4.5 Out of 5
PhotoMix is a program that allows you to create custom scrapbook pages, collages, calendars, and more. You can create your own layouts, designs, and themes, or let PhotoMix do the work for you with templates.
PhotoMix combines an intuitive user interface with useful features to provide a unique and easy way to make creative paper projects. You can start with a free trial of the software. Once the program is installed, it starts out by guiding you through the process of creating a scrapbook page, allowing you to learn as you go.
The first thing you need to do in PhotoMix is add some photos to work with. You can select as few or as many as you want, then they’ll show up in the Photos tab on the right.
Once your photos are loaded, you can get to work. You can go to PhotoMix.com to download free templates and add-ins, including backgrounds, clipart, borders, and more. The templates do most of the work for you, so you just have to add your pictures. If you prefer to customize your pages, though, you can build them from scratch using the tabs on the right: Photos, Compositions, Borders, Backgrounds, Clipart, and Layers. The Compositions tab lets you use preset layouts for your photos and the Layers tab lets you work with the elements you’ve added to your page in more detail. What you do with your project (whether it’s a calendar, a scrapbook page, or a collage) is entirely up to you. Adding backgrounds, borders, clipart, photos, text, and effects is all under your control. Once you’ve finished your project, just save it as a picture file and/or print it out to add it to your scrapbook.
PhotoMix offers a few photo editing options, such as gamma correction, sepia tone, sharpening, etc. Unfortunately, the tools are not as precise as many other programs that can edit photos. So if your photos really need a touch-up before you use them, you may need to do that before importing them into PhotoMix. The program does, however, have several effects that can be added to photos (and clipart elements) to add a creative touch.
Besides the free templates and add-ins, PhotoMix also offers a wide selection of add-ins ranging from $4.95 to $7.50. After purchasing these add-ins, they can be used as often and in whatever ways you like. There are various themes, styles, and patterns to choose from, and hopefully more will be added in the future.
Conclusion: 4.5 out of 5
PhotoMix is a great tool for creating your own custom scrapbook pages, collages, and calendars. There are, however, a couple of limitations to the program: the photo editing tools and the inability to create whole scrapbooks; you have to create each page as an individual project. Besides these issues, though, the only limit is your imagination. PhotoMix is available for $29, but you can download the free trial version here. Try PhotoMix and see what you can create!
