Posts Tagged ‘photographs onto CD’

Scan Photographs Onto CD To Create Digital Scrapbooks & Photo Books

Monday, January 11th, 2010

Anyone Can Make A Polished Photo Book Online

Before You Begin, Transfer Old Photographs Onto CD For Easy Access

scrapbookingThe start of the New Year always sparks lofty ambitions, resolutions and goals, whether it’s dropping 10 pounds or organizing the garage. Understandably, we like to look forward and think about what the next 12 months will bring.

Yet it’s important not to forget the past and all that it has to offer. The best way to do this is by creating detailed books of significant, old pictures that you can flip through anytime. Make each one different, either by topic or time period. The first step is transferring old photographs onto CD.

While there’s still a healthy appetite for crafty, hand-assembled scrapbooks such as the one in this photo, today’s digital scrapbooks and picture books, which you can create online and publish yourself, offer amazing results and are easy to use. The great thing about this generation of “photo albums” is the technology behind it. Forget dull scissors, finger smudges and crinkly plastic sleeves. And remember how you always had too many vertical or horizontal shots? No more. Now you can resize, rotate and crop pictures, add text and color correct with ease on the computer. You also can play with different layouts, borders and fonts, and nothing is permanent until you are ready for it to be.

Creating a digital scrapbook or photo book should be a thoughtful process that invites retrospection. It will take time, not only to dig out and sort through old pictures, but also to identify many of them. It forces you to reflect – a good thing, considering how quickly life passes by. Invite your relatives and friends to help you; they, too, will enjoy the activity. After you scan the photographs onto CD, thank each person with a disc. This will give them the opportunity to customize their own digital scrapbook or photo book.

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Scan Photographs Onto CD To Revive Holiday Memories & Create New Ones

Monday, November 23rd, 2009

‘Tis The Season Of Charitable Giving

Salvation Army Red Kettle Christmas Campaign Dates Back To The 1800s

Salvation ArmyHear that? It’s the sound of thousands of Salvation Army volunteers in the United States and abroad, ringing bells for donations. Next month, you see plenty of them in front of neighborhood grocers, drug stores and malls.

It wouldn’t be the holidays without one of the nation’s most recognized fundraisers, the Red Kettle Christmas Campaign. The campaign has been around since 1891, when a San Francisco-based captain kicked off the charitable event. Generations have grown up alongside this tradition, and they probably have the pictures to prove it. Scan old photographs onto CD to share your experiences and encourage others to donate their time and money.

Today, 25,000-plus volunteers in the U.S. ring the famous Salvation Army bells every day between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. Last year, those efforts raised over $130 million. Many people give in person, placing the money in the iconic red kettles, but a number also contribute online.

The Red Kettle Christmas Campaign has global reach. While the concept is the same – volunteers, such as the gentlemen in this photo, stand before a container, collecting monetary gifts – exactly how they do it may vary. Some play musical instruments or sing carols to attract your attention, while others simply exchange pleasantries. Some red kettles are not red kettles at all, but clear containers (a popular choice in Canada). Numerous online images, some of them scanned photographs onto CD, reflect how volunteers from the Bahamas to Birmingham work.

The captain who initiated this tradition, Joseph McFee, received enough money the first year to feed Christmas dinner to the poor in San Francisco. Today, the Salvation Army does more than feed people with the money; it also provides clothes and many social services.

This year, the music group Daughtry is kicking off the 2009 campaign with a Thanksgiving Day halftime show performance in Texas, where the Dallas Cowboys will play the Oakland Raiders. For the last dozen years, the Dallas Cowboys have helped launch the annual Red Kettle Christmas Campaign; this year will be its 13th.

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Scan Halloween Photographs Onto CD For Lasting Memories

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

New Generation Of Carvers Go For Dramatic, Intricate Designs

Carving Now Involves Fancy Tools & Techniques

halloween pumpkins photographs onto cdA generation ago, carving a pumpkin for Halloween was a simple task. With the help of their parents, all children created jack-o’-lanterns with the same facial features – triangular eyes and matching nose, a goofy, semi-toothy grin. Then, they plopped in a candle, set the pumpkin on the porch and headed off to roast the seeds for an afternoon snack. It’s a tradition familiar to many, captured in old pictures that would be great candidates for scanning photographs onto CD, something for the next generation of carvers to enjoy.

