ldphotolab Archives - Page 5 of 11

Hone Your Photography Skills at Home By Entering Our Daily Photo Contest

Just because you’re at home doesn’t mean you can’t flex your photography muscles! Now is a great time to hone your skills. To keep you inspired, we’re hosting a daily photo contest with new themes each day, from April 1 – April 5.

1) To enter on Instagram:

Follow @LDPhotolab on Instagram
Share a photo of the daily theme using the hashtag #LDdailyphotochallenge. Entries are taken for the day’s theme only and are due by midnight (pacific time) each day.
Daily Themes:
- Wednesday, April 1, 2020: COLOR
- Thursday, April 2, 2020: NATURE
- Friday, April 3, 2020: UP CLOSE
- Saturday, April 4, 2020: WATER
- Sunday, April 5, 2020: HOME

2) No purchase necessary. Limit one (1) entry per social network per day of the contest. Limit one (1) prize may be won per household. Daily entries must be received no later than 11:59 pm Pacific Time on each day of the contest. London Drugs is not responsible for entries that become lost or misdirected.

3) Contest is open to all residents of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba who, as of the date the prize draw is made: (i) have not won a London Drugs contest since April 2, 2019;(ii) have reached the age of majority in the province in which they reside as at April 1, 2020 (iii) are not employees of London Drugs, their respective advertising and promotional agencies, or any family member living with any such employee.

4) The winners shall be chosen the day after each daily contest ends (see dates below) in Vancouver, British Columbia, from all eligible entries received per contest. Winning entries will be chosen based on photographic skill, artistic sensibilities, emotion, impact and originality. To win, selected entrants must have correctly answered the skill-testing mathematical question included on London Drugs’ Statement of Declaration and Release form, sent to them by email and must sign the Declaration and Release confirming compliance with the contest rules and acceptance of the prize(s) as awarded, releasing London Drugs from liability in association with the contest and prize and consenting to the use of their name, photograph, voice and statements for promotional and publicity purposes.

5) There will be 1 (one) prize(s) awarded to 1 (one) winner per day of the contest: each receiving an 8×10 glossy or pearl print valued at $5.99. At the end of the contest, there will be 1 (one) grand prize(s) awarded to 1 (one) of the daily winners: receiving a 12×18 Canvas Gallery Wrap valued at $79.99. Prize(s) must be accepted as awarded, are non-transferable and no substitutions are permitted. London Drugs reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value should any prize become unavailable for any reason. Prize will be awarded at the closest London Drugs location to the winner.

Contest entry dates: April 1 – April 5, 2020
Daily prize draw dates: 12:00PM Pacific Time April 2 – April 6, 2020

Grand prize draw date: 12:00PM Pacific Time April 7, 2020

6) Selected entrants will be contacted by email, or social network they were drawn from. No correspondence will be entered into except with selected entrants. If the winner does not respond then she/he will be notified for the second time, 3 (three) days after the first notification. If the winner still does not respond within 3 days of the second notification, a new winner will be chosen in the same manner until a winner is successfully contacted.

7) The chances of winning a prize will depend on the number of eligible entries received. Decisions of the judges in respect of all aspects of this contest including, but not limited to, eligibility of entries and correctness of answers given to the skill-testing question, are final.

8) London Drugs, their respective advertising and promotional agencies, and their respective agents are not liable to an entrant in any manner relating to the contest or the awarding and use of the prize(s).

9) This contest is subject to all federal, provincial, and municipal laws and regulations. By entering the entrant consents to the collection of all personal information included on their entry and agrees to the use and disclosure of such information by and between London Drugs and their agents. The winner(s) also agrees to the collection, use and disclosure of their name, entry, photographs, voice and statements for London Drugs’ publicity purposes without further compensation. All personal information collected from entrants will be used only for the purposes of administering the contest and for marketing and promotional purposes as contemplated by these rules; under no circumstances will any personal information be sold or rented to third parties. All personal information collected by London Drugs will be kept in accordance with the privacy policy of London Drugs, which can be viewed at www.londondrugs.com, and in accordance with all applicable privacy laws.

