Creating Gifts with My Family Photos

Every year, it gets harder to buy a good gift for my father. He’s very set in his ways, and it’s hard to get him something that he doesn’t already have. This year I thought I would do something a little different and give a gift that will share my family photos with him.

You see, I am a victim of a digital camera. My photos go straight to my computer and then up onto Webshots. I never print them out, even though I should. Nor do we do a family portrait. Digital cameras, it seems, have prevented me from sending out family pictures to loved ones.

Wouldn’t it be great to get Dad a compilation of photos of his grandchildren? He lives far enough away that we only see him a few times a year, so this would make a great gift. Since my budget is tight, I decided to take all the fun family photos of my kids throughout the year and create a wall calendar for my dad.

First, I went to Webshots and added the latest pictures of my kids. You can add more photos as you are creating a calendar, but I think it’s best to get them done in advance. Once done, select “Buy Prints,” then click “Calendars” – or, Webshots may prompt you if you want to purchase something. You’ll still see the Webshots site, but you’ll actually be at PhotoWorks. If you don’t have an account there, you may need to register first.

Next, select your calendar. You can choose by various options, such as size or style. PhotoWorks shows you a preview of the calendar, page by page. You also get to decide what month you want to start the calendar, which I think is neat.

Once you select your style, click “Create Calendar.” You can access all your Webshots albums at the top. On the top right hand corner, you will see a button that reads “Add / Choose Dates.” That will allow you to choose from a selection of holidays, plus add your own events, like your anniversary or your children’s birthdays. I like this option a lot, as it personalizes the calendar for my family. You can also add captions to your pictures themselves. You proceed month by month to add images and items. Keep an eye out for a yellow triangular sign on your photos. This warns you when your photos don’t have enough resolution to print clearly. Once you are done, you can view the entire project and then send to cart.

If you are new to PhotoWorks, you may get a discount promotional code off your first order. Once you are done, process your order. I’m having mine sent here. If you are ordering for Christmas, be sure to check order deadlines, you may have missed them. There is still time to get gifts for those you see after Christmas, or to get yourself a very personalized calendar, or even to send family pictures as a year end update!

I am NOT a very crafty person, so I found this process to be painless and easy. I’ll be using this more often for photo gifts throughout the year to share my family photos with loved ones – rather than just keeping stingy photos on my websites!

Do you use family pictures to create gifts? Share your project ideas with us here!