Photobook Malaysia questions

[David]

I'm sure some here have printed coffee table photo books using Photobook Malaysia. I wrote to them for some enquiries...it's been almost 2 weeks but still no reply. Hope you all could kindly help me out. Thanks v much...

1. They recommended 300ppi for printing. Is this really necessary or something like 240ppi will do?

2. I'm intending to have at least 40 pages with each page about 3 images. Each image is anything from 300+ kB to 1MB in size even though they are already in JPG. Won't the file size be super huge when you send them the software?

3. Which is the best way to send the images: via internet (very slow?!?) or CD?

4. Roughly how long will the coffee table book be delivered to Singapore once the order is accepted?

THANK YOU!!!

 

[catchlights]

I'm sure some here have printed coffee table photo books using Photobook Malaysia. I wrote to them for some enquiries...it's been almost 2 weeks but still no reply. Hope you all could kindly help me out. Thanks v much...

1. They recommended 300ppi for printing. Is this really necessary or something like 240ppi will do?

2. I'm intending to have at least 40 pages with each page about 3 images. Each image is anything from 300+ kB to 1MB in size even though they are already in JPG. Won't the file size be super huge when you send them the software?

3. Which is the best way to send the images: via internet (very slow?!?) or CD?

4. Roughly how long will the coffee table book be delivered to Singapore once the order is accepted?

THANK YOU!!!

the best person able to answer all your questions is still Photobook Malaysia, if you did email them and didn't get a reply, you should re consider sending your orders to them.

 

[David]

yeah, dunno why. the website looks so friendly and all that. but no reply.

It's also misleading. It's named "Photobook Singapore" but I later realize that they are based in Malaysia. The original one is Photobook Malaysia. Guess it's business tactics?

 

[catchlights]

I don't use photobook malaysia, so I have no comment about that.

anyway, to answer your initial questions, base on my dealing with other photobook site.

#1 using 300dpi is very standard, just give them 300dpi, else will have pixelation or your files being rejected.

#2 if they asking you to upload your orders, of course it should be able to handle your files. jpg files are very small only.

#3 depends what type of methods are acceptable for them.

#4 they should tell you how long you should received your order on the site.

 

[pchong]

I have used Photobook Malaysia. They are very slow to answer questions, even though I am sending them more business, they take forever. I printed one book, and I want 2 more copies, but with small changes (title font) and one of the pictures I want replaced with another I edited. But they have not replied...its been almost a month.

The quality is ok. But you will need to be close to 300dpi or higher to get nice sharp prints. Maybe their machine is too high reso, but my pics which are lower than 220dpi look soft. if you do 240dpi it should be ok. The dpi is measured by the tool they provide...it is calculated for the entire page.

I uploaded my 40 page book last time...took about an hour on high internet speed.

They took a week to deliver my last order.

 

[stkh8888]

Hi David

I'm not from Photobook but I know them personally.
I can help to answer some questions which you have and if you have more, just PM me as I might miss this thread
Anyway, 300dpi is prefered as the printer that is used is a digital offset printer. With 300dpi being the minimum for nice clean pictures.
The software will create a compress file to upload the pictures preferably over the internet. It would be wise of course to have a broadband connection. Probably pick a time when its not too busy and just upload the album and leave the computer to have a cuppa
As for delivery, once an order is received and payment made, the album will be ready in 3 days and shipped via courier. So I think to SG it should take about 1 week after you submit. Of course if its urgent, call them up personally.
If you need indepth technical info on how to calibrate your monitor and also your color profile, let me know and I'll try to get their technical guy to address you. I know they follow certain ISO color profiles so if you are able to calibrate, then you will get more accurate prints.

Cheers and happy printing ya.
Brandon

 

[markkoay]

Hi David, Catchlights, Pchong, BrandonST and members of ClubSnap,

My name is Mark and I am with Photobook (Singapore and Malaysia). Thanks for all your support thus far. This is my first post - I was informed by a customer (Chester) about this thread and I would like to answer to some of your queries. I will list each question again followed by an answer. Let me know if you have more questions or if you need any assistance, please email us at support @ photobooksingapore.com.

1. What is the resolution required for prints?
180 dpi is sufficient for good prints. The DPI of each image will be calculated independently-the Photobook software will display the resolution at the bottom of the page when you mouse over the image. Minimum required resolution is 120dpi, Good @ 180dpi and Best @ 240dpi. The software will warn you if you have insufficient resolution for prints so that you could correct it by resizing the picture frame or selecting a larger image.

Most PROs would normally want to set it at 300 dpi but its really not necessary. It will increase your file size and slow down the Photobok application when you have a large number of these loaded.

If you are inserting an entire page or 2 page spread (JPG) created using Photoshop, simply drag and drop it to the page layout and select the appropriate option. You could also monitor the resolution of the spread simply by putting your mouse over the picture and checking the DPI displayed.


2. Will the size of the file be too huge?
Total file size for a book can range from anywhere between 50MB to 200MB depending on the source image and the type (size) of your book. A good total size for a 2 page spread is 5-7MB (A4). A 2mb image is sufficient to cover an entire A4 size page (Medium Book).


3. What is the best way for submitting Photobook?
The best method is online. When your photobook is uploaded, you will immediately get a Photobook ID and be forwarded to our payment website to complete your order. It will take about 30 to 90 minutes to send across your photobook over broadband. The software supports both FTP and HTTP upload.

The software can also generate a file (.dgl) which you can burn into a CD and send it to us. This is also good if you dont have a fast connection at home, you can save the DGL file into thumbdrive, carry it to office or somewhere with faster connection and upload it to our server. You can do this via http://webupload.photobookworldwide.com. You will be given an upload code, just contact us with the code so that we could generate you a link to complete your order.


4. How long will it take to print books?
It takes 3 working days for production and 1 day to ship to anywhere in Singapore. Delivery is FREE within Singapore. So if you submit your book on Sunday night, you should receive your book by Thursday.


PCHONG and David
May I have your support ticket number so that I could look into your case? Our support cases are normally answered within 24 hours. We try our best to keep it within 24 hours - if you have something urgent (ie. your order or need tech support) you can always also reach us via our Online LIVE Support. Just click on the live support link to chat with our Live Assistant. If you would like us to give you a phone call, just email us your contact number and someone will call you as soon as possible.


Mark K
www.photobooksingapore.com

 

[Astin]

Hi Mark, is there anywhere in Singapore where I can see some sample photobooks that are printed by your company? Or in JB? Thanks.

 

[chngpe01]

This thread doesn't belong to photo biz. Thread moved to consumer

 

[David]

Hi Mark!

Yes, Photobook Malaysia is great. Their service is fast and the quality excellent.

I had an urgent order, and they really listened to my request to have the book delivered on time.

On the resolution issue, I've just learnt something new.

I'm not sure if it's a myth to always print at 300dpi. Books and pros will tell you that. But I've done 180dpi and really, you can't tell the difference from those at higher resolution. Even with a high resolution 10MP camera, to do 300 dpi, you can't print it big. And upsizing it is only cheating and will certainly not improve the quality of the prints.

 

[tltan]

I am going to place my order with them soon. Photobook Singapore is a webbie and the printer is in Malaysia.

I find their live support on their website really helpful. The people at the helpdesk including Mark really helped me through my every steps and limitations.

Mark in fact gave me a call to guide me step by step on how to split my big files up into a few folders and they offered to stitch it up on their side. I am very impressed as they are willing to call Singapore from Melbourne. Kudos to them.

Best Regards,
tltan

 

[copycat]

Hi Mark, is there anywhere in Singapore where I can see some sample photobooks that are printed by your company? Or in JB? Thanks.

I would like to know too. Mark, please advise

 

[zhiz22]

any response?

 

[markkoay]

Dear friends,

If you have any questions or concerns, please submit your web support request or speak to a live assistant at www.photobooksingapore.com. You can also email us at support@ photobooksingapore.com.

thanks and best wishes,
Mark K.