10) The right is reserved by London Drugs to terminate this contest, in whole or in part, and/or modify, amend or suspend the contest, and/or these rules in any way, should any cause beyond the reasonable control of London Drugs or its agents affect the proper administration thereof.

11) London Drugs is not responsible for any failure of any website during this contest, nor is it responsible for any problems or technical malfunctions of computer online systems, servers, access providers, computer equipment, software or any e-mail, online or internet entry lost due to technical problems or traffic congestion on the internet or at any website or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to an entrant’s or any other person’s computer or property related to or resulting from playing or downloading any material in the promotion. The right is reserved by London Drugs to terminate this contest, in whole or in part, and/or modify, amend or suspend the contest, and/or these rules in any way, should any cause beyond the reasonable control of London Drugs or its agents affect the proper administration thereof.

12) This Contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or any other social media platform which may be used to communicate this Contest. All such entities are completely released of all liability by each entrant in this Contest. Any questions, comments or complaints regarding the Contest should be directed only to London Drugs.

STATEMENT OF DECLARATION AND RELEASE

All selected entrants will be required to sign the Statement of Declaration and Release attached before they can be declared a winner and receive a contest prize.

How to Capture Vibrant Spring Flowers with Macro Photography

If the onslaught of seasonal allergies is any indication, spring is here, and that means flowers are starting to pop up all over our yards and neighbourhoods. This is good news for the photography enthusiast, as there will be lots of new chances to capture colourful, vibrant flowers as they bloom. You don’t have to leave the comfort of your home either – you can experiment with taking photos of flowers in vases or planters inside your home, or out in your front or back yard garden. To help you capture stunning floral images you’ll be proud to showcase, our LDExperts are sharing all kinds of tips below, from shooting tips to what kinds of macro lenses they recommend, and which print surfaces will make your colourful spring images pop.

Lenses for Macro Photography

Bursting with colour, flowers hold a great deal of beauty, and often look even more stunning when photographed extremely close up, showing off their vibrant colour and unique details. A good macro lens will allow you to focus while the lens is very close to the flower. For this reason, we recommend giving a macro lens a try. You’ll be able to get extremely close to the flowers, filling the frame with fresh blooms, and easily isolating the smallest of subjects.

The best option for macro photography is an interchangeable lens system – either a DSLR or mirrorless camera – which you can then add a macro lens to. Look for a macro lens with 1:1 magnification ratio or higher. A 50mm macro lens will focus closer than a 100mm macro lens, but will still provide the same magnification. Whatever system or brand you use there will be a macro lens for it. You can browse our full selection here.

Or as an affordable alternative, try a macro extension tube that fits between your camera body and the lens, which will essentially turn your standard lens into a macro. However, this does reduce the total light the lens can transmit, so you’ll need to use a wider aperture or slower shutter speed to compensate.

If your smartphone also acts as your primary camera, you could add a macro lens accessory to your smartphone, which will help you achieve somewhat similar results with the convenience of your phone. The lens is simply clipped on top of your phone’s built-in camera lens.

Technical Tips for Better Macro Flower Photos

Aperture

First, let’s talk about aperture. You’ll be choosing your aperture based on whether you want to keep most of the image in focus, or would rather draw only a main point of interest into focus. For instance, you may choose to have the entire flower in focus, or just a few key petals that have some water droplets on them. To keep most of the image in focus, you’ll want to use a narrow aperture (a higher f/stop), versus if you only want part of your image in focus, try a wider aperture (a lower f/stop). Just switch to Aperture Priority Mode on your camera (Av on Canon, A on Nikon), choose your f/stop, and your camera will automatically adjust the shutter speed.

Focus

Because of the shallow depth of field you will be dealing with when shooting macro, your focus needs to be very precise. As a result, you may not want to rely on auto-focus. Consider switching to manual focus to ensure the sharpest possible image. You could also switch to a single point auto-focus in your settings, which will help you focus on a particular part of the flower.

