Hallmark Scrapbook Studio Deluxe 3.0 Reviews

• Good for Novices Only

  
  By AVQVZ5UH542XV on 2006-04-23
  I had several questions about this software which I was not able to find the answers to before purchasing it so let me outline for you what this software is and what it isn't. I'm sending it back because it doesn't meet my needs.
  
  Let me tell you what's great about this product.
  1. It's easy to make scrapbook pages that look professional and it's fun too. You don't have to have any graphics skills.
  2. The graphics are way cute and attractive; they are definitely Hallmark Quality. No cheese here.
  3. The fonts alone are probably worth the price of the software.
  
  Unfortunately, if you're heavy into digital scrapbooking or want total control over your pages, this is not the program for you.
  1. The software is completely self-contained. That means no importing of your own Backgrounds/Alphas/Clipart, etc. You must do all your pages with their supplied artwork. This also means no exporting. You cannot take one of Hallmark's backgrounds and export it then use it in another layout program.
  2. 90% or more of the layouts are for 8 1/2 x 11. If you use 12x12 pages to make your pages forget about this program. There are only a very few layouts for you to use.
  3. Scrapbook Studio holds your created finished pages hostage by not allowing you to export/save them to any format except its own proprietary file type. This means that you are forced to print from the PC they are created on. It sure would be nice to export as a jpg and send it to my nice color laser printer at work that prints 12x12. It would also be nice to e-mail my pages to a vendor who prints digital scrapbook pages on premium paper. This is just not possible.
  4. This software does not accomodate a full bleed print. There will always be a white border around whatever you create and then print.
  
  Happy scrapbooking everyone, and I hope you find the software that fits your needs.
  
  

• Best for Mothers with Small Children

  
  By AJYPAZ3JBHBKD on 2006-05-03
  I've had this software about two weeks, and I do agree with the points made by the lady from S.C., and wanted to mention some other things. It is heavy on templates and pages for babies or small children, so if you aren't scrapping for kiddies, you're very limited here. I cannot see that it has 1200 of anything, though I could be wrong. They may be counting every tiny flower or color block to arrive at that number. And there are only a few 12 x 12 templates, I would say less than 10%. Not that I have access to a 12 x 12 printer, but I would have liked to have that option. And when you start to print anything, it does not give you the option of making a layout, or printing multiples on a page to make the best use of expensive Canon photo paper, and when I chose a 5 x7 size to print, it yielded a finished product more like 4x6, so it is a matter of trial and error to get sizing right. Printing on plain paper yields flat, 2D pages and I didn't like them at all, I haven't tried cardstock yet. If you are into 3D looks, you might consider a better software. Regarding the quality of the templates, there are some very cute designs, but most were not my choice of style or design, as I said, more for children. I would say the percentage I will use is about 25% (generous estimate) There are templates for scrapbook pages (quite a few of those) frames (only a few) diaries/journal (a very few) And each type is divided into baby, general, holiday, birthday, seasonal, etc, so each category has only a handful. If you don't like the one page for Halloween, for example, you're out of luck! And the fonts, well, I have tons of fonts already installed on my computer. If you know how to use Windows to install more fonts, or if you have any other design software, you already have these fonts anyway. Maybe Hallmark is counting the one or two of their own here, but basically you probably already have them. I have used Sierra Print Artist for years and there is much more to it than this software (though Print Artist has a lot of cheesy designs, but you have thousands of things to choose from on Print Artist!)
  Having said all that, and given the negatives, it is very easy and intuitive to use, the software that any novice should be able to use. And it is easy to import your own photos from your files and simply click on the empty photo frame, and viola! your photo is there in the frame on the page. That easy! So it takes no time to finish a page quickly. I did a baby page in about two clicks of a mouse and it looked pretty good, on photo quality paper (I seriously doubt if any other paper would look good, and I have a good Canon photo printer)
  In conclusion, if you are a beginner when it comes to using design software, and especially if you are going to be scrappin' for kiddies....it's worth the money and you will probably really like this software. I plan to keep it just for the ease of use and the few templates that I liked. I do wish Hallmark would take this user-friendly technology and give us something with many more options and design features. Perhaps in the future.
  
  

• Lasting Memories

  
  By ANFL4XKK0FUMR on 2005-12-02
  Hallmark does it again with this scrap booking software! It's another simple yet powerful tool for professional and artistic projects. It has themed templates for any theme/event imaginable (+ 1,200 templates)! It comes with loads of fonts and images as well as a photo editor (now with red-eye removal, brightness correction, and cropping tools). My favorite feature is the Paper Doll Accessories that you can enhance the pages of your scrapbook with. There are over 500 of these embellishments!
  
  

• Easy and Fun!!!

  
  By AX71N1CB63O1B on 2006-04-13
  I have been big into scrapbooking for about a year now. Up until the other day when I bought this program for my computer I always did it the old fashioned way from scratch. And I will probably continue to do most of it the long way just to keep my creative mind going....but, I was playing around with the Hallmark Program and it is so easy! I made two pages for my daughter in less than five minutes! All you do is bring up a template that you like, click to add your pics and your own personal journaling and print. They also have a spot for family trees, photo cards and soooooo much more. I have not used them yet, but was also impressed by the font selection and paper doll cut outs, etc. The program took about 5 minutes to install and is alot of fun and very easy to use! If you are thinking about digital scrapbooking, look no further. My program was $19.99 at Best Buy!!
  
  

• Great for beginners

  
  By A2KWQT4055NMJW on 2007-01-30
  I also have the original version of this software and I love it, but not necessarily for scrapbooking. It works great for graphic projects such as birth announcements, invitations etc. I got the New 3.0 version, and the graphics are the best I have seen for this type of scrapbooking software. However, there are flaws. First off, you cant import or export any other graphics into the program, including the ones from the 1.0 version. Second, the program will not allow you to save work under any other file but theirs, which means you cant print the page from another printer, save to disk or put on an email. Third, there are very few 12 x 12 pages, so If you scrap in that format, you are out of luck unless you have a wide format printer. Fourth, you can't change the colors of the graphics , as you were in the 1.0 version. I miss that a lot. Fifth, when you put a photo into the page, it does not keep the ratio. So your photo often becomes distorted. Lastly, the predisigned layouts and projects will not allow you to change the graphics or colors , so you are stuck with that page the way it is. Overall, the original version gives you much more leeway to play, but the new version has a ton more graphics and backgrounds that look like real paper that you would buy in a store. If Hallmark could fix these problems, they would have an outstanding software.
  
  

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