This week I got busy putting together some greetings for friends and family using some digital picture frame greetings as a change of pace to other forms of well wishes.  Since nobody else I know does this sort of thing, I thought it might be nice to show off some of the unique variations that people could use to send and display their thoughts.  Though it is possible to create digital scans of physical cards and display those in a picture frame, creating ideas from photos and matting can be nicer.

The first creation for the week uses a digital calendar page to create a rendering that is also a birthday greeting, lending some additional uses for your favorite digital calendar page images.  A similar technique could be applied to recognize other important events worth preserving within a given month.  Since this idea was off the top of my head, I figured others could easily imagine their own applications for this kind of image.

One way to turn a calendar into a greeting card.

The next item offers a nice digital photo matting picture of a favorite fall scene, and a sentiment that got some notice from one recipient.  With these digital creations, it is possible to bring lasting and unique images with loads of flair, all with some of your own photographs.

Turn favorite matted photos into special greetings.

In my third creation, I combined an offset digitally matted photo with a humorous angle.  I can make up this kind of stuff all day long if I am not careful, so I let this digital plaque go out to someone who would rather forget how old they are.

I used an effect and off set to make this image stand out.

Last on the list is another humorous greeting card design that combines a beautifully matted digital photo into something the recipient may look at several times before they stop to read what the card actually says.  That is one way to test how well people look at what you send them. 

Did you read that card I sent you?

In the past postings, I have placed other digital greetings among the weekly offerings.  If your wit and vision for creating one of these unique greeting cards is burning to get out, you can save yourself a lot of time and effort in trying to do it yourself by letting me put the idea together for you.  Who knows, maybe you are the next Hallmark Cards just waiting to happen.

If you want me to create a unique design from your photos or specifications, just send an email to jdir@bhotechnologists.com and tell me what you have in mind.  Please do not attach photos to your email.  I will tell you everything you need to know about how to start getting the most from your digital picture frame content.  If you want to use any of the work posted on this site, just pay $3 per image at how to buy matting services and then send me an email to let me know what you use or want to download.

Thanks for visiting, and come back often.  If you like what you see, tell your friends.  If you don’t, then just keep your mouth shut.

One of the first things an amateur photographer does with their new digital camera is go out and start taking macro shots of flowers, bugs, and anything little that might look nice or artistic.  After they tell themselves their shots have just created a new art form, a little voice in their head tells them to try to start selling their pictures to people who have never seen such beautiful perspectives before.

Well, that is why I call this path the “blooming idiot” approach, and dedicate this week’s theme to all those who have, or will wander down this path with me.  Just look what I have for you to enjoy.  My first item is a digital plaque that expresses high sounding sentiments, and a nicely matted flower photo of some delicate blooms which reflect the sentiment.  It looks nice, and gave me something to do with one of my flower macros.

Flower macros can be used to make other stuff.

Next, I made this unusual looking digital calendar page offering which took one of my more artsy flower shots, dressed it up with nice colored matting, and put it on a richly textured calendar box design.  Application number two for my close up flower shots.

Make lame flower photos worthwhile by letting me dress them up.

On my third pass to enhance my eye for macro flower shots, I created this fancy digital photo matting around my shot of the partially rotting flower bloom to confirm the claim that nobody else has a flower shot like this one, even if they have some of the same kind of flowers. 

Get your macro shots looking extra special with my matting help.

In my final offering, you will not only find a doubly beautiful digitally matted photo of more open blooms, but the digital award where the picture appears carries recognition to a level which has never been seen until now.  I was particularly happy to accept this award, as tears of joy wet the tops of my shoes.  With this, I close my presentations, but I want to leave you with one more idiotic mental image that occurred to me this week.  When you see people yawning at work, don’t report them to their supervisors; just think of them as empty human Pez dispensers looking for a way to be filled.

I accept this award whole heartedly...I feel like a hero.

If you want me to create a unique design from your photos or specifications, just send an email to jdir@bhotechnologists.com and tell me what you have in mind.  Please do not attach photos to your email.  I will tell you everything you need to know about how to start getting the most from your digital picture frame content.  If you want to use any of the work posted on this site, just pay $3 per image at how to buy matting services then send me an email to let me know what you use or want to download.

Thanks for visiting, and come back often.  If you like what you see, tell your friends.  If you don’t, then just keep your mouth shut.

One of the premier advantages of digital photography is the ability to immediately cull out bad photos.  Instead of wasting time and money filling up drawers and albums with all those terrible compositions, over exposed, and under exposed pictures, we can simply delete them before we head out to the store to buy those prints, or load up our digital picture frames. 

As I scan back through my albums for “keeper” shots, there are still more bad photos I have taken and kept than there are good ones.  The reason for this is varied.  Often I keep pictures of seemingly uncorrelated junk because it reminds me of a place I went, or a time I enjoyed on one of my walks.  I know my pictures are bad because people who look at them ask, “Where is that?” or “Why are you taking so many pictures of weeds?”

If any of this sounds like the kind of experiences you get with your own photos, then take note of this week’s creations made from nothing but bad photos, (as if some past weeks have not.)  When you add the extra dimension of letting me create a digitally matted photo, digital award, digital plaque, or digital calendar page, you will start hearing a different tune about your bad photos.  Though you may still hear some of the same old questions about your pictures, many will preface their remarks with, “Oh! That’s pretty.” or “That’s interesting, where did you get that?” Thus is the power of my digital creations.

See for yourself with this week’s offerings.  The first item is a digital plaque which includes a quote from my favorite sage regarding the future of digital camera technology.  The center piece of this plaque is an under exposed twilight shot I took of some tall grass and scruffy trees at Heritage Park in Olathe, KS.  I particularly enjoyed this day in the park with my wife, so I kept the bad photo, but look at it now.  Beautiful.

You do not need perfect photos to create a thing of beauty.

Next in line is the digitally matted photo I took during a walk on part of the Mill Creek trail that passes through Shawnee Mission Park, KS.  This photo of the lush greenery we saw on our walk takes me back to that spot, headed for some shade on a warm summer day.  The digital matting accents tell the world, “I meant to do that,” when I took the shot.  Now, before you respond with, “So what?” let’s move on to the next item.

Digital photo matting accents the statement you were making with your photos.

This week’s digital calendar offering features the soft highlights of a small grassy area along a walking trail near our home in Overland Park, KS.  Made from a combination of textures, highlights and shadows, this picture beacons for you to come and spend a few minutes relaxing comfortably in the soft lush grass.

Passing time with digital calendar creations that shine.

When you think you have taken a photograph with few redeeming qualities, because you are not even sure where the bad picture came from, you can always hold out for making it an award winner.  Under the right circumstances, bad photos can fire up the competitive spirit like nothing else.  I have rewarded myself with this stunning digital photo frame award, so the question is, “Are you going to be next?”

Find your own reason to be recognized with digital awards.

If you want me to create a unique design from your photos or specifications, just send an email to jdir@bhotechnologists.com and tell me what you have in mind.  Please do not attach photos to your email.  I will tell you everything you need to know about how to start getting the most from your digital picture frame content.  If you want to use any of the work posted on this site, just pay $3 per image at how to buy photo matting services then send me an email to let me know what you use or want to download.

Thanks for visiting, and come back often.  If you like what you see, tell your friends.  If you don’t, then just keep your mouth shut.

My first bit of work this week came as a greeting to someone who will always be on my personal hall of fame list of people.  The digital plaque birthday greeting immortalizes a defining moment of humorous memories that lives on in our local lore.  Happy birthday, Jim.

Digital plaques make good greeting cards.

Next on the list is another smooth digital calendar design based on a photo taken of some animal tracks beside a creek along the local walking trails I like to visit.  I personally liked the color tones that came from the soil.

Digital box calendars provide a change from mundane pages.

On a museum of art trip this weekend with some friends, this painting caught my eye and the attention of others, so I took a digital photo created my own digital photo matte for the composition.  The scene is dark, but quite interesting in its night time volcanic eruption.  I thought it came out very nice.

Digital photo matting works of art can be economical and fun.

My last item for the week is a whimsical award constructed from the inspiration of some Roman bust sculptures at the art museum.  I like the way this award looks from a visual standpoint.

Digital awards are nice for just about any kind of recognition.