ISO

To ensure the best quality image, make sure you are using the lowest ISO setting possible for your exposure. If you do need to use a higher ISO, to help avoid camera shake and ensure the image is sharp, consider using a tripod which help with eliminate camera shake.

Shooting Tips for Macro Flower Photography

Ready to start shooting spring blooms? Here are 9 photo tips to try:

Avoid harsh lighting or shaded areas which can cause unflattering shadows by shooting on an overcast day.
Use a good polarizer to make the blue skies deeper, but also saturate colour from the flower, and eliminate glare and shine on the flower’s surface.
Find one flower that stands out from the rest, or an insect like a bee on a flower, and focus your shot on that subject.
Hard to find a flower that stands out? Shoot from a lower angle, up at the flower, with the sky as your background.
Use a tripod that allows you to get very low to the ground (it’s best if it has legs that release and can spread wide).
Try different coloured backgrounds, such as a background of green grass, versus a sea of colourful flowers in the background.
Experiment with the distance your flower is from the background, as this will change the depth of field (blurring the background to different degrees).
Use a frontal fill flash, which will increase the sharpness of your image, and boost the look of saturated colours.
Try shooting in the rain and mist, when water droplets are visible on flower petals. No moisture to work with? Carry water in a spray bottle, or add glycerin to the water so that the droplets stay better on the petals and leaves.

Prints That Will Highlight Your Flower Images

If you’re looking for a print to do your colourful floral photos justice, look no further than our Photolab’s aluminum metal panels. They have a high gloss finish that will make your photos look incredibly sharp and vibrant. Coated aluminum sheets are infused with dyes that will especially bring out the colour in your rich, detailed floral images. Perfect for making those bright flowers pop! Many photographers also choose this print surface because of its durability and resistance to fading.

Choose between aluminum panel montage walls, an aluminum panel with black frame, collages, or your standard full image aluminum panel. We can print these up to 40×60 in size! Turnaround time is quick – just 5 business days for smaller panels. Panels larger than 16×20 may take up to 14 business days. You can order through our website, or using our London Drugs Photolab App (available for iOS and Android). If you’d like a little guidance from our LDExperts, or want to see a sample, just visit us at your nearest London Drugs location!

Refresh Your Décor with Fresh Fine Art Prints

Is your home in need of a little refresh this year? One of the easiest ways to breathe new life into your space is with some fresh wall décor. Even better, why not use your own photos to spruce up your walls? Fine art prints can be used to fill otherwise bare walls, and their gallery-quality will truly elevate the look of your space. It’s a great way to put some of your favourite images on display, plus you’ll have a more personal connection to the fine art on your walls.

Thanks to innovations in photography and printing technology, the ability to turn your own photos into fine art is now right at your fingertips. The resolution of cameras has advanced greatly, high quality printers like our Photolab’s Epson P9000 use inks with archival stability of 200 years, and the range of fine art papers available to choose from continues to grow.

What Fine Art Paper to Choose

Photo printed on the London Drugs Photolab’s Baryta fine art paper

One of the newest fine art papers now available in our Photolab is Baryta. This bright white cotton paper is ideally suited for photographic images, and is designed for long life – making it an excellent choice for your wall décor. This paper gets its name from the special coating of barium sulphate that is applied to the cotton photo paper before it is coated with emulsion. The baryta layer brightens the image, while also preventing other chemicals from penetrating other layers of the paper.

This print surface is popular amongst photographers, for its rich blacks, wide colour gamut, and excellent contrast and sharpness. The rich blacks and bright whites make it ideal for black and white photos, while the bright white paper also makes colourful images pop.

You’ll also notice the tactile nature of Baryta, which is what really gives it that ‘fine art’ feel. The paper has a weight and thickness to it that you may not get in other papers – even fine art papers.

