When I purchased Photoshop Elements however many years ago it was that I bought it, I had a handful of very specific intentions in mind as to what I hoped to learn to do with it. One such desire was to be able to scan a 12 x 12 scrapbook page in 2 pieces (since my scanner won't handle anything as large as 12 x 12…… and then "stitch" the two images back together to create a single complete image again – so I could post a scrapbook page online.
Well, unfortunately the learning curve for that particular application with that particular piece of software has proven too steep for this self-teacher, and I've never been able to accomplish a merge that looked satisfactory. There always seemed to be a line of some type where the two parts meet, and sometimes the two halves were slightly different shades of color….. just general "not good enough" results to ever actually use.
But last night I suddenly had a fresh flush of ambition, and began seriously searching the web for a potential photo merge application that would really work – and work *well*. Of course I was hopeful to find something that wouldn't cost – or at least not cost much – and in the process I downloaded a couple of things that sounded promising – only to find they wouldn't work as I'd hoped they would. ("You get what you pay for", blah, blah, blah…..) How to blow an ENTIRE evening in one easy lesson. Geesh.
But I kept digging – and eventually came across this company, http://i2align.com/photographic_panorama_montage_software.php - and I was REALLY impressed with their software. So long story short, after messing around with their 7-day trial version for a long time last night (into the wee hours of the morning and beyond) testing it on several different types of projects, I ended up buying it. And (drumroll, please!) here's my very first 12 x 12 scrapbook page presented the way I've longed to present one for YEARS! :-) Are you as impressed as I am?!?
Now, a little bit of info about what this particular scrappin' page is all about (since obviously it has no pictures on it yet): I am going to be offering a series of classes this summer called "Santa's Summertime Workshop Series". Each class in the series will focus on a different project that will make a great gift – and if you'd like to get a head-start on your Christmas list I invite you to stay tuned for more information! Anyway, ONE of the classes will be to make 20-pages for a 12 x 12 album in a single day. Yes, that's right – 20 page foundations in a single day!
Now I have been experimenting with this idea this week, and have completed the foundation pages for two such 20-page albums; each taking me only approximately 5 hours from beginning of the thinking process through completion. One was a baby-boy themed album (this is the front page from that album), and the other wasn't constructed with a particular theme, but rather just pretty, generic pages which could be used for any lovely theme – or however one wished. Anyway, the plan is that attendees will be able to choose their own theme(s) and colors – but more about all the specifics later.
And in the meantime, check out what these genius software developers have put together. It's pretty cool stuff! And whew! I actually got a scrapbook page posted up here before National Scrapbooking Month ran out!
