Photo Expressions

Canadian Wall of Pride

Well, Canada and BC in particular certainly seemed to have swelled with pride and joy during the Olympics.  It was fun to fill up our store windows with red, white and Canadian themed photos.  Here are a few pics:

  

Baby Contest 2010 Winners!

The 16th Annual "Cutest Little Baby" Photo Contest has wrapped up, and once again over 300 cute little kids got their pictures taken!

This year, we handed out a record 23 prizes, worth over $750!  A special thanks goes out to our sponsors, for providing great prizes:

• Nikon Canada
• Big City Cupcakes
• Easy Daysies
• Jungle Jac's Play Centre
• Krafty Kidz Creations
• Monkey Business Kid's Boutique
• My Gym Children's Fitness Centre
• Photo Express foto source!

In addition, we were able to cut a cheque for $336 to give to the Ridge Meadows Hospital Foundation!  The money will go toward the Maternity Ward.

 

Without further ado, here are the 2010 winners of the "Cutest Little Baby" Photo Contest:

Pretty cute hey?  And the grand prize winner, who won a Nikon S230 camera among other things, is this little cutie:

Congratulations to all the winners!  Congratulations also to all who entered, you have until March 31st to take advantage of all the great special offers from the contest.

Click to see this year's catalogue of special offers

Click here to order special offers (requires password given with contest CD)

Thanks for entering!

 
  

Creative Corner with Copic

Our recent Copic sale was a HUGE success, so there are many of you out there with a new supply of Copic Markers in your stash! So here are a few resources that you'll find handy during your learning!

• copicmarker.com - check out their tutorials page
• debbiedesigns.typepad.com - basic FAQ's on Copic Markers
• Here's an article on how to use Copic Markers with block stamps using a direct-to-stamp technique. Although, when the author talks about spritzing the stamp with rubbing alcohol, you can just as effectively use Copic's blender solution, if you already have some of it at home.
• Sherrie Siemens is a local Copic instructor with a great blog full of tips, techniques, samples and videos.

Creative Corner with QuicKutz

You'll want to check out the QuicKutz blog for a quick reminder of how easy it is to custom design the front cover of your scrapbook. It's a great way to finish it off with a personal touch.

Visit here for a step-by-step tutorial with Maegen Jenne.

New from Best Creation

Look at this ADORABLE new line from Best Creation, called Once Upon a Dream. The perfect girly line!

New Magazines

This issue is full of ideas for Baby, Easter, Lots of Photos, Glitter, Digital, Stamping, Showcase, and a special challenge: On a Budget - and so much more! Check out the features on Award Winning Style, Real Life, & Stories to Tell. The One Amazing Album section features Paige Evans teaching about making an album for someone special using inspirational quotes and photos of the two of you! Stories To Tell, Class In Session, and of course Cards & Tags (Bunnies, bunting, and sunshine - these Easter cards are guaranteed to make you smile.) There is so much packed into this issue - you HAVE to have it!

Small packages. Big memories. It’s true – great things do come in small packages! A mini album is the perfect place to wrap up your memories. With techniques, tips, and a step-by-step guide to make your albums marvelous, here are the ideas you need to gather memories of family, celebrations, vacations, and more. Create your own amazing album today!

March's edition of Cards is full of ideas for Springtime, Envelopes, Fabric, Girls' Night Out, Easter, Thinking of You, Woodland Creatures, Just Because, St. Patrick's Day, and more!  You'll love the AMAZING Style Challenge section, where we feature four readers to showcase their talent in amazingly different ways! The Ultimate Card Class features Creative Imaginations! You'll love the Cards designed in this month's class! The Designer of the Month is Jillian Deiling. Jillian is an avid crafter with a unique style. SHe loves to incorporate new and trendy products with her all-time favorites (flowers, rhinestones, ribbon) - and we love what she comes up with. Learn more about Jillian and her fantastic style and tips in this month's issue! Packed with inspiration and excitement! You don't want to miss this issue!

Go Canada Go!

Renée has designed 2 new custom papers, available only at PE!

Even if you don't get the opportunity to take in some of the Olympic events, there are so many images and clips available online that you could easily create a layout of your favourite event or highlights.

