Save a Bankroll on "Homemade" Wedding Albums

[shadesofgray1]

I have been a professional DJ for over 13 years now, and recently decided to start my "real" career as a Veterinarian. I am currently enrolled at UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, but I digress. Over the years, I have met a number of other wedding professionals, especially photographers. We seem to be the only two professions (besides the caterers) that are a must, regardless of the budget of the wedding: the DJ and the Photographer. The new trend seems to be these magazine style wedding albums which the photographer will be happy to arrange for you for a nominal fee of $800 plus. (I've seen some books as high as $2000 and more).

Here's my advice: Find a photographer that will sell (or even better, GIVE) you the digital negatives from his/her day of filming your event. (Most Photographers have switched to digital these days and shoot high resolution .jpg's). Don't purchase any photos from him/her unless you absolutely have to. I would even suggest asking for a discount by not taking the prints offered in their "package." Just find someone who will show up and hand over the "film." Or have Uncle Joe with his Digital Rebel (nothing against Nikon, but I'm a Canon man) shoot the day for you and really save some bucks. If you can afford a pro, go for it 'cause then if something happens to the prints or the quality isn't what you wanted, you don't have to take it out on family.

You can then take these images, upload them into the my publisher software and create your own book, with professional (or Uncle Joe quality) photographs for a fraction of the cost. Do the math...

A Deluxe Hardcover Book (at the time of this entry, and I'm rounding) runs $60 for 20 pages. Each additional page is 3 bucks. If you get the biggest book possible (100 pages), you spend $300 ($60 for the initial 20 and $240 for the other 80 pages (80*$3.00)). In short, you are getting your very own wedding album for less than 40% of the cost of the cheapest one I've found elsewhere. The best part: with the current promotion (VAL2550), you get 50% off any order over $100 which means your book now costs $150 or you can get a second copy for free. BEAT THAT!!!

Want a special gift for your friends and family, I recommend that you print a few copies of the classic or paperback while you have the order in and use them as parents' or wedding party albums. (Largest paperback (100pgs) costs around $50 and the largest Classic runs about $110 in linen and $120 in leather, and don't forget to take another 50% of these, too).

So, in short (too late)... Buy 2 Deluxe Hardcovers, 2 Classics (for the parents) and 10 Paperbacks (for the wedding party) at half off for about $520 (plus your tax & shipping) and you're still pocketing $280 that you would have given to a photographer for one $800 book. (Did I mention their book was only 30 to 40 pages)

So, why is a Veterinary Student concerned about getting the best deal on Wedding albums? I just got engaged on New Year's Eve and we're looking to save a few bucks ourselves on the upcoming August 2008 wedding. With two sets of Student Loans, we need all the help we can get!

Good luck and happy printing!

P.S. I have already printed a few books for my daughter with pictures I took. Kids love to see themselves in pictures and her face lights up when she gets to read "her" book. Some ideas: take the kids to the zoo and get pictures as if you are telling a story, i.e. outside the zoo looking in, buying tickets, the animals, anything you can think of to make it interesting but make sure to include the family in the pictures, too. Then put the pictures together with or without text and bind it together in your very first children's book. They'll love it and it makes a great keepsake! Works for anything... the beach, Disney, vacations. Just take lots of pictures and have fun!

[shadesofgray1]

...The best part: with the current promotion (VAL2550), you get 50% off any order over $100 which means your book now costs $150 or you can get a second copy for free. BEAT THAT!!! ... Buy 2 Deluxe Hardcovers, 2 Classics (for the parents) and 10 Paperbacks (for the wedding party) at half off for about $520 (plus your tax & shipping) and you're still pocketing $280 that you would have given to a photographer for one $800 book. (Did I mention their book was only 30 to 40 pages)..."

In my zeal for publishing this discussion, I made an error. You can print 1 Deluxe (not two), 2 Classics and 10 Paperbacks for about $520. I accidentally used the 50% price I calculated earlier in my discussion and when I added them up and took another 50% off at the total. In other words, I double discounted the Deluxe book in my example. The point should still be clear, though: You can save a ton of money using mypublisher.com. One of my groomsmen got one of the "professional" albums and he was showing me the book last night. Don't get me wrong, it was nice, but not worth the $750 he paid for it. You can do so much better with equal (if not better) quality at a fraction of the price right here! We are going to use his photographer, though! (Uncle Joe was unavailable!)

