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When to transition to digital scrapbooking?

Traditional scrapbooking has many adepts, and there is so much available as far as tools, products, and ideas to create wonderful scrapbook projects. In addition, a lot of traditional scrapbookers enjoy the manual tasks, the tangible goods, and the various textures that their pages have. Not everyone would enjoy digital scrapbooking and it is ok, however, for some, transitioning to digital might be an option to continue enjoying their favorite hobby.

You have a new baby

Scrapbooking is often an activity that will take a certain time. You often need to work on a project for a good half hour or more, mostly uninterrupted, in order to see some progress.  If you don't have any children, it is fairly easy to fit in your schedule, but once you have a baby, your time becomes very limited. You might no longer have that half hour of uninterrupted pleasure. If you can get 10 minutes, it might be a bonus. But what can you do in 10 minutes? You might have barely enough time to sit, choose and grab your supplies, think of how you will combine them, and then, the little one requires your attention again! Unfortunately, this has been the reason some parents have stopped scrapbooking once they have their new baby, even though they have (and will continue to take) tons of pictures that will SOMEDAY, make it to an album.

With digital scrapbooking, it is easy enough to create layouts faster, using some time-saving tools and processes and continue enjoying the hobby despite the busy and irregular schedule that is inherent to having a baby in the house. You can work 10 minutes and stop and start again. Nothing will dry out.

You now have small kids (or grandkids)

Before having kids, you could likely enjoy your hobby without worrying about small pieces falling on the floor, or adventurous kids climbing to your table and rearranging your supplies. But now, you have to think of that while you work on your projects and also in-between those periods. You might be lucky and have a room with a door that can close so they won't touch those supplies, but at the same time, you can't really scrap if your child is up since you can hardly keep an eye on him while you work in a separate room.  So, maybe your projects will have to wait... and wait... and wait some more.

With digital scrapbooking, there is no small beads, or tools, or bottles to spill. Everything is on the computer and safe from swallowing. Even more fun, you can scrap while watching the kids play since you don't have to isolate yourself to be safe.

You are moving and downsizing

One typical traditional paper scrapbooking area is a separate room. There are so many supplies a scrapper will want to have, whether it is those fantastic papers that you better buy now, or those tools, inks, flowers, ribbons, cutting boards, and more. Plus, you need some workspace to create your masterpieces. But at one point, if you need to move and downsize your living quarters, where will you store all those?

With digital scrapbooking, all your supplies won't take much more than the space of an external hard drive. Very compact and always at your fingertip.

You want to travel

Whether you like to go places to scrap with friends, or you just like to travel, carrying your tools and supplies can become quite cumbersome, and you might have to pick and choose what to bring since it would be impossible to bring it all.

If you are doing digital scrapbooking, you only have to carry your laptop (and the charger) with you. This is so much more convenient than boxes of supplies, even if you keep them organized.

You have some physical issues

Traditional paper scrapbooking relies on fine motor skills and small details that could become challenging if your dexterity is dwindling, if your sight is declining or if you have loss of strength in your hands. Whether it is due to aging, or other physical conditions, some people find it harder and harder to use their tools to create various projects. Some will even give up their once favorite hobby.

With digital scrapbooking, you don't need strength. One can increase the resolution of their screen to allow lower eyesight. Using a mouse or better, a graphic tablet, won't require much strength and often less precision since the digital tools can do a lot for you.

Your income is limited

Although there are ways to reduce the cost of scrapbooking, it is hard to do on a very low budget. The supplies are finite and once you use a paper or a ribbon,you can't reuse it. When that ink has dried up, you need to buy another one. Once you used those six buttons, you need to get more for the next project. And so on.

With digital scrapbooking, although you CAN spend a lot on programs and supplies, you can also use free supplies, less expensive programs, and learn to create your own supplies from scratch. Here is an article on ways to save money when digital scrapbooking.

Traditional paper scrapbooking is and will still be enjoyed by a lot of people and unfortunately, when situations change, some of them will just give up their hobby, but it does not have to be this way. Don't give it up. If you think that your situation might change in the near future, give digital scrapbooking a try. The Campus has lots of tutorials to help you get started, a fun community to support you through your first steps and beyond.

If you want to give try digital scrapbooking, check out this page and download your first quick pages. You will see how easy it is when you have a step by step guide to help.

For Photos That Matter

7 thoughts on “When to transition to digital scrapbooking?”

  1. I have been doing regular scrapbooking for over 20 years. I bought the PaintShop Pro program basically to edit my photos as I am an avid non-professional photographer. I come from a very large family and I photograph all our family events. (Weddings, Birthdays, Graduations, Christenings, Christmas Parties and Reunions.) I also love to photograph nature. Digital Scrapbooking has given me a new medium to show case my photos. Also Cassel you are a great instructor. I was having a hard time figuring out how to do things with the digital format and your classes have really helped clarify the process. Thank you.

  2. Howard Cart

    I had long thought about digital scrapbooking, but never had a direction or the abilities. I came across the Campus and prepared to begin a new era in my life as a retired person when my computer had a very terrible breakdown. I have had to computer fixed and now I’m ready for this new adventure. I first have to learn to use PSP X9 and then learn this, new to me, work in pixel counting. Look forward to it.

    • Welcome to the Campus. Have a look around and if you have any question, don’t hesitate to post in the forum or click the yellow rectangle on the right.

  3. I never did conventional paper scrapping. I started out with digital and I haven’t looked back. My yarn, crochet hooks and knitting needles take up all my spare physical space and all my digital scrapbook “supplies” take up my virtual space. Turning on the computer seems so much easier than digging out all the paper, embellishments, doodads, geegaws, cutters, templates, books……you get the picture.

  4. Well I was following my mother in this, she was the one that started making digital photobooks. In France they were far behind and there were not many sites to make photobooks. In the netherlands (were I originally come from) there were many sites. I liked it right away and searched for french sites. Made a book and searched for more information about digital scrapbooking. I had so many supplies for paper scrapbooking that I didn’t know where to put them anymore and also the size of the digital book was much less than the big paperscrapbooks. They are much thinner so I can put at least 4 digital photobooks in the space of one paper scrapbook. And you can put so many photos in a digital photobook. Looking at the price, well if you devellop just 36 photos it was already half of the price of 1 digital photobook in wihch you can put hundreds of photos.
    So after finding some forums etc. I started to make my own embellishments and later on became a digital designer, which is my job now. I found the campus some years later, as I was already using a lot of Cassel’s scripts. And I learned many techniques here.
    So yes, I’m verry happy to have switched to digital photobooks as I have a job that was my hobby before.

  5. Transitioning to Digital Scrapbooking from Paper scrapping for me was fairly simple because my daughter decided to change first. I followed her lead. The space requirements for the supplies and then for the huge, heavy finished books, made both of us realize that a printed (less than 3/4″ thick) book with 111 12″x12″ images was definitely the way to go. And the portability of a laptop computer with all of the pictures and scrap booking supplies just sealed the deal. I have nearly 1000 pages of paper scrapping done standing in large heavy books on a shelf that takes well over 4 feet of shelf space. The pictures date from 1948 to 2002. I have the 2003 to 2010 pictures in order ready to scrap. My first Shutterfly digital book begins with 2011 and I am basically current to today’s date with the digital scrapping. Rather than paper scrap the “gap” I have scanned the “in between” pictures and will likely do digital scrapping of them. It really boils down to SPACE and ease for me. My paper scrapping supplies are in a floor to ceiling 8′ wide closet of shelves in a hallway (not a room). To paper scrap I have to drag all of that out and work on the dining room table. OR, I can sit down with my laptop and knock out a couple of pages at a time and scrap the pictures I took yesterday. To me, it is a no brainer… One more thing, I have taken pictures of every paper scrapped page and will be printing books to replace them.

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