5 Reasons to Personalize a Photo Calendar

Move over generic kitten and puppy calendars, there’s a better way to keep track of all your most important life events, activities and appointments while also showcasing your favourite photos: a fully personalized photo calendar!

While we’ve been offering personalized photo calendars for years, you’ll now have even more options than ever, thanks to our newly launched sizes for centre coil bound calendars. They are now available in 6”x6”, 8”x8”, 10”x10”, 14”x11” and 12”x12” (as well as a premium 12”x12”) and come ready-to-hang. Turnaround time on these centre coil bound calendars is 5 to 7 business days.

All of our calendars also now offer the option to type in special dates on each month as well as personalize those dates with a chosen image. They also have different templates you can use to personalize each month with multiple images – the perfect solution for when you can’t choose just one photo. Our calendars are also available in both English and French. And don’t forget – all of our calendars can be customized to start on any month!

There are lots of reasons to personalize your own photo calendars, but here are our top 5:

1. It Will Keep Your Family Organized

Keeping track of a whole family’s worth of schedules is a tall order. Get a jump start by personalizing your calendar with all the important family events and special dates you know will be coming up over the next year. That could include everything from family members’ birthdays to holidays and important school dates – even Taco Tuesdays and family games nights!

Feature photos of your family from the previous year, corresponding to each month; think family vacation photos during the summer months, Halloween costume photos for October, a family Christmas photo for December, etc. It’s a good excuse to dust off your hard drive and go through the pictures you took last year. If you have a family pet, don’t forget to include a few cute photos of them too!

2. It Makes A Romantic Anniversary Gift

Coming up with a creative and thoughtful anniversary gift each year can be tough. This year, gift them something extra special: a calendar personalized with photos of the two of you. You’ll be able to hand pick photos to be featured for each month, plus we recommend adding a special message and photo to your anniversary date. You can also include some special surprises each month by adding text to certain days, like ‘date night’ or ‘I’ll cook you dinner/do the dishes’ that your partner can look forward to throughout the year.

3. It Makes a Thoughtful Birthday Gift

Make a calendar that’s all about them for their birthday! Pick your favourite photos with them to feature, and of course make sure to add a special note on their birthday date (and even add a photo).

If you’re celebrating your baby’s first birthday, a ‘baby’s first year’ calendar would make a sweet and sentimental gift to give to family members. Choose photos from throughout their first year to show how fast they’ve grown over the months!

4. It’s a Great Keepsake for Grandparents

Grandparents love a good keepsake. Surprise them with a calendar, personalized with precious photos of their grandchildren. You can add each grandkid’s birthday to the calendar too, so they’ll always remember.

If you have old print photos of your grandparents, you could also feature some of those photos in the calendar too for them to reminisce over. If you need some help digitizing old photos in bulk, check out our Photo Scanning Box Service.

5. It Can Double as a Way to Feature Your Child’s Artwork

Our photo calendars can be functional pieces of art! Save space on your fridge by having your favourite artwork by your kids all in one place. Just take your child’s artwork, scan it, and personalize your calendar with the digital image files. When you flip the calendar each month, you’ll get to enjoy a new drawing by your talented little Picassos! You could even commission them to create special drawings for their birthdays and other important family events, which can be added as images to individual dates on your calendar.

 

Get started with creating your own personalized calendar online, or you can visit us in-store to use our kiosks (and get a little help from our LDExperts if needed). You can also download our London Drugs Photolab App, available for iOS and Android to order easily from your smartphone or tablet on-the-go!

6 Ways to Savour Your Summer Memories

As the days begin to shorten, we become more aware of the fact that summer is starting to wind down. But while summer will inevitably come to an end, you can still relive your summer memories all year round…with the help of your photos! If you’ve been taking snapshots of your best summer moments with your smartphone or camera, it’s a good idea to have a plan for those photos so they don’t end up simply collecting metaphorical dust on a hard drive or your phone. Instead, you can reinforce your summer memories by making those moments into something tangible – like a photo book, a puzzle, or even a blanket!

