Photo Christmas cards are special Christmas cards that include a photo. This photo may be mounted on the front of the card with the use of glue, tape or special adhesive, or slipped in between two layers so that it appears through a cut-out on the front of the Christmas card. It may be made to be a part of the initial printed design of the Christmas card. Other types of photo Christmas cards may include a photo that is on the inside of the card, so that it is visible only when the card is opened by the recipient, or anyone else who may handle the card.
The biggest challenge in creating a photo Christmas card may not be the design of the card, but finding a good photo to use with the card itself! Obviously, since this is a Christmas theme photo card, using a photo from last spring or summer will not do. Only a winter or Christmas theme photo will suffice for photo Christmas cards. The challenge is coming up with a decent photo to use. One thing many people will do is stage a basic photo where those being photographed are dressed in Christmas colors. Other people may decide to take their children to the mall for a quick Christmas theme photo. Others still may use graphic editing programs to manually create a Christmas theme photo.
If you want to have a Christmas theme photo for your photo Christmas cards, but aren't ready to drag out all of the decorations, go to the mall! Many portrait studios begin doing Christmas theme photos right after Halloween, and Santa is almost always in place at the mall by the middle of November. If you need to photograph toddlers, grab a camera and props, and start snapping random shots. Hopefully you will get a good one to use on your photo Christmas cards.
Ideally, you should have your photo Christmas cards mailed out by the end of the first week of December. This ensures that barring any mail errors or possibly a loss of mail, that your photo Christmas cards arrive at their destination the week before Christmas. Of course, you can always send out your photo Christmas cards earlier: many people opt to mail out their cards by the third week of November (right around Thanksgiving).