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July 22nd, 2010

How to be the Photo-Journalist of Your Own Life or 5 Ways to Tell Your Story Through Photos

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Hi, again!

I’m sure you’re familiar with this scene: a family get-together, everyone is outside, the kids are having fun, the parents are happy just to watch and take pictures.
water_slide
While visiting my family in Kansas City this month, we set up a water slide for the kids and my sister started taking photos. After she got her round of shots, she and I left the kids playing, went inside, and looked through the pictures in her viewfinder. We flipped through all of the photos, laughing and having a great time, and then it occurred to me — we were inside enjoying the kids in her camera, instead of outside enjoying the actual kids, live and three-dimensional!

I’m not about to preach now that we should all put the camera down and enjoy life more. Is that what you’re thinking? While that may be true for some, that’s not where I’m going with my epiphany.

Here’s where I am heading: how interesting that after we got our fill of watching the kids play, my sister and I wanted to stare at the photos. We could have just gone back outside for more.

But that would have been a different experience.

There is just something about a photo. We’ve captured life in a different way. We’ve frozen a facial expression. We’ve immortalized a certain pose a loved one tends to adopt only for fractions of a second. We’ve made time stop. Pictures are life-captures and there is something so wonderful about them.

But how do you strike that delicate balance between living life and hiding behind the camera? Here’s how I do it…

  • Keep the camera easily accessible so you can grab it more often and in spontaneous moments.
  • Spend five or ten minutes taking the shots, and then put the camera away. You’ve taken enough!

Story-telling Photos

While in that 5-10 minute photo-journalist mode, you can think in terms of STORY to make sure you get those life-capturing shots. Here’s how:

  1. Setting & Mood – step back, maybe even use a wide-angle, to show the setting.
  2. Characters – Get a few group shots and some individual shots. Make sure you have a few good potential shots of each person, whether in a group or individually. Get them being themselves and doing their thing, rather than try to pose them for each shot. This will capture personality.
  3. Relationships – if you’re with a group of people you don’t get to photograph every day, try to get at least one picture of all of the different relationships. It is especially cool if you get them interacting naturally so you can capture the real essence of the relationship.
  4. Details – get in close for composition variety, and to really hone in on the details of what is happening.
  5. Action – Action is more interesting than a pose. Action shots tell what’s happening.

Here are some examples. Notice how much of the story I’ve already captured of our 4th of July, just through the pictures alone…

Setting

prepping_on_porch
yellow_smoke

Characters

sidney_on_porch
blake_aiden_green_smoke

Relationships

tel_and_erin

Details

fireworks_closeup

Action

blake_running
looking_up

Weekly Roundup

  • Paperclipping Video TutorialRepurpose Your Old Items
  • This week’s episode is for our members only (the rest of the shows listed below are all free). Please click here for information on becoming a Paperclipping Member so you can watch our videos!

  • The Paperclipping RoundtableOh, The Trunk!
  • The Paperclipping Digi ShowThe Well-Rounded Mama
  • The Paperclipping Monthly Challenge – Are you using the inspiration you get from Paperclipping? Maybe you need a challenge! You have nine days to jump in for July!

Don’t forget!

Paperclipping Live! – This is our weekly live scrapbooking show. It’s my chance to interact with you and your chance to interact with other scrapbookers who enjoy Paperclipping.

Every Tuesday night, 6:30 Pacific Standard Time.

I hope you’re having a great summer. Don’t forget to use your camera to capture your stories by using the tips above!

Best Regards,

Noell
Host, Paperclipping

July 21st, 2010

PDS 008 – The Well Rounded Mama

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How can blogging affect your memory keeping?

That’s the subject of this week’s Paperclipping Digi Show!

You can use this audio player to listen to the show:

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The Panel

Picks of the Week

(Affiliate links wherever possible.)

How to subscribe…

We’re in the iTunes directory so you can just click on this link to go there and subscribe,… or if you want to do it the hard way, you can subscribe to the show’s RSS feed.

Your thoughts?

What did you think of the show? What questions or feedback do you have? Please let us know in the comments!

July 20th, 2010

PRT 029 – Oh, the Trunk!

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What technology can you use to help with your scrapbooking? What are you using, and how?

All this and more on this installment of the Paperclipping Roundtable!

You can use this audio player to listen to the show:

You need Adobe Flash Player to view this video.

If you want, you can also right click this link to save the show to your computer manually.

The Panel

Picks of the Week

(Affiliate links wherever possible.)

Contest

Please don’t leave a comment here for the BigPictureScrapbooking class giveaway. Instead, leave a comment over here.

WE HAVE A SPONSOR!