Here are 6 ways our Photolab can help you savour your summer memories:

1. Staycation Photo Book

This summer has been far different than most. People are spending time closer to home, exploring their own backyard and going hiking, doing local road trips, hitting the beach or just enjoying time at home. It’s been the summer of the staycation. A great way to preserve all of those staycation memories in one place is to create your own photo book.

Printed on high quality photo paper using exceptional inks, our Photolab Technicians review every image and correct as necessary so you know your photo book will be just right. If you have tons of photos to choose from, not to worry! You can add extra pages to any of our photo books to accommodate. While customizing your photo book, you’ll also be able to choose from some great summer-themed templates. Personalize even further with text to help tell the story of your summer adventures.

For ideas on how to capture your summer staycation memories, check out this blog here.

2. Instagram Books

Are all of your best summer photos on Instagram? You can easily share those #Summer2020 memories, straight from Instagram! When you order an Instagram Book through our Photolab, you’ll be able to upload photos directly from your Instagram account. The books are available in 4×4 and 6×6 to best display your square Insta pics. All of our Instagram Books are ready within just 24-72 hours.

3. Puzzles & Playing Cards

With more time being spent a home this year, we’re all looking for new activities to keep us entertained while indoors. You can personalize puzzles and playing cards with your favourite summer photos so can play games with family and roommates while also reliving your summer memories. If you’re looking for a challenge, some of our puzzles have 1000 pieces! They also make a nice gift to include in a care package that you can send to family and friends.

4. Blankets

Wrap yourself in your summer memories by personalizing a photo blanket! Cozy up this fall in a fleece or sherpa blanket with a favourite photo from your summer staycation printed on it – why not send one to the grandparents too? Or add a snapshot to one of our beach blankets and use it to soak in the last days of summer. If you can’t decide on just one photo, you can also choose our blanket collages, which allow you to personalize your blanket with multiple photos!

5. Photo Mugs & Bottles

Reminisce about your summer with every sip! You can personalize your own photo mug or water bottle with a little help from our Photolab. We even have stainless steel tumblers, beer steins, and latte and espresso mugs that you can add your own photo to. Why not customize a mug or bottle for each member in your household, so you’ll never argue over whose is whose again?

If you want one in a flash, our 11oz designer mugs are ready for pick-up in up to 24 hours!

6. Summer Holiday Postcards

You’ve made some great memories this summer, and our personalized postcards make it easy to share them with loved ones! Just pick a size and quantity (you can order individually or in 25-packs), upload a photo, and choose from a wide variety of fun templates. Type your message on the back or add a handwritten note once your postcards are printed; update your friends and family on how you’ve been spending your summer and let them know you’ve been thinking of them. It’s a nice way to keep in touch while also creating a great keepsake.

 

Find even more creative ways to savour your summer memories by checking out our Photolab online, or by downloading the London Drugs Photolab App (available for iOS and Android)!

The Secret to Upgrading Your Printed Photos: HD Pro Glossy Prints

If you’ve been using your time at home over the last few months to hone your photography skills, we applaud you! It’s been an opportunity for many to learn and practice new techniques and upgrade their camera equipment (for instance, to an interchangeable lens system) to really take their photography to the next level. The next step in that evolution is choosing how to showcase those new and improved photos in a way that will do them real justice! The secret? Upgrading to HD Pro Glossy Prints.

These brand-new prints have just recently been launched in our Photolab and will elevate your images with exceptional clarity and sharpness. We sat down with our Manager of Research and Development in the Photolab, Ryan Bennett, to get an insider look at the new prints, and learn why you’ll want to consider them for your latest images.

Q: What is the printing process for these HD Pro Glossy Prints, and what kind of technology is used?

A: What sets the HD Pro Glossy Prints apart is that they are printed at an impressive 1440 x 1440 dpi resolution. We use our professional high-grade dye ink printer system that accurately showcases fine details thanks to its multiple dot gradation technology. We also use professional inkjet paper that is exclusive to the London Drugs PhotoLab. This paper has excellent absorbing quality that enables the printer to produce outstanding print quality.

Q: What makes these prints unique?

