a background (over on the layer palette) to a layer and duplicate 3 times.  To change it from a background, right click on the layer and choose "layer from background" at the top of the drop down menu.

Change the middle layer to screen and the top layer to soft light (using the drop down menu just above the layer palette that says "normal".  Adjust the opacity on each level until you get it how you like it:

Not a big difference, but you can see how it brightens it a bit!  Play around with this and see what different looks you can come up with!

Stringing an Element (Pixlr)

This process in Pixlr is very similar to that of photoshop.  You start with a cluster of elements and I placed the curly ribbon on top.  We're going to weave this ribbon through the elements.  But here is what we have to start with:

I decided that I wanted all of the ribbon under the flowers and leaves, so I moved it under those layers.

Now, I want to weave a few little spots under the pink ribbon, to look as if I literally tucked part of it under there.  To do this, I choose the tool on the left that looks like a lasso.  When I click on it, it gives me a menu at the top of two lasso's to choose between. You'll want to choose the lasso that is not round but has a few angles to it.

Once you have activated this (make sure you are on the curly ribbon layer) and click with your mouse along the side of the ribbon and around the part you want to cut like this:

Hint:  Be sure and zoom in (Ctrl +)

Now just hit delete and that section of green is gone.  You can take out more parts or leave it as that.  Here is what my final looks like:

Stringing an element

This is a fun little trick to do when scrapping!  It helps to give a more realistic feel to your page.  Let's pretend that you have a string that you want to be mostly under your stuff, but over other parts-as if it is strung throughout the elements.  This tutorial will show how to get that affect!

First open up your layout and cluster some of your elements together like this:

Now, let's add a curly ribbon and sort of weave it through the elements:

I'll start by placing it on top of everything, but as I looked at it more I realized that I wanted it under the top few layers of cluster but ontop of the pink ribbon, so I moved it there.

Now, pick out which sections you want to be under the cluster and use the polygonal lasso tool (left side of the tool bar with the round rope thing.  Right click on it and choose the second option).  This tool lets you click on one edge and make other clicks around the item of what you want to delete.  You'll want to scan way in for this so that you can get it pretty exact:

See the little section that I went around? Now always make sure that the layer of the ribbon is the layer you have highlighted in your layer palette.  Then click delete:

I think I want to take one more section out and notice how I changed the opacity of the string to about 50 so I could see the ribbon underneath and get a better cut:

Just change the opacity back, after you've cut out the section and you're all finished!  Notice how it looks like you wrapped the curly ribbon around the pink ribbon?

Resizing an item in Photoshop

Often when you are scrapping, items will be larger than maybe you want them on your layout.  There is a difference between making smaller and  making larger.

First of all, to make an item larger, you will compromise the quality of the item. It is kind of the same as if you had a pitcher of koolaid.  If you served most of it, but needed to have more, adding water would give you the quantity you were looking for, but what happens to the taste or the quality?  It is watered down and diluted.  It is the same with photos and elements and papers in photoshop.  So be very careful if you ever decide to expand an item and know that the quality will not be the same.

To make an item smaller, if done correctly, will not compromise quality at all!  It is no different than if you dumped out most of the Koolaid, leaving a small amount. You have less, but it tastes the same.

So, once your element is on your layout, check the little box at the top of the menu that says "show transform controls".  In order to see this menu item, you need to have selected the top move tool or click on "v" to select it.

It will look like this:

Now, place your arrow on one of the corners and holding down the shift key, slide in to the size you want.  Holding down the shift key while you do this is very key!  Otherwise it won't keep it in proper proportions.  Here are two screen shots showing the difference:

Without holding the shift key:

While holding the shift key:

Resizing an item in Pixlr

Often when you are scrapping, items will be larger than maybe you want them on your layout.  There is a difference between making smaller and  making larger.

First of all, to make an item larger, you will compromise the quality of the item. It is kind of the same as if you had a pitcher of koolaid.  If you served most of it, but needed to have more, adding water would give you the quantity you were looking for, but what happens to the taste or the quality?  It is watered down and diluted.  It is the same with photos and elements and papers in photoshop.  So be very careful if you ever decide to expand an item and know that the quality will not be the same.

To make an item smaller, if done correctly, will not compromise quality at all!  It is no different than if you dumped out most of the Koolaid, leaving a small amount. You have less, but it tastes the same.

Once your item is on your layout and you decide you want to make it smaller, then click CTRL T to put a transform box around the item.  You can also get to this by clicking on the edit menu at the top and choosing "Free Transform".

Your item will now look like this:

Now, the key to making your item smaller, without changing the form, is to place the arrow on one of the corners and while holding the shift key, slide in.  Here is what it may look like, if you slide it in without using the shift key:

After using the shift key, this is what you will have!  Easy Peasy!!

Resizing layout for Web

Whether you are wanting to upload your completed layout to facebook, your blog or an online gallery, you'll need to resize it from its printable size.  It's very important to remember that things viewed on the web are much, much smaller than they are printed in real life.  I learned this lesson the hard way.  I created an entire first year book for my daughter (way back when I was just starting out) and I savedt them all on photobucket.  A few months later, our computer died and all I had was the versions on photobucket. I thought I would be just fine until I tried printing them.  No longer at a nice 12x12 inch size, they were just a tiny square on a piece of paper!

