Memorial Day Sale

Now's the time to save on papers, embellishments and more! Now thru Monday May 26th you can save on great products in the store.

Click Here to see what's on sale. Quantities are limited so be sure to shop early and save!

Memorial Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. Here's a great tribute I found on YouTube for our brave military and those that paid the highest price for our freedom.

We're Having a Contest!

The contest was actually suppose to be held in April, but with the problems we've had with the gallery, we decided to extend the contest into May.

We really need to get some more Sports Layouts in Our Gallery, so in order to get everyone motivated we decided to hold a contest. For the month of April, all you need to do is upload your layout and include a list of products used. Each week we will pick a winner from the layouts uploaded that week.

The weekly winner will become a "Featured Designer" on our blog and we will highlight your layout along with a small bio of you. For winning the weekly contest you will receive 15% off any order you place in Our Store and we will also mail you additional products for you to make another project. You get to keep the project, all we want is pictures of the project to show on the website.

On May 26th we will pick a Grand Prize Winner who will receive a $30 Gift Certificate to use in the Store!

Tell all your friends to come check out the blog! So now get those Sports Layouts uploaded!

Now onto the Rules:

1. This MUST be YOUR OWN Work! Do not submit someone else's work. By submitting your projects you give us the express permission for our to post your project on our website & blog.
2. Go to Our Gallery to uploaded your projects.
3. You can enter as many times as you wish, we just ask that you don't duplicate your projects each week. Any duplicate projects will be deleted from the Gallery and disqualified.
4. It can be any type of project. Layouts, Altered Items, Cards, etc. The only requirement is that it is Sports-related.
5. All entries are due by Friday of each week at 12:00 am central time. The winner will be notified by email and asked for a short Bio and any other info they want included in their "Featured Designer" blog post. "Featured Designers" will have their projects highlighted on our blog on Sundays. Winners will receive their free products in the mail within a week of winning. Your 15% discount in our Store must be used within 6 months.
6. The free products we mail to you will be products of our choice. You MUST send me a picture of the
   completed layout, project, etc within 2 weeks.
   
   

Jocks Behaving Exceptionally

When I read this article it brought tears to my eyes. In this day and age, so many are concerned about WINNING that they tend to forget that in the end it's "just a game". As a coach, and a parent, I would hope that my children and players who react in the same way. My thoughts are that it not all about the winning, it's about sportsmanship!

They Touched ’Em All
Blake Wolfe

If Hollywood ever runs out of ideas for tearjerker sports movies, all they have to do is read the sports wire for stories like this to come along.

Last month, Central Washington University’s women’s softball team hosted Western Oregon. At stake was a bid to the NCAA Division II playoffs. In the second inning, Western had two runners on base when 5-foot-2-inch senior right fielder Sara Tucholsky came to the plate. A career .153 hitter (.088 this season), Sara did something she’d never done in four years: smacked a pitch over the wall.

As the team whooped it up and high-fived the runners ahead of her, Western’s coach Pam Knox looked around. "Where’s Sara?" She was lying in a heap near first base.

In her excitement, Sara had missed the bag. As she darted back to touch it, her knee popped. In agony, she could barely move, let alone run. For a home run to count, a player must touch all the bases with no assistance from the team. "Our first-base coach was telling me ’I can’t touch you or you’ll be out,’" Sara told The Oregonian. "’I can’t help you.’"

The umpires told Knox if she put in a pinch runner, Sara would be awarded a single and two RBIs. "It was her only home run in four years. She’s going to kill me if we sub and take it away," Knox said. "I didn’t know what to do."

Then a voice behind her said, "Excuse me, would it be okay if we carried her around?" It was senior Mallory Holtman from Central. The umps said nothing in the rule book prohibited the opposition from helping her. Holtman and a teammate picked Sara up in a fireman’s carry and walked her around the bases, pausing at each one so she could touch the bag.

The stadium was in tears. The entire Western Oregon team was sobbing. Coaches were crying. At home plate, the two Central girls passed Sara into the arms of her teammates, and the crowd gave them a standing ovation.

"We’re never bigger than the game," Knox said afterward. "We forget that because as coaches, we’re always trying to get to the top. But I will never, ever forget this moment. It’s changed me. And I’m sure it’s changed my players."

Sara will accompany the team in its bid for an NCAA berth. Holtman intends to get a graduate degree in sports administration. Her dream is to become a coach.

