Rebus Journaling (Photoshop Elements)

When my boys were learning to read, they enjoyed rebus stories where some of the words were replaced with pictures. Their favorite books were peppered with colorful images and fancy fonts which captured their attention and made reading fun.

This technique can make your scrapbook journaling fun, too. Using images and decorative alphabets to replace some of the words adds a little whimsy and a lot of visual excitement to scrapbook storytelling.

Step 1: Write out your journaling

Begin by writing out your journaling. Underline the words, or parts of words, that can be replaced by images or alphabet letters. If you prefer to work on the computer, type your journaling in a text editing program, and highlight and underline the words you want to replace with images.

Step 2: Gather and organize your supplies

Make a new folder on your computer to store all of your page supplies as you collect them. Begin looking for images to replace the underlined words in your journaling. Highlight the words as you find a suitable image so you can keep track of what you’ve found and what you still need.

Some sources that might be helpful as you search for images include:

• digital stickers
• digital rub-ons
• digital alphabets (nice substitutes for words like be, are, you and numbers)
• dingbat fonts (an easy way to add an image quickly)
• decorative fonts (add emphasis to words by changing the font style or color)
• Photoshop Custom Shapes (use the Custom Shape tool to draw out the shape in the color of your choice)
• Photoshop brushes (use the Brush tool to stamp an image in the color of your choice)
• clipart (make sure that the resolution is suitably large for print)
• digital photos (use the Crop tool or Marquee tool to select a section of a photo to add to the journaling)

As you locate images, copy and paste them into your new folder. Copy brush files, fonts, and custom shape files into the folder so that you can easily incorporate them into your scrapbook page journaling.

Step 3: Load fonts and brushes

If you are using a new font, install it on your computer system. Most fonts can be installed by dragging the font file into the system font folder. Any font that is installed on your system will be available to you in Photoshop Elements.

If you are using a brush, open Photoshop Elements and select Edit > Preset Manager. Choose Brushes from the Preset Type drop-down menu. Click Load and use the Load dialog box to locate the .abr file in your organizational folder. Select the file name and choose Load. When the brush images appear at the bottom of the Preset Manager image list, click Done.

Step 4: Work from the top down

Open your scrapbook page in Photoshop Elements. Get the Type tool and choose a clear, readable font from the drop-down menu in the Options bar across the top of the editing window. Select the size, style, and color in the Options Bar. Move the cursor to the open page and click and drag downward to draw out a box that you will fill with journaling. Begin typing your story. When you reach the first underlined word, don’t type that word. Instead, press the Space Bar to leave enough space to insert your first image. Click the checkmark in the Options bar to confirm the text.

If you typed your journaling on the computer in another program, highlight the type in the original program and copy it. Then move to your Photoshop Elements document and click and drag with the Type tool to create a text box. Press Ctrl V (Mac: Cmd V) to paste the type. Find the first underlined word, highlight and delete it, and press the Space Bar to make a space large enough for your image. Click the checkmark in the Options bar to confirm the text.

Insert your first image into the document in the space you have provided.

To insert clipart, digital kit elements, and alphas: Select the top layer of the scrapbook page in the Layers Panel. Open the image in PSE. Get the Move tool and click and drag the image down onto your scrapbook page in the Project Bin.

When the scrapbook page fills the editing window, re-size the image using the corner handles so that it fits into your journaling. (You must have Show Bounding box checked in the Options Bar to see the corner handles.) Click the green checkmark to confirm any size change.

To insert a brush image: Make a new transparent layer by clicking the Create a New Layer icon in the Layers panel. Click on the Foreground Color Chip at the bottom of the Tool Bar and select a color from the Color Picker window. Click OK to confirm the choice. Select the Brush tool and choose the brush shape you loaded in Step 3. It will be located at the bottom of the Brush Picker drop-down menu in the Options Bar. Also, in the Options Bar, choose a size and leave the mode set to Normal. Click once on the new transparent layer to apply the brush shape in the color you have selected as the Foreground color.

To insert a custom shape: Select the color by changing the Foreground color as described above. Choose the Custom Shape tool by clicking and holding the Rectangle tool. Scroll down the flyout menu to select the Custom Shape tool. In the Options Bar, choose the shape from the Shape Picker. Press Shift and click and drag out the shape on your scrapbook page.

When you are satisfied with the positioning of your first image, get the Type tool again. Click at the end of the existing text to continue typing in the text box. Type the next portion of your journaling until you come to the second underlined word. Leave spaces for the second image before completing the text.

Continue typing and inserting images until you reach the end of your story.

Credits:

Scrapbook page by Sara Horton
Epoxy Extravaganza: Today I Feel by Pattie Knox at Designer Digitals
Crayon Box Felt Alphabet by Pattie Knox at Designer Digitals
A Checkered Past Alpha by Pattie Knox at Designer Digitals
Little Enamel Elements: Cars and Trucks by Pattie Knox at Designer Digitals
Katie’s Jewels Alpha by Pattie Knox at Designer Digitals
Stuck on You: Day-Glo Alpha by Pattie Knox at Designer Digitals
Corduroy Alpha: Prep Girl Cords by Pattie Knox at Designer Digitals
Cade’s Cords Alpha: Stitched Corduroy by Pattie Knox at Designer Digitals
Candles and Cake Stickers by Art Warehouse at Designer Digitals
Metro Grafitti Paperie by Anna Aspnes at Designer Digitals
Pride Paper Pack 2 by Art Warehouse at Designer Digitals
List idea from Hallmark card

Download a PDF version of this “Rebus Journaling” tutorial.

Windows: Right click on the link and choose “Save Target As” or a similar command.
Mac: Click on the link to download the file.

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