This show is sponsored by Big Picture Scrapbooking. Click here for the promo code to save 10% on any class at BPS!

How to subscribe…

Did you know that when you subscribe in iTunes (which is free), you’re helping support Paperclipping Roundtable? It’s true. iTunes measures every subscription, so it’s like casting a “vote” for the show. It helps us move up the ranks and helps us grow the audience.

iTunes is free. Subscribing is free, so why not use it to download the show? Subscribe in iTunes (iTunes link) right now so your computer will automatically download each new episode as they become available.

July 20th, 2010

Giveaway Contest – BigPictureScrapbooking Class – Book of Stories

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BigPictureScrapbooking wants us to give away one spot in their class, Book of Stories. Yay, thanks for letting us do this!

Okay, enthusiastic reader, here’s how you enter. It’s very easy. Simply leave a comment on this post and you’ll be entered to win.

Deadline to enter is July 26th, 2010, and we’ll randomly draw the lucky winner on the 27th.

Good luck!

Update 8/2: Thanks for participating! Comments are now closed. We will announce the winner on the Aug. 3rd episode.

July 19th, 2010

Paperclipping 149 – Repurpose Your Old Items

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You need the free Flash Player to view this video.

Sometimes a product gets “old” because its intended purpose isn’t helpful for how we scrapbook — especially if the way we scrap evolves over time and we’re not doing the same kinds of things we used to do when we purchased an item.

In this episode, which we’ve released for the Paperclipping Members, I share how I have repurposed old paper, journal spot stickers, photo corners, and raw chipboard shapes. If you’re not yet a member, you can watch the trailer here.

Below are the projects I made with the journal spots and the paper. If you would like to watch this tutorial, get access to the almost 150 episodes in the archives, plus get two new videos every month, please click here to see how!

You & Me

8×8 mini album with a mix of extra pages from other mini-books
you_and_me_mini_cover
You_me_hospital
you_me_hospital_backside
Want to see more of this album?

Big Red Bowl

12×12 layout
big_red_bowl
Journaling written to Aiden reads: You were so happy to graduate from the tiny baby bowls to this bigger one — the only one like it that we own. For years you have called it the Big Red Bowl and you request it all the time. (July 2008).

July 15th, 2010

PDS 007 – How Busy People Do It

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How do you find the time for digital scrapbooking? We’ve got some ideas for you…

That’s the subject of this week’s Paperclipping Digi Show!

You can use this audio player to listen to the show:

You need Adobe Flash Player to view this video.

If you want, you can also right click this link to save the show to your computer manually.

The Panel

“Intro to Video” Discount

Get $20 off Izzy’s “Intro to Video” course (normally $50 but only $30 for PDS listeners). Follow this link to get the coupon code!

Picks of the Week

(Affiliate links wherever possible.)

How to subscribe…

We’re in the iTunes directory so you can just click on this link to go there and subscribe,… or if you want to do it the hard way, you can subscribe to the show’s RSS feed.

Your thoughts?

What did you think of the show? What questions or feedback do you have? Please let us know in the comments!

July 15th, 2010

PRT 028 – Poopy Stuff in Our Backgrounds

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What scrapbooking tips do we have for families with adopted children? Stacy and CD both have great ideas. Let’s hear what they say…

All this and more on episode 28 of the Paperclipping Roundtable!

You can use this audio player to listen to the show:

You need Adobe Flash Player to view this video.

If you want, you can also right click this link to save the show to your computer manually.

The Panel

Picks of the Week

(Affiliate links wherever possible.)

Most Influential Scrapbooker Award

WE HAVE A SPONSOR!

This show is sponsored by Big Picture Scrapbooking. Click here for the promo code to save 10% on any class at BPS!

How to subscribe…

Did you know that when you subscribe in iTunes (which is free), you’re helping support Paperclipping Roundtable? It’s true. iTunes measures every subscription, so it’s like casting a “vote” for the show. It helps us move up the ranks and helps us grow the audience.

iTunes is free. Subscribing is free, so why not use it to download the show? Subscribe in iTunes (iTunes link) right now so your computer will automatically download each new episode as they become available. (If you don’t know how to do that, you can watch a video here that shows you how.)

July 14th, 2010

How Your Grandma Can Help With Your Old Products

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Hi, again!

I’ve done a number of tutorials that share how I use my older stash of stuff, but that topic continues to be one of the highest requested subjects for me to cover. So I decided to make a series of tutorials that cover four main methods I use when I decide it’s time to finish up some old products and be done with them.

