Let me guess, I bet you’ve thought about creating a photobook before but probably haven’t done it because either it seems too complicated or the prospect of sifting through all those photos just seems too daunting, and who’s got the time anyway?
Well, these strange times we find ourselves in presents us with the perfect opportunity to do some of those jobs we are always putting off (& wouldn’t you rather create something beautiful you can look back on for years to come than clean the kitchen cupboards out or sort out your sock draw??)
Every September, after my son’s birthday, I set about creating a photobook of the year just gone. i have to admit that the prospect of it always feels me with a little bit of dread as starting out seems a huge task. However, we all love being able to look back over previous years and they make such a lovely visual memory bank of events and how he’s grown up. It’s always well worth the effort (even if it’s well into the winter by the time I’ve actually finished it!)
We have a collection of photobooks documenting our son’s life to date as well as other events over the years.
So, here’s what I’ve learned over the last few years to make the experience less daunting;
1 The Theme
Think about the period you want to cover. This could be birthday to birthday or a calendar year. Birthday to birthday is certainly easy enough for an only child but how do you work that for more than one sibling? Calendar years might make more sense. There’s also that sense of new year, new beginning then too. Maybe you could start out with holidays or another special event, or pick a theme that’s appropriate to your family.
2) The Images
Think about where all your photos currently are. This to me is the hardest bit as the answer is ‘all over the place’. A lot of mine I’ve taken with my ‘big’ camera and so they are (sort of) properly edited and filed. Others are on family WhatsApp groups or shared photo groups. And then there’s my phone!!!! Why oh why can’t I discipline myself to edit my phone photos???? Oh, and a load on my husband’s phone too. School photo anyone? Maybe you even printed some out that day you were feeling keen?
3) The Final Cut
Select the best ones and put them into one place. Trust me, I’ve learned from experience that the ‘short cut’ of uploading piecemeal from all over just isn’t a short cut at all. Dedicate some time to selecting the best ones and moving them into a single place. It will make it all simpler in the end. If the prospect of that is just too daunting, at least write down which ones you want and where they are stored so you can find them quickly,
4) The Company
Select the company you want to use. I use Photobox for all my personal books but there are loads of companies out there. Cewe Photoworld, Snapfish and Bonusprint to name but a few. It’s worth having a look around to see which designs and layouts you like best as well as for price and offers. Some companies provide everything from plain and elegant white or black backgrounds to interesting decorations and patterns. There’s also different shapes and papers to choose from should you wish. Most companies also allow you to add extra pages.
The design software should be really simple and easy to use, so if you find you don’t get along with one company, it might be worth trying another. If you find a company you love, I’d love to hear about it as it’s always interesting to get other opinions.
The design software should be really simple and easy to use, so if you find you don’t get along with one company, it might be worth trying another. If you find a company you love, I’d love to hear about it as it’s always interesting to get other opinions.
The design software should be really simple and easy to use, so if you find you don’t get along with one company, it might be worth trying another. If you find a company you love, I’d love to hear about it as it’s always interesting to get other opinions.
5) The Upload
Upload your final selections to your chosen software. This can take a bit of time but it’s worth having it all ready to go at once. Resist the temptation to start designing straight away. I’m terrible for this but I’m learning from experience that it’s never time wasted.
With a single click, you can select your preferred layout for any number of pictures per page
6) The Design (the fun bit!)
Now you get set to work putting all the photos into place. Most companies provide a variety of lay outs to select for each page, depending on the number of images you want to include. By mixing it up, you make the overall look more interesting. I tend to do some pages by theme (birthday party, holiday, special day out), then for each season I do a page of small images to cover everything else. That way, I can include more pictures but it doesn’t just become a huge collage that has too much to take it.
Once you get familiar with the way the layouts work, you can start to move them round yourself. The software provides guidelines to ensure that pictures are straight and inline, but you can do whatever you like. Have a play!
Most companies’ software allow you to create different looks and layouts
Mixing up the layouts across pages gives the book more visual interest
If you find this bit too daunting or you don’t enjoy the propect of ‘tinkering’ you could select the automatic design function and let the software do it for you.
7) The Final Step
Check for typos, then press ‘buy’ and sit back and wait for your beautiful, bespoke photobook to land on your doormat.
8) The Results
Enjoy for years to come and feel proud of your creation (and, note to self; delete all those pictures off your phone!!)
Taking time every year to create a photobook will mean you build a library of images to look back over