What Size Print to Order

With the help of our Photolab’s large format printers, we’re able to do Baryta prints from 4”x6” all the way up to 40”x60”. If you need it even bigger, our standard print enlargements go as large as 44”x96”. So no matter what size your space is, you can likely find a print size to fit it. The choice is yours – either pick one image to be the focal point and order a large-scale print, or you could opt to print a selection of smaller images, and frame them as a gallery wall display. Either way, you’ll be elevating the look of your home with exhibition-quality prints.

What Camera & Lens to Use

The basic rule of thumb, if you’re planning to print large photos, is to ensure you’re shooting at high resolution. Check your camera’s settings to see that you have selected the highest quality setting under ‘Image Size’.

To really take your wall photos to the next level, it’s worth considering an upgrade if you don’t already own an interchangeable lens system. This will help you to achieve the best results possible for your images with even more control.

If size isn’t a concern, we have lots of great DSLRs to choose from, which pair with a wide variety of new interchangeable lenses. Most manufacturers’ lens mounts are also compatible with older lenses, so if you’re looking for a more affordable way to upgrade to a DSLR, check out our used section in-store or talk to an LDExpert about what system would be best for your needs.

If you want something that’s compact and not too bulky, a mirrorless camera like the Nikon Z6 II is a great option. This pairs great with the Sigma Contemporary 30mm f/1.4 DC DN lens – a compact lens that offers outstanding image quality. The large-diameter lens with f/1.4 brightness makes a shallow depth of field possible, for a stunning bokeh effect.

And when the next season arrives, simply switch out your images for new ones, and your space will have a fresh new look and feel instantly! Ordering is quick and easy – just visit our Photolab online, or download our London Drugs Photolab App (available for iOS and Android) to order on-the-go. If you’d like to order the next time your in our store, simply visit us in the Photolab to use our in-store kiosks.

Documenting Life’s Most Special Moments Using Unique Bamboo Prints

Do you consider yourself the photo taker of your friends and family? There’s always one. The one who always makes sure to get the shot. The one who wants to document each and every special memory, to be preserved for years to come. From all your little one’s ‘firsts’, to birthdays, weddings, vacations and even those candid everyday moments, you capture them all. It’s an important role, and one that is very rewarding. Seeing someone’s face light up when they first lay eyes on a meaningful photo, captured and preserved, is well worth it. The ability of photos to bring back our most precious memories is incredibly special. Being able to share that memory with your loved ones, in the form of a print, is even more special.

Of course, for such special memories, you’ll want to choose a print surface that’s as unique as the images you’ve captured. That’s where bamboo prints come in. These fine art prints are one of the more unique offerings available from our Photolab, and can lend a really beautiful look and feel to your images.

Here, we’re sharing 3 reasons why bamboo prints are a great choice for your loved ones’ life moments:

Special and long lasting

There’s something special about bamboo prints. Hahnemühle Bamboo is the world’s first Fine Art inkjet paper made from 90% bamboo fibres. Bamboo is a fibrous material, giving the texture of the prints a unique look and feel. It is also known for being an all-natural ‘super material’, with long lasting and ultra-durable qualities. Bamboo prints experience little to no colour fading over time, in fact, they meet the most stringent age resistance requirements.

Environmentally friendly

Did you know that bamboo is a highly renewable resource? That, combined with the long lasting quality of bamboo prints, makes it an environmentally friendly option for your precious photos.

Warm and heartwarming

Bamboo paper offers more than just crisp and brilliant colour reproduction. It also gives a lovely natural warmth to your images. A perfect pairing for your most heartwarming photos! Warm-toned or monochrome images are best suited for this fine art paper.

Technical tip: Make the most of your bamboo prints

Like fibre paper once used in the darkroom, bamboo paper has a unique texture to it. Not nearly as defined as fibre paper is to the eye, but the bamboo print absorbs the image in a similar fashion. With this in mind, when shooting images you plan to print on bamboo, consider using a large aperture lens. A great example would be the 50mm F1.8 for any interchangeable lens system. There are very affordable options in the $200-$300 range from Canon, Nikon and Sony. These are a great step up from a kit lens, and allow you to open the aperture up far beyond a kit lens and experiment with bokeh (the effect when the background is blurred to an almost abstract level).

