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How to Use Technology to Strengthen Family Ties
016 How to Make a Photo Album
To begin:
1. You first need to decide what kind of photo album you are creating. Some people organize their photo albums chronologically, especially in making albums for their children. Others organize around a theme – all the Christmas or vacation photos together, for instance.
2. Choose a kind of photo album format – 8 x12 or 12 x 12 – and post or three-ring binding, and purchase the materials that you will need. Remember to have all acid-free materials – paper, glue, pens, stickers, etc.
3. A well-thought-out cover page, perhaps one that would be consistent in multiple photo albums, is a nice way to begin.
4. Organize your photos in the order that you would like them in your photo album. Remember to be a little ruthless here – you probably are going to just want to choose the best photos, not every one. (The great thing about digital cameras is that you can eliminate the bad pictures before even making them into photos. However, we sometimes can get carried away on a particular subject and go overboard (like a dozens of photos I took of our first son’s feet!) You will need to choose which photos will be on which page. It keeps it interesting if you don’t have the same number of photos on each page.
5. Remember that you can cut out your photos using templates or fancy scissors, or just leave them all the traditional size. Adding special photo album paper, stickers, or embellishments to your pages make them more interesting and attractive. However, don’t let them overwhelm the photos. That’s what people want to see.
6. Make sure that you identify the people or setting in each photo, so you won’t look at it later and try to remember who is who. This is particularly important with pictures of ancestors because family members down the line will be interested in knowing just which man in a particular photo is their grandfather, for instance.
7. Some people set a regular time aside either weekly or monthly to work on their photo albums. That way, things don’t pile up and become overwhelming.
8. If you are making photo albums for your children, make sure that you make duplicates when more than one appears in a photo. That way you have a photo for each album.