[dawn51]

I have been doing digi probably about 6 months and just yesterday figured out I haven't been adding drop shadows I had been adding bevels instead. (Duh!! I don't know why I was doing that) What do you add drop shadows to? Embellishments, Pictures etc. Do you need to do them on every layout? I use PSE 4.0

thanks,
dawn

[ManiakMama]

I add them to pretty much every embellishment that would have a shadow if I were doing a paper scrap page. Some elements already have shadows (Fancy Folds, Lifted Photos Biggie), so I don't add them to that. Its amazing how much depth they give to a page!

[sprinklz]

I add drop shadows to every item on every single layout, with the exception of journaling. Without the drop shadows, everything lies flat on the same plane with no dimension. And adding the drop, gives digital elements more realism - look at a traditional paper layout, and you will see that everything creates a shadow even the papers.

[Jennifer in NC]

I also drop-shadow virtually everything except text. The only except would be if I wanted to make something look like part of something else (i.e., making a photo look like it has a border instead of a matte). I vary the size of the shadow depending on the depth of the object and vary the color, using Ro's shadows or sometimes using a color related to the paper.

[Rose Ann]

I also use shadows on everything I put on every page except for what I type. It just makes it look more like it's made of real papers instead of pictures of papers.

[schmoo]

I drop shadow everything that is dimensional. My photos and papers don't have much of a shadow (if any) because if you look at them on a paper layout they won't have much (unless they are made to stick up a bit.) The size of my shadow depends on the item. I have drop shadows that I got from somewhere else (pre SG days), I am happy with the job they do and they cost me alot so I'm sticking with them.

They helped me alot when I started out because I never paper scrapped and found getting the right shadow very difficult. PSE 4.0 doesn't allow you to change the colour of the shadow and I found it difficult to get shadows that I liked with the default drop shadows. If you use the defaults you can adjust the size of the shadow right down.

When I started I use to look at paper scrap layouts in mags for the same item I was trying to shadow and see what kind of shadow it had. If in doubt and you have supplies lie one on a piece of paper.

The other problem with shadows is that they vary depending on the light source so you have to pick a shadow direction and stick with it for everything on the layout. All shadows should sit in the same direction.

[~Nel~]

I put shadow in every single thing in my layout. and since i am using PSCS2, i can just need one click to make it. and have every layer has same shadow.. for the title i use preset style to create an alpa look and sometime also for the journal..!!!