Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 guide

© 2009 Adobe Systems Incorporated How to create collages and photo books 1

How to create collages and photo books In addition to slide shows, you can create collages and photo books to display your images.

Creating a Collage Collages can display multiple images on one page, with a variety of sizes, arrangements, and shapes.

To create a collage:

1. Begin the collage with one of the following options:

• To have Photoshop Elements automatically fill the collage with images you choose, open the Organizer and select the images you would like to include, and then click the Create tab. (To select multiple images, hold down Control while clicking.)

• To fill the collage yourself, click the Create tab in Photoshop Elements.

The Projects list appears in the right column.

2. Click Photo Collages under Projects.

The Photo Collage dialog box appears (Figure 1).

Figure 1 Photo Collage dialog box

Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 guide

2 How to create collages and photo books © 2009 Adobe Systems Incorporated

3. Choose a page size for the collage in the Page Size popup menu.

4. Select from the following options (scrolling down as necessary):

• Choose a theme for the collage. Note: You do not have to choose a theme. If you do not choose a theme, the collage will have a blank white background.

• Choose a layout for the collage. This determines where the collage content is positioned on the page.

• You can choose to automatically fill the collage with pictures from the Project Bin. (This option is already selected if you began the collage by selecting images in the Organizer.)

• You can also choose to add captions to the collage.

• Select a number of pages for the collage. (Pages are automatically filled in if you began the collage by selecting images in the Organizer.) Note: Photoshop Elements supports photo projects of up to 30 pages. If your project exceeds 30 pages, create a second file you can attach to the original.

5. Click Done.

• If you selected images by using the Organizer, Photoshop Elements automatically fills the collage with images (Figure 2).

• If you started the collage without selecting images, your collage opens with one or more blank pages.

6. If you preselected images in the collage, you can adjust their sizes by clicking on them. If you started the collage without selecting images, you should now fill the collage with images. To do so, drag images from the Project Bin onto the empty spaces in the collage (Figure 3).

• To resize a photo, click the photo and drag the handles to resize it.

• To change the scale of an image, use the slider that appears immediately after you drag the image into the photo.

7. Save the file. By default, the file will be saved as a Photoshop Elements project file (PSE), which you can later open and edit.

8. When you are satisfied with the collage, choose File > Save As and save the collage as either an image (for single-page collages) or a PDF (for multiple-page collages).

Figure 2 Collage filled with images

Figure 3 Dragging images onto collage

Use this slider to change the image’s scale

Drag images here

Use these handles to resize the photo

Accept changes

Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 guide

© 2009 Adobe Systems Incorporated How to create collages and photo books 3

Creating a Photo Book Photo Books display photos in an orderly manner, generally with one or two photos on each page.

To create a Photo Book:

1. Begin the Photo Book with one of the following options:

• To have Photoshop Elements automatically fill the Photo Book with images you choose, open the Organizer and select the images you would like to include, and then click the Create tab. (To select multiple images, hold down Control while clicking.)

• To fill the Photo Book yourself, click the Create tab in Photoshop Elements.

The Projects list appears in the right column.

2. Click Photo Book under Projects.

3. Choose Print With Local Printer.

Note: The instructions here refer to the Local Printer option. You can also choose to create a Photo Book by using the Shutterfly or Kodak Easyshare online services

The Photo Book dialog box appears (Figure 4).

Figure 4 Photo Book options

Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 guide

4 How to create collages and photo books © 2009 Adobe Systems Incorporated

4. Choose a layout option:

• Random Photo Layout automatically arranges photos randomly.

• Choose Photo Layout presents a selection of layouts (Figure 5). If you choose this option, select a Left Page Layout and Right Page Layout and click Next.

5. Choose a page size for the collage in the Page Size popup menu.

6. Select from the following options (scrolling down as necessary):

• Choose a theme for the Photo Book. Note: You do not have to choose a theme. If you do not choose a theme, the Photo Book will have a blank white background.

• Choose a layout for the Photo Book. This determines where the Photo Book content is positioned on the page.

• You can choose to automatically fill the Photo Book with pictures from the Project Bin. (This option is already selected if you began the Photo Book by selecting images in the Organizer.)

• You can also choose to add captions to the Photo Book.

• Select a number of pages for the Photo Book. (Pages are automatically filled in if you began the Photo Book by selecting images in the Organizer.) Note: Photoshop Elements supports photo projects of up to 30 pages. If your project exceeds 30 pages, create a second file you can attach to the original.

7. Click Done.

• If you selected images by using the Organizer, Photoshop Elements automatically fills the Photo Book with images.

• If you started the Photo Book without selecting images, your Photo Book opens with one or more blank pages.

Figure 5 Choose Photo Layout option

Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 guide

© 2009 Adobe Systems Incorporated How to create collages and photo books 5

8. If you preselected images in the Photo Book, you can adjust their sizes or arrange them by clicking on them. If you started the Photo Book without selecting images, you should now fill the Photo Book with images. To do so, drag images from the Project Bin onto the empty spaces in the Photo Book (Figure 6).

• To resize a photo, click the photo and drag the handles to resize it.

• To reposition an image, move the pointer over the photo’s border until it changes into an arrow, and then drag the border to reposition it.

• To change the scale of an image, use the slider that appears immediately after you drag the image into the photo.

9. Click the green check mark to accept your changes.

10. Save the file. By default, the file will be saved as a Photoshop Elements project file (PSE), which you can later open and edit.

11. When you are satisfied with the Photo Book, choose File > Save As and save the Photo Book as either an image (for single-page Photo Books) or a PDF (for multiple-page Photo Books).

Figure 6 Positioning photos in Photo Book

Arrow cursor Handles Commit changes