How to get the most out of your digital camera, from FamilyFun
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Since cameras and software differ, below you'll find general descriptions of eight projects with which you can use your digital camera. A quick read through your owner's manual and software instructions should allow you to take it from there.
1. Make a flip book. This is a new twist on an old favorite. Shoot a series of pictures, covering a range of funny faces or crazy poses. Make sure the subject moves only slightly between shots--you're looking for a gradual progression here. (Some cameras can rapidly shoot a sequence of exposures, eliminating the need to move slowly.) Print the images about 3 inches wide and 2 inches high, cut them out, and clip them together in order along one edge. Flip through the book, and the subject seems to move.
2. Go back in time. Dress up in old-time costumes and choose a location and props that look appropriately old. Use a sepia tone to make your pictures match genuine old family photos. You can then either frame your new "old" photos side by side with the real old thing, or scan the old pictures and, using photo-editing software, combine them with the new ones to make it look like you all lived together back in the old days of black and white. Tech Tip: If you decide to combine the photos, use your software either to select and remove figures from an old photo that you've scanned and digitally place them in a new one made to look old, or to graft the figures from your new photo and place them in the old scanned photo. You may need to play with the color and contrast settings to make the new figures match the old.
One twist on this idea is to make "wanted" posters. Have your young gunslinger dress up in old-fashioned clothing and a cowboy (or cowgirl) hat and then strike a gruff-looking pose. If your camera offers a special sepia setting, use it. If not, shoot in color or black and white and convert it to sepia with your editing software. Finally, add your child's name with a list of his transgressions, print, and post. Tech Tip: In addition to sepia, some photo-editing software lets you add grain or texture, which will make it look even more authentic. (For a step-by-step guide to doing this in Adobe Photoshop, go to www.photo.net/photo/sepia.)
3. Make your own labels. Decorate homemade audiotapes, videotapes, and CDs with personalized labels using photos of your own choosing. Although software for producing labels is available, you can easily make your own templates with your desktop publishing software. Remove an insert from an audiocassette or CD jewel case (the front and back inserts will be different sizes) and measure it from edge to edge. Open a new document and draw a box to the proper dimensions for each type of media you want to label. Save the file on your computer. When you're ready to create a label, open the file and import whatever photo (or art) you choose. Add a title and playlist (don't forget the photo credits!) and print it out on heavyweight ink-jet printer card stock or photo paper.
4. Make your own party favors, invitations, and thank-yous. Shoot pictures of the birthday kid, or a favorite toy or stuffed animal, and use the image on place cards, hats, plates, and cups. Do this by printing on plain paper (and then gluing on the images), on adhesive paper, or even on transfers, which can be ironed onto T-shirts and the like. Don't forget the invitations and thank-you cards, which you can make by either pasting the images on blank card stock or using photo-editing software and adding text. (Most desktop-publishing software includes templates for creating such items.) During the party, be sure to snap digital pictures of each guest. You can print them immediately to paste on a goody bag or use them later for personalized thank-yous. Tech Tip: If you're using iron-on transfers, be sure to print the image in reverse (a mirror image), so it looks right once it's transferred. Your photo-editing software should let you flip the image quite easily.
5. A day in the life. If your child is old enough, arm her with the camera and have her record a typical weekend day (parents can handle the photography for younger kids). The pictures can be printed at various sizes and pasted onto poster board or into a homemade book with descriptive captions written by the protagonist. Or use your desktop publishing software to lay out the photos and add text, creating your own day-in-the-life coffee-table book.
6. Make a fake photo ID. No, you're not encouraging your nine-year-old to sneak into bars. This is far better: Have your child choose an imaginary persona--spy, musician, dancer, Olympic athlete, teacher--and create a wallet-size ID, complete with photo, imaginary birthdate, and other identifying marks. Have her dress up in an appropriate costume, shoot the picture, and use desktop publishing software for a finished project that would make 007 proud. For a more realistic look, have the card laminated at a copy shop.
7. Make a paper doll in your child's image. Have the subject pose with her hands at her sides and her legs together, wearing a bathing suit or other tight-fitting clothing that doesn't cover her arms and legs.