A: You’ll find the prints are less grainy, have a smoother graduation of tones, and more detail in areas with fine lines such as eye lashes. Landscape shots have a much smoother tonal graduation in the sky. Black & white subject matter benefit greatly from the extra resolution. The HD Pro Glossy Prints are also available in unique sizing: 3.5×6, 4×7, 5×8, and 6×9. Those are slightly larger than our standard print sizes and are all optimised for the HDTV-type aspect ratio of mobile phones and cameras.

Q: Why are glossy prints so good at making bright colours ‘pop’?

A: Non-glossy surfaces like pearl tend to look slightly less contrasted and detail-oriented due to the nature of the paper surface being less smooth. Our brains perceive contrast as sharpness. The glossy nature of the paper enhances the contrast, which, along with the higher dpi, results in sharper prints.

Q: Any tips for getting the most out of your photos with HD Pro glossy prints?

A: Shoot at the highest possible resolution your camera can produce, which captures the most image information for the high dpi to work with. Black & white photos have great tonal depth. High contrast, vibrant photos, with lots of fine details really get the most out of this printing technology. Try subject matter with lots of colours, texture, and contrast which allows the brain to see the higher definition.

Q: How would you recommend displaying these HD Pro glossy prints?

A: These prints are best viewed in the open, not behind glass. Bright lighting brings out the best qualities. 

 

Curious what these new prints look like? Here’s a peek below. Notice the sharpness of the small details in the landscape photo, the vibrancy and contrast of the flower photo, and the smooth tonal graduation of the sky in the landscape and city photos. The HD Pro Glossy Prints bring even the minutest details to life, crystal clear and razor sharp. The glossiness provides an upscale finish to the images and brings out the contrasts and vibrancy of the colours, making them very eye-catching. As always, our experienced technicians inspect every image and correct as needed: lightening, darkening and even correcting for colour shift.

The next time you’re ordering prints, consider giving your photos an upgrade by trying our HD Pro Glossy Prints. You can easily order online, through our in-store kiosks, or on our London Drugs Photolab App (available for iOS and Android). Plus, show us what you think by tagging your photos on social media with the hashtag #LDPhotolab.

 

3 Ways to Celebrate with Dad on Father’s Day (In-Person or Virtually)

While many types of celebrations have had to change and adjust this year, there are still lots of ways you can celebrate with your dad on Father’s Day, no matter if you’re together or apart right now. Whether you can see your dad IRL (in real life) this Father’s Day or not, here are 3 ways you can celebrate together and show dad why he’s #1.

Serve Breakfast in Bed

The quintessential Father’s Day tradition, breakfast in bed, has become a classic way to celebrate for a reason – it helps him start his day off right, with a little indulgence and a lot of love.

In-person:

Go all-out on a breakfast that is just for dad. Pile it high with his favourites: waffles or pancakes, bacon or sausages, hash browns, eggs – the works! You can also surprise him with his favourite cuppa joe in his very own Father’s Day mug, personalized by you with the help of our Photolab. Add a personal message and some photos that you know will make him smile. Need it last minute? We can have your mug ready for pick up in-store in as little as 24 hours!

Virtually:

Not there to make dad breakfast in-person? No problem. Pick dad’s favourite local breakfast spot and order him a surprise breakfast, delivered right to his door! Plus, we can deliver our photo mugs anywhere in Canada, so you can customize a Father’s Day mug for dad online and then have it shipped to dad in time for Father’s Day. Then set up a Facetime or Zoom call together so you can catch up virtually while he enjoys his breakfast in bed.

Fire up the Grill

If your dad is a self-proclaimed grill master, why not center his Father’s Day celebration around the BBQ?

In-person:

On your run to the grocery store, pick up some barbeque must-haves like steaks, ribs or burgers that you can grill up on the BBQ together on Father’s Day. Make sure you have the necessary condiments too. As a special gift for dad, customize his own BBQ apron that he can proudly wear as you both grill up a perfect Father’s Day dinner.

Virtually:

See if there are any local restaurants offering meal kits that you can send directly to dad, complete with everything he needs for a great Father’s Day BBQ. Better yet, order one for yourself too, so you can grill together (while apart) and enjoy over Facetime or Zoom. Order his own customized BBQ apron with a photo of your choosing, and have it shipped to him in advance, so he can wear it the day-of.