I hope this helps!

Charlie

[cliffbatson]

I am a photographer.

There is a reason that you DON'T want "Uncle Joe" to shoot your wedding... your pictures will suffer. My wife and I had a friend (who is a commercial photographer) shoot our wedding two years ago. He did it as a gift. We thought we were saving a bundle.

My wife cried when she saw our wedding pictures. But they were NOT tears of joy. My friend, the professional photographer, was not a seasoned WEDDING photographer. We should have bit the bullet and paid $2,000 for a photographer who was good at shooting weddings. There were no detail shots of her shoes, tierra, flowers, etc. Our formal pictures were awful since he didn't know how to pose groups.

If you're happy with mediocre photos of your (hopefully) once-in-a-lifetime event, that's fine.

But, please consider that it takes a really good photographer to shoot really good wedding photos. That, and all the post-production time in Photoshop making you look your best, is why wedding photographers charge so much. (Oh, and the expense of all the gear, and the stress of having to get the shot right with only one chance... that makes the price go up too.)

Best,
Cliff

[ExposeTheMoment]

I use my publisher, however the everday users of mypublisher will never be able to take a mypublisher book and make it look like this.

http://www.exposethemoment.com/WeddingAlbumShow/

The above webshows show how I take my weddings and make them into excellent wedding albums.

[shadesofgray1]

To the photographers out there!!!

I do want to point out, I was not trying to discourage individuals from using professional photographers. I am a firm believer that you get what you pay for!!! I even said if you use "Uncle Joe" and your pictures suck (which they probably will), you'll be upset. I stated in my blurb that you should get a professional that will sell (or give you) the negatives from your day.

True, you may not get the same quality if you "do it yourself" vs. having a professional do your spread, but what is the difference in cost? I notice that you mentioned nothing of what you charge with your web link. Some people may not be very computer saavy and be able to create the Photoshop spread that pros do, but everyone has their own preference as to photojournalistic approach to pictures. I don't care if I have a close-up picture in my album of cauliflower. I am happy with the way that my albums turned out using the basic mypublisher software. If people want to learn how to create better spreads, they can buy a book or get some decent software and still use mypublisher, and STILL save money. It's like scrapbooking. Why would you want someone else putting together YOUR memories?

My comments were to save people money that would have otherwise either not used a photographer or not had a wedding album because they thought they couldn't afford it. I am not anti-photographer, but I most definitely am pro-consumer. That's the key! A little healthy competition is good for the industry and if the photographers of the world are worth the money they charge, they will have no problem selling themselves!

[Camilla]

I am also a professional wedding photographer. Because this is what I do for a living, my "real" career, I charge for my talent. I would be very wary of a photographer who will give the negatives immediately unless you are paying at the very least $3000 for their time and talent. Still, since I retouch every image I give my clients, it takes time. The pictures you don't want to be disappointed in are your wedding pictures. Its worth it to pay a few thousand dollars for these heirlooms. I would also recommend purchasing a high end album for your wedding pictures, yes they can cost anywhere from $800 to $1500 (shouldn't cost much more then that, but will cost at least $800 for a quality handcrafted album), this is your wedding day and it's the book that symbolizes your union to the person you love and the start of your life together. I keep that in mind with every wedding I photograph, and spend nearly two full work weeks on each wedding. It's worth it to my clients to pay for this art.

I'm looking at this site for options as bridesmaids gifts, or possibly a parent album.

[a-mom]

Wow, people really spend that much on wedding day photographs! I mean no offense, as everyone needs to make a living, but what people are paying for their albums my family of 6 could live off of for a month! We had a pro come in for the basic shots and spent about $500 including the couple prints we wanted. Most don't advertise this type of package, but if the date is open they will take even a small job like this. I will honestly say though that my favorite photos are the ones my friends and family took that day. Perhaps I am just a snapshot type of gal though.
I really can't imagine sinking that kind of money into photos, when I have my day to day life to remind me how much I love my husband and how special our marriage is. Different folks, different priorities, different needs.

[Gavin Photography]

I'm a professional too.

I include digital negatives to allow my clients to make these decisions. But remember that you pay for experience and expertise.

