How to Make a Photo Book: Rules, Sets and Costs

In the digital age, the photo book is still the winning choice to leave its mark. That’s why it’s a good idea to know how to make a photo book: the rules, the set, the costs and everything you need to make your way in the world.

6 Reasons why a photo book “leaves its mark”

The photo book is a paper album, where you collect images to transmit to the viewer:

• How an object, person, environment or situation is made visually
• The emotional effect that ignites interest, captures attention and leaves a mark on the memory.

In short, the photo book leaves a trace of you and your business. So it’s ideal if you need to promote striking qualities. With a photo album done well, you have more chances to get a job, to sell a product or to arouse the interest of a sponsor. In which cases is it a winner to use it?

• To promote yourself, if you are an aspiring model or if you want to enter the world of entertainment. But even if you are a sportsman looking for sponsors
• To capture attention on an object or a line of objects that you want to produce or sell. Whether you deal with design, you run a retail business or you are in the food, you need a photo book to show to customers, convincing them to trust you
• To keep a memory, perhaps sharing it with friends and relatives: the photo book can concern your children, your pet, and an event that marks life, such as marriage or pregnancy
• To promote a location: if you are an Interior designer, you deal with travel, manage a bed & breakfast, a conference centre or a restaurant specializing in weddings. Your customers will be fascinated by the images you show and will choose you
• To present works of art, proposing an exhibition to a museum, organization or gallery, if the aim is to market them
• If you are a photographer, to get engagements from magazines specializing in fashion, sports, music, cinema events and to work in art and travel publishing

Now you know that it is worth choosing the photo book to make your way in the world. Our tips on how to do it will be useful, read below what they consist of.

How to make a photo book: the rules, the set, and the costs  

You are certainly asking yourself many questions about the photobook: the cost first and then how to manage the photo sets to get the result you dream of. But first, there are some important rules to know if you want a book that works:

• Calculate the times well: a good photo book requires a real project to be built, which lasts a few months
• Evaluate the quantity and quality of photographs: better few, but of exceptional quality. Do not go below 8 images, do not exceed 15 o’clock. They must all be of the same level: it is forbidden to insert the amateur photo among the professional ones. Remember that to get the right ones you will need to shoot at least five times more
• Password: “variety”. It shows the subject of the photos in multiple versions, different contexts and from different points of view
• Focus your mission in the photos. For example, if you promote a model who wants to work in hairstyling, she shows the potential of her hair. If you launch a conference location, highlight seats and tables
• Do not present the loose photos, collect them in a professional album matching the theme. The book of a sportsman looking for a brand that will sponsor it will not have hearts like the one dedicated to the house cat!
• Study the sequence of photos and Video Production Company in Dubai, so as to hit the viewer and convey the message that interests you. Put in the first two pages of the photo book close-ups or “still life” photos on the right, leaving the two pages empty on the left. This trick increases the visual impact. In the following pages put photos of general views and on the last page the best close-up shot, rigorously on the right
• Calculate that it will take the digital optimization of the image in post-production, with suitable software and the final print on A4 paper
• Expect copyright compliance with a written agreement
• Make or get a cost estimate once you have decided on the quantity and quality of the shots you need. It is the first entry in the photo book total cost note, but not the only one. Here are the others.

How to make a photo book, cost of the set and equipment

Do you want to make your high impact photo book? You should choose well the photographic sets that are the setting of the photos. It is an important item to put in the cost estimate. Here is a list of necessary things that you cannot ignore:

• Make-up, outfit and hairstyle for various looks, in case of the human subject to photograph
• Rent of location, indoors and outdoors, depending on the duration of the shooting photo. If provided, entrance tickets to museums and to winds, permits, travel expenses, meals
• Assistance to better manage the most delicate subjects, such as animals, children and pregnant women
• Transport costs of objects and furnishings far from the chosen set
• Accident insurance and equipment if you choose a risky set, such as the top of a skyscraper or the Sahara desert. Or against damage, if you handle precious objects.

The most important item concerns the cost of the technical equipment of the set, which can be:

1) Home set

It is a set at a very low cost, but not professional, with:

1. A white wall in a naturally well-lit room
2. Artificial lights with lampshades
3. A camera with manual exposure, aperture settings and 16 Giga SD memory card
4. A tripod stand

But be careful: a “do it yourself” set may seem convenient, but it leaves little room for creativity and will hardly give you professional photos. It is all right to decide the poses, with test shots.

2) Professional set for still life photos

To make it you need the following equipment:

1. Artificial lights with tungsten lamps of at least 800W
2. Two or three 1000 W flashes
3. Neon type cold fluorescent lights, at least 500 W
4. A still life table with removable white and black PVC backdrop
5. A photographic backdrop of 6x3mt fabric on a telescopic pole

Such a set is used for a photographic book of objects, suitable for design, food, jewellery and works of art.

3) Professional set for shooting in open or closed environments

In this case the equipment is complex. The quantity depends on lighting and transport needs; quality by power and definition ability. In general, you need:

1. Optical camera and large and medium format digital camera
2. Continuous lighting fixtures
3. Digital backs
4. Computer complete with peripherals
5. Photo archiving and reprocessing software

It is clear that the equipment is not everything: the most important factor is the photographer’s ability, his experience and the willingness to make a cost estimate for the photo book by calculating all the items.

Conclusions

Now you are aware of all the tips on how to make a photo book, on the cost of equipment, on the rules to be respected and on the management of photosets.