Play Some Golf

Does dad’s idea of a perfect day involve golf? If so, why not make it an activity for the two of you to partake in on Father’s Day!

In-person:

Some golf courses are open and allowing people to play while physically distancing. If available in your area, book a tee time for you and dad to get out and play a round of golf in the fresh air – just make sure to book soon, as tee times are now more spread out. As the perfect accompanying gift, personalize dad a golf towel with a fun photo that he can use while on the course!

Virtually:

Play golf together…virtually! PlayStation 4 has an online multiplayer option for the Everybody’s Golf game, so you can both play together. Send dad a copy of the game, along with a golf towel from our Photolab that you personalized yourself.

 

Of course, a Father’s Day card is always a thoughtful addition to any Father’s Day gift. Customize your own card from the comfort of your home with the help of our Photolab! Pick a Father’s Day template, add some photos and a personalized message, and either pick up in-store or have it shipped (to yourself or directly to your dad). It’s a great way to show him you’re thinking of him, whether you’re together, or apart right now.

 

 

Life at Home: Documenting Life’s Experiences for Future Generations

Documenting your life experiences is important. It’s a way of preserving your personal memories to share with generations to come – to help them understand what life was like. Now more than ever, during this unusual period in history, it is incredibly valuable to document what you have seen, heard, felt, and done. After all, life right now is like nothing we have ever experienced before, and is perhaps nothing like what future generations will ever experience. This pandemic has affected daily life in so many different ways, and has affected us all differently.

To help you document your perspective during life at home, our LDExperts are sharing tips for what moments you may want to capture and notate, and how you can turn those moments into a photobook you can preserve for years to come.

Moments to Include in Your Photobook

Life has changed. Routines have been altered, workspaces look different, streets are quiet, jeans have been replaced with pyjamas …how has life changed for you? For those who have had extra time to spend at home, social media has been a place of inspiration for new hobbies – everything from bread baking to elaborate TikTok dances. All of these changes and experiences can be preserved forever with the click of a button. So get your camera or smartphone ready, and start snapping!

Here’s a list of moments you might consider capturing with your camera:

  • Baking bread
  • Learning TikTok dances
  • At-home date nights
  • Kids making puzzles
  • Kids playing in the backyard
  • Trying whipped (Dalgona) coffee
  • Painting hearts in the window
  • Virtual paint nights
  • At-home workouts
  • Banging pots & pans during the nightly cheer
  • Kids ‘attending’ their online classes
  • Zoom calls (taking a screenshot might be easier than trying to take a photo)
  • Photos of your homemade face mask
  • Photo challenges (like the pillowcase challenge)
  • Lines at the grocery store
  • Social distancing stickers and signs
  • Empty store shelves
  • Makeshift work-from-home set-up

 

Bonus photo idea: clone yourself!

You may have seen photos like this circulating around the internet. Camera-savvy kids and adults alike have been creating ‘quarantine life’ images of themselves spending time at home. A photo like this would make an excellent cover for the front of your photobook! Want to create one yourself?

You’ll need:

Make sure your room has good lighting. Put your camera or phone on a tripod and set a timer or use a remote shutter. Take one photo of the empty scene without you in it. Then one photo at a time, make a pose in one spot in the frame, take a photo, and then change to a different pose elsewhere within the frame and take another photo. Continue this process several times – all without ever changing the position of your camera/phone.

Once you have your photos done, fire up Photoshop on your computer and create a canvas that is in the same size of your images. Then import your images all into Photoshop. Make sure that the photo of the empty scene is the bottom layer. Go through each of your photos one at a time, and erase the background of each of your photos (leave you in the photo!). You can hide the other layers as you go to make it easier to see what you’re working with. Once you’re done, toggle back on all of the layers. If you notice some layers aren’t perfectly blending, just toggle back to that individual layer to blur and clean up the image up a little. It’s a relatively simple process, but can take some time to erase and blend to make your photo look as believable as possible!

