April Activities #41 – 50

41. Take Photos to Illustrate a Book

 Have your child write a story then take photos to illustrate it. Put it all together in a photo book and have it published. Costco makes great inexpensive soft cover books. Don’t forget to list your child as author and illustrator, and add an About the Author section at the back!

42. Photograph Shadows

Here’s a fun activity you can try at different times of the day. Look for interesting shadows and reflections. Find repetition and pattern. Use props to create interesting shadows that tell stories.

43. Photograph Textures

Challenge yourself to see how many different textures you can find –  soft, hard, rough, smooth, slippery, jelly-like, sticky. See if your family can guess the texture you were trying to capture. Send your kids out with the camera and see how creative they can be!

44. Upload Photos to a Photo Sharing Website

Take a look at a few photo sharing websites, choose the one you like and upload some photos to share with friends and family. Usually you can just send them a link to click that will take them to your collection. I use Flickr for sharing photos from specific events and  SmugMug to share full photo collections. SmugMug also allows you to share videos.

45. Print Pictures and Make Cards

Share some love with friends and family you haven’t been able to see in a while. You don’t need to print on photo paper, just use your computer’s printer, cut out your photos and you’re set!

46. Add Text to a Photo

Learn how add text to your photos. If you have an iphone running iOS 11 or later you have access to a tool called Markup where you can add text right in Photos. Photoshop Express is a free app that allows you to add text to photos on iPhones or Androids. On your MAC you have the Markup tool in Apple Photos if you are running Sierra 10.12 or later. In Windows 10 you can use the Draw function in Windows Photos and with earlier Windows operating systems you can use Paint to add text.

47. Finish your Baby Books

OK, or start the baby book you’ve always wanted to create. So many baby books are started and never finished – now’s the time! Even if your baby is 27! I have pre-designed baby book templates in a variety of styles if you would like help finishing that book! See then here: https://familyphotosolutions.ca/photo-sharing-solutions/

We also create custom photo books. Contact me at [email protected] for details.

48. Collect your Family Stories

This is a great time to ask your loved ones to share family stories with you! After the third day of “so how’s your quarantine going? What did you do today?” step it up and ask about some family pictures. Write down the details then add them to the metadata of the digital photo when you have access to it.

49. Make a Poster

You kids will love this activity! Help them collect photos and make a poster they can hang in their room. Coming up with a theme will help keep your project on track. Have a swimming superstar? Make a poster with photos from their meets. Is your child missing their friends? Make a poster and send a copy to their friends too! Most photo printing sites offer this service.

50. Convert Old Video Formats

Do you have video in older formats like .AVI or .MSW? Its getting harder to find apps that open these older formats. Spend some time and convert them to a more accessible format like MP4. Handbrake is an excellent free conversion tool you can try. Would you like some help? We’d love to do those conversions for you!