How to take and display better summer photos

By Mikel Kelly

The Times, Jul 19, 2010, Updated Jul 19, 2010

Mikel Kelly / Of Times Newspapers

Tara McCormack of Tigard shows some of her own family photos. The key in getting good pictures, she says, is shooting a lot and then ruthlessly editing to just a few images.

Today, more than ever before, ordinary people can take good photographs — and displaying those pictures is also becoming a breeze.

So says Tara McCormack, a Tigard scrapbooking expert and onetime novice photographer.

McCormack helps other people improve not only their scrapbooking skills but also their photographic ones.

Digital cameras and computer programs are making it easier for everyone, says McCormack, a mother of two young boys. In fact, it was the birth of her first son, Nolan (now 4) that nudged her in the direction of the scrapbooking franchise, Stampin’ Up, in the first place.

“When I first started with Stampin’ Up, I’d just had my first son,” she says. “I just started this to have something to do.”

Originally from Alaska, she’d worked in banking and as a claims adjustor when she and husband Eric went into family mode. Youngest son Parker is now 2.

“Nolan is the reason I wanted to get into scrapbooking,” she points out. “He was born, and I wanted to scrapbook his baby book.”

And even though she now teaches regular classes and workshop on all aspects of scrapbooking and photography, she admits, “I never did anything creative in my life.”

For those looking to improve their skills at getting and displaying summer photos, McCormack chooses to emphasize just a handful of basic tips: Take as many pictures as you can. Edit those shots aggressively and on a regular basis. And, finally, photograph what you love.

It’s not really important how you choose to display your photos, whether in an album, on a blog or on a social networking site. The rules are the same.

“Even on Facebook, you’re really digitally scrapbooking them because you’re putting them on a page,” says McCormack.

What’s the most common mistake she sees people making?

“I think they try to use too many pictures,” says McCormack. “One picture can tell an entire story.”

“When I teach scrapbooking to new people — and I’ve only been doing it for 3½ years — I say, ‘Keep it simple.’”

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