Example: I even upload prints after a shoot to Costco photo center for my clients. But I have seen people at costco yell at the photo employees because the image is messed up. When I looked, it was because the 8x10 printed cropped parts of the image. This is classic of regular people not knowing about image ratios, cropping, or print dpi's (which who would know unless it is your profession).

Professionals pay attention to such details, and have paid time and/or money getting this down to an art. Remember that messing up that 8x10 print costs $1.50; messing up an album from here can cost you $50-$300 per try.

You can:

1. learn basic printing yourself (which most people don't want to or have time for)
2. pay for someone that knows what they are doing
3. throw a hail mary and swallow your pride when the results come

I like to give my clients these options, which allows them to save money if they don't have it and spend it well if they do.

Oh, and I highly advise against Uncle Joe and his rebel. They cannot appropiately light most weddings situations (lack of equipment) and I've seen the many that spend thousands into their recreation often don't use it to the full (or correct) potential

Gavin
http://www.gavinphotography.com/

Message was edited by: Gavin Photography

Message was edited by: Gavin Photography

Message was edited by: Gavin Photography

[DoItYourselfer]

Here is a perspective from a bride who chose to hire an "expert". We hired an "expert" photographer for our wedding last summer. When were interviewing photographers we did not know that we could create our own photo album so we hired the photographer based on her samples albums. In retrospect that was a big mistake. After spending over $4000 we ended up with 507 picture and at least 100 of them were of trivial things such as 10 shots of my shoes on top of a ledge in the dressing room (needless to say we were not impressed).

When we went to look at her albums she wanted over $1000 more. So I went online and found MyPublisher. We figured that for less than $100 we would take our chances on MyPublisher and see what we got. We gathered all of the digital pictures from the photographer, and our friends and family, together and began working on which pictures we wanted to include. It took my husband and I over 20+ hours to build it. But we were able to include our favorite shots from everyone (including many candid shots) and truly tell "our" story.

We were absolutely amazed with the results when we received our wedding album. Our family and friends were equally impressed with the quality and how easy it was to create. Even my sister who is a Graphic Designer commented on how professional it was done and how it looked better than her wedding album.

Since we made our book 6 months ago, MyPublisher has added more features and layout options. We are now in the process of making our mother's photo albums for Mother's Day and can't wait to see those results.

So if you are curious, go ahead and make a book. I guarantee you will be impressed.

[rudy_spice]

I have to agree with both sides. We did use a professional photog, but also had a good friend use her nice SLR to document our wedding as well. I actually liked some of her photos better than the professional's. Part of our package included a wedding album, and we LOVE our album done by the professional. But, I felt like there was a little missing... So I took all our candid snapshots from our rehearsal dinner, getting ready, reception and our honeymoon and made a mypublisher book and I was so pleased with how it turned out! So, I'm a bet hedging girl and would do both!

[smile]

You can also save a bundle on your wedding packagae by not using a DJ. Bring your own portable CD Player and CD's. That way you can spend a lot more on the photographer and get professonial photo journalism to put into an album. Most Photographers will gladly sell the images on disc to you. But remember if uncle Joe can't take a shot you won't have it.

[aaronfriend]

I just found mypublisher and it looks like a fabulous product. I am a professional wedding photographer and I just have to disagree with "shadesofgray1" about getting a photographer to "show up and hand over the film" comment. This is the biggest mistake a couple can make with a wedding photographer. Unlike film, the image is "finished" in post production work. The RAW files (or jpgs) taken at the wedding are only a starting point for the creative process. Today, in the digital world, wedding photographers have been forced to become computer savy, color correction specialists. I may spend 8 hours capturing a wedding, however, my skill and creativity are employed through a workflow that maintains a ProPhoto, 16bit color space and can take weeks to "develop". For the most part, you will only find low end photographers on Craigslist willing to "shoot and burn". In the film era, the lab would finish the job, today, by asking for the raw files you are only getting a half baked product. Now, requesting the high-res FINISHED/PROCESSED files is a different story.

Cheers,
Aaron
www.willcoxphotography.com

[ExposeTheMoment]

All the albums here http://photos.exposethemoment.com/Wedding/320766 have been professionally designed using Photoshop. Then each page was inserted into a mypublisher book.

When people hire me, they are not paying a lot of money for an album, they are paying me to have a professionally designed custom album that know one else has.

