Digital CollageA digital collage is one made on the computer. In creating this form of collage the computer software is your brush, jpegs your visuals. 
The collage aspect is the same, in that you are layering images in a visual composition, but without a printer the art remains virtual. What you need: 1) Software 
2) ImagesYou can use your own photographic images in your digital collages. For this, you will have to have a digital camera. Of course you will have candid photos of your life, your family, your own things, but also be on the look out for things that make good backgrounds for your collage, or have some symbolic meaning that can give your collages depth. Make a list of concepts and images that may make good collage images. Take your camera with you everywhere you go to photograph things you can use. You can stage some photoshoots in order to create the images you want. For example, once in a while I will follow my children out as they play and are engaged in make believe – I usually get lots of fun shots to use then. 
Tip – I have a folder on my desktop labeled ‘photos for layering’. When I upload my photos I scan them for images that would be good for my digital collages and put them into that file for future use. If you don’t have images that are timeless or evoke a mood for an art collage then you can always purchase copyright free images for personal use. Dover books have images printed in book form that usually have accompanying CDs with jpegs of the same images. There are also many websites selling digital images for use in collage or you can find free images if you do a Google search for ‘copyright free images’. The downside to the Google search is that it takes a lot of time to trawl through the images to find one that is useful. Sometime it is fun to browse without an idea of what you are looking for and letting your creative juices work as you browse. Other times you may have something in mind and you may end up having to purchase an image if you can’t find what you are looking for that is free. 3) Scanner For example if you have a brush making tool in your photo software, you can use rubber stamp images and your scanner to create brushes. Here’s how to do it in Photoshop: 
* Stamp an image in black ink onto white paper.* Scan the stamped image into your computer. Save as a jpeg. * Open your software program and the jpeg of the rubber stamp image. * Select the image with the marquee tool, in edit click ‘Define brush from selection’, a naming box will come up, give your brush and name and save. You can also use your own art. When you make a collage or background piece that you love scan it into your computer and save as a jpeg. Use it as a layer in a digital collage. See here how I used my own photo of a tree combined with a scan of a background I painted on canvas and scanned into my computer to make my digital image I called 'Rustic Tree':
4) A printer One of the great things about digital collage is that you can print out your collage and use it in your other collage work. Layers upon layers upon layers of your creations! See here how I used my moth photo in a digital collage that I then printed out and used as the focal image in this card collage:
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