I love my camera. I love to take pictures. But I have a confession to make. I rarely ever print those photos. The closest they get to being printed is if they make it on my blog. Sad I know. I have great intentions for them. One word. Photobooks.
This is where another confession comes into play. While I make lots of photobooks....they are rarely for me. They go to loved ones as gifts. I dream of having a nice shiny row of them in my bookcase. One day maybe. For now I have a precious few. For what it's worth....a photobook makes an AWESOME gift!!
For years, I used an on-line company called Photoworks for my books. Unfortunately, they closed down earlier this spring. This has forced me to start looking elsewhere. I'm not one to use a million different companies...I prefer to find one I like that has a good quality product and then stick with them. The benefits are that you learn their software inside and out, learn how their promotions work, your photos/creations are in one central spot. Just works for me. That being said...I'm open to trying out other companies as well.
One of the companies I've tried out is Picaboo. I love the album I made (above) of a family photoshoot we had done a few years back. There are a ton of different templates to use (depending on how many photos you want on each page), the program is easy to use and I loved the finished product.
Here's a quick peek inside the album:
If you've ever had a family photoshoot done, a photobook is a fantastic way to display them. What do you do with your photos after a shoot? I usually end up choosing one for our annual Christmas card. And then I agonize over which photos to blow up and print on a canvas. I *may* have slight commitment issues when it comes to narrowing down a photo choice and getting a canvas printed for my walls. So it doesn't happen. I do have intentions and plans though. At least I have managed to get photobooks made of them.
As I mentioned, the book above was made by Picaboo. It's a big book. Almost a bit too big for my preference I think? I created two smaller books (4x6 size roughly) for some mini family photos from the past couple of years. These were made by (the no longer in business) Photoworks...
There are lots of different companies out there offering photobooks. I think it comes down to a personal preference, quality and the price you're willing to pay. I have tried various companies. For what it's worth....Walmart was just not worth it for me. I wasn't happy at all with the finished product. The print quality was terrible. If you're local and would like to see it, let me know - I've kept it just so I can see the "clear" comparison between different companies. It's pretty obvious.
Picaboo - I've been happy with using their software and the finished product. They are pricier. But there are always promotions and coupons being offered. So the trick is....have your books ready to go ahead of time so that when a good promotion comes along you can just click and send it. I've even seen coupons come on Groupon for Picaboo.
Shutterfly - I haven't ordered a photobook from them, but a friend of mine has. I looked at it and I thought it was pretty awesome. They also have tons of different promotions and coupons all the time. I will probably try them out in the near future.
I'd love to hear about other companies that are out there. Anyone else to recommend???? Please share! Blacks/Walmart/Photolab.ca....what's your feedback??
Something else I've done in the past is to make photo calendars for Max's grandparents. I customize them for each side of the family. And I also make one for us. I loved the Photoworks calendars. And I'm sad about this because I am having a hard time finding a company that offers a similar style. It's not your traditional calendar style. This is what I have hanging in my kitchen (And seriously. In case you're wondering... No, it does not hang in the woods on the daily basis! LOL!)...
If you make photo calendars who do you use? I'm looking for recommendations.
Doing a quick search online, I've come up with the following sources so far:
(I really like Minted. But yikes! the prices!!!! LOL!)
While I may have commitment issues with blowing up photos into ginormous sizes, printing them on canvas and hanging them on my walls I do like to incorporate them into my everyday life. I'm a list maker. I have lists on the go all the time. I like to use journal type books for my lists. These books below were made by Shutterfly and I love them and are what I use to keep organized with my daily lists. They have all kinds of different styles and templates so you can add more than one photo if you like. I think they make a great gift...especially for list makers like me! :-)
In the past I've had other photo items made - mousepads, luggage tags (love them!), mugs etc. I'm always on the lookout for new, exciting and fun products. If you have something/a company you love and are excited about - please let me know! patriciajune@live.ca
And one last thing. It has been my experience that....the American Thanksgiving/Black Friday is a fantastic time to get deals online when it comes to photostuff. So....if you start now...you'll have your stuff ready to go when those fantastic deals come up. Actually, leading right up to Christmas there are usually really good coupon codes available. The trick is to get on the email lists (even if they are a bit of a pain) so you can see what the deals are at a glance. And don't forget to google coupon codes for the company you are using - that will save you something!
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