Many of us had grandmothers who lived through the Great Depression. Your grammy probably learned how to use her stuff to its fullest potential, so you can just think of her to remember my four methods whenever you need to find new inspiration in your old products. Here’s an acronym to help you out…

GRAM

  • Gather
  • Re-purpose
  • Alter
  • Match with something new

Need some examples? We already released the Gather tutorial where I shared four commonly “aged” products, and four different examples of how gathering can make bland items look hot.

Next week we’ll move onto method #2: Re-purpose. Over time, most of us evolve the way we scrapbook. Re-purposing is an especially great method to choose when the purpose of an item doesn’t support the way you currently scrapbook. I’m excited to share how I do this in next week’s video. Here’s a sneak peek..
repurpose_sneak
Pull out some old items that no longer inspire you. Get ready to fall in love with them again using GRAM!

You’ll need a Paperclipping Membership to view these episodes, so if you’re not a member yet and this is an area you struggle with, this might be the time to sign up. Maybe your membership will help you save money when you learn how to love what you have and buy fewer products?

Weekly Roundup

We’ve finally returned home from visiting my family in Kansas City so we’re a couple of days behind on this week’s Roundtable and Digi Show episodes. We are recording both episodes on Thursday and will release them between Thursday and Friday. Thanks for your patience! We’ll be back on track with our regular schedule next week.

In addition to the usual stuff, you’ll want to check the blog every day between Monday – Friday for some fun excitement and a chance for some giveaways!

I hope you’re having a great summer and finding at least a little time to scrapbook.

Best Regards,
Noell

July 8th, 2010

June Monthly Challenge Highlight: Katie Scott!

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We had an awesome turnout for the June monthly challenge! Many thanks to all who participated. We love seeing the different ways people are applying the different topics from the Paperclipping shows.

Congratulations to Katie Scott, who submitted the page we chose to highlight this month! Katie submitted a response to challenge topic #2: Scrapbook Using Packaging based on this album:
katie_layout

Katie’s Explanation:

I used the Lush brads packages and covered them with cardstock for journaling and put labels over the “Lush” title; I loved the color and the scallops on these packages.

After listening to Jen McGuire on the Paperclipping Roundtable, I also tried out my Copic Markers – which I have owned for a long time but haven’t used, they seem fresh even though they are several years old – and made a border on the pink cardstock with the thick side and did the journaling with the thin side.

What the judges had to say:

Repurposed Tags:
The tags over each photo make an interesting column layout. We love the three panels and the way they are broken up to form a grid. The re-purposed tags match the background paper like it came in the collection, and the scalloped edges give a cute, feminine edge, perfect for little girl layouts.

Repetition, Balance, & Cohesion:
Katie took the scallop on the tags and repeated it at the bottom of the pink paper. The colors are girly and tie the various colors in the pictures together.

Katie chose two types of colors that are very difficult to put together: a muted color (the blue), and a vibrant bright one (the pink). She made this work by combining them, layering them, and making them interact (the pink sits inside the blue background; the blue tags sit inside the pink matte; the pink flower sits above a blue tag; a blue brad sits inside the pink flower, etc).

Definition
The Copic marker outline adds definition to the photo area, acting as a frame — or home — for the page elements, while keeping with the casual feel of the page.

Focal Point
The simple embellishing show off the photos without detracting from them. We like that she put the middle photo where she did. It’s a great attention getter: it’s more close-up than the other photos and the subject is reaching out to us, the viewers. A visual triangle of red flowers leads the eye right down to that middle photo where her daughter holds out the third flower to us.

Supporting the story with visuals
The colors and the flourish background are feminine and flowery, supporting the spring time theme.

Find Katie

You can find Katie in our community, The Crop Circle. She also has a blog.

July Monthly Challenge

Want to join in on a challenge? Every month we issue a challenge based on recent tutorials and discussions. Anyone can participate. We choose one layout from the submissions to highlight here! Give it a try!

July 8th, 2010

PDS 006 – Creatively Unstable

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Fantasy layouts, the future of digital scrapbooking, inchies, and more…

That’s the subject of this week’s Paperclipping Digi Show!

You can use this audio player to listen to the show:

You need Adobe Flash Player to view this video.

If you want, you can also right click this link to save the show to your computer manually.

The Panel

“Intro to Video” Discount

Get $20 off Izzy’s “Intro to Video” course (normally $50 but only $30 for PDS listeners). Follow this link to get the coupon code!

Picks of the Week

(Affiliate links wherever possible.)

How to subscribe…

We’re in the iTunes directory so you can just click on this link to go there and subscribe,… or if you want to do it the hard way, you can subscribe to the show’s RSS feed.

Your thoughts?

What did you think of the show? What questions or feedback do you have? Please let us know in the comments!