And don't forget about these fabulous custom papers also available at PE:

Creative Corner with Kate

Creative Corner with Karen

Hi all! Like many of you, I am totally excited about the Olympics and have been trying to take in as much of the events as possible. Last week I took my girls to the Richmond O Zone and met up with my sister for some fun. If the crowds are too much for you to handle, then this is a good way to have an Olympic experience, because during the day there is lots of room to move around. I managed to get some great pictures, and wanted to scrapbook them right away.

I'm absolutely in love with the Olympic colour scheme that you see everywhere and decided that I wanted to recreate it on my layout. I picked out several sheets of 12 x 12 bazzill and drew curvy lines on it with a pencil. I free-handed mine, but if that makes you nervous, Bo Bunny has a flex ruler that you can use to draw perfect curves. Then I cut them out and layered them on a white background. Before I taped everything down, I stamped on a few of the colours with Versamark ink and different background stamps. This helped me to recreate the subtle designs that are on the Olympic signage. I cut my title out using my Silhouette, but you could also use dies, or stickers. To finish everything off, I used the Crew die for January (the coffee cup) to create the Olympic logo (shhh, don't tell Vanoc!). I hope that this inspires you to get your Olympic photos scrapped! 

Photographic Report from the Olympic Frontlines

PE's very own Marcel and I (Ron) got a chance to attend an Olympic hockey game last night!  Here is the qucik and dirty on what's happening down there, and what to expect:

• DO take your SLR camera and big zoom lens if you have them.  I took my Nikon D3 with 70-200mm f2.8 lens (it must weigh about 10 pounds), in a Lowepro 200 AW Slingpack and had no problems getting through security.  Lots of other people had big cameras as well.  You can even take a big flash if you want, but don't it out during an event.  Flash photography is a no-no.
• The bag restrictions on the vancouver2010 website are not really being enforced, so don't worry if your bag is larger than 6 x 6 x 12 inches.  The security people are very friendly and are using common sense.
• DO bring lots of memory and battery power.  There is so much to photograph besides the events!

Are you going to an ice event?  Does your camera allow for manual settings?  Here is the magical setting I settled on last night for hockey.  It should work well for figure skating as well, depending how far you are from the action:

For hockey / figure skating:
ISO: 400
Aperture: f4
Shutter Speed: 1/320th

That's it!  I shot all night at that setting and never had to worry about the tough auto-metering conditions.  So if you have manual settings, start here.  If the pictures are too bright, increase your shutter speed (to something like 1/500th).  If they are too dark, you can increase the ISO to 800.

Many cameras / lenses only go down to f5.6 aperture, if your is one then try these settings:

ISO: 800
Aperture: f5.6
Shutter Speed: 1/320th

For speed skating, you may want a faster shutter speed, especially if you are close to the action.  Try these settings for starters:

ISO: 800
Aperture: f4
Shutter Speed: 1/500th

or

ISO: 1600
Aperture: f5.6
Shutter Speed: 1/500th

Try a few shots during warmups to get the right exposure, and then you don't have to worry about it for the rest of the event!

Here are some photos from last night (all photographs © Ron Comeau and for personal enjoyment, please don't spread them around as we are dealing with the Olympic brand here):

Athlete's Village at night (click for larger).  Several photos stitched together in Photoshop.  Settings were:
ISO: 1600
Aperture: f2.8
Shutter Speed: 1/50th

Bottom row is Czechs, top row is Slovaks.  One thing that really impressed me was how well the Czech and Slovak supporters got along, seeing as they used to be one nation.  By the way, this was taken in front of the Russia pavilion, and some people were also wearing Canada mittens.  And it all makes sense.  This is why I love the Olympics, and this is why I love Vancouver.

Some hockey photos (all taken at ISO 400, f4, 1/320th second):

Faceoff in the Czech zone

The Vancouver Canucks' own Pavol Demitra!

(click for larger) Jaroslav Halak with the big glove save.

(click for larger) Tomas Vokoun with a couple of beauties!