The bamboo paper finish resonates with the bokeh effect making the sharp image elements pop even more! For more information on great lens upgrades for your camera set up, drop by any London Drugs location and talk to an LDExpert. They love talking cameras!

You can also read about photographer Matt Ferguson’s first impressions of bamboo prints here! If you’re intrigued about bamboo prints, feel free to pop in and visit our Photolab to see and feel the difference in person. Then use our in-store kiosk to order your photos right then and there. Or if you’re ready to start printing right now at home, simply hop on our Photolab website to order. If your images are on your phone, why not download our easy-to-use London Drugs Photolab App (available for iOS and Android) to order your prints? Then choose to have your prints shipped to your door, or conveniently pick them up in-store when they’re ready. It’s that easy! Beautiful bamboo prints of beautiful family photos. Your loved ones with thank you for preserving their most treasured memories.

3 Décor DIYs Using Your Photos

There’s something tangible and nostalgic about having a printed photo that has allowed prints to endure, even in the age of digital photography. Now, those once ‘old school’ style prints like Polaroids have become trendy once again, thanks to their stylized look. While it used to be that those photos were only ever displayed in photo albums (or even relegated to shoe boxes), crafty DIYers have since devised all kinds of unique and fun ways to showcase your best shots. Here, our LDExperts in the Photolab are sharing 3 of their favourite décor ideas you can easily do yourself, using vintage-style photos.

Before we dive into each of the décor DIYs, let’s first take a look at the different kinds of prints you may want to choose from. Your decision will depend on whether you’re planning to print some of your existing digital or film images, or want to use photos that print instantly from a camera, like the Fujifilm Instax or Polaroid Originals OneStep 2 VF Instant Camera.

The classic look of instant photos

Both Instax and Polaroid Originals are great options if you want to enjoy taking photos the ‘old fashioned’ way, but want the convenience of having the print photo immediately in your hands. These positive film cameras will instantly print out your image in that classic Polaroid-style you’ve come to know and love – and they’re ready to be displayed right away!

Giving your digital & film photos a vintage look

Meanwhile, if you love the look and feel of that nostalgic photo style but aren’t interested in a new instant camera, you can also choose to have your digital or film photos printed by our Photolab in any of our 7 new 4×5″ vintage print styles! Choose from Old Tape, Scalloped Edge to Vintage Frame, all of which will give your prints that classic look. Ordering is easy; simply upload your digital files online or use our London Drugs Photolab App (available for iOS and Android). If you prefer to order in-store, you can visit your nearest London Drugs to use our kiosks, or if you’ve shot on film, you can drop off your rolls to have that film developed and digitized.

Now that you know what kind of photos you want to use, let’s take a look at 3 ways you can display them as décor!

1. Photo Collage

Looking to spruce up a blank wall? A photo collage is a fun and easy way to create your own wall décor! Pick your favourite prints, and plan out a design – anything from a simple square grid, to a heart shape. You can decide on a theme too, if you have enough photos to choose from: friends, family, travel, or all of the above.

We also recommend sticking to the same frame colour for all of your photos in the collage, or placing them strategically based on the frame colour (ex. using all black frame photos as the edge of your collage). Instax Mini film, for instance, comes in a variety of frame options, such as classic white, black, rainbow or patterned.

Sort through and lay your photos out on a table or floor to start deciding where you want each photo to go. This is especially important if you’re doing a more complicated shape like a heart.

Once you’re ready to start affixing your photos to the wall, use Scotch Wall-Safe Tape in small loops on the back of each photo. This tape sticks securely, but also removes cleanly, leaving no residue or wall damage behind. To help keep your photos even on the wall as you affix them, you can also use painter’s tape as a guide.

