Layers, Layer Styles, and use of the Rectangular Marquee Tool are pretty much the techniques involved in making the Digital Frame. It is simple to make and adds a nice finished look to any PhotoShop project. As I go through the steps to recreate, I will use Keyboard Shortcuts as much as possible. Sorry for the Mac users, I am using a PC. The more I use them, the easier it is to remember them. Writing them into this tutorial helps to remember them also.
First thing is to choose an image you want to frame. Open the image.
Set the Foreground/Background colors to Default (D).
Make sure the Layers palette is showing (Windows – Layers)
Select the entire image (Control A)
Cut the selection from the background layer (Shift – Control J) which puts the selection on its own new layer. (Just like we did in project 7 with the layer masks.).
Rename the new layer by double clicking the new layer in the Layers Palette. Type in a name. Click Enter. Name it whatever you want. I chose Sensation, which is the name of the image.
Select from the Menu - Image – Canvas Size
Put a Check in the Relative checkbox
Select White in the Canvas Extension Color
Enter values of 4 inches for the Width and Height (Make sure preferences are set to inches, not pixels or percent)
Click OK
4 inches of white canvas are now added to the image.
Create another layer. Make sure the new layer is below the first layer (Sensation).
A trick to automatically position the new layer below previous layers is to Press and hold the Control key (Command for Mac) and click on the Create a New layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette.
Rename the new layer - Frame.
Select the Rectangular Marquee Tool(M)
Check in the Layers palette to make sure you are working on the new layer Frame.
Draw a rectangle that is a couple of inches larger than your image. This will be the edge of your frame. Remember the space bar trick. It comes in handy to center the rectangle.
Press D and then X to set the Foreground Color to White in the Tools palette.
Press Alt-Backspace to fill the selection with white. I believe its Option-Delete on a Mac
Deselect All (Control D)
Don’t get discouraged if you don’t see anything yet. You are on the right track.
Next you will add an edge to the frame.
Still working in the Frame Layer, select Add a Layer Style (the fx next to the chain link icon) from the bottom of the Layers palette. Choose Stroke
In the Stroke popup box:
Set the Size to 7 pixels, Position to Inside (Important to set to INSIDE) Opacity to 100%.
The Fill Type is set to Color. Click on the color swatch and choose Black.
If you are using 300 ppi images you might want to play around with the Size setting and bump it up to your liking.
Click OK
You should now have a nice black crisp looking edge.
Keep the Frame layer selected.
To add inside depth to the frame select Add a Layer Style from the bottom of the layer palette. Choose Inner Shadow.
In the Inner Shadow popup box:
Set the Blend Mode to Multiply, Opacity to 50%, Angle to 131,
Uncheck Use Global Light checkbox
Distance 13 px, Choke 0 px, Size 3 px
If you are using high resolution images, you might want to increase the Distance and Size.
Click OK
You will now add a matt to the frame.
Create a new layer by pressing Control and clicking on the Create a New layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette.
Rename the new layer - Matt
Move the layer – Matt, above the Frame layer and below your Image Layer. (See Diagram below)
With the layer Matt selected, select the Rectangular Marquee Tool( M)
Draw a rectangle that is slightly larger than the image.
Press D and then X to set the Foreground Color to White
Press Alt-Backspace to fill the selection with white. Option-Delete on a Mac 
Deselect All (Control D)
Select Add a Layer Style from the bottom of the layer palette. Choose Inner Glow.
In the Inner Glow popup box:
Set the Blend Mode to Normal, Opacity to 20%, Noise to 0%
Click on the color swatch and select Black
Click OK. Click OK again.
Select the Frame layer in the Layers palette.
To add outer depth to the frame and make it pop out, select Add a Layer Style from the bottom of the Layer palette. Choose Drop Shadow.
In the Drop Shadow popup box:
Set the Blend Mode to Multiply, Opacity to 60%, Angle to 120,
Uncheck the Use Global Light,
Distance 5 px, Spread 0%, Size 9 px
Click OK
To add more contrast between the frame and the background you can choose a different colored background instead of white.
Select the Background layer. If the Background layer is locked and you can’t unlock it Put your curser over the layer and holding down the left click of the mouse, drag the Background layer over the Create a New layer icon at the bottom of the Layers palette. A background copy layer is created. Choose the background copy layer and add change the background color. Then hide the background layer by turning off the eyeball. 
Click on the Foreground color box from the Tools palette. Choose a light gray or other complimentary color from the Color Picker.
Press Alt-Backspace to fill the Background layer with the new selected color. (Option-Delete on a Mac).
Voila, your image is ready to hang in any digital gallery.
For variety you can add more than 1 matt for a double matt finish, change the frame or matt from white to another color or play with the Size, Opacity, and Distance to give your frame a different look and feel.
I chose this project because it is a good exercise working with layers, renaming and moving layers and adding layer styles. It is also a good exercise using keyboard shortcuts. The end result is a simple, nice complimentary frame that can be added to any image in any digital gallery. It is something I hope my classmates enjoy and can use themselves.
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