Mypublisher albums may be ok, but having a custom designed album page makes a Mypbulisher album stand out.

[ej32307]

Okay, I have to say...I checked out those albums at Expose the Moment and they are HORRIBLE. The layouts that mypublisher has are so much better! While I don't like the new theme album layouts, I love the original mypublisher layouts because they are so versatile. Mypublisher also forces you into some better design habits, as well. They discourage the user from basically crapping out EVERY SINGLE PICTURE THAT WAS TAKEN by limiting the layout to just a few good photos. But, if you do want to have a lot of photos on one page, mypublisher forces you to use the nine- or twelve-photo layouts that force simplicity, so you don't overclutter the space. Mypublisher forces you to have a unifying theme, as well. What I didn't like about your albums is that the books are so inconsistent page-to-page, including the color schemes and the actual layout. For example, the Corbally wedding, with one random "scattered photos" type layout on page nine, amidst an album of more traditionally aligned photos. As another example, the Grant album on page two with a GIANT picture of shoes (if this weren't bad enough, you have the interesting part of the shoes being covered up, leaving a gaping space at the top of the page) and a horrible photo of the bride looking at the camera cross-eyed in the center.

How much do you charge for your albums above the cost of printing with mypublisher? I'm sorry, but your "professionally designed custom albums" are painful for me to look at. I would take a mypublisher book over your layouts any day. I blame this on the "photojournalism" boom that has made people think they can just throw things on a page and forget about good elements of design.

[banm]

I checked these albums out and I have to say I am very glad you are not my wedding photographer. I am also glad you are not a co-worker of mine. As a graphic artist and mother I was smart enough to know that I would not have enough time to create an album of my own right away however I am also smart enough to request my finished images from photographer so I can combine the images my family takes with some of the profesional ones as well and make and album of my own as well.

There are good points on both sides of this hiring a photographer if you have enough money for it is great, however if you cannot afford all the albums and everything else then this is good option for those who simply cannot swing the huge bill. I think wedding photographers forget that although the moment only happens once not everyone can afford to spend a fortune on it. I also feel that the large majority are over priced for what you actually get. They understand that they are something everyone requires and mark up accordingly, eviendence of the "off-season discount" if you can charge that amount 3 months of the year why not 12, the answer is because of good old fashion supply and demand go ahead and mark it up to the peoples breaking point.

[laeta904]

As a bride who VERY much valued excellent photos of my wedding two years ago and one who also works part time as a wedding photographer, I see multiple views of this discussion as valid.

For me as a bride, having fabulous wedding photos was the most important thing. For that reason, I would not have asked a family member or friend to photograph my wedding (unless they were VERY experienced in wedding photography and perhaps not even unless they were a professional wedding photographer who I knew took photos in the style I like). Once I found a photographer who was willing to give me the (somewhat cropped and edited and also culled of most with blurs and blinks) digital images, I was hooked. I LOVED their philosophy that the main thing I was paying for was their ability to take good photos. If I wanted to take the dvd of images and have every single one (I believe almost 1000 images, even after being culled down) printed at Walgreens, that was my choice. However, if I wanted an incredible, custom album, they also offered those as well (and in several different styles, not just yearbook/magazine style).

My situation: I still do not have the money to spend to have them make the kind of custom, more traditional wedding album I would like to have as a keepsake of my wedding, but I AM working on saving the money to have them do that album (yes, even 2 years later, I intend to have my original photographers make an album for me). In the meantime, until I can afford a custom, traditional album, I have designed several MyPublisher albums (for my family and myself), which have been a wonderful and more affordable way to share my fabulous photos. In addition, I fully intend to (and have started working on) designing for myself a deluxe album, probably with the full 100 pages, including EVERY single photo I could possibly desire to use in an album, simply because I realize that I WILL NOT be able to choose nearly as many photos once I CAN afford to purchase that custom album. One caveat to this plan of action, however, is that I consider myself to be slightly more adept at album design than the average bride, and would not suggest this avenue for every individual.