2. Photo Garland

Another way to creatively showcase your photos is with a photo garland. Simply put, photos are strung along a piece of twine, attached using small pegs. Fujifilm has even created their own Instax Mini pegs, which are perfect for holding your photos in place. The twine is then stuck to the wall on either end, allowing the photos to hang. If you pick up a pack of those Instax Mini pegs, the twine is included!

Photo garlands can be a fun way to display your photos chronologically, from left to right. For example, showcase your photos from years ago to present day, perhaps even doing a string of photos for each year or month, depending on how many photos you have to work with. Or create a string for each category of photo, like a separate string for each vacation you’ve taken, or a string for family photos vs. a string for friends’ photos. The choices are endless!

There are also all kinds of ways to customize your garland, from adding bunting made out of paper or burlap, to intertwining fairy lights among the photos. This is your chance to be as creative as you want.

To attach your photo garland to the wall, you could use stylish Washi Tape, or Command’s Small Spring Clips which hold strongly without damaging your walls.

3. Mood Board Grid

These mood boards, which are made in a grid shape, are ideal for displaying everything from notes and cards to your favourite photos. They’re a perfect way to decorate your desk, whether at home or at the office. The grids can come in a variety of sizes, which will determine how many photos you will be able to attach.

Use small pegs, like the Instax Mini pegs, to clip each of your photos to the grid. Either attach them ad hoc, or in rows. The best part of this method is how easy it is to update your photos regularly!

Need a little help getting started with your project? Our LDExperts in the Photolab are always happy to help if you have any questions about printing your photos. Just visit us at any London Drugs location!

2 Creative Ways to Revisit your Best 2019 Memories in 2020

Before you fully jump into 2020 with exciting new goals and ambitions for the year ahead, why not take a look back at 2019 to appreciate all of the moments and experiences that made up the previous year? Photos are, of course (in our humble opinion), the best way to do that. And with a little creativity plus the help of our Photolab, you can preserve all of those ‘best of’ memories to appreciate over the coming year. Keep reading below to see how you can create your own 2020 calendar and 2019 yearbook!

2020 Calendar

January is the start of a new year, and if you didn’t have the time over the holidays to order a calendar for 2020, it’s not too late! You can still create one – our Photolab’s personalized 12-month calendars can start on any month, in fact. And the process is much simpler than you realize. We’ve broken it down to 3 easy steps.

1 – Source your images

Sourcing your images can be a little daunting. What do you want the calendar to look like? Do you want it monthly memories from the previous year? Would you prefer your favourite landscape images? Or perhaps a highlight reel of your best vacation images? Whatever you decide, curate the 12 images and you’re ready to go. If you can’t whittle down your photos to just 12, not a problem! You can also feature a collage of various images for each month on your calendar, so you can include all of your favourites.

LDExpert tip: If you use Google Photos, they have created a ‘Best of 2019’ feature that automatically curates a series of ‘Best of’ albums so you can easily find your favourite moments of the year to include in your calendar. You can find it by opening Google Photos and tapping on the “For you” tab.

2 – Source your important dates

The best part about making your own calendar is you can print all your important dates right in the calendar. Think of all the family Birthdays, anniversaries, or special memories and compile your list. That’s all, step two is complete. If you’d like to get extra fancy, you can add an image to the date, for a visual reference.

3 – Log into our Photolab and start building

Now that you have your images and dates, the only thing left is to build it! Our online platform, London Drugs Photolab App (iOS and Android) or in-store kiosks provide a quick and simple interface that allow you to build your calendar with ease. Create your own account or sign in, so you can save your project as you go. You can even choose from a variety of themed templates and colours, and add text, to fully customize your calendar.

2019 Yearbook

Now that you’ve gotten the calendar off your list, and you’re feeling inspired, why not move on to your 2019 yearbook? For most of us, our phones tell the story of our lives best, as it’s the camera in our pocket at all times. Building a yearbook of last year can be a fun and rewarding job. Again, we’ve broken it down into 3 easy steps.

