Card it: Give greetings a personal photo touch

Use favourite photos to create a special card

By Heather Camlot

Every year, Andre Demers of Montreal mails updated pictures of his two sons to friends and family. But this year, he didn’t want to send just another photo of the boys. He wanted to send something more special and creative. His solution: transforming a digital shot into a photo greeting card.

“It is so much more personal, and family members appreciate having a photo that they can display,” says Demers. “Plus the photos are so easy to make and look so good. You look like a pro!”

Though it may seem like a daunting task, creating your own photo cards is rather simple. All you require is a great photo, basic photo-editing software, and a CD burner or colour printer. Here’s how to get started on making a photo greeting card you can use for occasions such as Canada Day, Thanksgiving or simply saying hello.

Find the right shot

After creating his own digital cards, Demers was full of insight into what makes a great greeting. First, the best photos have the least number of distracting background details. “Just [use] a photo that focuses on your subjects,” he explains.

Second, if you don’t have that perfect shot, plan a mini photo-shoot right at home. Get your subjects dressed up, set them in a nice spot (such as in the garden), and offer a prop (such as a teddy bear or a pet) to keep them smiling.

“For younger kids, try plying them with cookies to get smiles and a relaxed look,” offers Demers. “The crumbs can always be removed in your photo-editing program.” Along with the crumbs, you’ll want to get rid of red-eye and make other necessary touch-ups before proceeding.

Create a frame

Depending on your time and creative energy, you can take one of three routes to select the perfect frame.

Ready-made frames

You’re convinced you’re not creative, and even if you were, you don’t have enough time to create a photo-greeting card. But you still love the idea of doing something more with your photos. There are plenty of online sites that can help with just a few easy steps. Try Future Photo (you can pick your cards up at any Future Shop store), Shutterfly and Snapfish. The two last-named sites will deliver to your door.
Altered frames

You’ve seen a frame you like at a site such as Microsoft Office Online, but the frame doesn’t really work with your photo. So make it work.

Download the template and open it with your photo-editing software. Insert your shot and then tweak the frame’s colour and design to suit your needs. Demers found an inexpensive frame at iStockphoto and then altered the frame to better match what his kids were wearing.
Frames made from scratch

Your photo frame can feature anything from simple shapes to intricate designs. To create the frame, scan in meaningful mementos such as hospital birth bracelets or a child’s drawing.

Take inspiration from my two templates for photo greetings which feature dots and swirls. Although these were the first photo greeting cards made by yours truly, I evaluated plenty of cards from friends and family beforehand to figure out what I liked. Here are some criteria necessary for making a good homemade greeting:

a fun, graphic frame
vivid colours
a photo of the subject (preferably a close-up or medium-range shot)

Start by downloading one of our photo card templates. Choose either dots or swirls. After saving the template on your computer, open it in your photo-editing program.

Print your card

The best material for printing greeting cards is glossy photo paper. If you’re just printing a dozen or so photos, you may want to print at home. Be sure to set your printer to Best for quality and to Premium Photo Paper, Glossy for type. For printing large quantities, save your file as a flattened JPEG, burn it to CD and take it to the local photo lab.

“Printing at home is not worthwhile when doing large quantities,” says Demers. “Photo labs will give discounts for larger orders, and you will probably end up paying less than half of what it costs in paper and ink at home.” You can also print your photo card onto magnet paper — just right for no-hassle mounting on the refrigerator.

Of course, you don’t have to print at all. In Windows Live Photo Gallery, click the Email button and select a picture size. When you click Attach, Photo Gallery will open up your e-mail program with the file attached. All you have to do is add the e-mail addresses.

Whatever you decide to do — make a card from scratch, use a ready-made frame, print or e-mail — know that your photo greeting card will be treasured. “Sending a photo alone would be appreciated,” says Demers. “Making it into a card makes you thoughtful and creative at the same time.”