Albums

In order to reduce the amount of emails in my inbox and provide a little more info on the process of choosing and ordering I decided to do a post about albums.

There are many manufacturers, styles, colors, materials and designs to choose from. So if you’re looking for something specific, you’re in luck! Most people find this a little overwhelming, so I’ve included a standard album with my packages but have ordered six more sample albums that I’ll have by the end of February if people want to upgrade and customize a little more.

Whatever color and material you desire is available.  I was at a convention last week and saw albums with metal and animal print covers! Choosing the cover is only one of the options and there are several more such as imprinting, page material, design, etc. 

Here’s a breakdown of the different options:

1. Size.
Albums are available in a variety of sizes from 2×3 up to 14×14 or 12×18 or larger. You can choose vertical, square or horizontal orientation. Most main albums are in the range of  8×8 to 11×14.

2. Pages.
Albums can come with pages as thin as the glossy pages in the books on your coffee table to as thick as a piece of cardboard.
Coffee Table Albums: Thinner pages, typically less expensive. Bend easily and therefore can be damaged easily. Similar to pages in a book on your coffee table, hence the name
Press Printed Albums: Slightly thicker pages with printing directly on the page from the printer.
Flush-Mount Albums: Photographic prints mounted on a thin material that resembles cardboard. These pages lie flat and do not bend or wrinkle and are one of the more popular choices right now but are also more expensive than coffee table or press printed.
Matted Albums: Cutouts designed for specific photos to be mounted. The cutouts can be customized for different photo sizes or they can be all the same.

3. Cover and Materials. Metal, leather, fabric, photo, cameo.
Metal: This should be pretty obvious except that there’s different kinds of metal. You can get metal with a photo printed on it on brushed aluminum with engraving…
Leather: Different types (standard or distressed for example) of leather in different colors. Leather covers can be two-toned or all one color and have one or more photo opening on the front or not.
Fabric: Different fabric materials in different colors. Can be paired with a leather spine or be all fabric.
Photo: A photo of your choice on the front. Can be a part of the book or also inserted in an acrylic cover to stand out more.
Cameo: Leather covers with a photo cutout are called cameo covers.

4. Design.
Designs can be as cluttered or simple as your heart desires. The current trend that I personally favor is a simple design with white background with no overlapping photos. I am going to be posting some album designs here in the next week so stay tuned!

5. Budget.
Again, this is something that can vary widely depending on the album size, material, and design that you choose. Albums can cost under a hundred dollars or up to several thousands. The most expensive album I’ve ever heard of was $8,000 and I’m sure it was pretty nice. My albums currently run from $500-$1,100 for a main press printed or flush-mount album. Coffee table albums are available upon request. Parent albums which are duplicates of the main album and typically smaller are less expensive.

I am proud to offer Zookbinders, Leather Craftsmen, AsukaBook, Finao and Sequoia WillowBook albums. In the next couple of months I’ll be posting more information as well as sample designs and photos of new albums that I have ordered and should be receiving shortly. If you have already booked me for your wedding but we aren’t able to meet in person, then contact me and I’ll see if I can mail a sample to you. If you live in the area them just email me for an appointment and I’ll be happy to show you the options.