Today, Crate & Barrel sells eight-piece carving and stencil sets, grocery stores and nurseries stock dozens of varieties of gourds, and some Web sites exist solely to showcase the increasingly creative art of pumpkin carving. Carving is now an exciting, innovative hobby; some might even call it a sport, with special tricks and tools for achieving dramatic results. Just look at this particular pumpkin, which features three-foot flames shooting out of the opening – that’s not a tea light in there!

But the more outlandish today’s jack-o’-lanterns become, the more nostalgic it may make earlier generations for the past, when simplicity ruled. This would be a great time to dust off the old pictures to compare. After you have transferred the photographs onto CD, they’ll be easy to share with your children. Then you can browse endless photo galleries of amazing carved pumpkins online together.

Encourage children to think simple when they first start carving. (Kids who are too young to handle a knife can participate by drawing on faces with thick markers.) A wealth of tips, such as securing your pumpkin and removing the stem prior to carving, is available on the Internet. As your little carvers become more skilled, allow them to explore the use of stencils and patterns. This particular pumpkin, called the Flaming Head, was made with a Head On Fire pattern.

Take pictures every year to document your children’s work. When they become parents themselves, they’ll be interested in looking back on their handiwork.

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Scan Athletes’ Photographs Onto CD For Inspiration

Wednesday, August 12th, 2009

Defining Images of Kerri Strug & Other Olympians Should Be Preserved; Transfer Their Photographs Onto CD

Gymnast Won America’s Heart With Brave Second Attempt On The Vault

The 2009 World Championships for swimming just concluded in Italy. Once again, America’s Michael Phelps, the all-time leader in Olympic gold medals, rose to occasion and set several new records while helping his country’s team dominate.

kerri strug 8.6This swimmer is the face of today’s U.S. Olympians, but he’s not the first. Remember Kerri Strug? Her 1996 Olympic victory was even more dramatic. Pictures shot on film then can now be compiled and scanned for digital record. Transferring such photographs onto CD would make preserving and sharing the magic of the moment a cinch.

Back in ‘96, when the Olympics were held in Atlanta, America was vying for greatness in the very popular sport of gymnastics. That year, it was believed, the U.S. had a great chance at finally toppling the Russian dynasty. The U.S squad, anointed the “Magnificent Seven,” featured Shannon Miller, Dominique Moceanu, Dominique Dawes, Amy Chow, Amanda Borden, Jaycie Phelps and Kerri Strug. Shannon and Dominique M. were the stars; Kerri was not a dominant player.

The team gold medal depended on the outcome of the vault competition. Although the American athletes were in the lead, a couple of low scores by the last two could cost the U.S. the gold. First up was Dominique M., who fell on both attempts and received poor marks. Second was Kerri, whose first vault severely injured her ankle. Judges gave it a low score.

As Kerri limped off the mat, she was unclear if the U.S. had enough to win without her second vault. Coach Bela Karolyi told her the first vault wasn’t enough. So Kerri walked over to the starting point again, noticeably limping.

Her second vault would be one of the most exciting in Olympic history, a moment captured by many photographers who have transferred their photographs onto CD and shared them online. Kerri ran fast, performed a difficult vault and stuck the landing, holding it on two feet for a brief but solid moment before hopping onto her one good leg. Her arms were raised in victory.

Kerri’s sheer determination is a reminder of the many other sports legends we’ve watched and admired, among them Mark Spitz, Carl Lewis, Jesse Owens, Greg Louganis, Bob Mathias, the 1980 U.S. Hockey team. These athletes share similar traits: pride, passion, grace, success, unbelievable willpower and mind-blowing talent. Their poignant memories should be saved and shared as well, by scanning their photographs onto CD. For future generations, their successes are an inspiration.

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