You need a minimum of just 26 photographs to make the photo book, but I had almost 150 in my whittled down holiday album. You can opt to autofill your book, using the images in the order you uploaded and selected them, or to work manually. Autofilling with a lot of images tends to put the images into extra pages which costs more. Making the book yourself allows you to choose different page layouts using up to 12 images per page, obviously a more cost effective method when working with a lot of photos.
The process itself is quite simple. Working online, you just drag and drop the selected images in the space that you want them and add text in the text boxes. There is the option to pick different backgrounds with themes such as holiday, love or baby to choose from. These can then be applied to individual pages or across the whole book to add colour and detail to your book.
The photo book creator has the uploaded photos on the bottom half of the page, and the pages of the book shown on the top of the page. The one you are working on is highlighted. I would prefer to work with the two page spread shown larger on the screen with the ability to scroll sideways onto the next page. I think this is probably down to my age and eyesight wanting a bigger working surface!
I really like the option to show only unused photos which helps you to see what ones you have left to use. Even though used images are marked, you can go a bit image blind when dealing with lots of pics and this avoids accidentally using an image twice or missing a favourite snap out altogether. Staying organised is really helpful when making a photo book!
When ordering, you have the option to add on extra upgrades. The checking out process was very straightforward. Within a few days, I received an email telling me the book had been dispatched and it arrived the next day, securely boxed and plastic wrapped keeping it in perfect condition.
The book has a hardback black cover with nine apertures, through which nine of my photographs show framing them perfectly. It is a lovely effect. the pages are thick and glossy and the print quality is very good with excellent colour and clarity. It's such a lovely way to display your favourite photos.
I was impressed with the backgrounds I used. They added colour and interest. I went for a mix and match theme rather than sticking to one design and I think it works well, helping to tell the story of my photos. I used backgrounds that I thought went with my photos. I like the way you can adjust the layouts which gives some full page images alongside pages containing lots of small pictures. It makes the photo book really visually interesting and allowed me to get in over 150 photographs!
All in all, I am delighted with the photo book. Making it was very easy to do. The colour, quality, clarity and design of the finished product is great. The collage apertures on the front cover are really attractive and look very distinctive. The service is excellent, the packaging was very good and the delivery was fast and efficient. The price for the A4 Collage Photo Book starts at £27.99 but there are often special offers or discount codes available. Photo books and other photo gifts make excellent personalised presents for loved ones.
Find out more at www.photobox.co.uk.