1 – Map your book out

The first step is to make a plan. Having an idea of what you want your book to look like will go a long way to simplify the design process. There are some questions to consider. What type of book will you build? (Browse the many options here, and decide what one is best for your yearbook.) How do you want the book to be broken down? Some ways to do that are monthly highlights, major milestones (like a wedding or graduation), vacations/trips, or other memorable experiences that require their own chapter.

2 – Pick your images

Once you’ve mapped out the plan for your yearbook, the next step is pulling the photos you’d like to consider for the layout. Be generous when doing this first pull. Remember that having a vertical and a horizontal option might help when laying out your book. This won’t be the final curated selection, but the images you will be working from for your layout. You can skip this step and go directly to your layout, but you might be overwhelmed by the number of images you have depending on your shooting habits.

3 – Lay it out

To create your yearbook’s layout, you can do so at home using software like Photoshop, InDesign, iPhoto or others, or you can use our website, which has a wide selection of templates and layout options. Remember to create an account or sign in to your London Drugs Photolab account so you can save your yearbook project as you go. Tell your story by combining your images to speak together cohesively. A detail shot combined with an overview can tell much more of a story vs single image. Remember to tap into your creative side, enjoy the experience and reminisce as you go!

We hope these tips help you bring your images to life, and remind you of all the amazing experiences you had in 2019. With these two projects complete, you can look forward to capturing even more great memories in 2020! And having designed your own this year, you can shoot with that in mind, and even curate your images by the month to make compiling next year’s calendar and yearbook even easier.

Mommy Outside the Box’s Gift Ideas for the Hard-to-Buy-For

Stumped on what to give the hardest-to-buy-for people on your holiday shopping list? Shayna from Mommy Outside the Box has lots of creative ideas. All you’ll need is some photos and a little help from our London Drugs Photolab!

Photo credit: Mommy Outside the Box

There is snow on the ground (at least where I am). The tree is up. Holiday music is playing in the grocery store. Our local tree lighting ceremony is this week. I do believe the holidays are upon us! Just like every year, I feel like that sort of snuck up on me. Wasn’t I just carving pumpkins? But here we are and it’s time to get into the holiday spirit. It’s a busy time of year that’s for sure. There’s baking to do. Decorations to put up. Gatherings to attend. And gifts to buy.

I love giving gifts! There is so much joy in finding the perfect gift for those special people in your life. It’s just not always easy to know what that perfect gift is. I’m sure we all have at least one person on our list that is a little difficult to know what to get. I know when I’m stuck on ideas for people close to me I try to come up with something a little more personal to give them.

Gifts to Cherish

We all have memories that we cherish and we are making more all the time. I bet you can pull up your phone right now and scroll through your camera roll and find a lot of pictures that make you stop and smile. I bet they would make other people smile too. There’s nothing better than sharing a smile. And that’s so easy to do with photo gifts. I love it when I’m unpacking my Christmas decorations to put up, and come across the photo ornaments that I’ve been given in the past. Those always get a special place on my tree or on mantle and they bring me joy throughout the holiday season.

We are already into December but, luckily, it’s not too late to check off that Christmas list and order some precious photo gifts from the LDPhotolab! They have so many options – from holiday cards to beautiful ornaments and everything in between, it’s easy to find that perfect gift to add a photo to and share a smile.

I just placed an order myself so I could share some ideas with you. Photo gifts are so easy to order from London Drugs. You can upload your photos and order your gifts from your computer, at a kiosk in store or make it super easy and download the London Drugs Photolab App on your iOS or Android device!

Greetings Cards – Order by December 17

Photo credit: Mommy Outside the Box

I love getting actual Christmas cards in the mail! And I imagine others do as well so I try to send out at least a few every year. I had some lovely photos from a family shoot that my daughter and I had done earlier this fall and I knew I wanted to include one of those pictures in our cards this year. And rather than send cards with a picture tucked inside it just made more sense to put our photo right on the card. You will find a large selection of layouts and styles online to make your card perfect!

