1. What inspired this cookbook? 

I’ve always been obsessed with food and travel, and a couple of years ago, when my husband and I sold our house and all our possessions to travel, I started writing down everything I ate. It was a way for me to remember a place through its food. Thinking about how I would recreate these dishes at home led me to the idea of making a cookbook.

2. How did you collect and store content for your book while traveling? 

It started by just making notes on my phone and taking pictures of all my food. Once I had a decent collection of dishes, I started organizing them in Excel. The work of actually recreating the recipes and photographing them didn’t start until we moved back to the States.

3. Tell us about your creative process for designing this book. How did you decide on the trim size, format, and color scheme? 

I am a cookbook fanatic! I love reading other people’s cookbooks. My favorite ones are the ones with large format pictures and a lot of free space around the text. I tried out a few different layouts before picking one. Once the book was finished, I ordered one copy just to see how it would look in print and realized the font was huge compared to other books, so I went back and changed it before ordering more, and I’m super happy with how it looks.

4. How did you choose the imagery for the cover of your book? 

This part was tricky for me. It was actually the last thing I did on the project. I played around with different food pictures and markets but ultimately ended up with the picture of a restaurant booth from a place in Scotland. For one thing, I loved the colors, but more than that, this book is really a tribute to all the amazing restaurants we ate at while traveling. What better way to honor them than by putting one on the cover?

5. How did you decide on the organization and sequence of your recipes?

There are so many different ways to organize a cookbook, and originally I wanted to organize by country of origin, but it made the book too choppy, with too many sections. I chose to break it up by meal category instead because it felt like it had the best flow.

6. How did you approach the photography for your cookbook? What sort of gear or equipment did you use?

I used a combination of my Nikon and my phone. I used very minimal gear and worked with natural lighting as much as possible. I’m a big fan of cookbooks that showcase the food without too many props, so I tried to do that as much as possible in my book.

7. Which tools or software did you use to create your book and why? 

For photo editing, I used GIMP. It has great functionality, and it’s free! For the creation of the book, I did everything right in Blurb BookWright. I found it to be super user-friendly, and it gave me complete control over all of the design elements.

8. What advice would you give someone who wants to turn a collection of recipes into a cookbook? 

If time is what’s holding you back, just work on it in small chunks. Pick a deadline for yourself and work backward from there. You could give yourself the task of writing, cooking, and photographing one or two recipes per week, and that way, it’s still fun and enjoyable. Or incorporate your recipes into your weekly meal plan, so it doesn’t feel like extra work since you need to eat anyway. My other piece of advice would be to study other cookbooks and decide what you like about their pictures and formats and adapt those to your book.

9. Where do you look for creative inspiration when you’re not on the road? 

My garden. I love having an abundance of vegetables because it makes me think creatively about how to use them.

10. What’s the next big thing on your project list? Is there a country or cuisine you’d like to explore? A book you’d like to make next?

My next book will be based on my garden and seasonal vegetables but with inspiration from all over. I love taking flavors from places I’ve visited and coming up with new ways to use them. The hard part will be deciding where to visit next!

Have an idea for a book of your own? Start exploring Blurb formats and find the perfect fit for your project.

The post Will Travel for Food: Behind the Book with McKenna Ganz appeared first on Blurb Blog.

Tell us the story behind The Out Mag? How did it come about and what are your hopes and goals for the magazine? 

We first began The Out Mag as a response to COVID-19. We began 2019 by setting up Carlow Pride Festival. It started out with six people joining forces to create a positive moment for LGBT+ people in our small rural town. At the very beginning of this journey we estimated that we would have about 100  to 200 people at our main event. We had no budget and no funds. But we asked ourselves this question “Why should we move to bigger cities to be  LGBT+ people? We can stay in our small rural towns, safely”. 

What happened?

The entire town was ready to move on and tell the world; Carlow is a fantastic place to live. The entire town was painted rainbow. And 3,500 people turned up to our main event. It’s the biggest outdoor event ever held in our region. Hundreds of people reached out to us saying that we changed their lives. Young people came out to their parents at our event, and a woman in her 60s went home that evening and told her family she was a lesbian. The youngest person at our event was 2 weeks old and the oldest was 99! Our first pride was dedicated  to the people who moved away and never came home, the people who didn’t live to see a rainbow flag flicker in the sunlight in our once conservative and religiously restrictive town.

When COVID-19 hit, our  event for 2020 was cancelled. This left a huge gap in our normally very sleepy county. So we had to create something to celebrate LGBT+ people and document our unique history. The Out Mag is like a rolling history book. It documents the lives of LGBT+ people in a positive and meaningful way, showing the many jobs and successful lives that are here in Carlow. We’ve been told that the magazine and festival have helped saved many lives.

How did your team of creators and editors find each other? 

One evening I decided I was having pride. I remember feeling like the country was going back in time. Unless I stood up for what I believed in, all that progress could be taken away. I posted about setting up pride on Facebook, and I held a public meeting. There I found Sally, Ciaran, Robbie, Tom, and Ryan. Since then we have all joined together to be part of The Out Mag. We are all volunteers, we all have other jobs and businesses, or are retired. The rest of the team on the magazine was found thanks to our local volunteer centre. 

By the time the magazine came around, I knew what roles would suit people. The magazine is a separate project and people had the option to not be part of it if they felt it was too much work for them. But everybody stepped up to the plate.

How do you decide which content pieces to feature? What goes in to your editorial decisions?

Every week we have a story meeting where I pitch stories, and ideas for interviews – and see who would be interested or comfortable interviewing that person. We always wanted to be open and for many people who feature in our magazine, it is a right of passage. It can be really scary telling your truth and trying to forget and forgive the scars of your past. Carlow wasn’t a nice place for many people, including me. So it has been a full healing moment for us all. 

Our whole mission is to tell the stories of people in a truthful and honest way. We never change the words of the people who feature in our stories and we give those people full control of each piece. We don’t want to be the news, we want to be historic.

Tell us about the process of curating and designing your magazine. How do you choose the layout, sequence of content, typography, and color palette? 

Because we are a voluntary organization and we all have full-time jobs outside of this, I decided to take on the task of learning how to graphic design and layout the magazine. The first issue was during the very first lockdown of COVID-19. I watched YouTube tutorials and somehow managed to create issue one in a way that was fashionable but also true to who we were.

When issue one was published online we were called by our local newspaper who wanted to print it as a pull-out magazine. I decided to use this opportunity to say to them we would be interested but we would create one especially for them, issue two. Issue two was printed and published locally (12,000 copies). It was the very first self published LGBT+ magazine ever featured in an Irish newspaper and a copy of it resides proudly in the new exhibition of our local museum. How did it get in the museum? We got an issue framed and turned up with it with a photographer! If you don’t ask you don’t get! The framed issue is now owned by the state. 

How do you choose the imagery for the front cover?

To make the process fun for everyone who work on the magazine, everyone who contributes as an article writer gets the chance to have their story as a cover feature.

If it turns out that someone we selected wasn’t ready for the cover, or didn’t feel safe doing so, we respect everyone’s opinion so we then select someone else. We are currently in the process of competing issue 4. This issue will be also printed in the local newspaper (14,000 copies).

How do you promote your magazine to new audiences?

We have very limited means, so we chose to do a preview email for people in local government and supporting businesses. Then we promote posts across our social media channels. We do find it hard to get the word out. This project engages everyone on our committee and team. It helped us all through lockdown to engage with each other and also connect with new people and make new friends. We hope that our project will give rise to other small towns to help combat depression and isolation amongst minorities.

Why did you choose to offer a print edition as well as online issues?

