Reduced Opacity Backgrounds

This is a technique that looks clever but is actually very easy. First of all you need to get used to using a photo as a background to your page. See this article if you're not used to doing that.

Once you have your photos as a background you can change the opacity with the slider. See picture below. The slider is right below the background choices. Move it up and down until you get the effect you want. I usually move it down to about 60% then slowly bring it up again. You can make several versions to compare them if you want to. Just right click on the thumbnail at the bottom of the screen to create a duplicate page.

Show the "normal " photo on top

You''ll recognise these photos! In my paper scrapbook I used a 12" x 5" version of Mum and I hanging off the balcony (of the Navigator of the Seas) showing a wide expanse of water. I liked the effect.The square version cut that off but I brought it back again with the small photo. Kit is Rina Kroes' Something Nautical.

I also used the regular sized photo in this page from my our Wedding album. Kits is Albums To Remember's Black and White Template.

TIP:  I set the opacity so you can just see the glow from the stained glass window inside the church.

Use a different photo

Here's I've used the inside of the church as a background but the small photo shows us leaving the church. The background photo was really poor quality but I wanted to use it so this was a good compromise.

Use a background to illustrate a theme

Here the theme is Christian Faith. That's difficult to depict so I used a photo or our local church on Easter Sunday with some big word art and a picture of our 2011 Census form. The rest of my Census album is HERE.

Use a special effect background

This photo of a hotel we stayed at in Torquay is old and faded so I created an art effect with it in Paint Shop and then reduced the opacity:

The rest of the Torquay 1994 album is HERE. Here's another reducity opacity page from that album showing two photos from different decades, lots of "bling" and border clusters  (from Lindsay Jane's Water Fun). The background is not sacred - you can put stuff on it!

Adjusting the background photo

There was nothing actually wrong with this background photo but it was meant to be a wall in Tuscany. I wanted it to represent the fact that my great great grandfather was a gardener so I reduced the opacity until it looked more County Durham than Tuscany. You can do this with any photo on your page, not just the background.

More examples for you

Click HERE to go to the gallery.