Keep a Journal

One of the best ways to ensure you can remember important past events is to write them down in a journal. These are the things you would tell future generations about this time if you could. For your photobook, you can reference your journal for particular entries, or reference dates/times that you want to include along with your photos.

Here are some questions to help you get started with your journaling:

  • Have you learned any new hobbies? What did you learn?
  • How are you keeping in touch with friends and family?
  • What do you miss the most right now? People? Places foods?
  • Are you cooking interesting new dishes? Or ordering takeout from restaurants you hadn’t tried before?
  • Have you created your own home workstation? What does it look like?
  • How has your grocery shopping experience changed?
  • How has your daily routine changed?
  • Are you or your kids doing virtual classes? How has it changed the learning experience?
  • Have you experienced any heartwarming moments that have shown you the best of people during this difficult time?
  • What are the biggest things you have seen change in day-to-day life? (wearing masks, social distancing…)
  • What TV show are you binge-watching right now?
  • What has been the hardest thing to adjust to during this time?
  • Do you participate in the nightly cheer for frontline workers? How does your household or neighbourhood participate?

Creating Your Photobook

Once you have your photos and your journal notes altogether, you can start creating your photobook! Our Photolab has a variety of photobook styles to choose from, as well as a number of templated themes for the pages of your photobook. You’ll be able to add text excerpts from your journal entries to personalize your book, as mentioned above, as well as include many of those great photos you’ve taken to capture this historic moment in time. Choose how to organize your photos in the book, where to include the text, and even customize things like the cover of your photobook. Once you’re happy with your photobook, order a copy (or a few, so everyone in your family has one!) and we can have it ready for you in the Photolab for pick-up, or ship it right to your door.

Years from now, when someone asks what it was like back in 2020…you’ll be able to simply flip open your photobook and show them!

Tips for Taking Grad Photos at Home

Photo: Crown Photography & Film

Graduation is a major life milestone worth celebrating, and certainly those memories are worth preserving! With grad parties and grad photos with friends in full swing, our LDExperts, along with some local photographers, are sharing some tips for celebrating and capturing this special occasion with great photos.

1. No Date? No Problem!

Have mom, dad or a sibling dust off their best suit or dress and step in as your grad date. Get a photo of you exchanging makeshift corsages out of garden flowers, and having a first dance.

2. Choose the Time of Day Wisely

Photo: Crown Photography & Film

Tracey Crown, of Crown Photography & Film in Alberta recommends choosing the time of day to shoot carefully, as it will determine how good the lighting is for photos.

“Avoid shooting outdoors in the middle of the day when the sun is overhead; the light is harsh and can cause large shadows and squinting,” says Crown. “Choose instead to take outdoor photos in the early morning or later evening when the sun is either behind the grad or fully in front of the grad for more even flattering lighting.”

3. When Indoors, Use Window Light

Candace Fast, who runs her photography business Candace Fast Photography out of Chilliwack BC, knows shooting indoors can be tricky and recommends using available natural light if possible.

“If you are wanting to take pictures inside then head to a window that gives you nice natural light. Unless you can handle off-camera flash, then natural window light looks so much better than a flash that’s on top of your camera,” explains Fast. “Now once your grad is in front of that window, don’t stand in front of it and point the camera in the direction of outside. You want to use that light to shine on the grad, so the person with the camera should stand to one side of the window, and the grad on the other side.”

4. Add Depth and Texture to Your Background

Photo: Crown Photography & Film

“Whether it’s a garage, the front of your house or the trees in the yard, choose a background that has texture. If you can, have the grad step out and away from it to create more depth between them and the background,” says Crown.

5. Don’t Be Afraid to Experiment

Photo: Candace Fast Photography

Fast has shot grad photos in some unlikely places – like in front of the graffiti wall in the photo above, which adds some unique pops of colour to the shot.

“Have fun with it. If you are shooting digital, then play with different lighting and different backgrounds. That is the beauty of digital cameras. You can shoot and then if you don’t like the results then just keep trying.”

6. Capture Some Grad Dance Moves

Why not get the whole family involved? Have everyone in the house dress up in their best formal grad outfits (dust off those suits, tuxes, or old grad/wedding dresses!) for some fun photos together. Have a dance or two, and snap some candids.

