Shutterfly Photo Story App Makes Photo Books Review & 8x8 Photo Book Giveaway

Every holiday season I struggle to find great unique gifts for the grandparents that they will love. What do you give the grandparent that has everything? Then I discovered photo books. Each year I make a book to give the grandparents and they absolutely love them, but I have to admit, it takes some time to create. However, now Shutterfly has a new Photo Book iPad App that makes easier than every to create and put together quality photo books in no time. I couldn't wait to give it a try.

The cover of my photo book!

From the iTunes store, I downloaded the app for free onto my iPad, which took less than a minute, and just signed in with my Shutterfly username and password, just like on the website. The app gives you the option of going through a tutorial so you know exactly how to use it, which was very helpful before giving it a try. Then, I could either upload more pictures to my Shutterfly account via my computer to access through the app OR I could retrieve photos from my Facebook and Instagram accounts or my own photo stream. There are so many different options and, since I have many pictures in all those places, I took them from them all! All I had to do was click on "Photos" at the bottom of the page and then click the + symbol to add more pictures. I decided my book would have all the great photos from spring and summer since we've had such a busy few months. We easily filled 20 pages from all the pictures we'd taken!

Photos show up at the bottom of the page & can be added into the book!

What I love the most about the app is that I can create photo books anytime I would like. I don't even need an internet connection. So, when we are in the car or even waiting for a doctor's appointment, I can work on a book to help the time go by. The books can be completely personalized with captions and you can even select your choice of backgrounds and layouts. When you click "Layouts" at the bottom of the app, you can choose exactly how many photos you would like added to each pages. Plus, on the app, you can even add in sound, so you can get your kids to include a message. You can add up to 30 seconds of messages per page! The kids loved helping with this part and had so much fun with it.

More book pages I created!

Another thing I love about this app is that it is made for sharing. Yes, you can order your book, but you can also share on Facebook and email. When you share digitally, others can hear the sound messages and see your creative book you made. Here's a video that shows exactly what the Shutterfly Photo Story App is all about:

Click below to download the Shutterfly Photo Story App:

We had a great time creating our 8x8 photo book on the new Shutterfly app are so excited because our readers have a chance to create one, too!

Giveaway Time

One Lucky Children Teaching Mama Reader Will Win A Code To Create Their Own 8x8 Shutterfly Hardcover 20 Page Photo Book! 

Give The Best Presents This Holiday Season: Shutterfly Photo Books Giveaway 2 Winners US & CA #SFLYphotobook

I am one of those moms who brings a camera everywhere just in case the perfect picture opportunity arises. I take thousands of pictures every year, documenting everything that happens to our little family. This year Josiah turned 5 and started kindergarten while Liam, on the other hand, turned 3 and can recite the entire alphabet! They hit so many milestones and grow up so quickly that I don't want to miss a minute or forget them. Unfortunately, my mom and dad, or Granny and pop as the kids know them, lives three-hundred miles away from us and doesn't get to visit much. However, I have found the perfect gift for them this holiday season: a photo book from Shutterfly!

Liam is such a big boy at 3 years old! He loved his Care Bears cake!

This is such a great way to show, step by step, how much the children have grown and all the fun experiences they've had this year. We have given photo books for other occasions in the past and they are always a hit with grandparents. My mom-in-law sits hers out on her coffee table to show off her grandbabies. I know my parents will enjoy looking at all of the pictures and it will make a perfect keepsake, something they can cherish for many years to come.

Shutterfly Photo Books: The Best Gift Ever for the ones you love!

Will you give photo books to family and/or friends this holiday season? I love Shutterfly's photo book program. It's easy and there are so many options for backgrounds, themes and styles. You can customize the book just the way you want it. The process is not only easy, but fun! I love making photo books.

Ready For A Giveaway? 

Thanks To Shutterfly, Not One, But Two Readers Will Win An 8x8 Hardcover 20-Page Photo Book. Plus, this giveaway is open to US and Canada Residents!!

Organize Your Summer Photos & Send e-Photo Books Via Pholium, A New iPad App!

Summer is nearing and we all know the nice weather brings around many fun events! We just celebrated my son's 5th birthday and our family is now planning our 4th of July vacation! Others may be planning a wedding or even a family reunion! Regardless of the event, one thing is for certain: there will be many pictures taken over the next few months. I think I took about 100 just during my son's birthday party. 

When you take pictures, where do you usually store them? I sometimes place them on Facebook, but they otherwise sit in in a file on my computer. Now there is a creative way to take those pictures and make something to share with others with Pholium. This amazing digital photo book iPad app allows you to make photo books and send them to others as well as receive photo books from friends and family. It's such a unique idea and a great way to share those memorable photos.

Thanks to Pholium for providing us with 5 great tips to help us all create a beautiful photo book for family members that will last a lifetime!

1. Think, but don't over think - Don't worry about the actual photo book until after the photos are taken. You want to tell a story about an event or possibly a vacation, but do so naturally without over thinking it! While taking photos just be in the moment and enjoy every single minute of it... and make sure you have plenty of batteries and memory space! Once you have already captured the moments via pictures, there is no need to provide too much detail. Let the recipient enjoy the book via photos.

2. Capture the memories - Snap those pictures! You want a variety of content to include in your photo book, so if it looks like a great photo opp, go for it! If you think there will be a chance to take photos somewhere, go ahead and pack your camera. Long gone are the days of paying for film to be processed. You can take as many pictures as you like, delete the ones that didn't turn out great and keep the ones that are perfect!

3. Represent and be present - There may be specific photos you know you want to take at an event or on vacation, but be sure to take other photos in between. Just last weekend at my son's party my husband and I took turns with the camera, snapping pictures of our guests having fun and the grandchildren playing with Grandma. The candid pictures turned out amazing and are some of the best we took! Take pictures of the scenery, but always take time to get some pictures of people. These are always the most special and memorable.

4. Don't edit or delete those photos (yet!) - Yes, we all want a "perfect" picture, but don't over analyze when snapping photos, just do it! Even if eyes are closed, someone is making a silly face or not paying attention, it's okay. Those can sometimes make for the best and funniest photo stories. My son always makes faces at the camera and I used to get mad, but now I save them as a progression of his many silly faces. Just capture the moments as you go and edit/delete later!

One of the cutest pictures we took. It is unedited and may need work, but it will be perfect for a photo book!

5. Organize and create the book the way you want it - Now that you have taken some beautiful and amazing pictures, let the story come together in your photo book. Before uploading all of the photos, which can be time consuming, think about the story you want to tell and how you want to displayed. For example, do you want it in chronological order like a progression of the year or vacation or do you want the story to be a theme? We have made photo books of each year as well as just cute theme of the boys playing together. It's important to think out the book before sifting through photos because it can sometimes become daunting and stressful. Making the photo book should be fun and easy, so don't do unnecessary work. You can even sort the albums via date, event name, location, etc. to make it easy to sift through photos when making your own one-of-a-kind photo book!

Putting photos together in a photo book can not only take some time, but is usually expensive, too. Apps like Pholium allow you to create high-quality digital photo books that are easily customized on the iPad and sent to others! Try something different this summer by getting Pholium and making photo books for your loved ones. They will appreciate the great gift and the books are always fun to look back at and remember the great times you experienced with friends and family. 

What events and vacations do you have going on this summer? Be sure to take lots of photos and give Pholium a try when organizing and making a photo book. Let us know what you think. We just know you will love this new App like we do! Be sure to "Like" Pholium on Facebook to keep up with all the latest news!