How to Tell More of the Story with Photo Collages

by | Digital Photography Tips, Scrapbooking Tutorials | 1 comment

The kid is just so darn cute. You’re getting handy with the camera. You have too many good shots. Maybe your template just has room for a single image. Or you’ve planned out an album with certain pages having a single photo. Sometimes one photo is just not enough.

When this happens to me, I have a simple trick that I use to get more of the story onto the page. I create a photo collage that lets me use many photos in place of one. Similar to a diptych or triptych (but with even more), I often create a 2×2 collage in a square format.

To create this photo collage, create a new canvas in your photo editing software. I am using a 6″x6″ canvas in PSE6 for this example. Turn on the grid (View < Grid) to make drawing your boxes easier.

  • Create a new layer.
  • Use the Rectangular Marquee Tool to draw a 3″x3″ box. Use the Paint Bucket Tool to fill with a color.

  • Copy the layer and drag to the top-right position on your canvas. Use the Paint Bucket Tool to fill with a contrasting color.

  • Repeat this process until you have four separate layers. You will use these shapes as clipping masks for your photos.

  • Use the Move Tool to select one of the clipping mask boxes. Go to File < Place (in PSE only – or drag an opened image to your canvas) to insert a photo. Move and re-size the photo to fit the box as desired. Use Ctrl/Cmd+G (in PSE) to clip the photo to the share of the box.

  • Repeat this process until all four squares have been filed. Save your image as a single JPG file.

Note: This tip can also be used to print smaller photos more economically by using the space of a normal-sized print. For example, 2 – 3″x4″ photos on a single 4″x6″ print. Similarly, 4 – 2.5″x3.5″ photos fit on a single 5″x7″ print. If you love using these smaller sizes, particularly in divided page protectors, collage prints are a fast and simple solution.

Did you find this post helpful?

We believe simple is not how your page looks, but how your scrapbooking hobby works. We have a free workshop called SPARKED and it is the best way to learn more about Simple Scrapper and start creating consistently.

1 Comment

  1. KTnestingspot

    The website for Scrapbook Etc. has several free photo collage templates you can download for free. I love using them to fit more photos on a page.

    Reply

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  1. CraftCrave | Blog | Scrapbooking Tutorials (large): Thursday, 08 Dec 2011 - [...] How to Tell More of the Story with Photo Collages – 1 freebie(s)? [...]

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. You can also subscribe without commenting.

READY TO SCRAPBOOK YOUR WAY?

The Simple Scrapper community will encourage and support your unique creative journey.