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DIGITAL FRAME CONTENTDigital frame content is not at all limited to just putting photos on a digital frame! Let your imagination be your guide! However, since digital frames are usually purchased to hold and display photo collections, let's start out with some ideas for how to make the most of your photos.
Digital cameras are everywhere and anyone can learn to use one. Really, all that is necessary with most of the newer models is to just point and click and take as many pictures at one time as you would like or that your camera's memory will hold. No longer do we have to sit and smile and pose. We get our pictures taken when walking, talking, eating, etc.! Unfortunately, we can get into a shooting frenzy, taking one picture after another so we don't miss anything. Theoretically, we know that it will take some time, but we will eventually be able to pick and choose which ones to keep and which to delete. But realistically, who has the time? So we just keep all of them! Since we don't have to print them out, we start to stockpile hundreds, maybe thousands, of photos some (and we don't know which ones) may not even be worth keeping! After awhile, the nightmare realization will come that in order to really enjoy these photos, we are going to have to find some way to display them reasonably. Otherwise, they will be lost in the vast labyrinth of our computer's memory or on tens of unmarked memory cards and flash drives! Perhaps it would be better to garner some tips on the best way to take digital photographs. Then we could be assured that each picture we take will truly represent what we saw. This may result in our taking fewer numbers but far better photos, leaving us the necessary time to organize them. Then we will not only be able to enjoy them, but we can also share them with others. There are numerous resources on the Internet for beginning to advanced photography help. One that I particularly recommend for the novice is Beginner-Photography-Guide. The owner of this site states that "Anyone can take pictures. I'll help you become a better photographer with tips for digital photography and film".
Using the software that came with the camera or computer or learning how to use a specialized photo-editing software are some excellent ways to optimize the display of your digital photos.
With this type of software, just input the resolution and image settings of your particular digital frame (found in the manufacturer's manual or on the manufacturer's website). The whole process of optimizing pictures and transferring them to the frame is then completely automated. The end result is higher quality pictures and many more pictures fitting on the frame. For a small investment, you may save yourself a lot of time and hard work.
But what about those photos that have already been printed out and are either in a box or in an album somewhere? Scanning photos into a computer, editing them and then transferring them to a frame by means of a memory card or through a USB drive are excellent ways to preserve those old photos while adding to your digital frame content. This is, after all, the 'digital age'. It is still fun to pore over those old pictures, but how many other generations will be able to share them? Are they already starting to fade? Have they become brittle or smelly? If they are scanned into a computer program or onto a CD, DVD, flash drive or memory card, the chance that future generations will be able to enjoy our photo history is greatly enhanced. And how wonderful to see those old memories come alive again when displayed on a digital frame! For those who may not be too familiar with the process, I have listed some information about scanning photos below...
There are many ways to proceed, once you have decided to preserve your photos by scanning. Time is an important point to consider as well as the resolution of the scanner.
The ones for photos generally do not scan larger than the popular 4"x6" size photo. One of the reasons for this is that a higher resolution will not make a real improvement in picture quality. (300 pixels per inch is usually a high enough resolution for any photo that is 5"x7" or smaller.)
Special slots for scanning negatives can even be found bundled with some "all-in-one" printers, scanners and copiers. Negatives used to be the only way we had to get copies of our original photos. We were always careful to store them out of the light and safely tucked away somewhere. Only the photo store knew what to do with them. No longer do they have to take up physical space! We can now digitally preserve, edit and share the pictures from these negatives, allowing us to produce even better quality images than the originals themselves.
You can, of course, back them up to CDs and DVDs or you could look for online services such as:
The way this service works is that you buy the disk and simply attach it to your computer by means of a USB port. Each disk itself contains all it needs to backup important files from your computer. They can hold about 2,000 images. There is a nominal charge for the disks. It would be wise to store these disks at another location such as in a safe-deposit box.
I have found an on-line photo scanning company called ScanCafe that I would highly recommend. Their website is phenomenal. Everything is explained in thorough detail. ScanCafe is the #1 rated service for scanning slides, negatives, and photos. They have scanned over 22 million images by hand! Founded in 2006, this company can scan old photos, slides, and negatives, and turn them into archival-quality digital files that customers can share and keep forever. The most important point is that they hand-scan each image—that is, they scan and manually adjust each image to correct damage that will have happened in the years since the picture was taken. I would definitely suggest checking out this company if you are looking for any of the services they offer...
