Leica and Photobooks: What to do?

[davidhunternyc]

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O.K., now you have your Leica camera and you have learned to take brilliant photographs. From what you can tell, your photos may even have that Leica feel known the world over. Now what? What if you want to create a photobook? Well, I did just that. In fact, I have created photobooks with several different companies. There is one problem, well, let's say it is a major problem. The photobooks look terrible. Really, why go to all of the expense of purchasing a Leica camera if the photos are going to look like they have been printed off a cheap inkjet printer. That is like putting a connolly leather in a Yugo. That Leica feel? Gone. In fact, the photos look like they were taken with a Kodak Instamatic. "Ahh", you're saying, "is it the photobook or the photographer"? I can assure you, the photos I can see on my calibrated screen look gorgeous (post processed with Aperture set at gamma 2.2). The question now is, which companies make photobooks that preserve the Leica feel and look phenomenal? Perhaps you know of a photobook company that uses only giclee prints. Whatever you can contribute here will be great. I need your help. Thanks to all.

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[Guest stnami]

Forget your online guys for the finished product, if you want quality then find the a high end fine art printer ............ it costs, it costs a lot but the result is there.

Photobook dot com(whatever country you are in) ain't bad but I only use them for dummy run to see how a book comes together, each 80 odd page book costs about $100 with discount.

Forget the leica feel it's a myth it is about the printers' ability and paper

[Slavkoff]

I have made a very good experience with my iphoto on a Mac. Mac produces decent photobooks.

[Slavkoff]

I have made a very good experience with my iphoto on a Mac. Mac produces decent photobooks.

[vanhulsenbeek]

I have good experiences, after trying many services, with Blurb:

 

Make your own book. Make it great.

 

Here are some examples:

Search Results | Blurb

The last (Brazil) is no doubt the best.

 

Use their Booksmart, their premium matte paper and remember to keep the longest side of your files (jpg/sRGB-CMYK) < 4000 pixels.

 

Blurb has its own profile:

 

What color profile should I use for my images in BookSmart?

 

which I convert all my files to in CS3 after export from LR3. Screen is calibrated.

 

I showed the result yesterday to a book printing professional and he was very impressed.

Said this was about the best you could expect from digital printing, fine art high end printing

of course being a totally different ballgame ( and pricegame )

[davidhunternyc]

Forget your online guys for the finished product, if you want quality then find the a high end fine art printer ............ it costs, it costs a lot but the result is there. Photobook dot com (whatever country you are in) ain't bad but I only use them for dummy run to see how a book comes together, each 80 odd page book costs about $100 with discount. Forget the leica feel it's a myth it is about the printers' ability and paper.

 

Thank you everyone for your comments so far. No offense to Blurb (the same could be said for Shutterfly, Apple, etc.), but I hardly think that their photobooks are, in any way, an accurate presentation of my photos. I am sure that if I used a point-and-shoot camera that my photos with Blurb would look no different than the photos with my Leica. I bought a Leica for its utilitarian profile and its superb photographic capabilities. I just have not been able to translate this to an end product. Yes, for sure, I now agree that it is all about the printers ability and paper quality. In fact, if I made a giclee print using a $200 point-and-shoot, I bet it would look better than the same print from Blurb shot with an M9. The task I have in front of me now, is that I need to make compelling photobooks for clients. Is there a 'high end fine art printer' that will bound these photos into book form?

[vanhulsenbeek]

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Fine art prints, bound in a book?

They will look gorgeous, but the book will never have a book-feel. It will just feel like a couple of prints bound together.

Better make a portfolio, if necessary in multiple copies.

[davidhunternyc]

I am starting my own tour business and a part of this new business is making photobooks for clients. A portfolio of photos is not an option. People would rather view their photos in book form.

[vanhulsenbeek]

Have a look here!

 

Digital Home Thoughts: The Great Photo Book Round-Up Review: Who Makes The Best Photo Books?

 

Heaven does not exist, but didn't we already know that!

[davidhunternyc]

^^^ Too funny. Oh yes, this round-up is what inspired my original investigation. I have now tried many of these books, and to tell you the truth, none of them are very compelling. It seems that affordable digital printing technology has a long way to go.

[vanhulsenbeek]

^^^ Too funny. Oh yes, this round-up is what inspired my original investigation. I have now tried many of these books, and to tell you the truth, none of them are very compelling. It seems that affordable digital printing technology has a long way to go.

 

There I can only quote Imants wise words, which believe to be quite true:

 

..................................

Forget the leica feel it's a myth it is about the printers' ability and paper

[Guest stnami]

but the book will never have a book-feel. It will just feel like a couple of prints bound together.

... Depends on the paper type and weight, sure a heavy weighted fibre based paper can deviate from the book form but at the same time it gives each image a greater sense of importance. Get the paper right and you will have a impressive limited edition book.

 

My process at the moment is a high end printer followed by a book binder and a limited edition in lots of 10. The uniqueness is in the binding and narrative sequencing.

 

If you go the general printer road a run of 1000 is about the minimum to keep costs down remember unless you have a strong distribution outlet even that amount is hard to move.

 

If one goes the online mode it still is expensive better to spend more and get what you want. No I do not have a lot of spare money for my projects I just don't spend on consumer goods and restaurants etc

 

 

Sorry no advice on printers you will have to sort that out yourself most the online advertisers of such services are a bit so so. Look close to home

[spylaw4]

You could always try this. It does result in an excellent result, and for those special clients there is a leather covered binder also. More details here. The point is that you have complete control of the prints, and the album looks classy.

[davidhunternyc]

Thank you all for your help. Since I've posted this, I have been researching relentlessly. Most photobook companies such as Blurb and Shutterfly use a HP Indigo 4 color press with a rather low 300ppi. The benefits for the book companies is that they can print up to 120 pages per minute with a cost of just a few pennies per page. The downside for us is that we get less than average prints. I now know why my blacks were rather grey and why my colors looked muted. On top of this, even though I have managed to get extrememly sharp photos on my monitor, the photos in the book looked fuzzy. I have now discovered the Epson 7900 inkjet printer. It supports 10 colors and prints up to 1800 ppi. The cost is around $2 per page (supposedly). Before I sing its praises here, I have ordered some test prints made with this printer. We will see how much improvement this is over the earlier technologies and I will post my comments here in a few days. In the meantime, here is more about this printer:

 

Focal Points: Epson Professional Imaging

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/printers/7900-9900.shtml

http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/epson_stylus_pro_7900_review/2