If you want me to create a unique design from your photos or specifications, just send an email to jdir@bhotechnologists.com and tell me what you have in mind.  Please do not attach photos to your email.  I will tell you everything you need to know about how to start getting the most from your digital picture frame content.  If you want to use any of the work posted on this site, just pay $3 per image at  how to buy photo matting services  then send me an email to let me know what you use or want to download.

Thanks for visiting.

Another month begins, and I am not ready for the summer to come a month closer to being over.  In the past month I have heard from a few people who are coming to the site, and some of them are asking if I can help bring their own ideas to life.  This is good, so keep those inquiries coming.

Based on an inspiration from one idea I heard last month, my first image will show how a person could create a perpetual calendar of images for their digital picture frame.  Since this effort would require gathering 366 images, and omitting the year, the cost of this approach might be somewhat prohibitive at $3 per image.  With that said, one could make the calendar with some promotional logos or ad copy in other areas of the border, and have a nice way to recover the original creation cost of my design by selling to interested digital picture frame customers at reduced cost until enough copies have been sold to recover the production cost.

If you would like to see/buy the 1024 x 768 image send an email to jdir@bhotechnologists.com

The second image on this week’s agenda is an actual digital award presented to Paula Eubanks for her work in setting up a charity fund raising event where she works.  The design was adapted from an earlier award posted on this site because I was not in a spot where I could create a completely new design when the need to have a presentation arose.  At any rate, Paula liked her award and thought it was a nice way to recognize her efforts.

Appreciation awards encourage and reward effort.

My digital inspirational plaque for the week comes from a sudden realization I had in a work conversation I was engaged in.  I used a photo I took in Waterfall Park in Independence Missouri because inspirations often have pictures like these associated with them.  The people at work got a giggle out of the punch line, so I hope you do too.

If you would like to see/buy the 1024 x 768 image send an email to jdir@bhotechnologists.com

My final offering is yet another photo from the Waterfall Park in Independence MO.  What surprised me the most about this place was how many nice images I could grab from such a small area.  This picture of the drowning trees appealed to me, and I thought the shiny green matte would make it more interesting to view.   

If you would like to see/buy the 1024 x 768 image send an email to jdir@bhotechnologists.com

If you want me to create a unique design from your photos or specifications, just send an email to jdir@bhotechnologists.com and tell me what you have in mind.  Please do not attach photos to your email.  I will tell you everything you need to know about how to start getting the most from your digital picture frame content.  If you want to use any of the work posted on this site, just pay $3 per image at

http://digitalphotoframetemplates.biz/how-to-buy-photo-matting-services. 

Thanks for visiting.

The month of July marks a special time of celebration in the United States, so we thought it would be fun to add to the festivities by launching a special series of digital photo contests.  Starting in July, we will launch the first weekly contest using a theme of scenic photos.  The competition is open for all digital photo enthusiasts, with details available with each week’s prize posting.

As the weeks progress, the top three winners from each weekly contest will automatically be entered into the monthly competition, to receive more prizes.  Since the monthly prize winners are selected from the weekly competitors, this means that you have a chance to win another prize without any extra effort!  If nobody enters one or more of the weekly contests, chances improve for anyone who participates to win a monthly prize as well.  The July monthly prize offering will be awarded to winners chosen from first, second, and third place weekly picks.  Prizes offered at the monthly level include the following:

First Place – 3 free digital photo treatments of your choice, made from your own photos, or you can use your prize credits toward one of our own creations posted on our site.  You can choose from a digital plaque, award, matted photo, or calendar page creation from your pictures.

Second Place – 2 free digital photo treatments of your choice, made from your photos, selected from the product categories mentioned above.

Third Place – 1 free digital photo treatment of your choice from one of our digital creation categories.

If there are no participants in the weekly contests, no weekly or monthly prizes will be awarded.  Winners can choose to have prizes made from winning weekly entries, or provide new pictures for us to work with.  Winners will be notified by email, and given prize credits for monthly winnings to be redeemed within 30 days of prize notification. 

Unredeemed prize credits will be void after 30 days.  Your finished creations may be showcased by being posted on our site.  Give your photos the highlighting they deserve by entering them in our contests. 

