Picture in a Picture

Four generation of Gail!

This summer I took these photos and created this four genterations picture for my grandmother's birthday. It got a lot of likes and comments so I thought I would create a quick how to for those that were interested in trying it out!

First you have to find an empty frame and get all your models to cooperate! I picked a silver frame and blue shirts. The photo that I originally saw used a wooden teal frame and white shirts, so use your imagination and use the colors and textures that speak to your family.

Now that you have your family and frame all set, take the pictures. Make sure you are consistent in the time of day and background. Trust me, even an hour makes a difference in the colors! The picture of my mother was taken only and hour later and her frame is much bluer than the others!

Once all your pictures are taken of each person holding the frame, except the last one, then it is all about photo editing! I used  Photo.net and Picasa 3, but any editing software that will allow you to cut and paste between photos should work.

Step One: Open the photo that you want to be the biggest (photo A), the open the one that will be inside of that one (photo B) in your chosen photo program.

Step Two: Use the free from cut feature and crop out the desired portion in photo B and copy. Keep it tight as they will get smaller and smaller and you want as much face as you can get.

Step Three: Flip over to photo A and copy your cropped picture. You will probably have to make it smaller and then move it into the frame. This may take a couple of tries to get the right shape. Do not worry if it is not perfect you can use the cloning tool to straighten any wayward edges!

Step Four: Repeat! Keep it up until you have all your picture cut and placed! or until you get a hand cramp and have to quite for the day! haha!