Album Crit Plz?

[S-Man]

I'm making this album for a client- nothing spectacular to be seen here, but I want to get points from you pro album designers, especially since I'm pretty new to album design.
I'm using AdoramaPix for this print job- I've ordered from them before and I'm pleased with their albums, plus they're pretty cheap.

These are screenshots from their album preview window, and resolution is absolutely trashed. But the pics themselves are sharp.

Comments appreciated.

Front Cover:


1-2:



3-4:


5-6:


7-8:


9-10:


11-12:


13-14:


15-16:


17-18:


19-20:


21-22:


23-24:


25-26:


Back Cover:

[janetg]

sam, i like most of it - but not the clip art part. the backgrounds that show through could be a bit more subtle, if used at all. i'm assuming the shading on the right hand side is there just to show the pages?

7-8 to 9/10 the story does not flow well, you have the couple walking away clearly after the ceremony is over, but on the next page, the kiss is being shown. i don't know about others, but each page for me should tell a story and follow mostly the order of the day.

15-16 - i would move the photo on the left hand page down to the bottom as it gets lost up there along - and would look good along side the other two.

21-22 - the split is right on the woman's face

23-24 - the spacing looks slightly different on the left, than the right. the background confuses the page and makes it look messy. also, some of those photos are extremely close to the edge, so be sure your stroke lines do not get whacked off when it is printed.

25-26 -this heart overlay looks nice - it is subtle and not overpowering

on many of the pages your keyline / photo border strokes are not consistent - i would use the same width on all pages.

i think the layout is good, some of the graphic work is nice, just the other things are making it distracting for me. you did a really good job if you have not designed before, it's not as easy as it sounds is it?

given that...i have 12 albums to get done by the end of next week - heavy sigh!

janet

[bryanlindsey]

Purely my own humble opinion:

Page 2: Would stick to a 3-up, remove image #4
Page 3/4: Would have all 4 inset images the same size
5/6: Nice!
13/14: Would remove the background from behind the inset images
15/16: Unconventional. I like it.
18: Would frame it instead of full page

For what it's worth...

[S-Man]

Thanks y'all, that's exactly what I was looking for. I really appreciate you taking the time to look over my crummy album :)
Janet, I agree with the story not flowing well. I knew it looked weird, but I was just like "oh well"...I used one of their drop-in templates and didn't want to mess with the layout too much as it takes a little while.

On 15-16 I wanted the left most image to be down with the others, but I didn't want to block the knife. The background image is not able to be moved either...I'll have to figure out what I'm going to do with that. Maybe a 3/4 filled spread with inlays on the right...

The spacing on that 23-24? That's because I laid it out myself and they don't have a reliable distribution/alignment tool. Snapping to grid only does so much if the grid isn't just right. I'm going to work on those pages though.

What do you think looks better for the frames/strokes? Thinner or thicker?

The cut edges are within the safe zone, they provide a 'green area' which is beyond the safe zone.

Do the inlays and little clip-art graphics make it look 'amateurish'? After some time looking at it, I begin to think so...

Bryan, thanks. I think I am going to frame 18. Thanks for the suggestion.

On page 2, I wanted to stick to a 3-up, but I wanted all 4 of those images. Maybe I'll move it to a different page...

On 13-14, I think I agree too...Just looks too busy.

On 3/4, Some of the images are portrait and others are landscape orientation, so this was a necessary evil...I'm going to see if I can work around it though. But I totally agree with them needing to be the same size.

Thanks again, y'all. I'll work on it and post up a revision.

This isn't the first album I've done, but it's like the fifth so I have a long way to go.

I do not enjoy it, that's for sure. Janet, I think I might shoot myself in the knee to have a diversion/excuse to put off 12 albums

I'd love to see some of your designs if its ok with the photogs and you. If not, I understand.

[kayumangi]

Hey Sam, sorry for this it's kinda off-topic but I wanted to find out how does AdoramaPix fare when compared to the Blurb?