When we receive regular monthly participation in our contests, the top 3 winners of monthly prizes will be automatically entered in our yearly prize competition levels.  Details of potential yearly contest prizes will be posted in an article describing our yearly contest rewards.  If we do not have regular monthly winners, there will be no annual prizes awarded.  You have nothing to lose, so cash in on the fun, and make your digital photos look like a million.

Summer showed up quickly from the South this week, punching up the heat index like a trip to the sauna.  In this inspiration, I got busy putting together some cool images to soothe my mind from the scorching temperatures.  The first image is a July calendar page centered on one of my favorite eateries in town, and I hope they will appreciate the advertising opportunity this showcase provides.  This Jack Stack location is on the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City.  Everyone in my circles would enjoy a chance to kick off the summer by wrapping their lips around some of the enticing barbecue from any one of the available locations. 

Jack Stack barbeque helps put KC on the map.

Fortunately, I live in close proximity to three of these restaurants that provide a nice variety of decor, and consistently good food.  Though I cannot speak for their entire menu, I might be able to some day if I can ever get tired of eating my favorite sandwiches there.  Judge for yourself if this picture has enough bull in it for you.  I was personally grateful when this particular location replaced the KC Masterpiece restaurant that preceded the remake into another Jack Stack.

The second item is a matted photo of a small church I passed on one of my walks around the Brookside area, near the Plaza.  The picture captured my attention because of the lighted clouds in the background of the roof and the tower.  I thought the clouds made a nice contrast to the lower lighting of the building and surrounding grounds.  Could this have been a little “howdy” from above?  Maybe.

A nice little church deserves a good matte.

This week’s digital plaque uses an emerald green and some additional accents to bring out a different feeling for this composition than some of the other kinds of metallic based themes.  The tree photo was taken in the back yard of a home near a walking path around a local golf course in Overland Park, Kansas.  The image caught my eye not only for its beautiful tree blooms, but also for the carefully manicured shape of this tree provided by the property owners.  The white tree flowers and the white picket fence are an almost idyllic image of the American dream home.  I hope it is as nice to live there as it looks.  Certainly the owners are working hard to make it look that way.

Is this the American dream?

My last piece is a sample award that one might expect to see as a third prize treatment in our upcoming weekly photo contest competition.  Notice how the award not only makes a rich prize for the right winner to cherish, it is specially created to reflect the attributes of the photo associated with the presentation.  This photo was another picture taken at Brush Creek on the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City, MO.  If you are wondering why so many recent pictures of the Plaza area have been showing up lately in these blog entries, it is because I have so many nice scenes to share, so why not?  There just might be more to come.

Do you think you can win a nice a award like this? You have to try to find out.

If you would like to use any of my images for yourself, please donate for each one you download.  If you want me to go to work on any of your photos to create some eye-popping digitally matted photos, calendars, awards, or plaques, send me an email at jdir@bhotechnologists.com to let me know what you have in mind.  Please do not attach photos to your emails.  Let the summer begin.

This week was so busy it took a bit to put together the favorite items worth sharing for this week.  My first offering is a photo and design that reveals a little known secret about how some plants adjust the color of their leaves.  If you look closely at the photo, it would appear that the tree is matching its leaf color to the exact same shade as the barely visible red traffic light color.  So maybe it is not as interesting as I thought, but I liked the idea myself.

How trees adjust their leaf colors...

Next up is this week’s calendar page design offering lots of rich color, and some important dates for this month.  Can you just imagine being able to give out your own beautiful promotional digital calendars with your own logo plastered on the front for all to see, and maybe a little advertising text to boot?  Yes, we can do that if you want.  The beauty of our service is that we can design a whole year’s worth of beautiful pages for only $36.  After that, you can send out as many electronic copies as you want.  How’s that for a nice cheap promotion idea?

Digital calendar designs make great and inexpensive promotional items.

This week’s digital award sample gives you a hint for what we have cooking next month in our new photo contest extravaganza.  We can make your photos award winning, and you can have the kudos to prove it.  The richness of this design will have everyone taking notice.

Digital awards provide a first rate image for recognition.

Closing out this week’s works, is a decorative digital plaque with yet another potentially famous quote from our favorite author and sage.  This elegant design could be an item you would cherish for years to come if you trend toward a cynical view of the world.  Oh well.

Digital plaques offer a whole new potential vista for merchandising.