Personalized Ornaments – Order by December 17

I have a small collection of personalized ornaments and they are by far my favorite! I also give them every year. Ornaments with my always growing daughter make the perfect gift for her grandparents! The LDPhotolab has a ton of styles and finishes for ornaments. You can order them in metal, crystal, ceramic and even wood.

This crystal ornament that I ordered with a picture of my daughter and one of her best friends is my new favorite. These girls are so adorable and the ornament is so beautiful! It’s really hard to capture how lovely it really is in a photo. The colors are so vibrant.

Photo credit: Mommy Outside the Box

So, I actually didn’t mean to put my own face on this wooden ornament. It was supposed to be a picture of my daughter but the mix up was completely user error on my part! I just might just hold on to this one for a while and gift it to my daughter when she’s older and is putting up a tree of her own. Maybe then she can remember when her mom wasn’t quite so old! But, mistake or not, I do love how this wooden ornament turned out. I’m a sucker for anything with a “rustic” look and feel and that’s exactly how this turned out, especially with the black and white photo.

Photo credit: Mommy Outside the Box

Pet Tags – Order by December 17

My daughter and I have three adorable cats. I mean they are a lot of trouble, but they are so stinking cute! Now our cats hate collars so there is no way they are going to wear pet tags but I knew my daughter would love this keepsake and I will be ordering more with pictures of her other two cats. These are things she will always cherish.

Photo credit: Mommy Outside the Box

Fine Art Prints

Special gifts are awesome but sometimes a simple picture really does say a thousand words. This particular picture is tied a very specific and important memory and event in my life and I really wanted to get it printed as a reminder of where I was and where I am. There are lots of print options at the LD Photolab. You can get your standard prints in glossy or pearl or you can also try out some of their fine art paper like Bamboo, Baryta and Kauai. I had this picture printed on Kauai paper and I absolutely love how it turned out. This is such an easy way to make your favorite photos just a little more special. Both the Baryta and Kauai paper are a smooth cotton and they completely change the look and feel of your photos.

Photo credit: Mommy Outside the Box

And Many More

This is just a small sampling of the unique and creative photo gifts you can order from London Drugs. Here are a few other ideas that caught my eye:

Photo calendars – wall calendars or desktop in a variety of sizes.
Photo books always make a lovely gift. The LDPhotolab has a variety of beautiful and creative photo books to choose from.
Canvas gallery wraps come in a variety of shapes and sizes to fit any space and are such a beautiful way to showcase photos.
Photo mugs are another great choice for the tea or coffee drinker on your list.

There are just so many ideas that it would be impossible for me to write about them all in this post. You really should head over to the website and check them out yourself! You still have time to order and have your gifts in hand before Christmas. You can check out the holiday ordering cutoff dates here.

A $100 gift card to London Drugs sure would help you get a headstart on your own personalized holiday gifts, wouldn’t it? Check out Mommy Outside the Box’s blog post here to see how you can enter for a chance to win one!

Lenses for Macro Photography

Technical Tips for Better Macro Flower Photos

Aperture

Focus

ISO

Shooting Tips for Macro Flower Photography

Prints That Will Highlight Your Flower Images

What Fine Art Paper to Choose

What Size Print to Order

What Camera & Lens to Use

Special and long lasting

Environmentally friendly

Warm and heartwarming

Technical tip: Make the most of your bamboo prints

The classic look of instant photos

Giving your digital & film photos a vintage look

1. Photo Collage

2. Photo Garland

3. Mood Board Grid

1 – Source your images

2 – Source your important dates

3 – Log into our Photolab and start building

1 – Map your book out

2 – Pick your images

3 – Lay it out

Gifts to Cherish

Greetings Cards – Order by December 17

Personalized Ornaments – Order by December 17

Pet Tags – Order by December 17

Fine Art Prints

And Many More

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