Start by opening Adobe Photoshop Elements and click the Edit button.

Click on File > Open (Ctrl+O). Then navigate to the back ground paper you are planning on using.

Repeat the same steps to open your photo, accent paper and page title or embellishment. Click on the tab at the top with the name of your background page so that it appears in the main edit window. You will see the other files you have opened down in your Project Bin.

Now you can just drag and drop the small pictures in you Project Bin on to your page. I am going to start with the pink card stock. As you will see, when you drag and drop it on to your page it fills the entire screen. The plan is to use it as a photo mat, so go ahead and add your pictures and page title or embellishment.

Now in the Layers menu click on the paper you plan to use as your photo mat. You can now grab the boxes on corners and sides to size it down or stretch it as needed. Just push enter when it looks how you want it to apply the transformation. If you need to change the size of your photo you can follow the same steps.

Feel free to move your picture or elements around as needed to make it look just how you want it to and that is it – you are done. Now all you need to do is save your image. Go to File > Save As (ShifCtrl+S) and save your image as a PSD in you’re My Scrapbook Pages Folder. You can then go to File > Save As (ShifCtrl+S) and this time save it as a JPG.

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Not a member yet click here to get started today!

Click here to go Adobe’s website.

If you are ready to purchase the software today make sure you have Download selected as the delivery method and click the Add to Cart button. Then just follow the steps to complete your purchase.

If you want to try the 30 day free trial instead follow this link and click on the Photoshop Elements 9 link. Then just follow the instructions they provide. The great news is you can easily purchase the download version later and activate your trial copy.

Whatever option you choose you will be asked to create an Adobe Account. It is free and only takes a few minutes.

Once you’ve created your account and completed your purchase, you will be redirect to the download page. Click the download link to get started.

Adobe offers a free download monitoring software that will allow you to pause and restart your download at any time. The software file is large and may take some time to download. The actual download time will vary depending on your internet connection.

Once your file is done downloading you will need to install Adobe Photoshop Elements, your new digital scrapbooking software. Close all other programs and double click on the file to start the installation process. Then just follow the prompts on the screen. Adobe offers wonderful instructions that make it very simple.

Once the installation is complete you make be prompted to restart your computer. Please do so.

Now you are ready to start scrapbooking!

If you downloaded the free trial of Adobe Photoshop Elements and are ready to upgrade all you need to do is enter your serial number. It will be included in an email after your purchase is complete.

Not a member yet click here to get started today!

As a digital scrapbooker you are going to be juggling tons of files. You will have to keep track of your pictures, your kits and embellishments, your pages and your page templates to name just a few. Organization is key!

If your new to digital scrapbooking this is pretty easy. If you already have downloads all over the place it could take a little longer to clean everything up. I like to organize my pictures by date, yearitems by site or designer and them by type.

Start by heading to your My Document or User folder (this will vary depending on your operating system). You should already have a folder called My Pictures or Pictures. (This is where you should be keeping all your digital photos) If the folder isn’t already there you can create it by right clicking within an empty area in the window, selecting New and then Folder.

Repeat those steps to create a new Scrapbooking folder as well.

You should now have a Pictures and Scrapbooking folder. Right click each folder and choose Create Shortcut. Then drag the new  Short Cut Icon to your desktop. With the Short Cuts on your desktop it will make all your supplies easy to find.

From here on out all your digital scrapbooking supplies and pages in progress will go in your Scrapbooking folder and all your digital photos and finished digital scrapbooking pages will in you Pictures folder.

We will have many more lessons on organization in the future and Photoshop Elements offers some amazing tools to help you organize your photos and supplies as well. This was just to help use stay organized as we get started.

To finish things up I want you to create two folders within your Scrapbooking folder. Again just right click on an empty area within the folder window and select New then Folder. Name one EasyDigital and name the other  Projects in Progress. Now open the EasyDigital folder and create a folder for papers, page templates, alphabets, embellishments, kits, page titles, and other information. Anything downloaded from our site should go in the EasyDigital folder and as we start to create new projects they can can be saved in the Projects in Progress folder.

This will help you keep everything in order and easy to find as you start out on your digital scrapbooking adventure.

Choosing the right digital scrapbooking software is the first and biggest  decision you will make as a digital scrapbooker. I know, just thinking about it can be completely overwhelming.  There are so many programs out there to choose from and I’ve tried most of them and truth is nothing is as good a Adobe Photoshop or Photoshop Elements. In my opinion it is really the only option if you truly want to become a digital scrapbooker.

The great news is they offer a free 30 day trial so you can make sure it is right for you before you buy.

You can download the Adobe free trials here and then just purchase a license latter to activate your trial version.

However, if you are ready to purchase today you can save $20 on the NEW Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 with a mail-in rebate. Under options choose Download and you can have the software up and running in under 20 min.

Hi and welcome to EasyDigitalScrapbooking.com. Thanks so much for becoming our newest member. We are about to embark on a wonderful adventure together. The world of digital scrapbooking is such an exciting place to be apart of and now you are apart of it too!

Over the next several weeks we will become familiar with a variety of digital scrapbooking softwares and we go through the process of putting together basic digital scrapbook pages using page templates. If you haven’t already check out our free trial section to find out which software is best for you. We will also learn how to make the most of our digital papers and embellishment and the best ways to stay organized.

As an added bonus each week you will also receive some great new additions to your scrapbooking stash! Right now you can start by download our Basics Rainbow Cardstock Pack and your very first Page Template Pack, our free digitial scrapbooking Mini Starter Kit.

Once you’ve downloaded your supplies and have Adobe Photoshop Elements installed click here to start your first lesson.

Marie
marie@easydigitalscrapbooking.com