Photos bring your scrapbook to life. The placement and type of photos you choose will make the difference between an ordinary scrapbook and a scrapbook that truly tells a story.

You can place your pictures individually or as a collage, and create colorful borders through the use of ribbons, beads, captions, and artwork. The possibilities are endless when deciding how to place your pictures in your scrapbook and what items you should use to make decorative borders.

Deciding which photos to use in your scrapbook can be a difficult task. Here are a few tips on taking pictures that make great scrapbook additions:

Take candid photos of people doing everyday things such as playing a game, participating in sports, or relaxing in a favorite chair. Make sure you get pictures of people interacting with others.

This is one of the best ways to fully capture a person's personality and facial expressions. Your subjects do not need to be looking directly at the camera. Photos of people simply being themselves are among the best additions that will make your scrapbook unique.

When taking photos of children, make sure to bend or squat so you capture the child at his or her own level. The idea is to create natural photos, not ones that are staged and arranged especially for a photo album.

Keep your camera within easy reach so you can snap the perfect pictures at a moments notice. School pictures and professional photos are great as additions to your scrapbook, but you will want pictures that tell a story of the person's life as well. The very best scrapbook pictures are ones that capture spontaneous moments.