[Weekly Mojo Series] Photo Organization

Last week, I shared Laura Kurz' thought process on which photos to display or scrap versus which photos to put in storage, and this week's post expands on that topic a bit. I came across a great article a few months ago in Real Simple, which focused on getting your photos off of your phone or camera and getting them into your albums or onto your walls. I jotted down their suggested 6-step process, and I'm sharing it with you today, along with some great inspiration from Liz Tamanaha of Paislee Press Designs on getting your photos out of shoebox storage.

1. Download your photos from your camera or phone. It's best to funnel them directly into a photo-organizing program if possible.

2. Edit, edit, edit. Delete duplicate photos or poor quality shots. If you have a lot of photos to go through, break this step down into 15- to 20-minute increments until it's completed.

 (source)

3. Make folders to store your photos. You can choose to sort them in chronological or thematic order, or use a combination of both (begin with chronological folders and then create sub-folders by theme).

4. Rename and file your photos. This is a great place to take care of any basic edits (cropping, fixing red-eye, etc).

(source)

5. Back up your files, using TWO of the following options: an external hard drive, a online storage service, or prints. The article suggests using CDs or DVDs ONLY if they are archival-rated, but be warned that these can be pricey.

6. Delete the original files from your camera or phone.

Until next week, keep the mojo flowin'!

[Weekly Mojo Series] Spotlight: Laura Kurz

Occasionally I like to feature scrapbookers and photographers in this space who have what I think of as an authentic perspective on memory-keeping and living with photographs. Laura Kurz is a scrapper whose outlook on scrapbooking and its role in her life (and the lives of her family members) really resonates with me. Laura's style bucks the trends and instead celebrates the beauty of a photo that -- although technically not perfect, perhaps -- embraces the perfection of each moment.

I asked Laura to share her thoughts on memorykeeping and photography with our readers. I hope you enjoy what she has to say.

When it comes to selecting photos for her layouts, Laura uses the following process:

"About every 2-3 months, I upload my photos that I want to print to Persnickety Prints (usually between 100-200). Not all of these will make it on to a layout, but all will make it into my albums. I have every picture printed in wallet-size, and then I choose some to have larger prints made. The ones I choose to print larger and use on layouts are usually just the pictures I  simply like best. I am not much of an "event" scrapbooker, more of a moment scrapbooker. I also have a professional photographer come and take our family photos once a year and I rely on those a lot for my albums. I use my blog posts a lot for journaling, so I will often try to figure out which photo goes best with the writing and have those enlarged. For pictures that I don't use on layouts, I put them in baseball card holders just with tags to say what month it is and maybe a typed-out caption. (See below). I feel like these photos cover more of the "day-to-day."

Laura most commonly orders prints and scrapbooks them in a standard letter size, 8.5x11, but she says that "lately I've also been having a lot of 6x9 printed as well, so there will be pages with those coming up in the near future!"

You can definitely see Laura's love of large focal point photos -- her pages often feature one large photo on one half of a two-page spread, with patterned papers, elements, and journaling on the other page. She also uses her photographs as the "background" of her layouts, adding paper strips, tags, and journaling right on top.

Those same characteristics carry over from Laura's pages to the walls of her home as well. Laura says, "I am a huge fan of grouping big photos together in my house. Actually, I'm a big fan of photo (and artwork) groupings in general. I think with my layouts and using the large photos, I go for a visual impact, and I do the same thing with my decorating."

Thanks, Laura, for giving us this glimpse into your photos and your process.

Until next week, keep the mojo flowin'!

[Weekly Mojo Series] Take Twelve

There are lots of great photography challenges floating around the internet. Some ask you to take a photo a day, others give you a theme for the month. Still others have you focus on capturing one photo of your family each month. The one I'm playing along with is Take 12 (I'm particularly drawn to the idea of 12 photos in 12 months during the year 2012. Nice, huh?)

Here's how it works: You take 12 photos on the 12 day of each month. That's it. That's the only rule, and even that rule is flexible. (For example, one month I was sick on the 12th and never crawled out of bed that day, so my photos were actually taken on the 13th and 14th. But that's okay. They still worked out perfectly.)

I've got a great post on my blog that shares my Take 12 layouts, as well as links to a variety of products that can help you implement this easy photography project.

And for those of you doing Project Life, Take 12 can work wonderfully with that project too. Here are some great ideas for using 6x12 inserts to fit your Take 12 photos into your regular albums.

Allison chose clean black frames and black text to create a really modern streamlined addition to her album. Nichol opted for a paper-scrapped version, with strips of photos that alternate with border stamps, washi tape, and flair.

