Digital Scrapbooking
FAQs
Here is a list of frequently asked questions, and their answers.General
Products
Copyright and Terms of Use
Usage
I create just about everything in Photoshop. Sometimes, I may switch to Painter for painting certain elements, but very rarely.
Is there any special software/program that I need to use your kits?
Nope! You can use Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro... even Microsoft's Paint will open these JPGs and PNGs. (Although Microsoft's Paint is NOT ideal for combining elements and creating layouts!)
As for what I recommend you use, I would say Photoshop. Any version. Photoshop Elements is much cheaper than Photoshop CS & whatnot, and has just about any commands that you would need to create scrapbooking designs.
What exactly are the different product types? (themes VS papers VS embellishments, etc)
Papers are usually used for backgrounds. They can also be "cut up" into shapes to be used in your design. They're the basis of just about any scrapbooking design.
Embellishments are anything that is used to augment your scrapbooking design, like little flowers that you may put up in a corner, buttons, ribbons, paper clips used to "hold down" stuff, etc.
Writing are letters, symbols, etc. that you can use to add names, dates, and whatever else you may want to your designs.
Frames go around your photos.
Themes include any or all of the above, and they are usually in a particular color scheme or themed idea. They are made so that just about all of the elements go together.
Do you take requests for a product idea?
Sure! You can contact us with your idea, and we'll see what we can do.
How did you learn how to do this?
Well, most of what I've learned in Photoshop has been from playing around. I'm very artistically inclined as well as being a computer science major, however, so this came pretty easily for me.
If you're looking for tips on how to get started, I would begin by looking for specific tutorials on what you're wanting to do. There's great tutorials out there for just about any program you can think of, and on all kinds of topics. Google it, go through the tutorial, and chances are you will have learned a bunch of techniques in this one tutorial that you can apply to all kinds of stuff. Each tutorial you go through should teach you a few new things, until you finally get to the point where you feel comfortable enough to figure more stuff out on your own!
What does it mean that these products are digital?
Traditional scrapbooking uses actual objects, papers, photos, etc. Digital scrapbooking is much the same in idea, but it is all done on a computer through the use of a computer graphics program like Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro. When you purchase a kit, what you will be downloading is several image files. These files are combined to create digital layouts, which can then be printed out and placed in a photo or scrapbooking album.
May I alter your graphics?
Sure! You can alter them however you'd like for your own personal use. Just don't alter them and then try to resell them as your own or use them commercially in any way.
What size are the images in your downloads?
All of the images on this site will be 300dpi (pixels/inch). The papers are 3600 x 3600 pixels, which means that they're 12 x 12 inches. They could be printed out much larger than that, mind you, but that's how large they were meant to be printed out without any loss of quality.
The embellishments, frames, etc. are varying sizes. They will also all be 300dpi. If you look under whatever set you are thinking of purchasing, however, there will be a link to an image where all of the individual elements for the kit are displayed. Within that image, the sizes of the images will be listed.
Letters, numbers, etc. will usually range from 200 x 200 pixels to 500 x 500 pixels. It will state how large they are in the image that shows all of the individual elements, as well.
What is this "dpi" stuff? Is 300dpi required for printing?
DPI stands for "dots per square inch." It is a measure of printing resolution. Printers and images with a higher dpi will print more pixels (or dots) per square inch, therefore making a higher quality image. There is NO difference when it comes to DPI if you're viewing an image on your computer. The difference only comes into play when you print it out.
DPI can be very misleading, however, and many new programs aren't using it at all. I won't get into all that here, but if you want to read up more on it, check out this site.
What do you need to know about dpi, then? 300 dpi basically means it's made so that it can be printed out very large in size. ;)
May I use your kits for commercial products?
No, not unless you purchase a commercial license. These are given on a kit-by-kit basis. Meaning, if you wish to use elements from my "Springtime" kit for a business card, for example, then you will purchase a commercial license for this kit only. Commercial licenses are about $20 per kit, in most cases. You can apply for one through email by contacting us.
May I use your kits for my website, tags, tubes, etc?
If it's for personal use, then yes. That means you can't even have so much as a Google Adsense ad on that page, though. I'm talkin' personal, family sites that are completely non-profit. If that's the case, then yes. Credit would be nice, too. :) Please contact us first, so that you can be indexed as an "allowed user" - once you receive an email back, then you may proceed with your project.
If you want to use it for a commercial website, you'll need to purchase a commercial license. You can apply for one through email by by contacting us.
May I submit layouts that I have created using your kits to magazines?
Certainly! If you do, however, credit MUST be given to www.e-ScrapbookIt.com for those elements used.
How do I use these?
I have a few small tutorials that help explain how to get started here. But it's really as easy as copying and pasting. The papers will come as JPGs, which you can open and combine in various ways. Everything else comes as a PNG, which has a transparent background so that you can just copy and paste it right into your layout! It's that easy!
How do I resize these proportionally?
The easiest way is to open the file of the image that you want to resize and change its size that way. Most programs will have an option for locking the image height to width ratio.
If you're not sure what size you want it, and want to play around with the size in your program, Photoshop has an option that should work great for you. Have the layer of the item that you want to resize selected, then go to Edit > Transform > Scale. Put your cursor over one of the corners of that box. HOLDING SHIFT, move your cursor to resize it to the correct size. Holding shift will lock the ratio of the image so that it stays proportional.
As far as other programs go, I'm not sure about the specifics on where to find the transform ability, but holding shift down usually works. Give it a go!
Do you offer any design and layout tips?
We do indeed. Check out our page on design and layout tips here. We're just getting started with these tips, so there's only a few for now. If you have any suggestions for that page, please don't hesitate to contact us.
I'm new to digital scrapbooking. How do I get started?
I have a few small tutorials that help explain how to get started here. But it's really as easy as copying and pasting. The papers will come as JPGs, which you can open and combine in various ways. Everything else comes as a PNG, which has a transparent background so that you can just copy and paste it right into your layout! It's that easy!
