How to make a digital scrapbook page in Photoshop

Set up the document

The first step is creating a blank canvas for your layout. The standard digital scrapbook page is 12 x 12 inches at 300 pixels per inch, which equals exactly 3600 x 3600 pixels. This size ensures your page prints clearly.

To start your new page, follow these steps:

• Go to File > New in the top menu.
• Set the width and height to 12 x 12 inches or 3600 x 3600 pixels.
• Enter 300 pixels per inch for the resolution.
• Choose RGB color for the color mode.
• Click Create to open your blank canvas.

If you want to understand more about why these settings matter, read our guide on DPI, PPI and resolution for scrapbookers.

Place supplies as Smart Objects

Once your canvas is ready, you can start adding your digital supplies. Digital scrapbook papers are usually JPG files, while elements and alphabets are transparent PNG files. You can learn more about these formats in our PNG vs JPG guide.

To add an item to your page:

• Go to File > Place Embedded.
• Find the paper or element file on your computer and select it.
• Press Enter to confirm the placement.

When you use this method, placed files become Smart Objects. This is a very helpful feature because Smart Objects can be resized multiple times without losing any image quality. You can drag the corners of the bounding box to make an element smaller or larger to fit your design perfectly. If you decide a flower needs to be bigger after you already shrank it, a Smart Object will stay perfectly crisp.

Clipping masks

A clipping mask lets you fit a photo or paper into a specific shape. This is how you attach a photograph to a digital frame or a photo spot on a template. The bottom layer acts as the shape, and the top layer is the image that gets clipped to fit inside it.

Here is how to make a clipping mask:

• Place your shape layer on the page.
• Place your photo or paper on the layer directly above the shape.
• Hold Alt on Windows or Option on a Mac and click the line between the two layers in the Layers panel.
• Alternatively, select the top layer and go to Layer > Create Clipping Mask.
• You can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Alt+G on Windows or Cmd+Option+G on a Mac.

If you need more help with this technique, check out clipping masks explained.

Layer styles and shadows

Adding a drop shadow makes your digital elements look like real paper and objects resting on a page. You can apply a shadow by double clicking a layer in the Layers panel to open the Layer Style menu. From there, enable the Drop Shadow option.

The Drop Shadow menu gives you several settings to adjust:

• Angle changes the direction of the light.
• Distance moves the shadow closer or further from the object.
• Spread makes the shadow thicker or thinner.
• Size controls how soft or sharp the shadow edge is.
• Opacity makes the shadow darker or lighter.

Always check the box for Global Light. This ensures every shadow on the page shares one light direction, which makes the layout look much more realistic. For more tips on adjusting these settings, read our guide to realistic drop shadows.

Brushes and recoloring

Photoshop offers great tools to customize your digital supplies. You can stamp digital stamps or paint splatters using the brush tool. Brushes come in ABR format. You can add them by opening the Brushes panel menu and selecting Import Brushes.

Sometimes an element is the perfect shape but the wrong color for your layout. You can easily change its color using an adjustment layer.

• Select the layer of the element you want to change.
• Add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer above it.
• Clip the adjustment layer to the element using a clipping mask.
• Move the sliders to change the color.

Because the adjustment layer is clipped, it only recolors that single element without changing the original file. You can read more about this in our recoloring digital elements tutorial.

Save and export

It is very important to save your work frequently while you build your page. You need to save two different versions of your layout when you are finished to ensure you have exactly what you need later.

First, save your working file as a PSD. This format keeps all your layers, clipping masks, and drop shadows intact. If you ever want to change a photo, edit a text box, or move a flower, you will need this PSD file. Keeping the original layers means you never have to start over from scratch.

Second, export a JPG version for printing or sharing online. A JPG flattens the image into a single layer, which makes the file size much smaller and easier to handle. Go to File > Save a Copy or use the export menu to generate your final JPG. Make sure to keep the quality high so it prints beautifully.