Storybook wedding album
I have been providing storybook wedding album for about 9 years now. They are steadily becoming more and more popular, although I also offer a slightly more traditional (I prefre the term “classical”) style of album as well.
I used to get them made specially for me by a semi-retired bookbinder in Australia. His work was fantastic but the shear distance made things quite difficult. About 6 years ago I started to use Graphistudio in Italy, the world’s leading manufacturer and pioneer of the storybook wedding album format. Being a lot closer to home certainly helps!
I do all of the design based on the images that the newly wed chose. I do not send off images to be designed for you by somebody who wasn’t at your wedding and who doesn’t know the story of the day. I don’t use pre-made templates either, each page of every album is designed from scratch to show off the images in the best possible way.
Versatile storybook wedding albums
They are available in a range of covers from personalised soft silk to spectacular metallic and transparent covers, your chosen images are printed directly onto the page and then bound into a book to produce a stunning magazine style wedding album that is certain to impress. The albums are produced from the finest materials with thick durable pages which have a beautiful vibrancy to them.
One great advantage of the storybook wedding album is the exact replica copies that can be made which gives a more portable full record of the day. They come in a range of sizes starting from 4 inches up to 14”, these are very popular and make great presents for parents and the bridal party.
We’re just getting into weddings to fill the gap when commercial shoots are down. You have a ton of useful information here. I’ll help spread the word. Keep up the great work. Best regards, Jeff
I love the Mimbo theme – have used it on many of my sites; I either use Flexibility or Mimbo for all my blogs.
This is a great showcase for your professionalism.
I love it, I’m looking to provide my clients with something similar to that. About how much does it cost to get them made?
There is no better investment of time than to make a storybook wedding album. Thanks for inspiring me!
i like that storybook wedding album, thanks for sharing.
Very, very neat.
Is it not a good for a wedding album to have it online?
Wonderful post, very good information. Thanks!
Thanks so much for sharing your post! I love the vibrant colors in the album.
I have been considering using GraphiStudio Albums for my pictures, and therefore found your post very helpful! Thank you.
These wedding albums are great! Have you ever offered DVD slideshows?
Yes I do, they are quite popular.
plus I also post highlight slideshows on my blog and facebook. Take a look around you’ll see a few!!
Hi Shaun,
Just came across this post and was hoping you can shed some light on Graphistudio’s service and product.
My wife and I came across them at the Focus on Imaging exhibition back in March, and have ordered a free sample set from them. We’re just waiting for them to be delivered now.
What I wanted to ask you is, Graphi being based in Italy, are they reliable and what is the quality of the wedding albums? In the 6 years you have used them, how many complaints, if any, have you had from your clients regarding the album? Can you recommend other quality album suppliers that you have used?
Sorry about all the questions..
Based on what we saw at the exhibition, I personally quite like Graphistudio’s albums, but thought I’d ask the opinion someone who is actually using them right now.
In my opinion graphistudio wedding albums are the best – there are some other manufacturers that are as good but a lot more that are worse quality.
They have a very good ordering and tracking system and turnaround is pretty good. Had a few slight issues and have always got it sorted.
Being based in Italy is not really a problem as they ship DHL and it arrives in a few days.
Thanks for that Shaun. Appreciate it.
I was looking to offer my clients a number of albums to choose from. What other companies would you recommend I use?
I was thinking of having getting storybooks from 2-3 different suppliers, and maybe a couple of traditional albums from others. If there is a company that does it all then even better..
Jay, have a look at Queensberry. They supply digital story book styles as well as more traditional matted styles (although still digitally produced). More pricey than Graphi, though.
.-= London Wedding Photographer´s last blog ..Surrey Wedding Photographer: Aga and Stuart in Weybridge =-.
Randall, thanks for the suggestion.. I actually looked at their albums at the Focus exhibition and wanted to go with them.. but at this stage I don’t think I’ll be able to push them at their prices..
Maybe after I’ve done a few weddings and I might..
Do you know any UK based suppliers of similar (or better) quality but slightly lower prices?
For more “traditional” albums I use Jorgenson they are beautifully made and have some nice covers – a bit cheaper than Queensberry and they have a UK distributor. But these types of album are not cheap by any stretch but the one thing I found is you really do get what you pay for.
Thanks for the info guys.. appreciate it..
Will have a look at the ones suggested.. if you have anymore please let me know.. want to get the samples in before mid July..
Great pictures. I just started a photography company and can’t wait to do my first wedding. Anyway, thank you for your blog as it is helping me get ideas! And everyone knows ideas a good!
I love your work! Thanks for this Shaun. Appreciate it.
Nice Album ! Every good wedding album finishes with one or two pages dedicated to the happy couple. If the groom carried his bride off in a fancy car, then that has to be shown now, otherwise several romantic shots of the happy couple hand-in-hand (maybe with a nice sunset in the background) also work fine…
Graphistudio seems very appealing to me. I’ve had just a quick browse but I like what I’m seeing. Thanks for introducing me to it!
I like that your storybook albums are so unique. A lot of other people would send off for someone else to do the design work – and I love that you don’t use templates. A lot of people want their wedding to be different so the album should reflect that and be totally unique.
Wedding is like another chapter of your life book. A book that tells story from where you start and ends. A happy story that you remember when you get old. A story that will give smile to everyone hear it.
I heard you are doing a fantastic story book wedding album. I’ve seen some of your work and it’s really great. This is a good idea specially to wedding occasions since it’ll only happen once in a lifetime.
I also wanted to have our own storybook wedding album. How much that it cost to have one?
Nowadays, wedding photobook or storybook is rising as a new trend in wedding photography. Clients like to bind their photos like a storybook full of pictures.
That would be very nice to bind all your photos into a storybook. A lot of company offers this kind of service for you. You have the freedom to choose the template for your photobook and they print it for you. I know some company which offer this kind of service and give you the flexibility to resize your photos and give you the experience to design your own photobook and add extra text to it.
I did something similar to this for my wedding 4 years ago. I created (and am still creating
) a wedding scrapbook filled with memorabilia from the days when my husband and I first met, to our wedding day. It has been fun … and these constant reminders of our special story has done wonders for our relationship.
Storybook album is definitely a new thing for me. I just love the concept. It is more personalized than professional wedding albums. My friend’s wedding is coming up in the summers I would definitely have one done for her too!
That is a really good idea. I wouldn’t have thought to make a story out of it but it does make a lot of sense. You could even get photo of the couple before the wedding like when they first met and have a part before leading up to the big day so rather than it being the story of the day its the story of the time together.
I thought about using Graphistudio, but have stuck with miller’s and other companies who sell some albums for around $70. When they cost that cheap, there is a lot to be made if you charge the right price.
My aunt has a storybook album like this and it’s beautiful. As you flick through, you feel the story of the day play out and it’s like reliving it. The whole design of it is incredible and looks fantastic. I’d definitely have my wedding album looking like this, so that I would be very proud to show people in the future.
This is a great showcase for your professionalism. It is more personalized than professional wedding albums. It is more personalized than professional wedding albums. I actually looked at their albums at the Focus exhibition and wanted to go with them.. but at this stage I don’t think I’ll be able to push them at their prices.
I personally quite like Graphistudio’s albums, but thought I’d ask the opinion someone who is actually using them right now. You could even get photo of the couple before the wedding like when they first met and have a part before leading up to the big day so rather than it being the story. I actually looked at their albums at the Focus exhibition and wanted to go with them.. but at this stage I don’t think I’ll be able to push them at their prices. Thank you.
Take a look at Photogether as well were there are Story books and Wedding books available from different suppliers plus some fantastic Studio E and Brag Albums from Jorgensen.
Another great option for weddings is to use frames and as box and canvas frames can be really cost effective it is often possible to up sell to the bride and grooms family by offering framed and mounted prints as an option, you should see some of the Ultimat ones, not cheap but they will certainly enhance your images and create a wow!
To make money out of professional photography you need to think laterally and adding value with great presentation is certainly the way to go.
Well done Shaun and keep up the good work!
I use smugmug and have been with them for 4 years now. No complaints from any of my customers. So, there are many to choose from. You just have to pick which ones are going to give your customers the best deal
Photos are more appreciated if placed in a beautiful album. Creating a story book will keep the beautiful memories of a particular event. I believe this is good idea to preserve the photos too.
This was an awesome post. You hit the nail on the head, when you replied saying that there were a lot of inferior albums out there that can be purchased today. Research thoroughly before you buy for your clients, otherwise the photographer gets the heat. Thank god all we have is smiles so far
I have yet to make an album for my couples. These albums look great. I may have to try to order a sample of these to show my clients.
I love the vibrant color, The whole design of it is incredible and looks fantastic. keep it up!
Every good wedding album finishes with one or two pages dedicated to the happy couple. If the groom carried his bride off in a fancy car, then that has to be shown now, otherwise several romantic shots of the happy couple hand-in-hand (maybe with a nice sunset in the background) also work fine.
Details fade with memory, but not when your wedding storybook includes a narrative flowing beautifully through the images. You will be able to look back in years to come and relive your special day again and again. A written story, to accompany your photographs, is a great way to ensure that those memories never fade and your wedding storybook is just that, a lasting book about your wedding.
Thanks for the ideas! My daughter is engaged and i think that doing an album like this will be perfect!