Post # 1
Member
27 posts
Newbee
So I just got my wedding photo books in the mail this weekend and couldn’t be happier with them! Out photog gave us digital files of all of our wedding pics and printing rights, so like everyone else, I scoured the web checking out all of the options for priting photo books. I was going to go with Blub when a friend of my mom’s (who is a pretty fantastic photog herself) recommended that I check out AdoramaPix out of NYC. I looked into their site and read a bunch of reviews on their photo books, which are a new line for them, and decided to take the plunge. Well, as I said, the books (I ordered extras in smaller sizes for gifts) came in over the weekend and are AMAZING! SUPER thick pages, beautiful color and a true lay-flat binding that makes for seamless pictures spanning across facing pages.
The site offers 8 or 10 different sized books ranging in price from about $45 up to just over $100 for their largest size. They do have a page max of 50 as of now, but allow tons of different layouts that you can customize by moving the templates around. I was able to include around 200 pictures in my 50 page book.
Anyway, just thought I’d pass this along as I definitely spent a good amount of time checking out all the other reviews on WB when I was searching for a place to have my books done. Happy printing!
Oh yeah, the website is http://www.adoramapix.com.
Post # 3
Member
660 posts
Busy bee
Sweet! Thanks for posting this! I really want a photo book, but our photog doesn’t do them.
Post # 4
Member
640 posts
Busy bee
Thanks, this is really interesting. We just did our honeymoon book with Blurb and will be receiving it this week (uber excited!), but I will keep this link in my favourites for future travel books.
I really like the idea of the lay-flat binding – I’m so worried that some of our layouts in Blurb are going to look odd because of the page gutter effect!
Post # 5
Member
564 posts
Busy bee
- Wedding: May 2021 - Coyaba Resort, Montego Bay
Thanks for the tip! I am making myself crazy reading photobook reviews, I don’t know who to believe!! I really want one with pages that lay flat, so I will check into this! Are you happy with the photo quality, color, etc?
Post # 6
Member
27 posts
Newbee
@quiche: I am REALLY happy with both the color and the photo quality. I actually was originally referred to the site for the quality of their prints and was blown away by how high the quality was in the photo books as well. For their individual print processing they give you a choice of something like five different finishes of photo paper and the “metallic’ option is so vibrant the pictures almost look 3-dimensional. The photo books are on a slightly different paper, but the effect is almost the same.
Also, as a side note, the turn around time from ordering to getting my books (in Colorado) was only TEN DAYS!!!
Post # 7
Member
1 posts
Wannabee
you said super thick pages. are they like the board ones that dont bend? i’m looking for one like that.
Post # 8
Member
424 posts
Helper bee
@msmitch adorama/shutterfly/mpix are not albums they are press books meaning they are not printed on archival photo paper they are printed using a four color process. Four color process is what mailers and greeting cards are printed with. Flush mount albums are photo prints attached to mount board with archival safe glue. Press books are great, don’t get me wrong I make them all the time with my personal photos for our families but they are not built to last the test of time whereas a good flush mount will. It’s not like you will be able to create one again in 10 years as the digital format (computers/ hard drives/ disks) will be obsolete and your photography may not be around.
Post # 9
Member
91 posts
Worker bee
Yeah, what Pizzuti said.. Press books are great and I sell them to my clients a lot as portrait albums, but they’re certainly not going to have the look and feel of a flush mount album that most professional photographers offer (which I think is what msmitch is looking for). As far as I know there aren’t any professional-quality flush mount albums available to consumers.. A good way to tell if something is going to be pro-quality is by the price.. The ones that we photogs get at wholesale range from $300-1000, so if a company sold them for retail I think you could expect to pay at least $500-1500 for them.
That said, Adorama is a great company with very high quality prints (i know of a few pro photogs who use Adorama for their prints) so it doesn’t surprise me that their press books are top notch!
Post # 10
Member
179 posts
Blushing bee
@pizzutistudios – Actually, adoramapix does print their books on archival photo paper, unlike the other press books you mentioned. They aren’t flushmount albums though.
Post # 11
Member
142 posts
Blushing bee
@pizzutistudios — Where would you recommend us brides go for a flush mount album? or for the best press book?
I would love for my pictures to last as long as they can so my kids will be able to enjoy them.
Post # 12
Member
8247 posts
Bumble Beekeeper
I also love my AdoramaPix photobook I just got for my guestbook. It looks beautiful!!
@jgoulart – I’m considering using Somerset Albums to make a flush mount album after my wedding. They cost about $500+ but for a really nice flsuh mount, I’d really expect to pay that. I’ve heard good things though – check them out!
Post # 13
Member
142 posts
Blushing bee
Thanks FutureKMM! I’ll have to look into both. Maybe I’ll get another large press book just for us, and maybe gift myself a flushmount for christmas.;)
I love the press book our photographer included in our package, but it only has about 40 pictures in it. I’d really love to have a big one, where someone can flip through and see the whole day and not just a few posed pics.