 
Tomas Plekanec of the Czechs chips in the insurance marker over his Montreal Canadiens teammate, Jaroslav Halak, with 2 seconds left in the 2nd period!  Jaromir Jagr had passed the puck across the crease.

(click for larger) Time-honoured hockey tradition: beat the cr*p out of each other, then shake hands.

There you have it.  Get out there and get some once-in-a-lifetime photos!  And when the Olympics are done, promise me you will DO SOMETHING with your photos!  It could be as simple as sharing your photos and ordering 4x6 prints through Foto Depot.  I'm planning on using Foto Depot to create an "Olympic Memories" photo book.  When you create your memories, please share the resukts with us at Photo Express!

Trust us with your Memories,
Ron C
  

Custom Papers from PE!

We are so excited about our new custom papers, designed and printed right here at PE!

   

Plus, you'll find a whole bunch of Winter Sports die cut shapes, such as ski jumpers, snowboarders, speed skaters and hockey players, up at the counter for individual purchase. What a fabulous way to commemorate your special memories of the 2010 Olympics!

Creative Corner with Tsukinenko

Unmounted stamps have certainly taken the stamping world by storm in the last couple of years. They are cost effective, space conscious and tree-friendly :-) Some of them, however, are not self-cling, so you need to problem solve how to get them to stick to your acrylic blocks. Well worry no more! Tsukinenko has an easy solution for you...

Features:

• Tack ’n Peel clear sheet is a unique, reusable product designed for creating a stamping block.
• Transparent Tack ’n Peel allows easy aligning on acrylic blocks, and your finished design will have that professional touch!
• Simply rinsing the surface with water and air-drying can easily preserve the adhesive layer – stickiness will restore over and over again. (Yes, it really does!!)
  
• Tack ’n Peel clear sheet can be used on acrylic or wood blocks, however, its unique feature allows for any either flat or curved surface to also become a stamping handle.

Suggested Use:

1. Place block on the yellow side of the Tack ’n Peel sheet and trace the outline with a thin permanent marker.
2. Use scissors or craft knife to cut out the traced shape.
3. Peel off the yellow liner from the Tack ‘n Peel and place onto the block or handle.
4. Remove the clear liner but do not discard. You'll want to replace this cover when you store your block.
   
5. Place your unmounted stamp or any found object onto exposed side and begin your stamping project!
6. When finished, remove the stamp or design object and replace the saved clear liner to protect the surface until ready to use again.
   (Caution, unmounted stamp or design object should be removed for proper storage to prevent difficulty in removing later.)
7. When ready for re-use, restore tackiness by just wiping the surface with a wet cloth or rinse with water if needed, and allow to air dry.
   

HELPFUL HINTS

• Leftover pieces of Tack ‘n Peel can be used as double-stick tape for storing unmounted images in clear plastic cases.
• Certain inks may stain areas not covered by unmounted stamp while
  Tack ‘n Peel is in use. This should not affect the performance of the sheet, however, if heavy build up of ink stain reduces the tackiness, replace the Tack ‘n Peel.
• To prolong the life of your Tack ‘n Peel, store away from heat and direct sunlight.

SAMPLES

The adhesive layer provides a strong bond for unmounted rubber stamps, but moreover, will let your creativity flow by adhering any design objects to stamp with. Use rubber bands, strings, plastic wrap, die cuts, fun foam, paper fasteners, etc to create unique backgrounds, patterns and custom images.

Use a rubberband or strings to create custom patterns	Use a bubble wrap or sting on a brayer to create backgrounds	Use wraping foil to create funky images

Card Kits by Kate

Silhouette Rhinestones

Have you seen the new Silhouette Starter Kits from Silhouette? They're the perfect way to add bling to any of your projects, including bejewelling your clothes!

Look at these gorgeous onesies that you can make for a truly unique and personalized baby shower gift. 

And how about these super cute jeans?! Any little girl would love to personalize her clothes with a butterfly or even her name!

Visit here to go to Silhouette's blog and check out their recent articles on their rhinestone products.

 

Creative Corner with American Crafts

I just came upon these free downloadables from AC's website, including some cute desktop backgrounds! Check them out by visiting here: