Tutorial: Creating Photo Collages Using Lightroom

One of the questions I get asked most often when people see my printed photos or my Project Life pages is:  How do you make your collages?  The answer is I use Adobe Lightroom’s Print Module to create and print collages.  It is super-easy and magical after you’ve set up your templates!  And setting up the templates doesn’t take too long either.  It’s so easy and time-saving that I think it may be the best kept secret in scrapbooking!

I’ve created several videos below, showing you how to create different types of collages within Lightroom.  Please watch them in sequence because they build upon the previous ones.  Keep in mind that I’m just trying to give the information in a succinct way.  I didn’t do any voiceovers after the fact.  All the audio of me talking is recorded through the microphone as I was doing the video screencast tutorials.  So just be prepared for a few “ums” and “ahs”.  ;-)

The first video shows you how to set up your printer to print the right size and the right settings from Lightroom.  Please keep in mind that this set up is specific to my printer. (I have the Canon Pixma MG5320.  It is discontinued, but a very similar one is the MG6620.)  Your printer may be different, but the dialog boxes and choices hopefully will be very similar to mine.

Video:  Setting Up Your Printer To Print From Lightroom

You can see it in higher resolution at Youtube.

 

The second video shows you how to create a 4x6 collage with two photos.  It also shows you how to save your collage as a template so that you can use it over and over again with different photos!

Without an outside border.

With an outside border.

And in a square format.

Video:  Creating Photo Collages in Lightroom Part 1: 4x6 with 2 Photos

See it in higher resolution at YouTube.

 

The 3rd video shows you how to create 4x6 sheet of 4-photo and 6-photo collages. 

Video:  Creating Photo Collages in Lightroom Part 2: 4x6 with 4 Photos & 6 Photos

Watch it in high resolution at YouTube.

 

The 4th video shows you how to create a 8.5x11 collage with 12 square photos.  You can adapt it to create other collages for printing on the 8.5x11 sheet.

Video:  Creating Photo Collages in Lightroom Part 3:  8.5x11 with 12 Square Photos

Watch it in high resolution on YouTube.

If you’ve made it through all of the above, then I’ve got a free template for you to download!  This Lightroom template is for a sheet of 8.5x11 collage with 12 square photos, like above.

Download the Lightroom template here.

Save it to a folder of your choosing on your computer.  Not sure how to import the template and use it in Lightroom?  I’ve got a video tutorial for THAT!

Video:  How To Import and Use a Collage Print Template in Lightroom

Watch it in high resolution on YouTube.

And those are my tutorials on making collages in Lightroom!  Hope you learned something that makes scrapbooking and Project Life’ing faster and easier.  Let me know in the comments if you have questions.

Thanks for stopping by!  ♥

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Elf Party Invites + Free Download

Our annual Elf Party is coming up in early December. 

We didn’t have it in 2013 due to our vacation to Hawaii, but this year Elf Party IV will be back!  This past weekend I made some invitations for the party.  I wanted to hand-letter my favorite quote from the Elf movie, so I drew some pencil lines and sketched out my lettering in pencil first.  Then I went over it with my Sakura Micron pens.

After I erased my pencil marks and fixed up my lettering a little more with my Microns, I was happy with what I had.

I scanned it and then pulled it up into Adobe Illustrator to digitize the lettering.  I used the Live Trace function to digitize it.  Then I changed the colors of the digitized lettering for my invitations.

I printed them onto matte photo paper in A2 size. 

I trimmed them and adhered them to red cardstock.

I was pretty happy with how they turned out!  Not bad for a Saturday’s work!  I’ve sent out the invitations to our Elf Party friends.  Now I need to get started on my party favors!

If you like this digitized version of my hand-lettering…

I’ve made some downloadable printables for you!  Please remember it’s for personal-use only and not for resale in any form.  You can download them here:  3x4, 4x6, 8.5x11. 

Enjoy! :-)

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2014 Project Life | July Collage Inserts

I’m sharing a couple of Project Life inserts from July today.  Even though they are not pocket pages, they are in my Project Life album and part of my documentation for July.  In July we drove up to Sonoma County so that Todd could participate in the Ironman 70.3 Vineman race. 

I wanted to include a lot of photos and journaling, but not have to trim them and put them into pockets.  Photo collages to the rescue!  I love making photo collages so that I could include lots of photos in my album.  I created a 8.5x11 photo collage template in Photoshop and got to work.  The first collage was about our adventures in Sonoma County and it looked like this digitally before I printed it out.

I left some blank spaces so that I could add some little embellishments. 

The other collage about the actual Ironman event itself looked like this before printing it out.  I left even more spaces to add embellishments.

I was just going to print them out, add embellishments, and slip them into an 8.5x11 page protector back-to-back.  But I decided to back them up with 12x12 cardstock and add a title to each of them instead.

The Sonoma County layout ended up looking like this.  I added some glitter foam star stickers, sequins, wood veneer, camera, and enamel dots for embellishments.  I added the title on the left side with some Thickers alphas. 

I used a T-square to make sure my title lined up perfectly straight and perpendicular to the page.

Here you can see the embellishments more closely.  I simply adhered little dimensional embellishments such as wood veneers, sequins, and enamel dots to the page.

For the Ironman page, I adhered my printed collage onto white 12x12 cardstock and added the title perpendicularly again, this time on the right side. 

I added some wood veneers for the swim, bike, and run.  I didn’t have a swimming man, so I just adhered the man sideways, lol!