[sports.espn.go.com, 4/28/08; statesmanjournal.com, 4/28/08; oregonlive.com, 4/30/08]

National Scrapbooking Day

In honor of National Scrapbook Day we're having a SALE! From Friday May 2nd thru Sunday May 4th take 10% off all orders over $25 (includes Clearance items) AND earn Double Reward Points! Use coupon code NSD at checkout.

To learn more about our Customer Reward Program Click Here.

May is National Photo Month

I always seem to have such a hard time photographing my kids in sports. The outdoor sports held during the day aren't quite so hard to capture good pictures, but the nighttime games and the indoor games are the worst!

If I zoom in close, there's too much blur (even if I have the camera on the sports setting). Low light and lack of windows make it hard to photograph the indoor sports! Almost all of the indoor pictures I take of the kids playing sports have too much noise and are grainy.

So in order to try and get better pictures of my kids playing sports, I started searching the internet for answers and following the tips that I found, and you know what? My pictures are so much better. Granted their not Professional Sports Photographer Quality, but then again I'm no professional.

So here are a few tips that I've saved over the years. I'm not sure where I got these from, they were in my camera notes file (a file I keep on my computer and add interesting things that I find on the internet). Hope they can help you!

• Shoot establishing shots of the school marquee, the scoreboard, overall shots of the arena, field, etc.
• Shoot non-action shots that tell the story. Shoot the team during time outs, the coaches whiteboard, the lineup card, the manager’s bag, water bottles, a pile of discarded towels, etc. Those are the shots that round out the story and give it depth.
• Shoot cheerleader and crowd shots. Concentrate on capturing close-up reaction shots that ooze emotion. Anguish, joy, triumph, tragedy, etc.
• Shoot a shot of the scoreboard at halftime and the final score. Always.
• Turn off your built in flash. You will never fill the field or arena with that tiny flash. It will just suck your batteries and slow you down waiting for it to recycle.
• Get close to the action. Be on the sidelines. Move with the team up and down the field. (The baseline is the best place for basketball.)
• Anticipate the action. Study the plays the team runs and anticipate what they will do. Most high school level teams have a limited repertoire that repeats often.
• Stand with your feet shoulder width apart.
• Hold the camera firmly with your left hand against the bones of your face. Make a three point
  connection, hand and two points on your face.
• Get your left elbow pressed firmly into your chest. The idea is to form a stable platform for the
  camera.
• Squeeze the shutter, don’t jab at it.
• Use the highest ISO possible with the body you are using.
• Use an Image Stabilization (IS) (Canon) or Vibration Reduction (VR) (Nikon) or similar technology lens/body
• Use the fastest lenses you can possibly afford, i.e. F2.8
• Shoot in Time Value (TV) Shutter Priority mode to eliminate camera shake
• Use a shutter speed fast enough to prevent camera shake with the lens you are using, probably 1/80
  or 1/125. This requires some experimentation.
  
  

And last, but not least, here are some great websites for sports photo tips!

Digital Sports Photography Tips

Sports Photography Tips

Sports Photography

Sports Photography Tips

Sport Photos: a how-to and tip guide from Photo.net

Speed, Action, and Sports Photography Tips - PictureCorrect Techniques

May 3rd is National Scrapbooking Day! Be sure to check back on our site Friday morning to see what our specials are!

Customer Rewards Program

We are now offering a Customer Rewards program. The new customer rewards program works on a point system. For every dollar you spend at Scrappin' Sports Stuff, you will earn 1 (one) point.

From time to time we will also be offering other promotions where you can earn extra points. Check Out our Monthly Point Specials page for more details.

Once you have accumulated 100 (one hundred) points, you may redeem your points. Or, you may save your points toward larger rewards. Points will have NO EXPIRATION DATE! The longer you save, the bigger reward you can earn.

Click Here for a list of the current rewards that are available. Product rewards may change from time to time. Any time you would like to redeem your reward you can go to the Redeem Your Reward page.

Reward points are applied to the price of product only. Customer will still be responsible for all shipping and taxes where applicable. Reward points are only good for future purchases in the store and cannot be redeemed for cash.

Sign up Now for our Rewards Program

Searching for a Camera

So, I've been wanting to purchase a new Digital Camera. My kids are more and more active in sports and I want to make sure I don't miss those all important shots! So I've been researching which digital cameras are best for sports. I thought I'd share my findings with you. Still not sure which one I'm going to get so if you have some comments on any of these cameras I would love to hear them!

