Friday 25 January 2013

In Print

I've long used Vistaprint to design promotional products for my little crafty business, and calendars and other photo gifts for family and friends, however the company recently branched out into photobooks.  I'd lots of digital scrapbook pages that had never been put into print (a very expensive business at the local print shop) and as there was a good introductory offer going I went ahead and designed and ordered a book.  When it came I was very pleased with the quality of the printing and the book itself, so much so that when there was another good deal on offer a couple of weeks ago I was tempted again and ordered two more books - one large square and one large landscape.


The scrapbook page book is 8 inches square and although traditionally scrapbook pages are meant to be 12 inches square, this size is perfectly acceptable.  The only potential problem with getting pages printed in book form is possibly losing edges due to "bleed" in the printing process, ie to get images printed right up to the edge of the page a tiny strip will be cut off. 


This doesn't usually matter much but needs thinking about when adding text or journaling notes to pages - I was lucky at the bottom of this double page spread.



I wanted to print my blog monthly review pages from 2012 in a separate book so this was my second square title.  There are 24 pages in a book (extra pages can be added at a small cost) therefore 12 monthly layouts fitted in easily and I added some of my favourite 2012 photos to the other pages.  The monthly review layouts mostly go right to the edge of the page and if I'd thought about it more I would have paid extra to add in the "lay flat" feature.  Must remember that for next year.


My large landscape book was pure indulgence!  In the age of the digital camera, holiday photos are mostly destined to stay in digital form, and once the holiday is over probably never to be looked at again.  I captured some lovely scenes during my visit to Nice last October and thought they deserved to be seen in print.


I must say I'm really impressed with the quality of the printing and the finish of the books.  I opted for photo covers - which is included in the basic cost - and chose the page layouts myself instead of letting Vistaprint fill the book with my photos automatically.  However its an easy process and not at all lengthy if you don't change your mind a dozen times about which pictures to include (like I usually do).

So if you've lots of photos you'd like to see in print - either from your blog, a holiday, or a special occasion, its worth keeping an eye out for special offers from Vistaprint and grab a bargain when you see it.

By the way, this is not an advertisement for the company - I'm sure there are other equally efficient companies out there that do just as good a job - this is just the one I use and have found very efficient.

9 comments:

  1. This is fantastic! You must be very proud to see your wonderful work and photography in print.

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a professional finish - without a doubt due to the professional quality of your photographs! Have a great weekend Ann xxx

    ReplyDelete
  3. Awesome books, wow! Your monthly review pages of 2012 are so beautiful! I started a project like this myself this year (well it was Godelieve who convinced me to do so in fact :)). Hoping to make a book as well by the end of this year, looking forward to it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a lovely idea! The books are beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Two basic types of machines -- a web press and a sheet-fed printer -- are the most common. Web presses are common for larger runs (2,000+ books), and sheet-fed printers are used for smaller runs. Both machines may have different signature page counts, but the resulting book is usually the same. Digital presses are fine for extremely small runs (500 or less) but the cost per book will be high, and the quality and printing consistency will not be as good as with a traditional press.



    Digital Book Printing

    ReplyDelete
  6. WOW! How fantastic!! It looks soooooo professional. What a perfect way to cherish those pix and to show off your photography skill.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Wow Ann, I LOVE your books!! Must feel great, composing your own albums.
    Thanks for the link, I bookmarked the website.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Your books look lovley. I used Vista Print for my business cards and found them to be very efficent. Now Jessops has gone maybe this is the way to go. hugs Mrs A.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow, these books are wonderful to look at! I love the monthly pages and the big book with the landscape photos! It would have been a pity indeed to look at these beauties just once and them forget them in a computer folder...

    ReplyDelete

Thank you so much for visiting my blog and taking the time to comment - its hugely appreciated. Ann :o)

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails