I use Pinhole Pro for my wedding albums, engagement books, guest books and even parent albums. Their photo books are simple and straightforward to design. My clients love the elegant, modern look, and the great feel of the covers, pages, and bindings. Plus the layflat style makes my image spreads look outstanding!

I use this framework to make a great photo book:

1. Show clients samples. Remember, what they see is what they’ll want to buy. If you show them custom layouts, double-thick paper, leather bindings and photo covers, they won’t accept less when it comes time to purchase and the price will be secondary.
2. Plan ahead. Shoot images that work well in full-bleed spreads or pairs and triptycts for more of a story or sequence. For portraits I concentrate on taking paired images that interact well with each other. If the bride is looking to the left of the frame, I capture the groom looking to the right. In their photo book they’ll be looking towards each other, illustrating the love and connection they have with each other.
3. Give to your client. I stopped pricing per page for wedding albums awhile ago. Instead I give them the maximum number of pages, which lets me tell a more complete story and show more of my imagery to them. This doesn’t increase the cost of the book much and the perceived value to the client is much higher.
4. Have a team. I consult with designers for my album designs, and friends and family for my personal books. I use a printer that proofs the book as well. At Pinhole Pro each and every book is reviewed by their team. There is nothing better than having someone take a second look at your work to see if there is anything you missed!

Leveraging Pro Studio’s simple interface to design your book, show it to your clients and take orders will make your life much more efficient. You’ll also have incredible control over the layouts and a direct connection to the printers. Pinhole Pro allows me to focus on creating books for my clients.

Learning how to create a great photo book is easy! Just keep in mind these three simple things. 1. A photo book is something you create, not fill up. 2. It’s a gift for your client, one that they will value forever. 3. Most important of all it needs to feel good, look good and function perfectly.

Patrick O’Connor is a hopeless romantic that loves what he does. He splits his time focusing on helping people in his role as a support specialist at liveBooks and capturing important occasions as a wedding and portrait photographer.