How to Take Your Photo's to the "Next Level"

I love photography.  The world looks different through a view finder.  If you are really "in tune" with your inner-photographer, you will notice things that normal people walk right by....how the sunlight streams through trees, the reflection in a puddle on the sidewalk, the texture of the grass.  I constantly walk around finding beautiful "photos" in my world...even if I don't have the camera with me.  They say that 'pictures are worth a thousand words' and it is because there is no way to describe the joy on a child's face or the tear's of happiness in a brand new mother's eyes the way that a photo can.

My photo obsessiveness was taken to an all time high when I was introduced to scrapbooking.  The new motto became "Pictures are worth a thousand words, but Scrapbooks are worth a MILLION."  I could now take my beautiful photos, make them MORE beautiful with ribbons and backgrounds, add my personal thoughts or a  touching quote, and then I would have a true work of art.

I began to think of my scrapbook as the story of my life.  I often refer to a scrapbook as a 'pictorial journal.'  I could someday give my son and daughter just a photo album of the pictures of them as babies.  But I would rather hand them a scrapbook filled with photos, momentos, and my emotions and thoughts as their mother.  Can you imagine if such a gift was handed down to YOU by your mother?  It truly would be priceless.

This page was created for my daughter's album.  I love the pictures of my two children (even without turning it into a scrapbook page).  But with the addition of my thoughts on their sibling relationship, it takes the photo to a new level.

Journaling:  "He is your protector and your biggest fan.  He will push you harder than anyone else because he loves you and believes in you.  He is your best friend. He is your big brother."







Another example of taking a good photo and making it into a scrapbook is on vacation or trips.  It's hard to remember all the moments of a trip just looking at a photo, but a scrapbook page will help you remember all the details:

Journaling:  "This is Grove Park Inn where we got to stay in Asheville. It is almost 100 years old. Ten U.S. Presidents have stayed here in addition to F. Scott Fitzgerald, Harry Houdini, Will Rogers, George Gershwin, Thomas Edison, Eleanor Roosevelt, Henry Ford, and lots of other celebrities. This photo of the hotel is the view from our room looking up to the main hotel area.  The two smaller photos are of the spa (on the hotel property) that I got to spend the entire day in for my birthday. It is ranked the 13th best spa in the U.S. It has 43,000 sq ft of amazing-ness. It has heated mineral pools with underwater music. They also have "therapeutic" waterfalls that you can stand under and it will massage your muscles.  My favorite was the outdoor hot tub. It was wonderful to sit in hot tub and breathe the cold mountain air. I also got an 80 minute facial was the most amazing 80 minutes of my life!"


If you invest the money in nice cameras, photographers, and photo prints to capture a moment in time, then why not take it to the next level and have a scrapbook to preserve your memories?

Please remember to leave me some comments!  I love to hear from you.  Have any of you ever received a scrapbook passed down from a family member?  What are your thoughts about taking photos to the "next level" in a scrapbook?  Remember to tweet/fb this if you enjoyed it.  I appreciate it so much!