Designing albums is an art in itself. I really enjoy the process of designing albums for my clients and giving them an end product that blows them away and is a treasured keepsake for the rest of their lives.
I encourage my clients to give me some freedom in selecting the images that go into their albums. That way, as I design, I can select the perfect images that will go together to make each spread really sing. Usually when I design albums with a certain amount of freedom like this, clients are very pleased with the result and just want to make a few changes. I am always happy to make the changes because I want the album to be perfect for them.
The alternative is to design the album with just the images that the couple picks out. I appreciate the time and thought that goes into the selection of images for their album. But often times, the selection of the couple is such that it is difficult to design the album as a piece of art (i.e. too many portraits and not enough detail shots, or not enough shots that help tell the story) and the design process deteriorates into one of trying to make everything fit. This type of design work can be difficult and frustrating for me simply because I really want the best for my clients and I know they're missing out.
Hazel & Elias got married just over two weeks ago and I'm excited to report that we already have their album design complete!! I'm excited about this because we have been trying to get caught up and one of
my goals is to change our workflow so that designs are getting completed within two weeks after each wedding. So we're getting close!
I love Hazel & Elias--they are great and I really enjoyed working with them. They opted to go the route of chosing their own photos for their album so I designed their album with only the 115 photos they picked out. I believe they were concerned about additional cost, which I totally understand. But this album is a classic example of the outcome of the design process that doesn't allow for freedom on my part. I really did the best with what I was given, and I hope Hazel & Elias are happy with the outcome. But I'm a little sad because I think I could have given them something even better.
Click here to view Hazel & Elias's album design.
To view some other album designs, as a contrast, that were created with some freedom on my part,
click here and scroll down past this post.
Feel free to comment and let me know what you think about what I've said and the pros and cons to the two alternative design processes. I would love your input and thoughts as I am trying to make the experience of album design the best for my clients!
Labels: album designs
