Thinking of setting aside some time to create a beautiful photo book of last summer’s vacation, or maybe long ago family events that are now preserved on an archival photo CD?
Here are our top tips on creating a beautiful photo book that your family will enjoy for years to come:
Think like an author
Use your photos to tell a story in a somewhat linear fashion rather than organizing them haphazardly. You can, of course, group photos together by theme – all of the meals you ate on a trip, or pelicans you saw, or views of the ocean from various points.
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Choose images thoughtfully
If you only include your best photos, you will probably lose important elements of the story. It’s Ok to include photos that are good, but not great. Just place less emphasis on the good photos and more on the great ones.
Pick a themed cover photo
When it comes to the cover photo, choose one that instantly conveys what your book is about. Did you go to London? Use a shot of Big Ben. Does the book chronicle your daughter’s first year? Put her beautiful, smiling face on the cover.
Spread out your photos
If you attempt to squeeze several photos onto each page, they will lose their impact. Instead, choose one or two photos for some pages, three or four for others, and try not to include more than five or six on any given page.
Highlight favorite photos
Consider printing it across one spread (two pages facing each other) for truly stunning photos. The impact will be really powerful! Review your decades-past pictures to digitize and repurpose.
Create focal points
Get creative with your layouts, and choose one or two photos to appear larger than others in a spread. Add three to five “supporting” photos that will appear smaller.
You don’t have to add text, of course, but ask yourself, “In twenty years, will I know who is in the photo and where and when it was taken?” If your photo book is about a very specific event, like a vacation, you probably don’t need to add much text. If it chronicles your grandmother’s life, you probably should.
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