Creating a Successful Tribute Book

by Anna Aspnes

A tribute is defined as "a gift, payment, declaration, or other acknowledgment of gratitude, respect, or admiration" (American Heritage Dictionary), and therefore a tribute book provides plenty of scope and possibilities. While the traditional approach may be to pay tribute to a person who is no longer alive, it can also be appropriate to pay tribute to a person who is still with us. This could be a family member, a friend or even a colleague that you know well. You may consider paying tribute to more than one person such as a couple, or a group of people such as a family. How about the possibility of paying homage to a favorite place or an event? A tribute book could be created for any of the following occasions: Mother's Day, Father's Day, Valentine's Day, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, leaving home, retirement and deaths.

The two main components of the tribute book are the images and the story:

1. The Images
I use the word "images" because you do not have to confine yourself to the use of photos. Images can also include, but are not limited to, newspaper clippings, documents, drawings, letters, postcards and pretty much anything that holds sentimental value. Photos that originate from the pre-digital age and other memorabilia will need to be converted into digital format. You can do this by scanning and saving your images in 300 dpi(Dots Per Inch) jpeg file format. If you do not own a scanner or find the prospect of doing this daunting, there are services that will do this for you. Such services can be found online or in your local area. Or, consider taking a digital photograph of the photo or memorabilia. This simple solution is quick and easy..

Optional: Editing and Enhancing Your Photos
To edit or not to edit, that is the question. If you are savvy with photo-editing software programs you will have the choice as to whether you wish to improve your images or keep them in their original format. You may consider the following:

• Converting the color of your images. For example, black and white or sepia.
• Using the noise reduction filter in your photo-editing program or a plugin such as Neat Image (www.neatimage.com) or Noise Ninja (www.picturecode.com) to easily remove dust/scratches or digital noise.
• Simple photo restoration using the Spot Healing brush tool or Clone Stamp tool to remove small imperfections in older images.
• Using artistic filters such as Watercolor or Underpainting to improve a poor quality photo.
• Using an application such Alien Skin's Blow-Up to increase the size of scanned images without a loss in resolution (www.alienskin.com).
• Adding monograms or text to your images before you upload them.
• Creating a photo-collage using digital scrapbooking elements in place of an image.

2. The Story
The photos obviously play an integral part in a tribute photobook but equally important are the words you will choose to go with those images and the stories you will choose to tell.

A tribute could span years, decades, or even generations, and the book provides sufficient space to tell those stories in whatever voice you choose. I use the term "voice" because in paying tribute to a person you may wish to consider that this is not a solo endeavor. This could very well be a collaborative effort of a group of people which might include family, friends and/or colleagues. You may also want to include the subject of your tribute book in the interview process if that is possible. What better way to get an accurate account of the real story?

The interview process can be done in person, by telephone or via email depending on your circumstance and preference. The former will certainly require a pen and paper to capture the details while the latter will be more labor intensive for your interviewees. Decide ahead of time which questions you want to ask and who you want to answer them. If you have a large group of people from which to gain input you may wish to assign a few questions to each person. Make a note of who says what so that you have all the details at hand when you come to writing the story.

Each person you interview will have a unique and often different perspective allowing you to ultimately provide a more balanced and true account of the story. There are, however, a few cautions:

• Be realistic about how many people you can interview without the project becoming too overwhelming. This is dependent on personal preference and circumstance but I would suggest between three and 10.
• Allow plenty of time to complete the interview process and collate the information. Obviously the more people you interview the longer this will take.
• Be mindful and considerate in your portrayal of the stories collected and in particular those that touch on difficult or sensitive matters. Life is not perfect and it is important to recognize that when focusing on a story that spans a length of time. Be discreet and tactful in deciding which stories need to be told and, more importantly, which don't.
• Focus on one story at a time. As you complete the pages you will be building a bigger picture.

Still struggling with the journaling? You can always look to the words of others. One of my favorite ways to enhance my journaling, and increase it's size to fill a specific space, is to use quotes or poems. A wealth of resources, such as the Quote Garden (www.quotegarden.com) can be found online.

The journaling process is the more challenging aspect in completing this project but it is also the more rewarding. Recounting the stories of those past and present, whether they span the course of a life or just a part of it, is what brings us together and allows us to connect as family, friends, colleagues and human beings.

Check out these great support materials for creating your Tribute photo book:

A Tribute Book for All Seasons: Variations for Creating Your Tribute Book >

Sample Interview Questions and Ideas Starters for the A Tribute photo book >