Recommendation for photobook printing

[dennisthetiger]

Hi all, I'm looking for a photobook printing company that is able to produce top quality print to commemorate my 10 yrs in wildlife photography, recently my friend recommendated me photobook singapore, as he bought a coupon which offers very low special price, so i decided to go with it..after it was delivered to me, i review the photos and realize that they are not up to the standard I expected, and were really dark and low in contrast and really disappointing. I showed it to a friend studying photography and she commented the prints were really dark and bad.

I had printed photos from normal photo labs and it turn out better results

As all photobook companies claim to use the latest tech, best quality print and so on, i do not know which one is truly the good ones, need a pro guidance with experience in printing professionally to help, thanks.

 

[Rashkae]

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/newbies-corner/1028466-need-print-photo-book-lobang.html

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/cons...ew-photobook-singapore-photobook-express.html

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/consumers-corner/966559-developing-wedding-photo-book.html

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/cons...tobook-prints-brriliant-kodak-fuji-color.html

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/consumers-corner/806036-photobook-printing-recommendation.html

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/newbies-corner/803269-best-photo-book-supplier.html

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/consumers-corner/766838-printing-photobook.html

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/photo-biz/660210-wedding-photobooks.html

 

[qystan]

If you are an Apple Mac user, try the iPhoto or Aperture photo book feature and use Apple print. Takes about a week to get it.

Mine was done in AMK, friend's was printed in Japan. Think it has to do with the book type.

 

[Canonized]

While I was conducting my own research I came upon this report. I thought others here would appreciate it.
Digital Home Thoughts: The Great Photo Book Round-Up Review: Who Makes The Best Photo Books?

It is interesting that PhotobookCanada is reviewed highly. There is also the PhotobookSingapore which is the local rep here.
I wonder whether the quality is the same and whether the printing is from the same place in Malaysia.

 

[kandinsky]

In my opinion, if I wanted "top quality print", I wouldn't go with the average photobook printing company. I did try photobooksingapore and found it acceptable for the price.

In providing convenience & flexibility (no need for minimum qty), the print-on-demand model seems to take a hit when it comes to quality, especially if you consider that many of them try to compete on price to appeal to the mass market. I certainly wouldn't expect them to match up to professionally printed art/photo books.

That said, you might want to try those companies that claim to offer better quality at a premium, targeting customers who value quality over low prices.
You'll need to conduct your own research to see if they match up to their claims.

Here's one example:

Unlike mass produced books from Internet vendors, our books are printed on 120 lb text weight archival paper using state-of-the-art Kodak digital presses. The books are sewn into signatures and bound with the highest quality materials in a way that they will look the same 100 years from now as they do today.

Fine Art Books » PhotoBook Press · Fine Custom Photo Books

 

[dannynys]

Hi Canonized,

I have been using photobook singapore for 4 books already.
I'm quite happy with the results they have. Their main printing office is in Kuala Lumpur,
so usually they will ship to you in a week time after you send it online. I do know their
printer is HP indigo which is an industrial standard for good print-out. If you do go with
their monthly promotion, you will see that you can save quite a lot. Sometimes, they
do sell their vouchers too, which you can keep for a few months.

I usually does my photobook with 216gsm paper and image-wrap.
The thickness of the paper play a part in giving you the solid feel of the book.
Of course, good quality photos should be used or else you will see the difference
when you enlarge and print out the image.

A good size to start with is 8.5"x11", most compact or DSLR photos used are quite ok. However,
if you do use the bigger 15"x11" size or even bigger, do use sharp photos.

Good to take note, you should colour calibrate your monitor for a good print quality.
As photobook do not adjust your image colour, so sometimes I do end up with a darker
than what I expected results. However, this is just the difference in screen colour vibrancy
and paper. So I would advise you do a slightly brighter colour adjustment just to compensate.