On the bottom I added some more star wood veneers.  The yellow enamel dot fit perfectly inside that camera!

I added a couple of gold star sequins next to the title on the collage.

The pages go into my Project Life album alongside with all the memorabilia from the event!

I love creating collages for both layouts and pocket pages!  I hope you are inspired to make some of your own.  It’s an easy way to fit lots of photos into your story. 

I’m sharing my layered Photoshop template with you so you could create something similar if you wish!  You will need Photoshop or Photoshop Elements to use this template for your photo collage. 

Download:  Listgirl’s Tilted 8.5x11 Photo Collage .PSD Template

If you need a tutorial on how to used layered templates in Photoshop or PSE, Ali Edwards has a wonderful video here.  If you download my template and use it, I would love to see it!  You can link to it in the comments in this post so I can admire your page!  :-)

I have more Project Life pages to share in the next few days.

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Free Download | Summer Circles

I created these 1.25” circles in Photoshop and printed them on a 4x6 sheet of Canon matte paper.  I print all my digital stuff on matte photo paper, because it looks the sharpest and the best.  Then I punched the circles out using an EK Success 1.25” circle punch. 

Aren’t they cute?  I plan to use them for Project Life or regular scrapbook pages.

If you like them, they are yours!  The only thing I ask is that you use them for personal-use only.  Please don’t sell them in digital or physical format. 

Download:  Summer Circles 4x6 printable

Enjoy!  I would love to see what you do with these!

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Write Click Scrapbook | Currently

The April gallery “Selfies” is live at Write.Click.Scrapbook.!

12 x 12 | materials cardstock (Bazzill, Strathmore) + patterned paper (Studio Calico, Bella Blvd, Hambly, Lily Bee) + wood veneers (Studio Calico) + enamel dots (Twine + Ink) + printable labels (Studio Calico) + mist (Studio Calico) + ink (Hero Arts, Studio Calico, Tsukineko) + stamps (American Crafts, Evalicious, Technique Tuesday, Studio Calico) + tag (Elle's Studio) + twine (The Twinery) + washi tape (Studio Calico) + plastic hearts (Hello Forever for Studio Calico) + doily (Royal Lace) + adhesive (Scotch, Glue Dots) + pen (Sharpie, Sakura) + fonts (Lobster 2.0, PT Sans Narrow) + software (Rad Lab, Adobe Photoshop) + printer (Canon)

I processed the same photo using three different filters from Rad Lab. Then I put them onto one 4x6 canvas in Photoshop and printed it at home. I like the way it looks, different, yet the same.

I used mostly the Studio Calico February scrapbook kit Sugar Rush, plus some items from my stash.  I really enjoyed the layering and textures.  I created the stamped dots using stamp & ink, and the ink splatters using Mr Huey’s sprays.

More textures and layering with tags, twine, wood veneer, and enamel dots.

I created the “Currently” 3x4 journal card myself in Photoshop and then printed it out on Becky Higgins Project Life 3x4 blank cards.

If you would like the Currently card to use yourself, you can download it here.  Or click on the image below.

I had a lot of fun creating this 12x12 layout, which I haven’t done in a while!  You can see the April gallery launch post at Write.Click.Scrapbook. here, and see the entire gallery here.

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Calligraphy Class @ Paper Tales

Lately I’ve been really interested in modern calligraphy, because I’ve seen it all over Pinterest and on blogs.  It seemed like it would be really fun to learn calligraphy and make my own quote prints or journal cards for scrapbooking.  So when I found out that my awesome local scrapbook store Paper Tales was holding a Calligraphy class, I signed up!  The class was taught by April Joy Hill, whom I was already following in the scrapbooking world.  What a small world that she lives in San Diego!

Practicing calligraphy this weekend on Project Life journal cards.

Calligraphy class was held on Sunday 12/1 from 1-4pm.  When I had lunch with Pearl, she said she was thinking about attending the class too.  When she found out I was planning on going, she signed up too!  Here we were in class.

April the instructor, showing us the type of paper to use to practice calligraphy on.

My first time using a pointed-tip calligraphy pen!  We got a straight pen holder with a Nikko G nib.  Using black sumi ink. 

My first strokes felt weird and unnatural, lol.  I wasn’t used to holding the pen and the nib.  I practiced some basic strokes first.  Then using the basic strokes to build the lowercase alphabet.

Practice, practice, practice.

With some mess-ups along the way.

The other ladies in the class, hard at work practicing their alphabets.

After practicing the letters, I practiced putting words together. 

The instructor April and I.

I got to meet my Instagram friend Mariko!

I had a lot of fun in class and learned so much!  In fact, I sort of got obsessed with calligraphy and signed up for a Skillshare calligraphy class called Introduction to the Art of Modern Calligraphy.  I spent a bunch of time practicing yesterday.  Here’s some that I scanned into the computer.

Some more on journal cards.

I’ll be the first to admit that I haven’t practiced enough to find my own style yet.  I see all the accomplished calligraphers out there doing amazing lettering, and I’m far from where I want to be.  But it is so fun to practice and explore.  I have a feeling that this hobby will stick!

Just for fun, I scanned in the “be jolly” that I wrote above, and made this 3x4 journal card in Photoshop.  I printed it onto a Project Life 3x4 blank card. 

I’m giving the journal card away as a free download!  If you like it and want to print your own, you can download it here:  listgirl 3x4 be jolly journal card. 

Please link up in the comments if you use it to make something.  I would love to see it!  I’m having so much fun with calligraphy!  :-)

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