| Use the oval
and circle sizing templates to make sure you are combining the
right size cutting template with the correct accompanying blade to
crop your photos. The colored lines provide a clear guideline to help
you decide the size to crop your photos to get only what you want
from them. The sizing templates also contain a legend of the colored
lines to help you match the size you want to crop your photo or paper
with the appropriate blade.
When you begin using the sizing templates and blades it is a good
idea to first practice on extra copies of photos or paper other
than your scrapbooking papers so you don't waste any. Lay the photo
or paper you are using on your self-healing
mat to protect your work surface. Arrange the cutting template
over the photo or paper and hold it in place firmly with one hand
and hold the blade in the other hand. When you are cropping a photo
or cutting papers you need to make sure you run the blade in the
track all the way around the cutting template, pressing down firmly.
Before you lift the cutting template from the photo or paper you
are cropping, try to move the portion you have cut from the rest
of the photo or paper to see if it has separated completely. If
it has, remove the cutting template, if it hasn't, run the blade
around again until the cropped portion has separated. It will be
harder to line the cutting template up again if you remove it then
discover the photo or paper wasn't completely cut.
Scissors vs. personal trimmers vs. blades vs. corner rounder (see
Scrapbook Cropping Tools
for pictures and definitions of each).
• Scissors are less neat and accurate while the personal
trimmer gives you a straight line you can count on as long as you
use the tool properly.
• Blades in combination with the round and oval shapes give
you a wider range of shapes and sizes you can cut your photos and
papers into to create a dynamic page layout that does your photos
justice.
• The corner rounder adds a familiar dimension to photos as
well as complimenting the content of the photo (if you have mainly
round images in a photo, use the corner rounder, if you have mainly
square images in a photo, use the personal trimmer to make it the
size you desire but leave the corners as is).
Use Fiskars scissors to accentuate the edges of your photo even
further if you think it necessary. Wavy lines could be used to enhance
a beach picture while a jagged, mechanical line could spice up a
picture of a car or an individual portrait. There are many possibilities
here because of the variety of edges these scissors offer you. They
give you the opportunity to get creative with the photos and papers
you are using on each page. Simply cutting out a photo or the paper
backing the photo with these scissors can add new dimension to a
page and make the subject of the page stand out like you want it
to.
Cropping old family photos
It is best to plan your pages well before you do anything permanent
you can't undo. These photos may be all that remains of your family
history and they are something you can't afford to lose!
If you are cropping old black and white photos for a Heritage album,
you may find that some are ripped, stained or damaged in some other
way. You have a couple of options if you want to repair the photo
before putting it in your Scrapbook album. You can always take it
to a photo shop where they restore old photos if the damage is fairly
extensive, or if not, you can repair it yourself. In the case of
a small tear, use one of your adhesive strips to hold it together,
making sure it looks okay at the front of the photo before applying
the adhesive and attaching the photo to the page.
If you decide not to repair your photos, remember damaged photos
will stand out on a scrapbook page. You will do more justice to
the subject of the photos if you remove the damaged portions unless
it requires cutting out an essential portion of the photo, such
as a person, a building, or the subject of the photo that you want
to remember. This is probably the hardest decision you have to make
when you are preparing your photos to use in an album.
Once you are a bit more experienced, cropping your photos beforehand
is an important time saver especially if you are working through
boxes of existing photos. It gives you more time to work on your
layouts if the pictures are already prepared to go on the page.
If you are working with pictures as you take (in the case of digital
cameras) or develop them, think about your pictures before you take
them to make sure you have what you want for the scrapbook you want
to create.
Safety Tips
When using any of the blades for cutting photos or papers to the
size and shape you want, handle them carefully because they are
very sharp.
Use a self-healing mat when cutting photos or papers with any of
your blades to protect your work surface.
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