So, first create your layout at 12x12 inches at 300 dpi.

Next, save it in that format in a place where you will know you can print it.  I keep a folder called "My Albums"  and I have lots of folders in there where I keep all the layouts I am ready to print.  For example, my 2011 folder has a folder for each month with my layouts saved. I'm almost done and will then upload each of those layouts for printing.

Once I know it has been saved and tucked away for printing (and don't forget to back these files up in case something happens to your hard drive), you will want to shrink your layout from 300 dpi to 72 dpi and 600 pixels by 600 pixels.  If you are using photoshop, there is a "Save for Web" option that will make sure it is optimized and easy to upload online.  If you are using Pixlr, just save at this size and it should work at most galleries and facebook.

I save these web versions in the folder with my kit that I used. That way it is easy for me to give credit to the kit or template designer.

UnZipping Files

One of the first and most important things to learn when starting with digital scrapping is how to zip and unzip files.  Whenever you buy a kit or template pack, the graphics are zipped up in a folder.  You will download them to your computer hard drive and they will look like this:

Most of the files above are unzipped and the one at the bottom is zipped.  There are two ways that I unzip my files.  If I just have one, then I right click on the folder itself and choose "Extract All".  Afterwards, I delete the zipped one.

But usually a kit will have 3 to 4 zipped files and I hate having to wait for each to unzip.  I did it that way for far too long!  Then I discovered a wonderful free program called Extract Now.  Love it!

Go HERE to download the program.

Once you have it downloaded, it should show up as an option under your program files.  Open up the files you want to unzip and then using the start button, find Extract Now under your programs and open it.  Simply slide all of your files into the box:

Literally, just drag and drop!

Next, there are a few settings you'll want to set up in the beginning, but then they'll be there for the rest of the time.  So click on the little button in the bottom left corner that says settings.  From there, choose destination from the top menu:

I click on the box to open the files where they are.   What I usually do is cut and paste my zipped up files from my download box to whatever folder I want them organized in. That way I can just have them opened there and not have to change the setting each time to direct them to where I want them-but either way works.

The next setting is the one that says "post extraction".  Click the boxes I show below and once the files have been unzipped, they will automatically be deleted (the zipped ones!).  It helps to keep your files clean and not overcrowded!

Now just click okay and hit Extract and you're done! Your files are ready to scrap with!

Aligning your layout

I will admit, this isn't something I learned or used until recently when I got into designing templates.  Now I wish I had used it much more often!

In Photoshop, there is a super quick and easy way to keep everything aligned and even.

I'm going to share two different ways to line things up on your layout!

Let's pretend that you have 3 photos that you want to line up.  The first photo is large and you want the other two to line up so that together they would make one nice box.

I like to make my own squares first and line them up and then clip my photos to them.

First thing I'm going to do is the math!  Let's say I want my large photo to be 4x6 inches.  I would create a new image at 4 inches wide and 6 inches long at 300 dpi.  Then I would fill it with a color:

Now I'm going to create one more box half and a little less than this one.  If I want a half inch space between the two smaller photos, then I would make a new image with the dimensions of 4 inches (because our width isn't changing) and 2.75.  3 inches would be 1/2 of 6 inches and then I would want the two boxes to be a quarter of an inch smaller, giving a half inch in between.

Now put these images on your 12 by 12 inch layout and remember to place the smaller box on there twice.

At first glance, these look pretty lined up, but we're going for exact!  So, click on the layer of the large box and the top box and then go to layer>>Align>>Top Edges.  You'll notice them line right up.  Now do the same with the large box and the bottom one:

The last thing we want to do is make sure there is a 1/2 inch space between the large box and the two smaller ones.  To check this, we can click on View from the top menu and then choose Show>>Grid

This will put a grid over the whole thing and you can move the big box to be 1/2 inch away.  You can also use the grid from the beginning to line things up, but I wanted to show you several different options.

Text in a shape

I was scrapping and even designing for years before I learned this nifty trick!  It's so easy and makes it very fun to put your text in the shape of a circle or star or whatever might go with your layout.

First we're going to pull up a layout that needs some journaling. I'm going to use the amazing freebie that Evie made for us. I've placed my photo and now I want to journal.  I'm going to do it in a half circle shape like this:

So my next step is going to be to right click on the half circle in the layer palette and choose "select pixels".  This will put the marching ants around my half circle.  This is the start to creating the path for my journaling.

Add a layer by clicking the little box at the bottom of the layer palette that looks like a little paper with a folded corner.  Now you are going to look up on your layer palette and see where it says layers?  And next to it is channels and the last option is Paths?  You are going to click on it and it will change the look of your layers palette.  Next you are going to click on the icon at the bottom (follow the arrow in the pic below) and click on it. 

You'll notice that it changes the marching ant to a line around that section.  It is now ready for you to type your text within that area.

Here it is with the final result. You can play around with the size and if you want it centered or flush right or left.