Sony Alpha A700K 12.24MP Digital SLR Camera

Product Description
A unique combination of superb picture quality, quick response, creative shooting and sensational viewing
make the Sony Alpha 700 DSLR a superior value for serious photo enthusiasts. Its newly designed Exmor CMOS image sensor captures 12.24-megapixel resolution with on-chip noise-canceling before and after A/D conversion. Advanced performance features include continuous shooting at 5 frames per second, an 11-point center dual cross AF system with f2.8 sensor for enhanced precision, and the Super SteadyShot in-camera image stabilization system that works to minimize blur with every lens you use. For sensational viewing, there’s a photo-quality 3.0-inch LCD screen and direct HDMI output to Sony Bravia HDTV and other compatible HDTV screens -- and Sony puts all this together in a rugged magnesium-alloy body.

Nikon D40 6.1MP Digital SLR Camera

Product Description
Great pictures used to require complicated and cumbersome equipment along with years of experience. Not any more. The D40 is compact, lightweight and designed specifically for ease of use, yet contains all the top-quality,
high-performance technologies that you expect from a Nikon digital SLR. And with world-famous Nikkor lenses, you know you have the sharpest and most reliable optical performance available. All in a camera light enough to carry with you everywhere. Beautiful photography has never been easier.

Fast startup with instant shutter response: Fast startup combined with super-fast shutter response and rapid-action shooting at up to 2.5 frames per second makes it easy to freeze special moments instantly.

Includes 3x 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED II AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor lens Designed exclusively for use with Nikon DX-format digital SLRs, this ultra-compact 3x zoom offers Nikkor sharpness and versatility in a wide variety of shooting situations.

Shoot at up to 2.5 frames per second The D40 can fire continuously at a speed of up to 2.5 frames per second, capturing high-quality action sequences of children in sporting activities such as soccer, baseball and much more.

Canon Digital Rebel XT 8MP Digital SLR Camera

Product Description
The Canon EOS Digital Rebel camera now has a new, faster, even smaller big brother. Sibling rivalries aside, the 8.0-megapixel Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT SLR adds resolution, speed, extra creative control, and enhanced comfort in the hand to one of the smallest and lightest digital cameras in its class. Even with its advancements in ergonomic design

The new Rebel XT camera also features the next step in the evolution of
evaluative, through-the-lens exposure control, E-TTL II. Though compatible with all Canon EX-series Speedlites, this smarter new E-TTL II system helps ensure that, even in situations with highly reflective subjects or backgrounds or when shooting in most other similarly difficult lighting situations, the image will be optimally exposed.

The E-TTL II system compares the ambient light with the reflected pre-flash off the subject reported in all 35 metering zones and selects the areas with a small difference to be weighted for flash exposure calculation. This system also helps eliminate or underweight areas with large differences, recognizing them as an extremely reflective object in the background or a highly reflective subject.

Fuji FinePix S5700 Digital Camera

Product Description
Ideal for families seeking to kick it up a notch with a more advanced, compact SLR-style digital camera without losing operational simplicity, the FinePix S5700 is feature-packed, yet affordable and easy to use. Additionally, its powerful 10x optical zoom will ensure that you capture great close-up action shots of your kids playing sports or candid shots of the family on vacation.

Rounding out its powerful feature set is a seven-MegaPixel CCD, a 2.5 LCD plus .24 electronic viewfinder (EVF) and ISO levels of up to 1600 at full resolution. The FinePix S5700 also utilizes many of Fujifilms unique and
innovative technologies such as:

Picture Stabilization mode: A selectable mode, Picture Stabilization uses the heightened sensitivity of the FinePix S5700 and high-speed shutter settings to reduce blur caused by hand-shake or subject movement. It allows the camera to automatically choose the correct light sensitivity and optimal shutter speed to produce clear, blur-free images.

i-Flash Intelligent Flash: i-Flash Intelligent Flash detects subtle lighting differences within a scene and then varies the flash intensity accordingly. It also leverages the high sensitivity of the FinePix S5700 to enable the camera to use less flash, resulting in an image that displays pleasing, natural tones without a washed-out effect. And with an automatic pop-up flash, its always ready when you need it.

May is National Photo Month, check back on May 1st for some tips on taking Sports Photographs!