So, in conclusion, I see both sides of the issue. If you truly cannot afford to hire an expensive professional, then at least you can ask a family member/friend and have some photographic record of your special day (and you might possibly end up with some great images), and MyPublisher (especially the standard size) is a VERY affordable avenue to create a nice album. If can afford to hire a professional photographer who is willing to give you the digital images, there are many options for you - purchasing all your wedding images from them, printing them at Walgreens or designing your own albums here, or even just printing them on your home computer/printer OR you can always combine a mixture of them all. In all honesty, I will say that most, but not all, professionals will probably be able to create an album for you which is of higher quality (at least in the binding and photo quality, i.e. real mounted photos) than a MyPublisher album; however, their design style may not be exactly what you would like and/or you may not be able to use all of the photos you might wish to include. SO, my suggestion is to do what feels right for you, and it doesn't really matter what anyone else thinks.

[LuvMyM8]

I just found this site... My burning question is at the end of my post, but here's a little intro.

We just got married, and to save (a lot) of money, we opted for the "hand-over-the-film" option with our pro photographer (even though he encouraged a digital package). But, 2nd marriage, other expenses, experience with PS CS2, etc., we went with film and did save a bundle. We had the film processed at Image Experts in Hollywood and got 4X6 proofs. They also scanned the negs as hi-res images on CDs. The photographer shot only 4 rolls of film, but we do have some fun photos taken by friends & family with their digital cameras.

But now I am facing the dilemma of album creation. We want to have a traditional album with reprints from the negatives. We also want to have a digital photo album or photobook.

I must say that being a consumer (and not a professional photographer), it is difficult to obtain the resources needed to create these albums. Many album manufacturers only deal with pro photographers... try finding high quality albums in your local stores.

As for the photobook approach, I find that quality seems to be a problem. I tried (a free) offer with shutterfly. Hmmm, well, it's OK, but it didn't take me long to get out my loupe and inspect. Look at all those little (not so tiny) dots making up the image on the thin paper! I was expecting photographic images printed on actual photo paper (silly me!?)

So, my burning 2-fold question is:

1) How good is the quality of "mypublisher" photobook printed pages? Is it on photo paper? Is it coarse, fuzzy, and/or rough?

2) Where can a consumer purchase high quality photo albums - for inserting/mounting actual photographs?

Your help and feedback is greatly appreciated!

P.S. For you young ones out there who have parents that can afford to pay for your wedding and photo package, go with digital!

[irusan]

Check out Professional Photographer, the official journal of PPA (Professional Photographers of America) - you can't buy the journal in a bookstore, but you can view it online here: http://www.ppmag.com/

The advertisers section should list places where you can get albums made. One note, though; you should obtain a letter from your photographer (tell him you'll buy him a beer) that explicitly states that he transferred the copyright to you and you are the rightful owners of the negatives.

One of the big reasons vendors don't sell to the general public is that it makes an inadvertent violation of a copyright a lot less likely.

Of course, MyPublisher is a great way to make secondary albums for friends and family!

Good luck,

Rob

[irusan]

Oops - forgot the major reason a lot of professional vendors don't sell directly to the public; they are usually not registered as a retail company and, therefore, cannot collect sales tax.

So, they sell to a professional photographer, who is usually registered with the state as a retail provider and has a tax number. The photographer then sells to you, the final customer, and charges the sales tax.

Rob

[Branimir]

Its interesting how people value photography and photographers so very differently. I am a professional photojournalist who from time to time shoots weddings. I recently shot my cousins European wedding which is the reason I am on MyPublisher. Relying on "Uncle Joe" to shoot your wedding is like having "Uncle Joe" diagnose that rash on your back. If you value your existence then your will go see a dermatologist. If you value your personal history, then you will at least find a capable photography student to shoot your wedding. As a professional photojournalist I am regularly responsible for delivering 5-10 photos of each assignment I shoot. I have a firm understanding of how connected and present a photographer must be when illustrating a story visually. I think a wedding photographers job is much tougher than a photojournalists. A wedding photographer is generally responsible for 50-200 images, all within a 6-12 hour time frame.

A wedding photographer has to be acutely aware of the interactions and relations unfolding in front of him or her. Beyond having an ability to compose eye catching photos, a wedding photographer must be as intuitive as psychologist, organized like a general and agile like a gymnast, all while being as non-invasive as casper the ghost. Sure there might be a lot of people happy with all the snap shots collected from their guests, but that is only because they have no clue what they are missing.

