Okay, so the templates are a great starting point, but I have a major problem: my photos are not the same sizes as the templates. Of course, I only have four templates, so that doesn't give me a lot of variety to choose from. I have certain photos I have to use when I do Martial Arts pages (poses, action shots, receiving the belt/patch, and poses with the Black Belts) and they all need journaling, so I have had to create my own colorblocking.

I start by cropping the photos and matting them. Then I make room for the journaling, titles and embellishments. What ever is left over I make thin boxes for. If everything turns out, the pages turn out just as I envisioned.

I tried some patterned paper mixed in with the solid and it doesn't look too bad. Guess I just need to keep experimenting, playing around with papers until I find good mixes. I know it can be done because my Color Blocking books show that it can be.