7. Do Some Dress Twirls

Photo: Candace Fast Photography

If you have a space like a driveway or patio with some room, do some grad dress twirls! “Have some movement in your photograph. It brings it to life,” says Fast.

To capture crisp photos, either switch to your camera’s sport mode, or use the shutter speed priority mode and select a fast shutter speed. Try about 1/500th of a second, but you may need to go up to 1/1000th or 1/2000th if you are still seeing some blur.

8. Change Your Angle

Photo: Crown Photography & Film

“Have the grad sit or lay down if you don’t have a large space to shoot in,” suggests Crown. “You can create more variety in the images by changing height and angles.”

9. Employ a Tripod

To ensure the family gets to be in a few photos too, use a tripod and a remote shutter or your camera’s self-timer setting. This way you can set up your camera and hop in the photo!

10. Try a Portrait Lens

Photo: Candace Fast Photography

Just have a kit lens? It might be time to upgrade! A 35mm, 50mm, or 85mm lens, for instance, are all great lenses specifically for portraits like formal grad portraits. Each of those lenses come in f/1.8, f/1.4 and f/1.2, which will give that nice ‘blurry’ background (with that depth of field growing in intensity from f/1.8 to f1.2). The photo above was taken on a Sigma Art 35mm f/1.4 lens, and is one of Fast’s favourite lenses for grad portraits.

Grad Invitations & Announcement Cards

Share your celebration with family and friends! Use your graduation photos to personalize your own cards. Our Photolab has a selection of graduation-themed templates to choose from – just add your own photos and text.

  1. Send invitations to your virtual graduation party.

Grad goes virtual this year! Create your own custom invitations and host an online graduation party for your classmates, using an online meeting platform like Zoom.

  1. Send out graduation announcement cards, a great keepsake for loved ones.
  2. Send congratulations cards out to fellow graduates to commend them on their achievement.

Graduation Keepsakes

Special memories like graduation should be preserved for years to come! From prints and collages to photo books and mugs, there are lots of ways to create lasting keepsakes with your graduation photos.

You can order them online through our Photolab, or through our London Drugs Photolab App available for iOS and Android. Then simply order and have your keepsakes delivered right to your home. Or send them straight to your family and friends!

Mother’s Day Gifts Made at Home with Love

If you’ve already exhausted your supply of puzzles, we’ve got a new activity to keep yourself and the kids busy while self-isolating. Our Photolab’s free Take and Create Book is now available online! Even better, you can use this Take and Create Book to create unique and personalized gifts for Mother’s Day – right from home in 4 easy steps.

1. Get your Take and Create Book

You can pick up your free Take and Create Book at our Photolab if you happen to be in-store, but if you’d like to get your hands on a copy while you’re self-isolating at home, you can simply download it here.

2. Fill in the Templates

These Take and Create Books are full of templates for custom gifts like mugs (for mom’s daily cuppa joe) and ornaments (to hang in her car or anywhere at home) that both you and your kids can draw and colour in. Let the creativity flow! Have the kids write a special message for mom, or draw an image they think mom will love. You can even put your artistic skills to the test too – doodle something that shows your appreciation for your own mom. It makes a great art activity for an afternoon indoors. Plus, mom is sure to appreciate that you crafted her Mother’s Day gift yourself.

3. Scan Your Drawings

Once you’re done filling in the book, simply scan the templates using an at-home scanner or a smartphone scanning app to digitize them as image files. Crop what’s outside the template lines, and you’ll be all set to upload to our Photolab’s website or to our London Drugs Photolab App (available for iOS and Android).

4. Upload to our Photolab

After your images are uploaded, you’ll be able to browse our Photolab’s products to find the ones that match your templates, like mugs and ornaments. Then just customize each gift with your images, and choose delivery to have them shipped directly to your home!

 

All done making a gift for mom and looking for another activity to pass the time? We can help you customize your own puzzles! Just choose a photo, and our Photolab can turn it into a puzzle with 25, 114, 120 or even 1,000 pieces.

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