D-A-D-D-Y pictures - photoshop advice (with pic)

[ciaobella]

Hello ladies! I am very excited to have actually taken my Daddy pictures (I shamelessly stole the idea from the boards) , but now I am trying to figure out the best way to present them, so to speak. I think it will be easier for me to do an 8x10 rather than 5 pictures. So, here is what I have come up with. I would appreciate any suggestions for improvement - you ladies are so good with the details!

Thanks!

Anne

Edited to add updated proof.




http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/26797.jpg

[August Mom]

Wow! That looks very cool. Great job! I wish I could collage photos that way.

I think you could print it as is and be in good shape.

If I'm looking at the photo trying to find something to change, I would get rid of the grass around the arm/shirt on both sides of the "A" photo and on the side of the 3rd "D" photo (basically no grass above the knee). Also, the center photo, 2nd "D" seems darker than the others. The 3rd "D" photo also seems slightly darker than the "A" photo.

Overall, it looks awesome, though.

[ciaobella]

Thanks for the suggestions ... I am going to attempt to make those fixes. It is strange that I can use the eraser tool in the jpeg format, but when I use it in the .psd format nothing seems to happen ... I must be doing something wrong.

I also wanted to say that this collage was very easy to make in Photoshop Elements. All I did was open a blank document and make the background black. I opened my five pictures and used the magnetic lasso to highlight the portions that I wanted and had the "feather" feature on 20 (that makes the edges soft). I then just took what I had selected using the lasso and dropped it in the blank document. Do that 4 more times and you have a collage.

Thanks again for the advice.

Anne

[jasabo]

Anne, that is too cute!! I would never have thought to put them all together like that. And the pics are great! Andrew was so cooperative...I did one of these with my boys and I was lucky to get part of the letter showing, let alone the whole thing.

At first, I was going to say that I'd try a color other then black, but I actually really like it - esp in a black frame with white matting maybe.

I might just try a different font, maybe something less script-like and cleaner only b/c this font is a little hard to read in white on the black. JMO though. Graphics isn't one of my talents, so take it with a grain of salt.

I really think it's gorgeous though. I'm sure dh will love it.

Lisa - mom to 23 month old twin boys

[ciaobella]

Thanks, Lisa! It is not that Andrew was all that cooperative as much as it was that I took about 200 pictures - I love digital cameras! And to be honest ... it was almost dark when I took them so the pics didn't turn out great, but there is a feature that allows you to lighten shadows and that saved my pics!

I agree about the font ... I am just not good at picking them! Does anyone have any suggestions?

[octmom]

No suggestions, but I wanted to say that this looks GREAT!!! And what an adorable subject you have! :) I'm sure your DH will love it.

Jerilyn
DS, Sean 10/03

"Baby makes days shorter, nights longer, home happier, and love stronger."

[KrisM]

That is so cute! I agree with the PPs suggestion of getting rid of the stray grass around arms and shirts. I like the font, actually.

I was thinking of something similar for us. I haven't even bought letters yet, let alone taken pictures though! I was going to try to find a nice Andrew/DH picture and do a 4x6 of that on the top with small D-A-D-D-Y pictures below it (in an 8x10 format). But, I think I may do something more like yours instead. Very cute.

[mysweetboy]

Anne, I love it! I want to do something like this for DH this year....guess I better get on the ball. :)

Lori
mommy to Charlie, 5/04
and a sweet baby girl due 10/05!

[Wife_and_mommy]

OH MY GOSH!! That is FABULOUS!!!!!!!!! You did a great job. I don't see anything that needs changing.


Elizabeth

http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_gold_12m.gif[/img][/url]

http://lilypie.com/days/060228/3/21/1/-5/.png

[ciaobella]

Thank you so much, ladies (blush)!

As an FYI - I bought the letters at Michael's and painted them white. It took less than an hour or so for them to dry. I had Andrew wear a Hawaiian shirt because my DH wears them a lot.

Another idea that I might use for the grandfathers is "I heart (the symbol not the word) U" ... on the bottom, I could personalize it.

Now, it will all depend on whether I can make it back to Michael's this week.

My plan is to frame it with a black frame / white mat combo.

Thanks again for looking and the feedback!

[jd11365]

A-dorable!!!

[nicoleandjackson]

Hi Anne!

Great job! I'm trying my hand at this too...

FYI--Hobby Lobby has frames (open-back and easel-back) and mats (pre-cut or whole boards) 1/2 off this week if you have one by you...

Also, there are a lot of fun, free fonts out there on the 'Net. Some of the ones I use for scrapbooking DS's pictures are free at www.pizzadude.dk/freefonts.php or www.fontica.com

Good luck!

Nicole
Mommy of Jackson 4/30/02


Who's the Biggest Boy? It's Jackson!
http://lilypie.com/baby4/020430/1/2/1/-6/.png[/img][/url]

[August Mom]

I'm not sure, but you might not be able to make further modifications in the .psd format if you've already flattened the image. Just a thought...

[tigalig]

Oh, I love what you did! You lost me on the Photoshop instructions (I need to re-read the manual and soon), but the photo is great. I would not change a thing (sorry, I know you want people to tell you how to fix it)...

[ciaobella]

Thanks for the Hobby Lobby suggestion and the fonts ... I will play around with those this week.

I figured out why I was having trouble modifying ... I needed to select the specific picture I wanted to modify. Now I wish that I had one that said "Mommy"! I am going to print one this week to make sure the quality is right.

Thanks again for all of the feedback!