Crane & Co. Offers Tips and Trends for Holiday Photos

Pownal, VT (PRWEB) November 18, 2007

The time is near for sending holiday photo cards, and there's no better time to take that photo than Thanksgiving, when families gather to celebrate. Crane & Co., the country's leading stationer, and Philip Bermingham, a noted Washington, DC, portrait photographer, bring you some timely tips and trends to make your holiday greetings less stressful and more beautiful.

Crane offers a wide range of colorful cards at http://www.crane.com with festive frames to show off your family photography. Here are some trends:

•     Cards, either flat or folded, with a photograph mounted on the front remain the most popular format for holiday greetings.
•     Large flat cards are becoming very popular, as they give greater prominence to the photo while leaving less room for a personal note - a plus for the many time-pressed.
•     The use of multiple photographs is also on the rise, echoing the popularity of scrapbooking.
•     Fashion card colors, such as Espresso Brown and Aqua create stylish alternatives to red and green.
•     Timeless black and white photographs are making a big comeback. The use of colorful frames completes a stylish presentation.
•     Digital photo cards are increasing in popularity. Eliminating the need for mounting, photos are paired with a selection of frame designs and printed directly on Crane's 100 percent cotton Museo paper. The paper is archival to ensure that holiday memories will be enjoyed for year to come.

But no matter what format or what card design you chose, the photograph is front and center. Here are some tips from Philip Bermingham, one of America's leading portrait photographers, who has captured images of some of the most prominent people and their families throughout the world:

•     Seize the moment. Put this article on your refrigerator door to remind yourself that anytime the family gets together is a potential opportunity for a holiday photograph.
•     Choose the right setting. Don't let background overwhelm the family. A simple clean backdrop is the most appealing.
•     Fill the frame. Most holiday cards have space for 4- by 6-inch photographs. Fill the space with face! The closer you get the more interesting and intimate the result.
•     Take lots of exposures. Film is cheap and so is digital memory. Once you've got everyone together, take advantage of that time.
•     Just do the kids. Children change significantly year to year, so it's fun for us to keep track of their progress in life. Besides, children are much more interesting than we adults.
•     Make it fun. Show the joy of relationships and how children interact with each other. Getting children to hug each other never gets old.

To see the full range of Crane's holiday photo cards, and to locate a Crane stationer nearest you, please visit http://www.crane.com. Philip Bermingham's portrait photography can be seen at http://www.philipbermingham.com.

Note to Editors: Hi-res photographs of several of Philip Bermingham's favorite holiday family photos, as well as Crane photo cards are available by contacting:

Peter Hopkins
Spread The News Inc.
(802) 823-5405
Peter.hopkins @ comcast.net

About Crane & Co.

For more than two centuries, Crane & Co. has been country's leading maker of fine 100 percent cotton stationery for social and business correspondence. Crane stationery is sold nationwide through a network of more than 2,000 independent retailers, as well as through printers, engravers and paper merchants. The Crane watermark remains the most significant mark of uncompromising quality, symbolizing the pride and personal touch of the stationer. Founded in 1801, the company's roots extend to the birth of the nation. It was at Crane's Liberty Mill that paper was made for Paul Revere to engrave colonial currency in 1776. Crane has made the distinctive paper for United States currency since 1879. The company continues to be owned and managed by members of the sixth and seventh generations of the Crane family.

About Philip Bermingham

Born in Great Britain, he moved to the United States in 1978. He has photographed numerous world leaders, including Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip and other members of the royal family. He has photographed Presidents Reagan, Nixon and Bush, as well as more than 500 Ambassadors to the United States. Bermingham is a governor of the Royal Shakespeare Company and a trustee of the World Cancer Research Fund. His favorite locations for photography are the Caribbean island of Mustique, Nantucket and Europe.

###