ScanCafe, the scanning service used by pro photographers and Pulitzer Prize winners. It’s available to you from just 29 cents an image. Once the best way to transfer content to a digital frame is determined, management of that content should be a priority. Content management, general speaking, is the ability to determine what will show and how long it will show on the frame. Content Management, when referring to photos, can mean setting up the slideshow parameters, such as the preferred amount of time between pictures and the types of transitions. For more control over your what goes on your frame, including audio and video files, automatic orientation of landscape vs. portrait modes, panning and zooming, the ability to store pictures as thumbnails in folders, etc., check the individual frames to make sure they offer any of these picture functions. Soon after I had purchased my first few frames, I was quite frustrated when I found that I could not get my pictures to show in a particular order, no matter whether I numbered them consecutively or any other solution given to me by the manufacturers. Now I know that those frames simply did not have the feature that would allow me the option of ordering my pictures in a certain way. Although I prefer to look at photos in a chronological order, I eventually learned something that I would like to share with you... When choosing what photos you want in a particular slideshow, sometimes it is actually better to mix up your pictures a bit. Select a few from this party and a few from that vacation and see if that doesn't make for an interesting and enjoyable display!
The feature that allows the user to edit photos on the frame itself is a good solution for those who would prefer not to use a computer to optimize photos. Editing can include anything from simply deleting, copying or renaming a picture to changing the orientation of an individual picture from landscape to portrait mode and back. Even to removing red eye from individual pictures. Sometimes this editing can be done with a remote control, with others you may be able to use a screen display menu interface or touch screen interface. Factors such as brightness and contrast, both of which have an effect on the image display quality of photos on the digital frame, can also be found as buttons on either remote controls or screen interfaces and sometimes on the button panels of the frame itself.
It is possible to store all the photos safely on an Internet site and then wirelessly send them to any Wi-Fi enhanced or wireless digital frame at any time. Any number of wireless frames can be connected to the specified Internet site through a wireless connection or through a land line. These sites can save a good deal of time, money and frustration but they usually require a monthly fee and they can be more expensive initially.
Wireless frames, of course, give you the option for content from the Internet, whether it is radio, TV, weather, etc., as well as information from your own network drives. Please click here to find more information on digital frame content for wireless digital frames.
It's still quite early in the developmental history of wireless digital frames. More and more manufacturers are jumping into the competition. We can expect to see the quality improve and the options expand at an exponential rate. Please subscribe to
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There are many sites on the Internet that will allow the download of actual art and photoart, usually for a nominal fee or possibly for free. Size the art for an individual frame and download either to the frame's internal memory (if available) or to a frame's memory card format or flash drive for viewing. One site that I recommend specializes in architectural and landscape photography. Through a special arrangement with the owner, images may be downloaded from this site at a discount price. I will also be able to download specific pictures onto a memory card or flash drive for you. Please contact me for more information.
Click here to view the gallery... Technology quotes that can be used as screensavers and inspirational love quotes as well as poetry can be downloaded. In addition, there is educational digital frame content such as multiplication tables and early reading flash cards. (You can bet I've downloaded those for my grandchildren to use!) As stated on this unique website, "Each pack is designed to be uploaded to your frame and viewed as a slideshow using the existing features of your player. You can choose to intermingle the images with your existing photos randomly or play them in sequence."
Check Framebug out here...
This is, of course, a logical next step for the digital frame industry to take. We've seen digital frames go from stand-alone photo slideshow frames to multi-media frames displaying images, audio and video, to wireless frames with seeming limitless displays, including those from content providers on the Internet. It is possible for digital frames to interact with one other on a network or through the Internet but a software invention which will allow for the direct interaction, in real time, between digital frames and Internet content providers may soon be a reality. A patent has been applied for by 2 inventors from Herndon, Virginia for the invention of a software application which will allow for direct interaction between a digital media frame user and a content provider over a network in real time. In very simple terms, a digital frame is connected to a network and content from that network is displayed. The digital frame user will be able to input data in regard to the displayed content. The content provider can then perform actions based on the input data and can then send specific content requested by the user to the digital frame. Up until now, digital frame users could access a content management website in order to download content, usually in the form of an RSS feed, directly to the frame. Because the content is normally in a constantly cycling fashion the user would have to wait for the next cycle to view specific content of choice. With this invention, it is promised that the user will be able to manage and select the content that is provided at any time. So, rather than the digital frame downloading all content to the frame, whether or not the user is interested in all of it, the user will now be able to manage and select specific content and the content provider can deliver that piece of content to the digital frame in real time. This could mean big savings for the network resource of both the digital frame and the content provider hosting. An added advantage to this type of user input is that the content provider will be able to process the users' input for purposes such as social networking and feedback analysis or payment information collection.
Do you have other ideas that I might post on my website about finding digital frame content? Please contact me so I can share them.
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