Order from Facebook

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Facebook photos have always been fun to look at, but virtually impossible to print ... until now. To order prints of any of your Facebook photos, including photos you are tagged in, simply install the Facebook photo ordering app from your Facebook account.

The app is still a Beta release, meaning your feedback is welcome to help make it perfect via the feedback link in the app. Once it is installed, select the photos you wish to order, press "Add to Cart" to put them in your shopping cart, and when you are ready to order, press "Go to Cart" to open the shopping cart and complete the order. The order is sent to us at Persnickety Prints, just as any other order you place using your online photo account.



Ordering Facebook photos is a great way to preserve your memories so you can enjoy your Facebook photos anytime, even when you are not in front of a computer.

I recommend ordering smaller sized prints from Facebook. Images are compressed when posted online and are usually too low to print anything larger than a 5x7 or 8x10.

 Facebook recently enabled a new feature that allows you to upload high resolution photos, so next time you upload to Facebook, choose the high resolution option for better quality prints.

Video Tutorial:

Quick Digital Layouts using Picasa

Top 3 FAVORITE reasons I use Picasa (not in order)

What it is: Picasa is free photo editing software & host site from Google.

download it here: http://picasa.google.com

#1) I don't have TIME to Scrapbook!

With 3 boys, and 1 husband,  I cannot seem to find much time to do anything. Fancy Schmancy scrapbook layouts are fun, but slim these days. 

We took a family trip back in April. I snapped around 500 pictures (with an Olympus Point and Shoot... 3rd one that has fallen in water). I still haven't *gasp* printed or scrapbooked any of these, it just seems so overwhelming. I don't want to only pick a few pictures, there are so many great ones to choose from! Welcome Picasa with open arms...

• First of all, when you download Picasa, it starts reading your entire Hard Drive. You don't have to upload or import anything!

• You can create a 12x12 scrapbook page in under 60 seconds. Not kidding!

Once you learn about all of the little buttons and tools, it is easy. Anyone can do it, and it's Free!
Here is how I QUICKLY scrapbooked our Family Vacation using Picasa:

First - I open up My Picasa, choose about 10-15 photo's, and create a Picasa "Collage".
Picasa automatically lays it all out for you. I used the Mosiac Collage option. You can choose your grid size, colors, even add your own background papers. I just wanted to fit as many pictures as possible, so I kept it simple.

Kenny is going to kill me when printing these layouts. The outside border is very small, of course he can do it, but I don't want him mad at me. Plus, I really like double page layouts in my book.
So.....
 I found a cute scrappy QuickPage in my stash. With Photoshop Elements, I added my one vacation"highlight" photo.

 

This QP Freebie from Iowan was offered during the Weeds and Wildflowers summer sale, and you may still be able to access it here.

I exported my collage from Picasa. In Photoshop Elements, I placed my collage over the .png QP, made the outside border thicker, and now I have a double page spread that flows much better, and Kenny will be happy.

TIP:

TIME is the number ONE reason why people don't archive their memories, and if you are even still reading this post... hooray! I could go on and on with tips on how to create your digital layouts with Picasa. Instead, for those of you that are interested, I will link up some places to find some. Once you play around with Picasa, you will fly through those pics that are stacking up on your hard drive!

• New Features in Picasa 3.8 (ie, Face Movie, Batch Upload, Properties)   
• Google Storage
• Getting Started Guide
• Organizing + Name Tags
• Scrapbook Collage Video Tutorial

#2) Printing Picasa Layouts
This is the best! Life needs to be simple! Check this out... create your Picasa layout, send it to your Picasa Web Account, and just click Print! It will send your layout straight to us!
OR
While in your Persnickety Prints account, you can import photos from Picasa and order prints!
No need to export, import, blah, blah. In fact, you aren't even touching your own hard drive space!

#3) The Properties Panel

One of my new favorite features in Picasa 3.8 is the Properties Panel. 

When you take a photo with any kind of camera, Picasa will read it, and let you know what settings you used. You can now tell someone "how you did it" by reading your camera settings.