Katrina's insert is a simple insert that she pulls directly from her blog each month (and her blog posts are another great option -- this doesn't have to be a project that you stick in an album). Finally, Catherine at DesignEditor shares a great template with you on her blog.

So what are you waiting for? Tomorrow is the 12th, so get your camera ready. I'll be sharing my pics on Instagram using the hashtag #take12. I hope you'll join me.

Until then, keep the mojo flowin'!

Wedding Photographs

It's wedding season!


We've been busy designing and printing wedding announcements here at Persnickety.
I thought I'd share some of the recent weddings I have shot.

 

find more of me HERE

 -Lizzy

Film Photography

Hello everyone! How was your week?

Today we're going to go back a few years ago and talk about something that maybe some of you have tried to forget (as my mom would say about this subject,) But, just so we're clear, I am no film photography expert, but here are a few basics that you should know about film. Why do I love film so much? Well, when shooting with digital, you don't get the same values as you do with film, you get greater depth of field and the colors are fairly exact and I do very little editing to my images. After getting my first digital SLR camera, that's all I shot. But now... I'm so bored! Do any of you feel that way too? I have to force myself to shoot digital. So, I bought myself this little beauty a few months ago and fell in love with photography all over again.

Canon EOS Elan 7

The best part is, I can still use all of my Canon lenses with it.

I got mine on Amazon.com for around $75

Thank goodness for me, this camera is "dummy proof," it is so easy to use, you just put your film in, slide it over, and it lets you know if the film is in properly by making a little sound, after the film is used up, it winds it up for you. Whalah! It has a very accurate light meter in the view finder and on the top right of your camera, where it also shows you your focus points, F/stop and shutter speed. Totally recommend this to anyone who is going to shoot film.

I have been trying out different film types lately, and I found that Kodak Portra 400, 160, 160VC and Ilford black and white films are my favorite. Some of you may be asking, "What do those numbers mean?" And that's fine if you don't know! Those numbers are called film speed; on a digital camera you would most likely know it as your ISO. When you set your ISO manually on your camera, it will typically give you a range from 100-3200, depending on which camera you have. But film is a little bit different, more simple. When you buy a roll of 160 film, it's going to be not so sensitive to light. I use 160 film on a very sunny day. When I use a roll of 3200 film, it's going to be VERY sensitive to light, you would want to use that indoor or in low lighting, or maybe you are just going for the grainy look.

Here are the differences between the two:

3200 film (lots of grain, which I love)

My friend/photographer Kiera Haddock snapped this of me.

 400 (very soft, but still crisp)

160

 I noticed that I spend more time on each image, composing it perfectly and making sure the lighting is just right. The complete opposite of what I do with digital, click click click... etc. I love to look at my images after I develop them, its exciting because you don't know what they will look like. 

Speaking of developing, how many of you still go to Walgreens or Rite Aid to process your film? Well guess what? Stop it! They do not care about your film. You need to take your film to a professional lab that develops film frequently. The problem with Walgreens or rite aid is that they only change their chemicals depending on their demand of developing. Since photography has moved to digital, people hardly use film. Therefore, you will mostly likely have your film processed through old chemicals which can leave out contrast, detail and can give you incorrect color. From this moment on, promise me and say an oath in your head that you will go to a professional lab.

So for the people that are not interested in shooting film, but still want to spice up your photography and have some fun, here are my favorite toys...

Believe it or not, I got BOTH of these Polaroid cameras on eBay for $6!

Hint: don't waste your time searching for expired Polaroid film (they quit making this film)

There is a company called IMPOSSIBLE FILM who makes polaroid film and sells all sorts of other goodies. Take a gander!

Here are a few of my own polaroids using their film...

Overall, film is a lot of fun, and you definitely learn a lot doing it. If you're bored with digital, I highly recommend trying some film!

-Lizzy Pinckney (Persnickety In-House Designer) 

Find more of me Here

Inspiring Photographers, Amanda Peterson

One of the many perks of working at Persnickety Prints is being inspired by our over the top creative friends! (that's you)
When local photographer, Amanda Peterson, came in to pick up this mounted 8x20 "Shoe Collage" she created for a bride, I just had to share.
What a G R E A T  I D E A!

There are more weddings in Utah than there are aspen trees. 
How does a wedding photographer stand out from the rest? By "personalizing" the wedding of course!
I mean, these things only happen once, right? (or two, or three times, but still...) 
Amanda takes the time to know her clients, their style, their personality, and makes them shine with her lens.

Amanda's Blog is filled with inspiration. 

Her focus is the story behind each photo.

Thank You Amanda, for inspiring me.

-Chari

 Amanda Peterson Photography, Utah

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