I have been to weddings were I have seen photographers completely take over and stage every moment of the day. I have been to weddings where the photographer was a wet ball of sweat with sagging pants that put plumbers to shame. A wedding photographer's presence transcends even photography and shooting style. I think my point is that a wedding photographer is such and integral presence in the days landscape and plays such an important role, that the consideration of a photographer is as important as considering who the best man or maid of honor will be. While you will always consider price, I think considering the personality and style is even more important. Choose your photographers in the same way you choose your location, priest or rabbi and wedding party - with purpose and specific intent and consideration.

Using MyPublisher has nothing to do with the photographer you choose. MyPublisher is awesome wether you use Uncle Joe's photos or a $10,000 wedding photographers photos. I personally prefer MyPublisher to any of the traditional albums out there. I think the Deluxe Hardcover PhotoBooks are much sexier than other options. Sure, MyPublisher makes it easy for anyone to layout photos, but personally, I would never just hand over photos because as important as the gathering process is, its only half the job and I would never want someone else's interpretation of my work represent me. Even though MyPublisher makes it so easy to place photos on the pages, it still takes a lot of experience to be able to edit and group the photos appropriately with the intent of specific story telling.

From the 3500 photos I shot at my last wedding, I created a DVD slide show with 380 of those photos. Of those 380, only 194 got into the book. There are very different inspirations that are considered in the different mediums and I think a professional makes the difference between a bunch of photos from your wedding and a document that you will be proud to show for the rest of your existence and a document for the ages that will be around and appreciated long after you are gone.

Wether or not your ever get married, one time in your life, hire a professional photographer for your personal documentation - you will thank me if you do....I promise! :)

[irusan]

Branimir writes:

> Using MyPublisher has nothing to do with the photographer you choose...

That's an excellent comment!

As a photographer, I am biased. However, I am constantly amazed that people will balk at spending a few thousand dollars on their wedding photographer but will gladly shell out an extra $10 per person (at a wedding of 300 guests) for the premium bar package. And the bride and groom don't really get to enjoy it themselves.

Certainly there are a lot of people who cannot (or don't want to) afford a lot of money on their wedding and thank goodness Uncle Joe can take the pictures because, if it weren't for him, there'd be NO photographs at all.

For the others, I try to remind clients that there are only three tangible things you are left with the day after your wedding: your spouse, your ring, your photographs.

Here's a tip for the other wedding photographers out there: I started using an online event registration website. Initially, the purpose was to handle the registrations for classes that I teach. They recently introduced an option to collect donations and I've started offering that as an option for my clients. Through this site, I can list their wedding as an upcoming event and then the couple can ask for donations to their wedding photography as a gift option. You can set it up for a specific amount per donation, leave it open-ended, or create a final donation amount (letting people donate however much they want but have a cap on the total amount).

This provides the couple a chance to get professional wedding photography done while not incurring the total cost themselves. The payments are done through PayPal and the registration site provides reports on the transactions.

As the photographer, I get payment up front through the donations.

Rob

[peyperphoto]

All I can say to this is that one solution will not suit everybody. You need to either find the photographer that will shoot in the style you prefer & be sure you will get the style you want & the quality to go with it. Or if you're on a budget & you might not mind a lesser quality then have it done by a friend with a camera (I don't like calling people with cameras photographers - it takes more than having a camera).
But one thing I can say for certain is that you can't put a price on experience. This experience is something that allows a good photographer to capture a moment in time that wil never happen again, and secondly, it needs to be captured in the right mood, the right atmosphere & the right angle. So many elements to creating a picture - they don't just happen. And thierdly the post production stage is very important. I could give somebody (without the right expereince) my digital negatives, all my equipment & software, but in the wrong hands even a good picture can be messed up badly.
Photography is an art & a technical skill - it doesn't happen over night & not everybody has the eye for it. Like any professional service it costs money.
I mean photographers can spend thousounds on equipment! I am not saying the best equipment gives the best pictures, the right equipment with the right eyes in the right hands, YES!! But this costs money!
All I am saying is be sure of what you want & what you will get when choosing your photographer (or person with a camera). Make sure your photographer is versatile & flexible.
I know I do my best to be - every package is what our customer wants - even if it means they might need to pay a little more (or a little less) we strive to make every package as unique as the wedding day and the Bride & Groom involved.
http://www.peyperphoto.com

[photo57]

What a load of rubbish. To think that you can create an album of pro quality using a stock program such as mypublisher, you've got to be unaware of what pro's are doing these days. you're getting a volkswagon, not even a chevy or jag. Unless you know what pros can do with their pro tools, you should not compare apples to oranges.

