ScrapMentor - Scrapbooking 101

Week 4 - Tools/Tips/Techniques

Back to Scrapbooking 101 Curriculum

Paper Trimmer

The one tool you will probably end up using more than any other is your paper trimmer. It is worth getting some practice in before you start actually trimming into your stash of paper, and even more importantly, your pictures. Trimmers are not hard to use, but they do take a little getting used to. I have photographed two of the brands of paper trimmers that I personally own - the Fiskars personal trimmer and the Creative Memories photo trimmer. There are lots of other brands on the market, and I do not mean to imply that any one of them is better than any other. You should try as many brands as you can get your hands on to see which works best for you, and which feels most comfortable. As you're doing your research, don't forget to check out how much replacement blades cost, since you will need to purchase them with some frequency.

Using a Paper Trimmer

Step 1. If you are using one of the portable, personal paper trimmers, there is probably an arm that you can fold out to measure paper to the width you want to cut it, up to at least 12". When you are making a cut, you want to align the paper with the vertical lines, not those on the horizontal.

Step 2. If your trimmer has a raising cutter arm, left it up, then align the edge of the paper with the dimension you want (in this example, I'm cutting a 3" wide piece).

Step 3. Lower the cutting arm, with the blade poised just above the top of the paper.

Step 4. In one fluid motion, trim the paper from top to bottom. Do not stop in the middle of a cut, or you will most likely end up with a ragged and/or uneven cut.

Step 5. Lift the cutting arm and remove the paper.

Trimming Photos

Now that you know how to use your paper trimmer, you should start thinking about how you want to trim your photographs. Face it - most of us are not professional photographers, so we all end up with things in our photographs we'd just as soon not see make their way into our scrapbooks. Most scrapbookers "crop" (or "trim") their photos, in an effort to keep what works and lose what doesn't.

There aren't any "rules" for cropping photos, any more than there are "rules" for anything else about scrapbooking. You will have to make decisions about your own photographs regarding what is important, and what is not. Consider these, then, guidelines, tips, and suggestions, but not rules.

Don't Overdo It

In the "olden days" of modern scrapbooking (all of ten years or so ago), cropping was severe, and a lot was lost. Many scrapbookers from this early wave now regret that they trimmed away so much of the detail and context of those pictures. Sure, you can still see little Suzy and the Barbie she got for Christmas, but darn, we wish we still had the expression on Grandpa's face as he watched her dig in!

It might be tempting to focus in on the child's sweet smile as she snuggles the stuffed animal, but to crop too closely would mean missing the great, goofy expression on the teenager's face.

Lose the Clutter

Messy rooms - especially if you have little children about - are normal, but not necessarily very attractive. So unless you are doing a layout specifically about the wonderful messes children strew about, you might want to consider cropping out the pile of jumbled socks, or Fido's favorite chewtoy.

The baby with the paper hat covering his face is cute. The clutter and half-chopped-off bodies? Not so much.

Cultural Clues are Important

You might not love your car now, but in 20 years, you might enjoy seeing it in the background of a picture of your niece playing in the sprinkler in your front yard. Consider carefully whether or not something will be relevant and/or interesting to those who see your books in the future, and balance that with your own sense of aesthetics.

There is the urge to crop this down to the people, but it will be fun - fifteen years from now - to know what stores were at the mall.

Center the Focus

In general, you want your photos to showcase their subjects, and to get them as near to the center of the photograph as possible.

The shelves in the background are a jumbled, multicolored mess, but cropping all of them out means relegating the baby's face to the top right corner of the photo (left). A better solution is to crop out the worst of the shelves, but still leave the baby's face and hands intact and in focus near the center of the picture (right).

No Plastic Surgery

Wherever possible, leave chins, ears, and the tops of heads intact!

Sure, we want to lose the ugly lamp chain, but not at the expense of someone's head! You can always use a piece of strategically-placed fiber, a coordinating sticker, an overlapping photo, or some other creative method to hide a flaw without sacrificing your picture's composition.

Homework

Select 1-4 pictures that coordinate well in theme to your poem and printable image file, and crop them.

Supplemental Reading

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