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Introduction  by John Redhed

At Splash Creative, we’ve done a wide variety of graphic design work for our clients over the past fifteen years: advertising, logos, packaging, brochures, websites, and even product demo videos — but until 2002, no greeting cards. It was then that one of our clients, Hall & Company, saw a Redhed family Christmas card (at right), and were impressed enough to commission us to produce a Christmas card that would include photos of all their employees and be a one-of-a-kind keepsake for their clients. We did so, and the response to that first card was so tremendous that Hall & Company quickly decided to make it a yearly tradition. So year after year, we have conceived, designed, photographed and composited a unique Christmas card, and year after year, Hall’s clients express their amazement and delight, as well as their eager anticipation of the next year’s card.

Read on to learn more about how each card was made.

The First Card: 2002

When Mike Hall (founder and President of Hall & Company) approached us about designing a Christmas card, he had a problem on his mind. Because his clients were spread all across the United States, most would never have a chance to meet the Hall & Co. representatives they talked with on the phone. Mike figured that sending his clients a Christmas card with pictures of all his employees would at least put a face to each name. And a unique design would ensure the Hall cards would stand out in the crowd of generic cards every company receives during the holidays.

Redhed family Christmas card, 2001

So, my wife Willma and I went to work. First, we picked a concept based on one of our personal cards (at right). This was one of our first ‘fancy’ cards, made back in 1998, using a very early-model digital camera (0.9 megapixel Olympus for $800 — we’ve come a long way, baby!). We told Mike we could find plenty of things for all 16 of his employees to do in a Christmas tree, so he gave us the go-ahead, probably with his fingers crossed.

After considering the size and layout for the Hall & Co. card, we settled on a half-page (a full 8.5x11 sheet, folded in half). If we had used a smaller size, there simply wouldn’t be enough space to make the people large enough to be recognizable. Also, I thought if we were going to all this trouble, we might as well make the finished product large enough to be enjoyed.

Redhed family Christmas card, 1998

In late October, before Christmas trees were available, I arranged a visit to a local tree farm. After finding a suitable noble fir, I carefully decorated it (with employees in mind), then snapped a few pictures with a borrowed camera (big step up: 3 megapixels!).

Back at my office, I used Photoshop to rearrange a few ornaments and fill in some greenery where the branches were a bit sparse.

The next day, I spent about 2 hours at the offices of Hall & Company, taking photos of all the employees. I was a novice photographer with primitive lights, but using the tree photo as reference, I managed to get acceptable photos of everyone, in poses that would fit (hopefully) into the tree scene.

Then I went to work on the computer. Using Photoshop, I carefully erased the background (wall, floor, table, etc.) of each photo, leaving just the person. After reducing each photo to a standard size, I added it as an additional layer on top of the tree photo. Then I painstakingly erased bits of each person to let the tree show through and make it seem that the person was actually in the tree, not just cut-and-pasted on top of it. In some cases, I had to make careful adjustments — bend an arm, adjust a hand, curl a finger, etc. — to make them fit with the background. Finally, I added finishing touches, such as shadows and reflections of people in the shiny balls.

As you can probably surmise, I’m a detail guy. (Otherwise known as anal-retentive. Wait — can I say that?)

Here’s the finished front of the card:

For the card’s inside left, I made a copy of the finished composite, lightened it up, and added names. And on the inside right, I added a greeting conceived by a pair of Hall & Co. staff, as well as the signatures of all employees.

With the artwork complete, I sent it via Internet to a low-cost print shop in California. About a week later, Hall & Company received the finished cards. They had already addressed envelopes for the 800 companies on their mailing list, so all they had to do was stuff cards in, seal them and mail them.

The very next day after the cards were mailed out, the calls started coming in. “How did you do that?”  “We love it!” “We’re not throwing this away!”  “It’s the best Christmas card I’ve ever seen!”

The card became something to chat about when Hall employees communicated with their clients throughout the next year, something neither Mike Hall nor I had anticipated. Even in the middle of the following year, some clients reported they still had the card tacked up in their office.

To Mike, that could only mean one thing: gotta do it again.

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