So lately I've been seeing some fantastic threads of album layouts, which after showing my wife we pulled out the album from our wedding (traditional album I guess they're called, prints in matted pages).
I've always wondered what the process is in making the album traditionally, vs creating your own pages and sending those off to get printed.
Another reason I'm asking is I got roped into shooting a friend of a friends wedding (I shoot mainly sports, but I've been an unofficial shooter/2nd shooter for a couple weddings). I've explained to the bride that I am comfortable handling the shots, but I've never put an actual album together before. I've been checking out the wedding resource thread, and its fantastic!
And no, I won't bore anyone with the usual "here is my gear list, will I be ok?"
Sounds like someone's getting sucked into the wonderful world of wedding photography. Hold on tight Scott!
Traditional albums:
- Order a self-mount album and get prints, put it together yourself
...or...
- Send your image files or prints to an album company and have them put it together for you
Magazine-style:
- Design full page spreads yourself from scratch using Photoshop or Indesign.
- Or spend a few hundred bucks on album software packages/templates
- Send finished image files of layouts to album company (some ordering systems are more convoluted than others, ranging from simple web-based uploading to annoying templates to sending a disc in...). They will print and bind (many also offer design services should you decide to outsource).
The second approach is more common today, but also has the potential to require significantly more time & energy on your part. Another thing to keep in mind is that an excellent photographer doesn't necessarily make an excellent album designer, but most of us are too stubborn to realize this. Awesome photography can be ruined by a crappy layout, and a strong layout can make average photography look better.
As far as the finished product, in both cases there are numerous album companies you can work with that will suit a variety of budgets and tastes.
Yeap, I am getting sucked in. My weekend job as a sports photographer is falling through, so I am planning on asking around the area (San Jose, ca btw) if anyone is in need of a second shooter to help them.
I plan on doing the traditional album & probably putting it together myself. I don't have the time or the energy to try to design my own. It would take waaaay to long.
