In the age of the smart phone and digital camera, most people now have access to high quality digital photography that can be manipulated and used on an assortment of self printable products such as those offered by Promaxx.

Here’s a few tips on how best to incorporate photography into your design.

Greeting Cards

Plan ahead – if you’re planning on taking some pictures of you and your family for a greeting card, think about the type of picture you want. If you are after a bright and breezy picture then you will probably need to pick a light and airy space in which to take it, or if you want an outdoor shot, you should be prepared to grab the moment when the weather is suitable. Avoid busy and cluttered backgrounds.

Move in close – family and friends will want to see a close-up photograph of your family and pets so ensure your pictures are suitably zoomed in, in focus and that the subject(s) fill(s) the screen.

Keep on shooting – if you are planning on using a group picture – maybe a family get together or friends’ reunion – make sure you take lots of pictures as there are bound to be a number of shots that will be unusable because at least one person will be looking the wrong way, yawning or have their eyes closed. If you are organising the shot, perhaps using a tripod and a self-timer, you must be firm with everyone and make sure they concentrate and all look in the same direction for those few seconds that the pictures are being taken.

Editing a picture – while filling the whole card with a photograph can be effective and attractive, why not try framing the picture with a border and leaving a blank space on the card for a different kind of impact. You can superimpose different fonts and text with a message of your choice or even tint and colour the photographs for a certain effect such as a sepia tinge to give a vintage feel. If you really want to be clever there are a number of picture editing software packages that can be downloaded for free.

Business Cards

If you want to make an impact with your business card so people remember you, why not incorporate some photography. And you’ll be glad to know the picture doesn’t have to be of you. If your business is, for example, about renovating antique furniture, why not include an attractive, modern image of someone sitting on a period armchair? If there are several branches to your business, you could choose different images to illustrate the different nature of each.

Tower Cards/Labels

Photographs can be used to make an impact on tower cards and labels. If they are being used to advertise a product or promote a campaign run by a family business, then why not include a picture of that family? Or even an antique picture of the founders of that business to demonstrate how long it has been running? The possibilities are endless and the magic with Promaxx products is that they enable you to try one sample to see if it works, meaning there is no wastage and minimal cost.