We first decided to offer a print edition with issue 2 through our local newspaper. Issue three went back to being a fully online version and now issue four will also be printed in our local newspaper at the end of June. The reason we use Blurb to print our magazines is because lots of people around the world wanted access to a paper published version. We felt that this was a great way for people to get a high end edition of a magazine so they can keep it as a keepsake. We have a large following of Irish ex-pats living across the world.

What were you looking for in a platform to create and print The Out Mag?

We wanted a reliable and user friendly publishing platform that offers cost effective printing for us. We also wanted a high end finish. This is why we chose Blurb.

It feels like The Out Mag is very well supported by your local community. How important was that as a goal or in making the idea of a magazine a reality?

We didn’t start out with any support. In fact, the first two issues of the magazine were created on free software by myself. The second issue received advertising to cover the cost of printing. We are a bit for profit. So we cover the shortfall in money. Luckily the Irish government saw the huge value in what we do locally and helped cover the entire costs of issue three and four. They also purchased all of our software and everyone on the main team a laptop. Issue four is set to be our very best issue yet.

What advice would you give another group looking to make a magazine? What do you wish you’d known when you started?

I would say listen to your own gut. We knew what we wanted to achieve as a group and we stuck to that. Even if obstacles are thrown in my way, I never give up. Quentin Crisp once said “Don’t try to fit in. Be yourself and eventually people will try and fit in with you!’ This is true for us. We got the hard work done and now we are using this moment to our advantage, creating the world we want to live in. 

Inspired to launch your own magazine project? Download BookWright for free to get started today.

The post The Out Mag: Celebrating LGBTQ+ Life in Ireland appeared first on Blurb Blog.

1. What inspired this book project? 

I’ve been interested in mixology for a few years now, and I’m really drawn to cocktails aesthetically, so I felt I could make a cool book myself. I also own quite a few cookbooks now, and will only purchase well-designed ones. So I wanted to create a book that I would want to own. I also feel as though “fruity drinks” get kind of a bad rap, so I wanted my book to open that selection up to a wider audience. I think they’re delicious, and more people should have the opportunity to try them. 

2. Tell us about your creative process for designing this book. How did you decide on the trim size, format and cover design? 

I started by creating moodboards so I could have a focused direction. Then the internal design of the book started with me creating as many fun, rounded grids as I could. I digitally created as many of those as possible, and let the actual recipes dictate which ones worked. It was a lot of fun to just play around with colors, add my illustrations, and just be loose with my design. 

I really let the content inform my choices for the physical dimensions of the book. Cocktail recipes are short, and I knew I didn’t want to pack my book with multiple recipes per page. A 7×7-inch book gave the recipes room to breathe, and the hardcover gave it the professional quality I wanted. 

The cover looks pretty much how I pictured it; in a way it was the first thing I designed. Once I had the title “Fruitful,” those huge letters just popped into my head fully formed. I played with some details to customize the type, but I knew from the start what I wanted the cover to be. 

3. How did you achieve the typography treatment of the cocktail names? 

Probably my favorite choice of the whole book is the western typeface, because I think it comes out of left field but really works.The recipe titles were a result of probably hours of fine-tuning. They were always going to be mostly on rounded paths, because I thought they looked way more eye-catching, especially with such short recipes. Eventually, I doubled the titles, filled in some individual letters, and just moved around the kerning. My favorite detail I added was the two little seeds in the Watermelon Sugar title; that’s the sort of thing I wanted to put in so you could find new details each time you looked. 

4. Is there a story behind your choice of colors for this project? 

I just wanted my colors to look warm and summery, and evoke that fruity impression. I tried to pick a palette that would work for my full range of drinks. 

5. Why did you choose to include illustrations instead of photographs? 

I felt illustrations were a much better use of my skill set. I had an original plan for what the illustrations would look like, and they completely evolved once I started playing with the patterns and layouts. It also made sense for my budget and the vibe I was going for. 

6. Which tools or software did you use to create your PDF files and why?

I used Blurb’s Adobe InDesign plugin for the creation of the book and cover, and the illustrations were executed in Adobe Illustrator. InDesign has tons of grid, layout, and typography capabilities, so the book would come out clean, no matter how many organic elements I added. When it came to my illustrations, Illustrator was really the only program where I could adequately experiment with my pattern designs. 

7. What are the most common mistakes people make in book design (cover, font, page layout, colors, etc.)? 

This is actually my first book design, so I’m no authority, but I’m an advocate for accessibility in all areas of design. I’ve seen a lot of people struggle when copy isn’t legible or readable, so I think it’s important to pay attention to the scale and color of your typographic content. I believe a book should balance form with function. The cover is also one of the biggest factors in book design, and it’s so unique to books; sometimes the cover isn’t given enough attention, or there isn’t enough of a risk. 

8. What advice would you give someone who wants to turn a collection of recipes into a cookbook? 

The main thing to think of is your “gap in the market”, so to speak. In my initial stages of research I, of course, found tons of cocktail recipe books. However, there weren’t too many dedicated to “fruity drinks”, at least not any I would want to own. So I curated a list of some sophisticated takes on “fruity drinks”. It was important to me that a consumer looking at my table of contents would find a good mix of recipes, but a cohesive list. I think if you frame your content in a way that’s new and exciting, and then execute the design really well, you’ll have a great finished product. 

9. Where do you look for creative inspiration? 

I’m so thrilled to be living in the age of the Internet, because we have literally endless inspiration at our fingertips. I find the most online inspiration from Pinterest and Instagram, where I get to look at other artists. I also am always reading about typography and art, so books end up playing a huge role in my creative landscape. I’m also always taking pictures of things that interest me in my everyday life, or at least writing them down in my notes. 

10. Any design projects you’re currently working on or excited about? 

This summer I’m really going to be focusing on painting, and I’m freelancing for a few clients. In the fall, I’ll be headed to school to get my Master’s degree in Media & Information Design, so my thesis will be my next big project! I’m excited to see where all of that takes me. 

11. How did the process of designing a book compare to your other creative work, such as your paintings and graphic design projects? 

I’ve classically been a bit of a perfectionist, so this project provided me with the opportunity to play around a lot. I was designing with a consumer in mind, but it’s not imperative that anyone buy it, so I took that opportunity to do exactly what I wanted to do, which I believe paid off. There aren’t many times in design where you just get to have fun and make all the executive decisions, so I feel like I have a product that totally reflects my point of view. A book is also one of the most intensive projects I’ve ever done, so I definitely needed to stay on top of my follow-through, but it was really rewarding.

***

Blurb is a self-publishing company that can help you design and print your books on demand. Want to create a cookbook or photo book project of your own? Start designing your pages today. 

The post Behind the Book with Jane Powers appeared first on Blurb Blog.

1. How did you come up with the idea for Lolly & Oliver? 

Becoming a new mom last summer inspired The Lolly Stories series. I began making smaller paintings on paper in order to accommodate an unpredictable infant schedule. The Lolly character sprung from one of those paintings and I instantly fell in love with her—she was a little girl I wanted my own daughter to know. One work led to another and after laying a few of the 4”x4” paintings side by side, a story emerged. The Lolly Stories: Up was the first book then came Lolly & Oliver. 

2. What was your process for writing, painting, and building a narrative? 

The painting comes first. I’ve always worked in series so instead of thinking of an individual painting, I think of the body of work as a whole. The narrative unfolds with each work. This way of working lends itself really well to making a storybook. 

3. Tell us about the process of designing your book. How did you decide on the book size, layout, typography, cover style, and number of images you wanted to include? 

I wanted the book to be available for purchase and I wanted it to be affordable. To keep the cost down and still have good quality color images, I chose the 5”x8” trade book option. I like the idea of my books being collectable as well so I use the same basic template for consistency. I love Garamond font because of its readability and it reminds me of fonts used in books from childhood. Another nod to my childhood library is using a different shade of yellow for each book cover to pay tribute to Golden Books which I adored!

4. What first inspired you to explore your paintings in book form? As you created a series of books, did your creative approach vary with each new project? 

Over the last few years, storytelling has evolved into a huge part of my studio practice. It first began by giving works longer, more descriptive titles. That led to writing super short narratives (one or two sentences) for each work. Eventually, that morphed into each painting being one part of a larger story. 

By this point I had been making simple photo books of my work to use as catalogs, so I felt comfortable with book-making templates. It just made sense to turn an exhibition catalog into a storybook and Blurb had all the tools I needed to make it happen! 

5. What advice would you give another artist who is thinking about making an illustrated book? 

Give it a shot! If anything, it’s a great way to document work. 

Turn your visual art, stories, or creative work into a professional-quality book with Blurb. Find the perfect format to fit your project. 

The post From Paintings to Storybooks: A Conversation with Layla Luna appeared first on Blurb Blog.

How did you come up with the idea for this project? 

Since my dream is to one day work with Disney, it’s only fitting to say that it all started with a Disney character; but let me take a couple of steps backward first. As an architecture student, I was lost as far as what type of thesis would be meaningful and important to me. Everyone was all about having a stance on how buildings should perform—in the past, present, and future. For me, I knew it wasn’t just about the building. I was most interested in user experiences and how we, as designers, curated the stories these buildings held. 

With that in mind, I remember specifically sitting next to my professor and going back and forth with him on what types of architectural theories could define social interactions and experiences. We were searching the interwebs for inspiration when suddenly he referenced the Walt Disney’s Baymax vinyl sticker on my computer (my favorite character). “Well, look at Baymax—what about him makes him cute?” 

From there, we came up with the idea of essentially building an entire thesis around the idea of cuteness and how the constructs of this endearing quality can bring out innate senses of vulnerability. We can then use this sense of vulnerability to spark more meaningful experiences with the environment and people around us. 

Tell us about the process of curating and designing your book. How did you decide on the layout, typography, color palette, and images you wanted to include? 

This is a little different for me, because of the fact that this book was the end product of a year’s worth of research and design work. It was meant to be the last hurrah before I graduated, but it turned into so much more. So that in mind, throughout the year, I wrote up an essay explaining my thesis concepts, ending with a final project that tested and applied these ideas to a real-world building (spoiler alert, it’s Le Corbusier’s Unité d’Habitation—or as I called it, the Cutité). 

From there, I considered how long I wanted my book to be, and how I was going to break up my essay into a more eye-catching format. I listed out the chapters I wanted to have, and then read through each section, asking myself what imagery would help support my story. 

As far as the color scheme goes, throughout this project I actually went through many different phases. Color is one of my favorite parts of design, so it’s no secret that I spent a lot of time thinking about what would work best. And whenever I was stuck, I would internet search for palette ideas—finding interesting combinations and then altering them to make them my own. With each design experiment I did, I tried a new palette. Eventually, I got to a point where I gave my eyes a break, and when I came back later, I thought, “yep, that’s it.” 

In a digital age, why is it still important to have a printed version of your work? 

For many reasons! It’s the same idea as why someone might prefer to go purchase a physical copy of a book over downloading the online version—it opens a whole new world of design. With the physical copy, you get to think about the density of the book, the texture, and finish of the cover, the lightness of the pages, all the way down to the appearance of the edges of the book when closed. And, of course, there’s the general sense of analog security in the event technology fails you.

All that aside, the biggest appeal of having a printed version is being able to bring it with you to any interview, career fair, and so on. Yes, you can provide a link to your online portfolio and hope your prospective employers remember to take a look at it when they get home, but there is nothing like being able to actually hold a physical item you designed, literally telling the story of your work as you flip through. It will draw your audience in, and bonus points if they get to keep the copy to refer to later. 

How did your approach to the visual layout or storytelling for UNUSUALLY cute. differ from your approach to a digital compilation? 

This is very similar to the difference between designing my website and Instagram profile vs my physical portfolio. Different platforms mean different ways in which you present your designs. They also mean different audiences, and how long they might be willing to look at your work. The color scheme and typeface stay the same, but how I am actually telling my story is what changed. With a physical portfolio, I considered how many chapters I wanted, and what content would go into each chapter—literally thinking about how my story would unfold as you flip each page. Inversely, with a digital poster, I’m much more focused on how I can clearly tell my story on one page—giving you a general idea of my work in under 5 seconds. 

What role do concept projects like this play in your career development?

They serve as the best conversation starters for any job interview or conversation that I have been a part of! Post graduation, I’ve learned very quickly that prospective employers want to see designs based off of plausible research. They want to know how you obtained information from the real world and brought it into your design projects. How you used it to inform how you might be able to make an impact as a designer. Naturally, a year-long architectural thesis is the perfect opportunity for this. Even though I’m no longer pursuing architecture, this project still renders itself useful. It will forever be an example of my ability to research and apply informed and innovative decisions to my designs. 

What would you like prospective clients or employers to know about you after seeing your book? How did that inform your design choices during the bookmaking process?

I would like prospective clients and employers to know that I care about every aspect of design. From the feeling of my book when you hold it in your hands, down to the flood of colors that you see when you quickly flip through it. I choose to make the most out of any and every design opportunity I can find, even if it’s as simple as the page numbers on the corner of each page. They’re all crucial pieces to the puzzle, in my book (no pun intended). 

That said, this informed my design choices during the bookmaking process in that I decided right off the bat how I wanted my final book to look and feel. I decided the goal page count, size of pages used, and finish of paper I wanted—all before actually compiling my book. I found this important because these are all choices that will guide how I move forward—how many chapters I’ll need to have, what selection of quotes I’ll want to highlight on a single page, what level of vibrancy I’ll need in my color scheme, and what size font and graphics I can use that will make sense with the proportions of my selected paper size. Considering all of these factors, and many more, allowed me to design with more intention, creating a more impactful piece in the process.

What advice would you give another artist or designer who is thinking about creating a book? 

The biggest thing I can recommend is to start by finding a book you love, which format-wise captures the look and feel you want in your own book. This should now serve as your go-to reference. I don’t mean to copy the book and everything about it but rather understand exactly what it is you like about the book. What about it feels successful to you, and inspires you most? That’s what you want to put into your own work. Stay consistent, and whenever you find yourself stuck, go back to that same reference book. 

At the end of the day, there are no right or wrong answers, just have fun with it! My book was meant to be a creative outlet for me to compile all the research and design experiments I conducted over the course of a year. I genuinely believe I put the time and love into the book that I did because I saw it as an opportunity to make something I was proud of—something I could look back onto and truly appreciate. And believe me when I say this, but I’m no expert. This was the second book I ever made, the first being a mandatory portfolio compiling my first year at college (I still cringe at the thought of it…). So that said, if you have the passion for it, you absolutely can do the same! 

Where do you look for creative or design inspiration? 

Everywhere? Honestly, as frustrating as it is to say, inspiration never comes easy. In fact, it usually comes when I didn’t ask for it (when I finally decide it’s time to take a break and go to bed). That said, my go-to, whenever I’m really stuck, is to stop and think about the what. What message am I trying to create? From there I focus on developing a concrete concept/story that I can consistently go back to for design decisions. With this concept, I research as much as I can and search for ways I can use my findings towards my design. As a result, I find this contributes to a much more thoughtful and full-of-life design. 

Do you experiment with other artistic mediums, and how do these feed your creative practice? 

100%! In addition to majoring in architecture, I took on a minor in fine art to do exactly that. I played with oil and acrylic paints, soft pastels, graphite, charcoal, Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, various 3D modeling software, and the list continues to grow. For me, it’s not about specializing in one medium but rather learning as much as possible about the various art forms out there. I see it as growing my personal “toolkit”. The more I understand the different ways a single art piece/form can be done, the better I can inform myself on how I would want to do it in a way that feels unique to me. That all said, I’m also the type of person who gets bored very quickly. So switching between artistic mediums is a fantastic way of reinvigorating my passion for the art industry, and furthering my growth as a designer.

***

Note from the author: UNUSUALLY cute. is a book that documents research and design experiments I conducted throughout my final year of architecture school, testing the constructs of cuteness and how they could apply to real-world environments. I graduated with a BArch in June 2019, and today I’m working in Orange County as a junior designer at a design and fabrication agency that specializes in brand experience and installation design. 

The post UNUSUALLY cute. Behind the Book with Zoe Sidhom appeared first on Blurb Blog.

Over the past decade I’ve embraced my part as the observer and also noticed a change in the creative weather, so to speak. What a successful photographer looked like in the past was very different from today. Photographers began to evolve, morph, adapt, and transition to keep pace with ever-changing trends and technology. A new, multi-skilled style of photographer emerged and we are the lucky ones who benefit from their vision.

Here are 5 photographers I follow closely, and recommend you do, too: 

Charlie Grosso 

Charlie Grosso does photography.  But she is also a writer, consultant, creative director, producer, and also happens to run her own international nonprofit organization. Through this she works to transform the refugee experience by teaching adolescent refugees the essential skills needed to become entrepreneurs and community leaders. And if that’s not enough she also ran a contemporary art gallery in NYC. I could also tell you she is an adventurer who once raced a car from London to Ulaanbaatar, but by now you might have guessed she would have done something like that. And luckily for us, she also crafts and sends out a wonderful self-described “bi-monthly, platonic love letter” titled “Hi Love”. So yes, she does photography. But that certainly isn’t enough to define her. 

Hank Willis Thomas

I’ve never met Hank Willis Thomas, but I have experienced his work. And when I say “experienced” I mean I’ve physically been inside his work. Let me explain.

You could call Hank Willis Thomas a photographer, but this would simply sell him short. I would call him a conceptual artist who happens to use a camera among many other mediums. He focuses on themes of perspective, identity, commodity, media, and popular culture. His work has been exhibited at the best most prestigious institutions the art and photography worlds have to offer, including the International Center of Photography, New York; the Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao; and many others. His work also features in the public collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York; the Whitney Musuem of American Art, New York; and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C among others. Thomas is a prolific creative chameleon who does public art installations, books, mixed media, photography, and video. And a big part of why I admire his work is that he collaborates with other creatives. 

One of my favorite Hank Willis Thomas projects is titled “In Search of the Truth”. It involved a giant inflatable speech bubble which doubled as a video recording booth, traveling the world in search of the truth. This was my “experience” with his work. I entered this enormous inflatable booth and did my best to speak the truth. Later in the day some of the participants, and their truth, were shared with the audience. I knew at that moment that Hank Willis Thomas was unlike anyone else and that my job was simply to watch and learn from him. 

Craig Mod

Craig Mod’s website says “Writer + Photographer” but I would use a baseball analogy to describe who he is and what he does. I would call him a “five tool player”, meaning a rare player who is above average in every recordable category. So yes, he is a writer and photographer, but he is also a world-class photo book designer, a long-distance hiker, and what I would call a high level “technologist”.

Craig was the founder and designer of my all-time favorite website, hi.co; a real-time writing community. (I will forever hold a grudge against him for shuttering this site….) And to add to his resume he has now entered the filmmaking world. His work is both highly specific and highly personal and is brought to his audience via a traditional website, podcast, and an array of some of the best most beautiful newsletters I’ve encountered.  The last thing I’ll say about Craig is that he is entirely immersed in his own community. He has lived in Japan for twenty-years developing an understanding of this culture that feels as natural as his shadow. My advice? Sign up for the newsletters, and to use a phrase from the late, great Hunter S. Thompson, “buy the ticket, take the ride”. 

Michael Clark 

Michael Clark is an adventure sport photographer. A good one. One quick look at his site and even the most casual observer will find themselves saying “whoa”. Making this kind of picture requires not only a comprehensive understanding of photography but also an in-depth knowledge of things like travel, safety, and culture not to mention the entire range of physical skills required to even endure the elements and exposure this work entails. But wait, there’s more. 

Michael is a former physicist who brings more to the table than knowing how to press the button. A brief conversation with Michael and you will immediately recognize an atypical level of intelligence but also a curiosity about the world in general. Yesterday, I noticed that he is teaching an upcoming, two-day, online class regarding the storage and archiving of digital assets. He was recently featured in an article about a new 100-megapixel camera. And he is the creative force behind the single best photography specific email newsletter I have ever found. He has also authored a highly successful e-book about digital workflow.  Think about a right-brain, left-brain creative who can climb, paddle, ride, jump, and working for a range of high-level commercial clients while also mastering the ever-changing technological world. 

When I was asked if I would write this post, I was asked to write about five photographers that people should follow so I will do just that. But this last one might surprise you. 

The last photographer you should follow is YOU. 

All of the photographers I mentioned above started somewhere and started at the bottom. They found a love of creativity and photography and they began to focus, practice, make mistakes and take chances which allowed them to find a unique voice. That voice led them to their current path, and you have the ability to do the same if you work and you work smart. Creatives, to a certain degree, are given permission to live their lives differently. Understanding the power that comes with this is key. So, if you are starting out and dream of the day when you will be included in the conversation about pioneering creatives then look, learn, and listen. 

The post 5 Photographers to Follow appeared first on Blurb Blog.

• Which book design software to use 
• How to start a photo book project 
• The image that changed his worldview
• Sharing creative projects and receiving feedback 
• The age or career stage when people do their best work 
• Image transfer techniques in journals 
• The difference between a photo story and a photo essay 
• The future of book publishing 

BookWright or Booksmart? 

A hundred percent of the time: BookWright. BookSmart is the original Blurb application that is no longer supported. BookWright is the up-to-date, current Blurb software that allows you to make Photo Books, Trade Books, and Magazines. 

What is the first step in a photo book project? 

The first step is to download the Blurb BookWright software so you can make a test book. Think: 7×7 inches, 20 pages, softcover. Use the test book as a way of experimenting with your photography, typography, and page design. Then use that test book as a road map for all your future bookmaking needs. 

Have you ever made a picture that changed your worldview? 

Yes, I learned something from every project I did. However, what I want to share with you is the image that made me a photographer. In 1966, an English photographer named Larry Burrows made a photograph in Vietnam called “Reaching Out,” which was made on a hilltop landing zone. I saw this photograph when I was either in middle school or high school, and it made me feel in a way that I never had felt seeing a photograph before. When I saw that picture, I said to myself, I want to get a camera and I want to make other people feel that same way. That is the reason I became a photographer. So in essence, that is the one image that really changed my worldview and made me into the photographer I am.  

How do I prevent myself from evaluating my work based on how others feel about it? 

I think this question is a byproduct of living in the Internet Age, when we sometimes feel we have to share every single thing we are doing in real time. I think as a photographer it’s better to wait until you really have something to say. Wait until you’ve worked on a project long enough where you can show your absolute best work. Then you have something relevant to say, you have something strong to share. I think it makes it a healthier experience all around.

What time of someone’s career do they make their best work? Do photographers make their best work when they are young, or do they make their best work when they are older? 

The short answer is: all of the above. I’ve seen young photographers come along that are basically transcendent image makers. And every generation, there are several people worldwide who come along that really do or say something that no one has done before. At the same time, other photographers take longer to mature and they do some of their best work later in their career. I don’t think there is one answer for every person. I think each photographer is an individual and unique. And it doesn’t really matter when you get the best work done. 

What is the best technique for image transfer into a journal? 

As a longtime journal keeper, I’ve got two ideas for you. The first is to get an instant camera, like a Fujifilm Instax that allows you to make pictures in the field, and take those little prints and glue them into your journal in real time. The second option is to wait until your project is done. Come back and actually design a journal in the Blurb BookWright software and fill that journal with whatever work you feel like putting in there. Then once you’ve got that book, you can take it into the field and continue to add to it with your Instax. So you have a short-term solution and a long-term solution. 

What is the difference between a photo story and a photo essay?

Personally, I use them interchangeably. I don’t think there is much of a difference. But I have heard some people believe that a photo story is about one particular person, story, or place. And a photo essay is a collection of people, places, and things. But again, I use them interchangeably and I think they are basically referring to the same thing. 

What do you worry about in publishing and what do you hope for in the future? 

I actually don’t worry about much in the publishing field. I think economically today, the world is in a tricky place. So, if I was going to worry about something, it’s that most of the people who work in publishing realize that there is so much good work being done, it’s impossible to publish all of it. So there are going to be some great projects out there that actually don’t find publishers. I think that’s been true forever and I think it will be true moving forward. What I hope is that the publishing industry remains healthy. And I hope that the alternative methods of publishing, outside of using a traditional publisher, continue to expand and grow. I think the more options that creatives have, the better off we all are. 

Ready to choose a trim size and cover type for your book project? Explore your options and get started today. 

The post Photo Books to Journals: Q&A with Dan Milnor appeared first on Blurb Blog.

In short, typography is a language all of its own, and if you are creating a book, magazine, or even a piece of wall art, knowing the basics of typography will ensure you are making the best decisions when it comes to type. Not to mention, learning typography is fun.

Now that we have a basic typography definition, why don’t we explore elements of typography design a little more closely:

Elements of typography

Two terms you will often hear in regard to typography are typeface and font. These two elements are related and play well together. Think of it like this:

A typeface is the design of lettering that can include variations such as bold, regular, light, italic, condensed, and more. Each one of these variations is a font. Someone who designs typefaces is called a type designer.

Another typography term is contrast, which refers to the grouping of two different typographical elements and using different traditional design methods to create a contrast. One element takes center stage while the second element takes less attention, but still adds to the overall design.

Typography design: contrast

There are four main techniques for creating contrast with typography; size, color, spacing, and shape.

Contrast by size

Size is relatively self-explanatory. Say for example you use a large typeface for the title of your book, and a much smaller, less dominant typeface for your subtitle. They are both important, but the second element does not distract from the first.

Contrast by color

Using color to achieve contrast means taking advantage of things like type density, using the full range of the grayscale, or using vibrant colors to offset different typefaces.

Contrast by spacing

Contrast through spacing can be as easy as justifying your type to the left, right, or center. But it can also be achieved through letter spacing, word spacing, or line spacing. Letter spacing refers to the measurement or space between letters. This same idea applies to word spacing and line spacing. Here is a little hint. Spacing takes practice, and there is a fine line between good spacing and going too far which could weaken the overall power of your design.

Contrast by shape

Finally, contrast by shape could mean using both italic and bold fonts together, or perhaps an artistic font paired with a simple or basic font.

Typography design: hierarchy

Typographic hierarchy refers to organizing type in a way that allows the reader to quickly find the information they are after.

Let’s say you are creating a book about poetry readings and you are listing the locations, the dates, and the titles of each event. Using a good typographical hierarchy means you are styling each of these data points in a unique way so that the reader can quickly identify a date, a location, or a title. The hierarchy should also take alignment into account. Type alignment refers to the placement of type in relation to other elements on the page, such as photographs, columns, tabs, etc.

Typography helps to create a sense of style and making small changes to your typography choices can be both liberating and strategic. My last piece of advice is this. Think about your typography as equal to all other aspects of your publication. Things like trim size, paper type, borders, and the size of the photographs are all important. Type is a peer to these other elements and requires the same amount of thought and dedication. Take your time and explore the options.

***

Blurb is a print-on-demand book publishing company. Design your book with our free bookmaking software, BookWright, and then learn about distribution options to sell it!

The post What is typography and why is it important? appeared first on Blurb Blog.

01
What do you mean by illustration?
Illustration can include things like drawings, sketches, plates, prints, artwork, or other visual aids. Drawing and illustration are often used interchangeably, but the primary difference is that drawing is considered personal expression, while illustration has a commercial relevance or angle.

02
Why is using illustration so important?
Visual information is ingested thousands of times faster than written information—something we’ve seen clearly as we continue on in the “Visual Age.” So illustration helps readers digest and absorb your message. Illustration also allows for nearly anything you can dream up. The only limit is your imagination.

In today’s world, the best creatives are vying for, more than anything else, attention, so using  multiple forms of content to reach multiple or varied audiences works best.

03
Which types of books typically use illustration?
Let’s start with children’s books: Many of the best children’s books are about magic or fantasy, stories best told through illustration. In addition, you have many varieties of nonfiction books that use illustration to break up text or help make data accessible.

04
Why do multimedia projects work well?
All of us are unique, and we all respond differently to different content or stimuli. I come from the photography world, so seeing a strong image is enough for me to engage with a story or concept, while you might respond more to a graph, drawing, or sketch from the author.

In today’s world, the best creatives are vying for, more than anything else, attention, so using  multiple forms of content to reach multiple or varied audiences works best.

05
What if I don’t have an art background?
Join the club! I have no art background and always considered myself to be extremely limited when it came to things like drawing or illustration. But, I just gave it a go, and that is my suggestion to you. Many of us have had art taught out of us by a multitude of life choices, but we all have a little artistic freedom just waiting to be rediscovered. Pencil, paper, begin.

06
What’s the best way to use illustration with photography?
Think about using illustrations that support the idea of your photography, or use them to illustrate the things you were not able to capture with your photography.

07
What about using illustration to highlight behind the scenes action of a project?
This is a great idea! Illustration, especially things like sketches, doodles, drawings, etc. often come across as much more personal than a photograph. You can use your illustrations to highlight the reality of the behind-the-scenes life of a project for the people involved. I’ve also seen people use instant film with sketches to do the same thing.

08
Do you have any examples of projects where you used both photography and illustration?
Last year I traveled to Wyoming to document the eclipse. As a photographer, I had to make a decision as to what I needed to cover. I knew there would be a glut of imagery of the actual eclipse, and I found myself more interested in the people who had come so far to see this miraculous event; however, if I photographed the people I couldn’t really photograph the eclipse at the same time. So, I made illustrations based on how the eclipse made me feel. Simple acrylic on art paper paintings. I then scanned these items and used them in the book.

09
Speaking of books, how can I use illustration in a book?
One of the things I love about Blurb is that I can print a single copy of a book. This means I can make a book, customize it after the fact, then print another, and do the same. Each copy will be completely unique. So, one suggestion is to design a notebook using photographs, text, etc. but then leave blank pages. You can then fill these with hand drawn illustrations. Each copy will contain its own unique set of sketches and drawings.

10
Where do you look for inspiration or knowledge when it comes to illustration?
The first place I look is the Communication Arts Illustration Annual. I also look at things like The One Club, which is loaded with all kinds of inspiring content. Finally, I look at A LOT of books.

Ready to make a completely custom Notebook or Journal? Choose from three sizes and mix and match blank, lined, square, or dot grid notebook pages. Get started today.

The post How to Mix Photography and Illustration appeared first on Blurb Blog.

PHASE 1: THE SETUP

1. Narrow your topic

No matter your genre, the temptation will be to pursue too broad a topic. The narrower your topic, the more it will lend itself to a structure and an audience. You need something that can fit in 200-450 book pages. This means that a non-fiction book about the “Galapagos Islands” will need to be distilled to “Wildlife of the Galapagos Islands”, or better still, “Birds of the Galapagos Islands”. If you’re an expert on corporate leadership, you’ll go from “Training Tomorrow’s Leaders” to “Raising up Leaders from Within” to “Finding and Raising Up Female Leadership from Within Your Tech Company.”

Next, explain your topic in a single sentence. Then, build it out, and explain your topic in one paragraph. Finally, write a summary of what your book will be—think beginning, middle, and end—in about a page. Make note of where you struggle to do this last part, because it’ll give you starting points for your research.

2. Define “success” for this project

What do you plan to do with your non-fiction book when it’s done? This drastically shapes both the book and the writing process. If you’re writing it for profit, you’ll need more market considerations than artistic ones in your content. Alternatively, if you’re writing to establish authority for speaking engagements, you’ll need to decide which content is in the book and what stays in-person. If you’re writing your non-fiction book as a personal expression, decide who it’s for. Knowing why you’re doing the work is sometimes the only thing that will carry you through those tough times when you don’t feel like working on the project anymore—and those times will come.

3. Describe your audience

As with knowing your “why”, you’ll need to know who your project is for. Not only is it motivating to focus on the specific people you’ll be helping or reaching, but knowing your audience intimately changes your writing style. Create a profile of your ideal reader—almost down to the hair color. You have to have a picture of your ideal reader in mind. What do these specific people care about? How do they spend their time? Do they have unique struggles and problems? What annoys them? Are there words that are native to them and which words are foreign? No book appeals to everyone, and success comes from specificity. Knowing your target audience at the outset makes a big difference as you write and try to sell your book.

4. Choose a structure

All non-fiction books fall into a few basic structures. You need to decide what type of book yours will be. This will guide your research, your outlining, and maybe even narrowing your topic. Consider these possible non-fiction book structures:

• How-to (with step-by-step chapters)
• Thought Leadership—presenting a problem, your take on it, and a solution or action plan
• A list book
• A collection of essays
• A book of inspirations along a theme
• A book of interviews (that you synthesized around a theme)
• A memoir
• A history of a place, person, or event
• A biography
• A guidebook to a place

Once you’ve selected the structure, part of your research will be consulting other major works in your genre with the same structure.

5. Decide on basic chapters

Break your topic into 5-10 parts. This can be done on a set of index cards, so you don’t have to put it in order yet. Write a sentence or two about each part. Consider your conclusion here, too—what are your main takeaways and where do readers go next?

6. Create an outline

This is where tools help. You need a good way to move your parts around and rearrange. Your non-fiction book likely won’t be written in order. You can use colored cards to group your notes by topic, or software like Scrivener that stacks your topics in trees that you can drag and drop into new sequences. The more detailed your outline the better. You’ll take each of your basic chapters and break it down further into Intro, 3-5 sub headings, and a conclusion.

7. Research your topic, your title, and your niche

At least half of the time it takes to write a non-fiction book is spent on research. If this is your first time writing a book, you’ll need to not only thoroughly research your topic—pulling together different details and opinions and combining them with your own—but also your genre, your structure, and other books like yours in your market. Next, research the niche of people who will read it. What else are they reading? Where do they “hang out”, either digitally or physically? Are there conferences you should attend? Blogs you should read? Twitter feeds to follow? This keeps your work relevant, and making it part of a larger conversation helps make it part of a larger market.

Next, research your title. You want to see what that audience is searching for, so that your book is discoverable. You also want your title to be on-topic and unique, so that your book is the one your audience finds. A good place to start with this is Amazon, where you can find your genre in its bestseller lists, then drill down to find the best sellers in the smallest niche where you might fit.

PHASE 2: WRITE YOUR BOOK

8. Set a word count goal

Most commercial non-fiction books are between 60,000-80,000 words. If this is your first time writing, books are measured in word-count because page formats differ. You’re shooting for a non-fiction book that’s industry standard size.

9. Set daily and weekly goals

Only you know how fast you write. If you can write 1,500 words in an hour, great! If you’re just starting, you might aim for something like 600-800 words in an hour. Now you can do the math. If you’re at the higher end of 1,500 words, you know this book’s first draft of straight writing time will be around 40 hours, not including research. Remember, the more detailed the outline, the faster the writing will go. The more general your outline, the more you’ll stop and start and get stuck in the gaps, and those hours will yield many fewer words.

10. Commit to a completion date

Once you know your words-per-hour, work backwards. Look at the time you can commit to writing—is it an hour a day? 3 hours a week? Estimate the time it will take to complete the project at your pace and mark the calendar. Tell someone to hold you accountable. Projects die without a drop-dead done-by date.

11. Schedule your writing time in uninterrupted blocks

Now schedule your hours to build out your outline into words and sentences. Commit to this time no matter what. Let friends and family know you’ll be unavailable during your writing blocks. Your book won’t write itself, so be prepared to step away from your non-book-writing life for a while to get your project done.

12. Use your own compelling voice

Forget most of what you learned about writing in school, unless you’re writing a non-fiction book for academics. Most people haven’t studied or practiced writing since they were in school, so you might be a little rusty finding your own voice. You might be tempted to use impersonal, “smart”-sounding sentences, words that don’t come naturally to you, or sentence patterns that aren’t native to how you speak. Writing in the formal way you might have learned in school can feel painful and awkward, and you’ll spook yourself and trigger too many insecurities if you try to be something other than yourself on the page. If your writing needs cleaning up or formalizing, you can do that in the editing.

13. Write for clarity and simplicity

The greater your expertise, the more you’ll be tempted to use jargon, references, and language that could alienate non-experts. Not only do you want to sound like yourself, but you want to sound approachable to a wide range of comprehension within your niche. Take the time to explain a little more than you think you should have to, define your terms, and use the most common language possible.

14. Get early feedback

As you’re writing your non-fiction book, share your outline with a trusted friend or fellow expert. Share completed chapters or excerpts as blog posts and get community feedback. You’re not giving away any secrets, you’re getting your audience’s help in ironing out wrinkles and filling in holes. Build a rapport with your readers such that they can be in conversation with you, helping you see what they see. Blogging and social media make this easier than ever.

Your finished book will likely evolve quite a bit beyond these early things you share, and that’s a good thing! What you don’t want is to get really far down the line and realize you’ve burdened yourself with something that doesn’t work and can’t be finished by following the path you’ve already traveled pretty far down. Enlist as much as you can, realizing that getting the time of other people will likely mean contributing to the community by helping those other writers out in the same way.

PHASE 3: CROSS THE FINISH LINE

15. Edit your book yourself

A finished first draft means all sections complete, no research holes, introductions and transitions in place. Now print a full copy of your manuscript. Give it a couple days, but then go through it, page by page, making your first round of edits. You’ll do this 2-5 times—making edits, printing a new copy, taking a break, coming back fresh to see new edits—until you’re satisfied that each and every page is as good as it can be.

16. Find first readers

Print copies of this manuscript—the one you’ve finished editing for yourself—and give it to 2-3 other trusted people. They might be looking for different things: one reader might know a lot about the subject, one reader might know a lot about book structure, still another might know you, your voice, and be able to help with your sentences. Ask your readers for particular kinds of feedback based on their skills. Include a checklist or questionnaire with feedback prompts to get them going, and set a deadline, if possible. When they are returned, decide which feedback you’ll incorporate and make your edits.

17. Get professional editing

Professional editing comes in 4 forms: structural editing, developmental editing, copy editing, and proofreading. Structural editing takes a look at your book and makes changes that will make it make more sense or have a stronger impact on your reader. Developmental editing looks at your content and makes your argument or ideas as strong as they can be in their own right, accounting for holes in logic, rhetorical pitfalls, or glaring oversights. It will also help cut redundancies and call out parts that need expansion. Copy editing takes a look at the writing style, line by line. They look for sentence structure, pattern variation, tone, voice, diction, imagery, etc. Lastly, proofreading checks for consistency, grammar, spelling, typos, and punctuation.

Depending on your goals for the non-fiction book, your book may need one or all of these. Blurb partners with people like Reedsy to help authors get this professional assistance. For people who are self-publishing, other than printing, professional editing can be the most expensive part of the process, but it makes all the difference in the world.

18. Make all the new edits

Depending on the level of professional editing you’ve received, you’ll have edits to make. Make your changes, big and small, then print a clean copy and go through it again to make sure your changes didn’t cause any new errors or problems. Sometimes professional editing happens in rounds, so you may be making changes, re-submitting, and making changes again, depending on the agreement you have with your editor. Don’t be discouraged. It’s very normal for whole books to go through draft after draft, even after they’re done. Be encouraged that each round is making it stronger and more likely to resonate with your audience.

19. Get professional proofreading

Do this as the very last thing, so that you don’t have more changes to make that create opportunities for new proofreading issues.

20. Get your cover professionally designed

Unless you are a book designer, you’ll want this professionally done. A professional will be familiar with industry standards, typographic hierarchy, design trends and other practical things, like how your book looks viewed as a thumbnail as well as on a shelf. In spite of the age-old saying, books ARE judged by their covers, and you didn’t work this hard on your project to have it ignored because the first-impression made by the cover was uninspiring. This might take a couple of rounds with your designer, too, but that’s OK. You’ll strike a balance between what he or she knows about cover design and what you know about yourself and your content. Be prepared to push back a little to make it something you believe in.

21. Get your Second Readers

This is to solicit reviews that will appear in your promotional materials, and maybe on your cover or in your front matter. Circulate proof copies to generate early buzz and catch any final problems.

22. Write the Front and End Matter

Drafts of these might happen in earlier steps, (before editing and proofreading), but some can only be done after you’ve gathered feedback from your second readers. All nonfiction books have some form of these auxiliary sections:

• Foreword (written by someone else, hopefully someone noteworthy)
• Introduction (written by you, creating a context for why you wrote what you did and what readers need to consider about your point of view)
• How to use this book (if it’s a guide or process of any kind)
• Table of Contents
• Afterword/ What’s next
• Other titles by the Author
• Resources page
• Endnotes/Footnotes/Bibliography
• Glossary
• Index (Don’t shy away from this. Modern desktop publishing software makes it easier to index than ever.)

23. Write the blurb for the back

Write an enticing description or blurb of your book that will inspire anyone that comes across it to dive in (and buy your book). This goes on the back of the book. Remember, this is just as much about getting someone to read the book as it is what’s in it. Don’t fall into the trap of description alone—really sell the experience of reading your non-fiction book in the blurb.

24. Get an author bio and headshots

If you didn’t have these already from the cover design, you’ll definitely need them as part of your promotional materials and package. You’ll need them for your social media and author website to promote your book.

25. Get your marketing materials together

Don’t forget to get mockups of your non-fiction book from your cover designer. You’ll want .jpg image mockups of your book facing forward, the spine, laying down, open, closed, etc. to use in your promotional materials, as well as an image of a big stack of your books. In addition, you’ll need your sales pitch, your description of what it’s about, and talking points for various segments of your audience. You’ll be much less intimidated by the marketing process if you’ve done this thinking and formatting in advance.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The only books that matter are the finished ones, not the ones that stalled out, that got stuck as undeveloped ideas, or got abandoned in a drawer. The process of writing a non-fiction book might be daunting, but it’s doable. Remember that millions of books are finished and published every year. Millions and millions of people throughout written history have finished their books and gotten them into the world. If they could do it, why not you? It’s time to get to work.

The post How to Write a Non-Fiction Book appeared first on Blurb Blog.

Tell us about your work. How did you get started as a stylist?

Originally, I started out styling and designing as a home stager. Eventually, that turned into styling products in my own home for Instagram and my blog. I work with companies that have similar values, quality products that I can stand behind, and a style similar to what I produce. My favorite clients trust me and my styling abilities, and they give me free reign to create something I think people can relate to or be inspired by.

What role does photography play in your business?

Photography is huge in my business. Having the correct lighting and layout are all important to showcasing a space that I designed. I don’t consider myself a photographer, but I’m definitely particular about angles and balance, so that comes in very handy when I’m taking a picture.

What was it like to make your book?

I’ve never made a book like this before, so I wasn’t sure how easy it would be. I was surprised at how straightforward it was and how much fun I had. I kept adding more and more pages!

What do you think of Layflat?

The Layflat paper was perfect because landscape shots really showcase the interior of our RV, which was an important part of our book. Being able to have that spread across two pages without a crease was priceless.

How does making a print page layout compare to designing and styling a space?

I used a lot of similar techniques that I do while mixing patterns when I designed my book. If I selected an image that had a lot going on for the left side, then I chose something a bit subtler for the right side. I also tried to keep similar color stories from page to page so there was a consistency as you flip through the book. I think that’s very similar to, in a home, where each room blends into the next with a color story.

How does your Blurb Book compare to other photo books you’ve seen?

I was really impressed with the quality of the photos being printed on such a large scale. It was also amazing to see my landscape images spread across the Layflat pages; it looked so professional! It was really fun to be able to create a title for the book and the customizability was a great feature.

What are the best parts of your job? What are some of your challenges?

The best part of my job is that I’m doing exactly what I want and what makes me happy. Being able to get paid for that is absolutely amazing! A challenge would be not knowing exactly how much I’ll make financially every month.

When you were a small child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I’ve always been obsessed with decorating and often redecorated my space and my parents’ house (when they would let me!) I’m doing exactly what I’ve always wanted to do!

If you could go back and talk to your 5-years-ago-self about your business, what would you say?

Listen to your gut and just keep doing what your instincts tell you to do. Don’t try and force yourself into what you think people want. If you’re doing what you love, other people will love it as well because it’s creative and authentic.

What’s one project you’re dying to do?

I would love to have full reign on a hotel project and make every room completely different from the next. I actually have a goal of opening up an Airbnb and doing just that in the next year or so.

Thanks so much, Liz, for taking the time to talk with us. We can’t wait to see what you create next!

What do you think is the key to translating a 3D Space to 2D page layouts? Share your tips in the comments below!

The post Travelling in Style: Layflat with Liz Kamarul appeared first on Blurb Blog.

We asked four photographers for their travel book tips—a pretty international group, representing the United States, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Thailand. They told us about the books they made, the cameras they shoot with, and just what it is that they’re looking for when they hit the road.

What camera gear do you travel with?

Lindsay: I have a Canon t4i. I love to shoot with a 24-70mm/2.8 zoom lens, but that lens is heavy (and expensive!) and not practical for all travel. All the photos in magnifique were taken with an 18-55mm kit lens. I also rely on my iPhone 5 for a string of fast casual shots for Instagram.

Leon: For this travel book (travel done in 2005), I used an old analog camera, which was really very bad. After that, I used a Canon Powershot S80, a Canon G9, an EOS 7D, and today my Canon 5D Mark lll is my new best friend.

Neil: Usually, I try and keep things light, but in the DSLR world, that just does not happen easily. I use a Canon 5d Mark III with a 50mm f1.2 , 135mm f2, and a 24-105mm f4. Plus, a video tripod.

Flemming: I travel with a Fuji X-pro1 and various Fuji lenses.

Do you travel with ideas of what you’d like to photograph?

Lindsay: My style has matured significantly in the last several trips. These days I’m more interested in capturing people, scenes, motion, and interesting design. Since my appreciation of photography was born out of my love for food photography, I still take a fair amount of pictures of local cuisine.

Leon: Not really, but the last few years I’ve tried to make portraits of the inner soul of a country: Local people. For me it’s a big challenge every time. You have to make contact, gain confidence, and act quickly.

Neil: For me it’s all about photographing people and their surroundings. I tend to go off on an adventure and try and find people going about their everyday lives. In my experience using a 50mm brings you closer to subject, giving the viewer a more realistic—call it humanistic—connection. I definitely have an idea of what countries appeal to me, but once there I let things happen organically.

Flemming: No, no, really, all my personal work is shot on instinct, whatever makes my eye look.

About how many photos do you shoot for a particular book?

Lindsay: I take several hundred photos per trip. Usually, I end up liking around 75 to 100 of them.

Leon: It depends. Usually between 1,500 and 3,000 images. Let’s say around 100 a day.

Neil: Well, as This is China is my first book, I can tell you that I had about 600 images to chose from, and about 100 made it into the book. You have to be picky when you’re putting your work out there, plus the images have to work. I had some great photographs that were brilliant on their own, but just did not feel right in the book.

Flemming: This varies a lot, but at least 2,000 to 3,000 images.

Did you think about your book while you were taking your photos?

Lindsay: To me, travel is all about the emotions of being in an unfamiliar place. Chronicling a lot of these new experiences so that I could look back many years later and remember exactly how I felt in a particular moment (i.e. the first time I saw the twinkling Eiffel Tower at dusk)—that was the reason I wanted to document the trip. I did think about the photos because the images themselves become gateways to those memories.

Leon: Not that much—first things first. Concentrate on the image and worry back home about the art direction.

Neil: No, not at all. It wasn’t until I finished my trip to China that I felt compelled to create the book. China took me by surprise. I went there with an open mind having done no prior research and I was blown away by the place. I was getting some fascinating photographs of the Chinese people, their cultures, and the way they went about things—and after spending two months absorbing their culture, I knew I had to show the photographs in a way that was personal to me—but also captivating to an audience.

Flemming: No, not at all, I never have any end product in mind for my personal work.

How long did it take you to make your book?

Lindsay: Writing and editing the copy for magnifique took a few days. Pulling in the photos and customizing my layouts took a few more days. Realistically, I probably could have done the entire thing in a day or two, but I figure that I got to enjoy the process more since it was stretched over the course of about a week.

Leon: I really don’t want to know. For this particular book, I think about 60 hours. I’ve probably spent more than 120 hours on some other Blurb books. As I said, I don’t wanna know

Neil: Too long. I spent two weeks making the first one—then at the last minute completely redesigned it. Altogether it took about six weeks.

Flemming: It was a process that lasted a couple of months, from the initial image selection to editing the visual stories, writing the text stories, re-writing the stories, testing many different layouts, and finding all the elements that went into the limited editing. Photographer Charlene Winfred was the editor of both the visual and text stories and was invaluable—having a great editor is key.

What have the reactions been to your book?

Lindsay: I’ve had a lot of people tell me how much they enjoy my writing style and photography. Net-net, that’s pretty fantastic feedback!

Leon: I’ve never had any reaction on Blurb itself,  but people who have seen the books “live” are generally enthusiastic.

Flemming: The reactions have been phenomenal, my 25 limited-edition copies sold in a week and the normal edition is still selling. I have received so much encouraging positive feedback from everyone who has seen the book and it seems to have taken on a life of its own.

Neil: Well, no one has actually bought it yet, but from the original copy (which I have still yet to see with my own eyes, as I was in Vietnam when it landed at my front door back in the UK) has had some great feedback, not just on the images but the book as a whole. The overall reaction I have had is it looks and feels very professional. Using your Mohawk proPhoto Pearl paper definitely makes a difference.

Where to next?

Lindsay: I’m desperate to get to Iceland for an abundance of waterfalls, hot springs, indie bands, Scandinavian cuisine, and maybe even an elf/gnome/troll sighting! Then I’d also like to see South Africa, New Zealand, and Israel.

Leon: Cuba…next week. And after that one we’ll keep on going to the other side of the horizon.

Neil: I will be off to Myanmar next month, just as soon as I get my 50mm and MacBook Pro repaired. Asia has been very hard on them.

Flemming: I live as a nomad, and have no home—or several should I say. I am presently in Copenhagen, one of my homes, going back to Singapore in April to another home, then Australia to visit friends, and then Europe for the summer.

The post Making a great travel book: tips from 4 photographers appeared first on Blurb Blog.

Allan Jenkins’ work combines the best of traditional and modern techniques. For example, his Victorian-era cyanotype prints are created from digital negatives and his self-published print books are based on his hand-sketched notebooks. Jenkins’ ability to succeed in both the fine art and commercial photography worlds is a testament to his craft. He was kind enough to talk to us about his process, his work, his thoughts on the state of photography today, and the books he has made with Blurb.

The post Talking Cuba and Cyanotypes with Photographer Allan Jenkins appeared first on Blurb Blog.

Making your photo book available to buy on Amazon couldn’t be easier. Once you’ve uploaded your book to your Blurb account, you simply need to go to your Book Details page and select “Amazon” under the “Sell my book” options. That’s it. Once you’ve provided your info to receive payments, Blurb handles the rest.

“…Blurb is now making it easy for authors to sell on Amazon.com, helping them take advantage of Amazon’s tremendous reach and ratings/rankings functionality to expand their audience and find new readers.”

Here are a few of the common questions people ask about selling their photo book on Amazon.

What can authors expect when listing their book on Amazon?

Once an author submits their book, it will be available for sale on Amazon.com within about seven days. Authors should plan to market their book to their network in order to drive reviews and sales rankings on Amazon, which can then lead to organic sales from new readers. It’s important for authors to remember that Amazon adds a fee for selling through Amazon.com, so the list price will need to be higher in order to make the same profit as a book sold directly via the Blurb platform.

Can authors list their books on Amazon if they’ve already published them through Blurb?

Absolutely. Any existing photo book is eligible for distribution on Amazon. For authors who want to sell on Amazon, it’s strongly recommended to drive all sales to Amazon in order to increase their Amazon ranking. But, if someone wants to sell both through Amazon and directly through Blurb’s platform, they can do this by uploading their book twice. It’s important to remember that the list price must be the same on both Amazon and on Blurb, per Amazon’s terms. This just means that the author gets a bigger profit for any copies sold through Blurb!

What are the benefits of selling a book on Amazon?

A big benefit of Amazon is that it gives authors a new opportunity to expand their audience beyond their current network. The best way to take advantage of Amazon is to follow Amazon’s best practices for sellers—for example, choosing the right words for the book’s description, maintaining positive ratings and reviews, setting up your seller’s page, and driving all sales to your book listing on Amazon in order to increase authority. It’s these little things that will make your book more discoverable to new readers.

Why did Blurb choose to enable authors to sell on Amazon?

Our whole focus is helping authors achieve their goals. For many of our authors, reaching a wider audience by selling on Amazon is an important part of this success. In meeting with several customers, we came to better understand some of the challenges they had in setting their Blurb book up for sale and aimed to find an approach to simplify the process for them.

Learn more about listing your book for sale on Amazon.

The post Blurb to Amazon— Sell Your Book on Amazon appeared first on Blurb Blog.