[asmit4]

I realize that books like these often cause problems for professionals b/c it can take away business. I can also say that while the layouts on my publisher are getting better- they are not what I would want for layouts for my wedding album....BUT...and this is a BIG BUT....have ANY of you ever done your pages via powerpoint and uploaded them as FULL images???

I made a mypublisher album using powerpoint. You basically create the slides, using backgrounds, fade out, pictures over one another etc etc...and then you save EACH slide as a JPG. Then you upload EACH slide, and you choose the "full bleed/full page" option.

I can honestly say without hesitation that my book that I created LOOKS professional. This isn't about comparing apples and oranges, it's about doing what you can to make an album that each of us can afford. I could only afford 2K for photos, so I found the best photographer I could and bought the images. The photos they took are amazing but the album would have been 1500 more. I made mine and got multiples for family for next to nothing.

If any of you want help to make your own WITHOUT using the limiting templates, help is out there. Check out www.theknot.com and type in "mypublisher" in the forums section. You will find GORGEOUS albums....that look professional.

Ours took probably 40 hours to create, but it was 100% worth it b/c it's truly MY album by my husband and I.

Examples and directions for various options are below:

http://www.geocities.com/mross711/wedding/mypublisher.html

http://www.theknot.com/co_profileview.htm?profilename=MyPublisherBio&MsdVisit=1

[asmit4]

> I use my publisher, however the everday users of
> mypublisher will never be able to take a mypublisher
> book and make it look like this.
>
> http://www.exposethemoment.com/WeddingAlbumShow/
>
> The above webshows show how I take my weddings and
> make them into excellent wedding albums.


To "expose the moment"

I spose you are right that "everyday users" won't be able to use the "prefabricated MP layouts" to produce albums that you have created but to be honest, MOST people nowadays know photoshop or at a minimum know powerpoint. At least most educated people that I know.

The albums you created are beautiful, but I, too, created my own deluxe album that look just as nice as the ones you created and I consider myself an "average joe". I honestly don't think your albums have any real "pizazz" that I didn't put in my last album that I just sent off to print. Granted it took some work to figure out things like opacity and cropping but nothing that an "average joe" can't figure out if they want to take the time.

Today I just sent my 3rd one off for printer and I have also learned a lot with each book that I've made which is why we deliberately started with the parent albums first and ours last.

Many people here claim that photographers are giving "raw photos"...on the contrary, our photographer took about 1500 photos and gave us "the best 700". She retouched EVERY single photo of that 700. So I am working with "retouched, and perfected" photos.

While I do not deny that photographers can do amazing things, I also do not deny that many brides simply cannot afford 1500-3K for an album on top of the photography cost. MANY photographers are more than willing to do the photography for the day, prep all the photos or at least "the best taken", and give them to you in the full size jpgs and that is what we did.

There is certainly a place for traditional albums, but to say that the "average person" can't create an album as beautiful as yours is a bit of a stretch. I'll be happy to post my finished product from my publisher....a book by an "average joe"

[Gujustud]

Being a wedding photography for 3 years now, here's my take on it.

I personally do NOT give out 'printable' images on disc to my clients, and here's why:

1) Back in the day of 'film' photography, you would almost NEVER get the negatives from your photographer. Yes I understand times have changed now to a different medium.

2) My job is to make sure that you are getting the HIGHEST of quality of images from your ONE special day. This is not a DAY that you can recreate. Which is why I am EXTREMELY EXTREMELY against uncle bob taking your photos.

3) My job is to make sure I KNOW how to create the highest of quality of images I take for you in print.

I don't want a bride to take my images, go print them at walmart, costco slap them together in some cheap album, then say 'soso did my photography'. When other people look at this 'sometimes' half-ars job, that effects my credibility as a photographer. That other person might think 'damn what a cheap job, i wouldn't hire this guy'.

My job is not only to take pictures but to create the memories in a PRINT for you. Do I lose bookings from not giving away high quality JPEG/RAW images? Yes, sometimes I do. But I make a point in person to explain this, and I take and show proof to brides the difference between prints at a place where anyone can go, compared to places I get specialty prints done, along with the type of post processing that comes along with my work.