       Nikon D90     focal length 90mm.     ISO 320   1/25s    f 5.6

Ok.. just one more favorite..
#3.5) Face Movie

Say you want to create a slide show for a birthday party or wedding. Maybe you have only have two days and all you have is a bunch of group photos. Don’t panic! With the new Face Movie, you can quickly create a slide show featuring that special someone, centered around that special someone, complete with transitions, music and captions. Picasa face tagging does all of the hard work for you! 

Watch a Face Movie made from Picasa Here.

Face Movie analyzes the faces in your selected photos to find the smoothest transitions across facial expressions and poses. Unlike a movie presentation, Face Movie overlays the most similar facial expressions in each photo on top of each other to create the smoothest transitions. To create a Face Movie, follow these steps.

Thanks for reading the longest post ever! The best thing about Picasa, is anyone can use it! No more excuses for family and friends to not TRY digital!

As always, you can email us with any questions.   info@persnicketyprints.com

Mod Podge Board Book

I wanted to make a different and unique gift using an ABC Quick Album:

a collaboration from Cinzia Loosemore + Biograffiti

The 26 quick and easy layouts was the easy part, it was how to put it together that was tough!

I don't like photo books. This is how my photo books look after time.

With Persnickety Prints photo paper, images always look their best, they are archival, waterproof, scratch & fade resistant, etc, etc.
Plus, if I need to change or replace a page, it's easy, I just print one page!

 Since the photo paper is liquid proof, I turned to my Mod Podge.

So, here it is..

The Mod Podge Photo Book...

I went to our local craft store, bought a 2-Ring Board Book. 

($6.99 + 40% off= $4.20 includes 6 pages. Purchased 6 extra pages $1.99 )

 26 6x6 prints at Persnickety: .79¢ ea. = $20.54

Mod Podge (gloss. water based) & Brush: had on hand

ABC Album (optional): $15.99 (26 12x12 .png files) 

**Tip** you can print any size smaller, keeping the same aspect ratio (ie, square) 

without having to re-format! 

 TOTAL SPENT: $26.73

 26 6x6 Prints

I measured & punched 2 holes in each print

Let the "Podging" Begin! 

 

The Finished Project: After the glue dries, the pages seem to blend into the book. I wonder how the Sparkle, Glimmer or Shimmer Mod Podge would look? We may need to try one next time. There is even a glow in the dark Mod Podge!

The Perfect Little ABC Gift. This one is for Grandma!

Camera Hardware and Accessories

We all know cameras are cool, but how much do you know about camera hardware and accessories? If the answer is "not much," read on!

Most camera hardware is designed for SLR cameras, and not point and shoot cameras. But, I don't like to make people feel left out! For those of you out there with a point and shoot camera, you can still pick up some cool accessories like camera bags, tripods, and media cards to enhance your digital photography. Most camera hardware options contradict the benefits of a point and shoot camera anyway, namely: convenience, ease of use, and small size for portability. When you start adding hardware, things become a little more advanced.

For those of you who have SLR cameras (or hope to get one this holiday season), here are a few hardware options you might be interested in:

External Flash
Your SLR camera already comes with a built in flash, which is fine for snapshots and candid photos, but really only work well when the subject is within 15 feet. Also, the built in flashes almost always give people red eye, because the flash and the lens are so close together and are pointed at the same angle when you take a photo.

An external flash allows you to move the flash away from the lens and use a different angle to light your shot. Even moving it 6-12 inches away from the lens can eliminate red eye, though if you are shooting from a long distance away, you will need at least a few feet between the lens and the flash.

External flashes also allow you to use a technique the pros use all the time: bounce the flash. Tip the flash up so the light hits the ceiling in an indoor shot. The light will bounce off the ceiling and fall onto the subjects, rather than shoot straight at them like a built in flash. This gives the photo a more natural lighting effect. Or, use a rubber band to attach a business card to the top of the external flash to reflect the light up and forward at the same time. This enhances the light in your photos even more and eliminates the dark eye effect (the dark eye effect is when the eyes have a shadowy look from the light coming down from above). Your photos will get exponentially better with just this one technique.

Lastly, if you buy an external flash, purchase a sync cord, which lets you move the flash several feet away from the camera. A sync cord automatically triggers the flash when you take a photo, regardless of where the flash is in relation to the camera.

Lenses
Different lenses are one of the reasons pros use SLRs as opposed to point and shoot cameras. Most SLRs come with a zoom lens you can attach and remove, but there are plenty of other options out there. A wide angle lens (18mm, 24mm, 28mm, or 35mm) expands the horizons in your shot and makes photos appear more like how our eyes see things. This is a great lens for nature landscapes or for shooting in a room.

A portrait lens (105mm or 135mm) shortens the background and gives peoples' faces the correct proportions that often appear slightly incorrect with other lenses. As the name suggests, this lens is good for portraits and close up shots.

Long lenses you often see sports photographers using help you get closer to your subject. But, they do more than bring you closer to the action; they also help isolate the subject by throwing the background out of focus.

As far as pricing is concerned, you get what you pay for. Most high quality lenses are several hundred dollars or more. The less expensive ones let less light in than the more expensive ones. They are still quality lenses, but are not as versatile. Visit your local store to see what lenses are available. Bring in your camera to try them out.

Check out our blog post: Shooting in Manual Mode

Photo Card Freebie

 

 

Our good friends, Kate & Dan are the talented photographers behind these baby photo's.

www.peekaboophotos.com

                 ***Holiday Card Print Prices***

These are .png files. Layer your photo underneath, add your text. Print. Done.

Download these Photo Holiday Cards Here

Enjoy!

SMJ Calendars!

Not only are 2011 Calendar designs already hitting web shelves, people are PRINTING their 2011 Calendar gifts as I type this! I am lucky if I have mine finished by December 31st. Feeling the pressure here!

Back when I started digital scrapbooking in 2007, Shabby Miss Jenn Designs was one of the first Digital Shops I found, and was in awe! I still wonder where she can come up with all of this great stuff.

My very first custom calendar purchase... the SMJ Wall Calendar Volume 1

Shabby Miss Jenn Designs is now onto Volume 4

There are lots of cool things about the SMJ Calendar

1. They are .png files, so it's really, really easy to put these together. You just layer a photo underneath. Done.
2. They are reusable. Yep, you can use the SAME Calendar every year if you want. 

How you ask?

Well, when you purchase an Entire Calendar "Volume", it comes blank with separate Monthly Word Art files, and the Yearly Overlays. (currently 2011)

Sometimes I like to even use the separate word art on my digi layout pages, and Greeting Cards!

Check out the entire new Shabby Miss Jenn Designs 2011 Collection!

Get 10% OFF with this exclusive coupon

code: persnicketycals2011

 Persnickety Printing Options and Sizes

Sincerely,
         Chari

Freebie and a Challenge

1. Click here to get in on the Creative Juice No. 23 CHALLENGE from Biograffiti!

2. Create your layout using this template + your choice of digital supplies then upload your LO to your favorite gallery.

3. Post a comment with a link to your gallery post.

4. Two Winners will be chosen and each winner will receive $5 to Biograffiti.  You have until Saturday October 9, 2010 @ 11:59pm MST to enter.  Winners Announced Monday 10/11/10.

How to create a calendar with custom "toppers"

Ok, so you have seen custom calendar "toppers" around the digital world. Some are layered for .psd use, some are .png. The question is, once you create your calendar "toppers" in your digital program .... what do you do next?

We will show you how to make your own customized Calendars this year with these easy steps!

To get started:
1. Upload your finished calendar .jpeg to your online account
2. Choose the Custom Calendar Option
3. Follow these steps:

 

 

Customize Individual Dates with Images and Text

Scrappers' Workshop

New item on Bucket List: I hope to meet Stan and Jenn someday.

We are in Utah, they are in Tennessee.

The most difficult part of my job is explaining to people in a nice, calm, and unbiased way WHY they should be printing their cherished memories on professional PHOTO PAPER. Not the photo paper that you buy at Target or Walmart and insert into your inkjet printer. Real, true photographic, silver halide photo paper...

Stan did just that. Stan is my new hero.

Without our knowledge, Stan writes this beautiful blog post about this very thing, why it is so important to be educated about your prints. It's an exquisite piece.

Do you know what an electrostatic print is? Find out here... in all of its beauty.

P.S. Stan and Jenn have been in this business for longer than some of you have been alive (sorry guys). Not only do they know their stuff... they teach it too! Try one of their interactive classes at Scrappers' Workshop! You will love it.

-Chari