I love digital photo books! They
take up less physical space than the traditional photo album and produce far less
clutter than traditional paper scrapbooking.
Have you ever wondered which child
will inherit that ONE copy of your prized family vacation scrapbook? Do you
print multiple copies of your pictures to share with parents, grandparents or
siblings? Are you struggling with how to keep all those digital photos
organized? Are you looking for a fun family history project?
Professionally printed photo books
are the perfect combination of printing digital photos and documenting family
memories. They’re easy to share and make great gifts – just print more than one
copy. Plus, personal publishing companies often make organizing your online
photos a breeze.
Ready to jump on that learning
curve?
Understanding the Basics
Standard digital photo books are usually...
about
20 pages with the capacity to include 100-150 pages
hard
or soft cover
sometime
come with a dust cover, or the option of purchasing a dust cover for an
additional fee
vary
in size – anything from 5x5 to 7x10 to 8x8 to 10.5x11 to 12x12
Every company I’ve worked with
requires you to first create a free password-protected user account. From
there, some companies ask you to download bookmaking software while others
operate entirely online.
Photo Book Variables
Photo book options vary just as
much as the companies that produce them. There are many features available, but
no one company offers them all. Therefore, it’s best to decide what YOU
consider to be the most important photo book elements before you begin your
project. For example: if you want to spend the least amount of money possible,
you will most likely be sacrificing quality and working assembling your book
with somewhat confusing software. To get the best quality and most customer
support, you will most likely need to spend more money.
Variables include:
book
quality
prices (base price quotes are usually just for
the standard 20-pages; after that you pay per page)
customer
service
layout
options
the
amount of text you can put on a page
ability
to alter and edit photos
individual
page layout options
variety
of backgrounds, templates and themes
usability
of photo book software; the time and work it takes to learn the program
nuances
process
of uploading photos, storage and sharing options
the
ability to make other custom projects from digital images, such as a
calendar, greeting cards, t-shirt, etc.
How
to Choose a Personal Publishing Company
To find the company that will
best suit your needs, consider the following:
Digital
photo books vary, just like the companies who publish them. How much help will you need?
Browse through the “about us” and customer service portions of the website
to get a feel for how available they are to answer individual questions.
Are there webinars or tutorials to get you started?
What size do you want for your personalized
photo book? Different companies offer different options. If you want to
create a photo book based on your 12x12 scrapbook pages, it’ll be easiest
to print a 12x12 book.
What is your skill level? How
easy does your project need to be? If you don’t want to spend a lot of
time customizing pages, look for attractive templates and themed books. If
the available backgrounds and designs seem limiting, make sure the company
offers editing options and photo placement flexibility.
How much text are you planning to
include? Some companies/templates offer little more word space than
the ability to print photo captions. Make sure there is enough space to
say what you want to say.
How many photos do you plan to include?
Watch that “additional page” charge – it can add up quickly.
Is the
cover important? Do you
want to be able to print your book title on the spine? Do you need a dust
jacket? Again, options vary considerably.
What
do you plan to do with your book? Who
will read it? If you’ll be handing your digital photo books over to
young children, make sure the book and pages are of a higher quality so
they will resist wrinkles and tears.
One thing is certain - a picture is worth a thousand words…
but only if you look at them! Digital photo books are the perfect solution.
I'm a wife, mother, daughter and friend. You could also call me a planning geek or logistics queen. I love strawberries, blue sky and hanging out with my kids.