[shadesofgray1]

Uncle Joe, not Uncle Bob...


I just want to say that I am just glad that I could be "responsible" for generating so much interest in this subject. I think the bottom line is that now people are realizing there are options and some very good points being made.

So in summary:

Do what works for you...Do what you can afford...Shop around...

But all in all, no matter what route you choose, MyPublisher is still pretty darn cool!

And I'm spent!

[Rachel0814p]

I'm a professional graphic artist and partner to a high end professional wedding photographer in Southern California. One major point in this debate between the DIY (do it yourself) Brides and Go-To-Pro Brides that no one has yet mentioned here is the value of true archival quality heirloom products.

My studio offers our clients MyPublisher books (which I professionally design first in Photoshop) as engagement photo guestbooks or photo gift books (for weddings, portraits, whatever) ONLY and NEVER as a bridal couple's final heirloom album.

To think that a product like the classic or deluxe book from MyPublisher could even contend with a heirloom quality album from makers like Leather Craftsmen, GraphiStudio and Zookbinders is just ridiculous.

CMYK printing on cheap paper in a cheap, stitch-bound cardboard book is NOT going to last more than a few years (a decade if its not handled often and stored in a cool dry place in the dark) before it yellows, fades or the pages begin to fall out. Not to mention that the color accuracy is always off on low end CMYK printed books, including those from MyPublisher and Blurb and all the rest. (High end CMYK printed magazine style albums are best purchased from pro vendors like Asuka Book, not accessible to the public.)

Professional printed pages from a reputable lab (not Costco!) using archival quality photopaper like Professional Kodak Endura paper in a carefully crafted, top quality--and yes, expensive--flushmount bound book is the ONLY way to get a wedding album that is guaranteed to outlast your lifetime. If you want something to pass down to your grandkids, you've got to understand the value in these high end albums. Why pay ANYTHING for professional photography if you're not going to preserve it??? But some people don't value that and are happy to have less, so its a personal choice and of course always a matter of money, and those who would rather skimp are not the type of clients we work with anyway.

IMO, MyPublisher is so far the best of the DIY coffee table books. MyPublisher offers great products for consumers wanting brag books of their kids, pets, annual camping trip, etc. The products are even good enough for professional photographers to offer--as I mentioned earlier--inexpensive guestbooks and gift books to their brides.

BUT MyPublisher doesn't consistently use the same stock of paper!! I have a few sample books from MyPublisher in my possession that I ordered at different times throughout this past year, and the very first book I'd gotten (the one that prompted me to order more) has bright white, thick glossy pages. The second book I ordered had dull, thin pages and the images showed pixelation and ruddy coloring. The third book had better pages and printing than the second but not quite as good as the first.

I hope this sort of issue is resolved quickly. If the next book I order isn't up to par, I will have to stop using MyPublisher and switch out to ZookBinders new PhotoBooks (fabulous products for the pricepoint!!!). They're 2 times pricier than the books from MyPublisher and are a slightly different product (they mimick flushmount albums as opposed to magazine style), but I'm willing to pay more to consistently exceed my client's expectations.

And BTW, what does a wedding DJ know about a professional photographer's product line anyway??? How would it sound if I tried to educate a bride on whether a DJ is worth his/her price based on how valuable I perceive their equipment to be. I obviously don't know crap about it because its not my profession. Vendors should stick to what they know, and offer referrals for services or products from other vendors ONLY because they've worked well together in the past and have shared many happy, satisfied clients.

[BrendaJean316]

YES YES YES
Use a Professional Photographer.

The main reason is that his equipment high dollar and has the best resolution you can get (or make sure of it anyway). Then you can crop, zoom, etc. and your photos will be fine.

A low pixel camera will give you poor images.

I paid $2700 for my photographer - the highest dollar item of the whole event. But to me, its the most important , after the fact, money spent. This included engagement photo session, signature book of these photos, his time at the wedding & 16x20 portrait. I in turn spent another $1000 to buy the copyrights to my photos. My photographer was a Journalistic style, which was a must for me. I don't regret a single penny, but I'm thankful for MP to help me save $$ going forward.

[BrendaJean316]

And to add to my post - since I own my photographs, I can afford to get layman's quality now, and high dollar later.