INTRODUCTION
Most pictures look better when cropped.  Often the cropped picture is not a standard shape such as 4X6, 5X7, 8X10, etc…  This is fine for viewing but most commercial printers only print the standard shape.  Both crop and shape are considered here.

OPEN PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS
Open Photoshop Elements in the Full Edit mode.

OPEN A PICTURES
Open any picture that might look better if cropped.

CROP FOR BEST LOOK
Select the Crop tool > if necessary, click Aspect Ratio + Reset Tool > draw a rectangle around the best part of the picture > press the Enter key to complete the crop.

CHECK THE SIZE
Select Image + Resize + Resize Picture.  Any of the settings can be changed without affecting the shape of your cropped picture.  As you change settings, note the before and after values of Pixel Dimensions (near the top).

ADD CANVAS
Click Image + Resize + Canvas Size > notice the Current Size.  If the Width is greater than the Height, use the value of the Width for the New Size Height > be sure that Relative is checked > for color usually select black or white although any color can be used provided the color is different from the bordering colors of the picture > click OK > hold the Ctrl key and tap the number 0 key to fit the new image to the screen.

CROP TO STANDARD SHAPE
Select the Crop tool > type Width: and Height: to a standard shape such as 14 and 11 > Select View + Grid > drag a rectangle that includes all of the original “cropped” picture > use the arrow keys to center the crop, leaving an equal canvas on both sides of the picture > click Enter to complete the crop.

CONCLUSION
Crop most of your pictures for the most artistic look.  However, add canvas and crop to a standard shape before sending to the commercial printer.

GOOD WEB SITES
LEISURE VILLAGE PHOTO CLUB IMAGES: http://leisurevillage.us/index2.html
TOPCC: http://topcc.org/dnn/SIGsPrograms/PhotoGroup/tabid/65/Default.aspx 
NEAT TRICKS LESSONS: http://leisurevillage.us/nt/classnotes.html
BILL’S HOME PAGE: http://bzus.com