February 14 is Valentine’s Day – the day to show your partner or loved ones how you feel. Express your feelings with personalised photo gifts!

We have put together a few gift ideas for romantic moments. Many ideas are not just for your partner, but also make for great gifts for Grandma & Grandpa or for your BFF.

Tip: at Pixum you can save on photo gifts when ordering before Valentine’s Day. You can save up to £10! Get your discounts here »

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The Greek term “Triptych”is a work of art (usually a panel painting) which is divided into three sections, or three carved panels which are hinged together and folded. It is therefore a type of polyptych, the term for all multi-panel works. The middle panel is typically the largest and it is flanked by two smaller related works, although there are triptychs of equal-sized panels. This type of art was often used in medieval times, but why not use it now in modern times as well? Here are some suggestions & ideas for your home or office.

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Still looking for the perfect Christmas gift? Maybe for someone who just moved or desperately needs some decorations on the walls? The perfect gift for people who love exclusivity and photography: Acrylic Prints.

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Jigsaw puzzles are irresistible – once you started you can’t help but finish! What a surprise when you find your favourite photo in the finished puzzle. The perfect gift for a playful person this Christmas.

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Now’s the perfect time to get started with your Christmas gifts. If you have someone special in your life, you’ll want to make them something beautiful and spend a bit of time in making it.

In these upcoming weeks, I will make a few suggestions here in our EasyBlog as to what type of gifts you can make with your photos In this first post I’m starting with the probably most extensive product: the Pixum Photo Book.

Theoretically you create a photo book quickly, even within a few minutes by using the assistant in the software. But to make it special and unique, you’ll put in extra efforts and time – and can easily spend a weekend creating your perfect photo book .

But the most important thing is: your gift will come from the heart. Here are a few suggestions for inspiration:

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Upon your request we have now added an additional payment method for your photo book order:

Purchasing your Pixum photo books is now as easy as visiting the High Street with your Maestro card. As you probably know, Maestro is MasterCard International’s lead debit brand which is why we made it our No. 1 priority to offer you this payment method. Currently you can only use the Maestro payment method for our photo books, not yet for the online shop (but we’re working on it).

So make sure to update the photo book software and restart it before creating your next photo book!

We hope you’ll enjoy your photo books.

Best regards,
Your Pixum team

Go to www.pixum.co.uk and click on “Photo Prints” (second tab from the left in the top navigation). Select the desired format, in this case Premium photo 6″x4″. On the following page there is a clear product description about formats, aspect ratios and the quality of photo paper.

Your photo in 6”x4” format will be printed corresponding to your image file’s aspect ratio. The aspect ratio determines the actual printed size according to the table below:

* Aspect ratio 1:1 = 4″x4″ print * Aspect ratio 4:3 = 5.2″x4″ print * Aspect ratio 3:2 = 6″x4″ print * Aspect ratio 16:9 = 7″x4″ print

In the lower right corner there is a button to “Upload photos directly“. Then you will be redirected to the upload page where you can select your favourite upload method and upload your images to Pixum.

You can also bookmark the upload page for future orders: www.pixum.co.uk/upload

Once the upload has finished, click on the orange “Order now“, which places your images in the shopping basket. Go to the shopping basket and check the data and images. If desired, you can change the amount per photo and the formats by clicking on “Details“. Then simply finish your order.

You can also watch an explanation video about ordering prints here: www.pixum.co.uk/photoservice/video/index/contentOnly/true

It is the 4th video from the left.

Let us know if this explanation was helpful…

Spring has finally started! Thank God!

We figured you might be keen on some tips and suggestions for your Spring photos, so we have searched for some good info for you. I found the following article very interesting and helpful:

“How to take photos of spring nature?”

You can view some images from other photographers for your inspiration on SmashingMagazine.

Please let us and other readers know, if you have any tips you want you share. All posts will be published on our Blog as well so that Pixum customers can help one another.

Wishing you a lovely (hopefully sunny) Bank Holiday,

Your Pixum team

If you’re creating an album of vacation photos on your own or assembling your shots for one of those commercially printed photo books, the July-August issue of National Geographic Traveler offers tips and tricks for producing something you’ll want to share with friends and family.

• Keep it simple. Don’t let design compete with your photos. Choose plain backgrounds and themes. Don’t pick overly designed template pages.

• Be consistent. Choose one typeface and a colour scheme, and stick to it throughout. Pick one or two templates, but no more. The best photo books have a Zen-like quality.

• Let the images speak for themselves. A simple black border — or none at all — allows your photos to tell the story. A large, ornate border that changes page by page detracts from your images and can confuse readers.

• Spell-check your captions. Typographical errors cheapen your book.

• Add scrapbook mementos. Scan and upload ticket stubs, menus and other souvenirs from your trip, and include them alongside the images. These will complement the captions and offer context to your photos.

• Edit your photos. Don’t try to fit every image on the page. Pick the strongest ones, and supplement them with several smaller snapshots. Crop each picture, and don’t forget to correct the colour and contrast.

• Ask for help. Most photo-sharing sites have an active community where you can get advice from other shutterbugs. If you’re not sure about a picture, just ask.

• Avoid special effects. Yes, you can turn your photo into a pencil drawing or an Andy Warhol painting, but is that the right effect for your safari or cruise?

Written by: Alice T. Carter, TRIBUNE-REVIEW THEATER CRITIC
Monday, July 13, 2009
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