Digital Scrapbooking

Digital scrapbooking is the term for the creation of a new 2D artwork by re-combining various graphic elements. It is a form of scrapbooking that is done using a personal computer, digital or scanned photos and computer graphics software. It is a relatively new form of the traditional print scrapbooking.

Digital scrapbooking kits are available to purchase and download at many websites that specialize in the craft. Kits contain graphics and word-art and are usually themed and color-coordinated. They usually consist of a mix of background images and "cut out" images containing alpha channels. Once a kit has been download to the computer, it can then be used over and over again to make new scrapbook pages (scrapbook layouts) within the software program that one chooses to use, often in combination with the users's own family photographs, scanned keepsakes and other elements scanned on a flatbed scanner. Scanning is usually done at 300dpi, to make the resulting images suitable for print.

Kits are sometimes licensed differently from the sort of traditional royalty-free stock of the sort that can be purchased per-item at online stock photography sites. Some kit packs will be wholly royalty-free, but some kit makers may restrict usage to non-commercial work only. Some may specifically forbid the sale of commercial greetings cards and gift tags that may be made with their kits. Licencing may vary from kit to kit, even from the same maker. Some kits include re-colored public domain material. In contrast to stock, creators of digital scrapbooking kits often require a credit or byline to indicate that their image elements have been used in a new creation.

Some artistic individuals combine digital scrapbooking with traditional scrapbooking to create what's known as hybrid scrapbooking. Hybrid scrapbooking involves creating layouts on the computer using digital supplies that will then be printed and combined with traditional supplies such as buttons, ribbons and other elements.

The traditional scrapbooking market appears to have declined in the USA since 2010, probably due to the recession, and digital scrapbooking (being potentially a much cheaper form of scrapbooking) may have increased accordingly.

Digital Scrapbooking can now be done online. Download your photos to a scrapbooking site such as Shutterfly, and choose your layouts. Some sites also offer professional printing of your single pages, and even a book.