I use the Blurb for quickie albums as well as for their larger books (13"x10") but they are hit and miss when it comes to their print quality; although I've been lucky enough to deliver great books from them some of my friends weren't so lucky.

So now, am looking at AdoramaPix and the printing costs are almost the same. I'm wondering if AdoramaPix is worth it if I need some cheap but acceptable books.

[Wil_Bloodworth]

Cool. I've never seen the little pics at the end of the album... nice way to get those in there!

- Wil

[S-Man]

I have no hesitation selling Adorama's Albums to clients. I use it as my "Lower End" album line. But the quality is excellent. They use the same paper that KISS uses- Fuji Crystal Archive paper or something like that. They also use Leporello binding for fold flat pages and seamless gutters. They seem to sell well with seniors and other stuff like anniversary parties since they're not as pricey as KISS or others. The print quality is consistent and of true photographic quality.
Check out some pics and words on my blog HERE.

Definitely try them out. If nothing else get a little 8x8 album or something.

(I'm re-working this layout, I'll revise the post when I'm done)

Originally Posted by kayumangi

Hey Sam, sorry for this it's kinda off-topic but I wanted to find out how does AdoramaPix fare when compared to the Blurb?

I use the Blurb for quickie albums as well as for their larger books (13"x10") but they are hit and miss when it comes to their print quality; although I've been lucky enough to deliver great books from them some of my friends weren't so lucky.

So now, am looking at AdoramaPix and the printing costs are almost the same. I'm wondering if AdoramaPix is worth it if I need some cheap but acceptable books.

[S-Man]

Alright peeps, I revised the layout. I left 23-24's center picture as is. I know the fold is on two women's faces, but it should be OK. I can't move it without composition suffering and looking like trash.
Took out some of the clip art and reduced the opacity of the decorations.
Please let me know if you see any mistakes, or how it can improve further.

Oh, and yeah, I usually put little squares for the last couple pages to squeeze in as many guest pictures as I can. (Haven't done a lot of albums, but I have done a few)

Thanks again SO much!

[patty7]

Hi Janet!
I also agree with you about the some of the clip art is too much and they take away from the photos. How do you get 12 albums? Poor you:(

[PhotoDude79]

Negative space is your friend. I come from the school of thought that a image should be able to stand alone. No frills or clipart. Be thing I can tell you is when shooting a wedding always shoot with a album in mind. How will all the images fit together to tell the story.

[texkam]

Make front cover background graphics look like those on back cover. Also on FC, don't care for the script font. Too condensed. Lose the clip art hearts too. A quick glance at the rest looks really nice.

[AllenAyres]

I like them for the most part myself. Unless my eyes are worse than I thought, I think 7-8 and 9-10 do follow the time order of the day, they aren't walking away until 9-10, did you switch them?

As for the 'clip art', I kind of like it. I've seen some gorgeous albums with swirls in the background - my mentor in the upcoming DWF convention in Nashville - Jim Garner - tends to use swirls in his albums and they're beautiful (and more obvious):

My Smug Mug - Jim Garner's Photos

For some of the double spreads - if I'm using small images on one side, I don't put small images along with a big one on the other side, it begins to look a little crowded to me and I prefer cleaner designs.

[AllenAyres]

Originally Posted by PhotoDude79

[The best] thing I can tell you is when shooting a wedding always shoot with a album in mind.

Amen, that I am working on... shoot for sequences - several of the bride walking up the aisle then one of her there, that type of thing.

[S-Man]

Thanks Allen. Yes, I did switch them. I re-arranged a few pages after points were taken here.
I think I'm done with it like it is here. I need to send it to print. Hopefully I didn't include any doubles, or other screwups. In one album I failed to set the photo into the frame correctly so it cropped it at the chest of the subjects. I was supposed to drag the image down to include the face but I overlooked it

I think this one is done though.