ladyinblack1964 Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 Help! Before I launch into my tale of woe, I'll introduce myself. I am Sandra, and I have not been on this forum in a couple of years. I don't do a lot of digital scrapping but I find myself looking at a big project now. I am totally overwhelmed by the more than 300 photos I took on my recent vacation to London. My goals are to: 1). Complete a physical art journal at home (which is underway); 2) Share photos on social media (also partly underway); 3) Make a Blurb book (or Shutterfly or whatever). I've got three different folders so far: London Resized for Internet, London Resized for Photo Book, and London to Print (that's for the journal. I'm have a difficult time making decisions not only which photos to include, but which VERSIONS of the photos, since I used the burst function on my camera! Right now I'm just sampling different book companies' software, to see which are the most user friendly. I'm comfortable in PSE and InDesign, though graphic design is not my strong suit. That's why I'm using their page templates and not designing my own. But I feel like I'm in Resize ***. Just trying to get the photos down to 10 MB each is challenging. I know how to batch resize in PSE, so I can get them to 300 dpi. But I'm still left with enormous photos in inches (like 10 or 12 inches) and am not sure how to get them to a "just right" size. Does anyone have any advice? Your opinion on who has the nicest photo book, and/or whose software is least intimidating, is also welcome! Thank you very much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Florida granny Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 Here's what I do in PSE: once I re-size the image to 300 dpi, I also re-size the longest photo side to 6 inches. (You could alternatively re-size the shorter side to 4 inches, if that works better for your projects). Be sure "constrain proportions" is checked. Good luck! It sounds like you've taken on a big task! I've heard good things about Blurb but haven't used them. I have used Shutterfly and Snapfish and find them both very easy to use. I have also used Adoramapix. I love their quality and their lay-flat pages, but their software is more difficult, in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CRS Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 Wow, sounds like a huge project!! But I hope you had a good time on vacation! I usually use Shutterfly for printing my books. I've used Artscow in the past, too. As far as resizing your photos, I don't have any advice but wanted to wish you luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariJ Posted July 8, 2016 Share Posted July 8, 2016 I've just made a few photobooks with Costco (if you're a member) and their prices can't be beat. Plus, you don't pay shipping if you have it sent to your store! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
englishrose Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 300 photos sounds about right to create a holiday photo book. I have made half a dozen books through a company here in the UK and have been thrilled with the results. My advice is: don't make your pages too cluttered stick to a neutral and limited palette when choosing papers embellishments etc don't be afraid to use not such good photos or parts of photos to tell your story. Your best photos can always have a page to themselves include journalling be consistent with font size, shadow types etc ensure there is a wide margin all the way around the pages you create to ensure that nothing is lost if the page "slips" in printing. check everything thoroughly before you send it off to print - typos and silly mistakes seem twice as bad when fixed for all time in print Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boatlady Posted July 9, 2016 Share Posted July 9, 2016 I love Hilary ideas. I would sort but day or places and plan pages accordingly. Then I would sort by the quality of the photo..is it good,does it tell the story or is too much like another photo. Sounds like a big project but a fun one reminiscing the events of the trip. I hope you post the finished pages here so we can go on the trip with you. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyinblack1964 Posted July 9, 2016 Author Share Posted July 9, 2016 Thank you, ladies, for your great advice! I have been working a little bit at a time, every day, and there's no real deadline for the project, so that's a good thing! Unfortunately, we don't have Costco where I live. I've heard good things about it as a store in general, though. Have not heard of Artscow but will check it out. Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teecee Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Thank you, ladies, for your great advice! I have been working a little bit at a time, every day, and there's no real deadline for the project, so that's a good thing! Unfortunately, we don't have Costco where I live. I've heard good things about it as a store in general, though. Have not heard of Artscow but will check it out. Thanks again! Hi, you can order from Costco online. I don't have one near where I live either, but I've ordered from them in the past and I was very pleased with their print quality, service, and pricing. I ordered several sets of 8x8 layouts I had created, then when I received them, slipped them into 8x8 albums. Easy peasy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariJ Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Thank you, ladies, for your great advice! I have been working a little bit at a time, every day, and there's no real deadline for the project, so that's a good thing! Unfortunately, we don't have Costco where I live. I've heard good things about it as a store in general, though. Have not heard of Artscow but will check it out. Thanks again! Hi, you can order from Costco online. I don't have one near where I live either, but I've ordered from them in the past and I was very pleased with their print quality, service, and pricing. I ordered several sets of 8x8 layouts I had created, then when I received them, slipped them into 8x8 albums. Easy peasy. Theresa is correct that you actually must create your book online and have the option to have it shipped to you. However you must have a Costco account in order to do so. (Or a friend who will let you use their card/membership number!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teecee Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Thank you, ladies, for your great advice! I have been working a little bit at a time, every day, and there's no real deadline for the project, so that's a good thing! Unfortunately, we don't have Costco where I live. I've heard good things about it as a store in general, though. Have not heard of Artscow but will check it out. Thanks again! Hi, you can order from Costco online. I don't have one near where I live either, but I've ordered from them in the past and I was very pleased with their print quality, service, and pricing. I ordered several sets of 8x8 layouts I had created, then when I received them, slipped them into 8x8 albums. Easy peasy. Theresa is correct that you actually must create your book online and have the option to have it shipped to you. However you must have a Costco account in order to do so. (Or a friend who will let you use their card/membership number!) Nope, I didn't create a book online - I ordered 8x8 prints of my layouts from Costco, then put them into my own empty albums that I had purchased from Michaei's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariJ Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Thank you, ladies, for your great advice! I have been working a little bit at a time, every day, and there's no real deadline for the project, so that's a good thing! Unfortunately, we don't have Costco where I live. I've heard good things about it as a store in general, though. Have not heard of Artscow but will check it out. Thanks again! Hi, you can order from Costco online. I don't have one near where I live either, but I've ordered from them in the past and I was very pleased with their print quality, service, and pricing. I ordered several sets of 8x8 layouts I had created, then when I received them, slipped them into 8x8 albums. Easy peasy. Theresa is correct that you actually must create your book online and have the option to have it shipped to you. However you must have a Costco account in order to do so. (Or a friend who will let you use their card/membership number!) Nope, I didn't create a book online - I ordered 8x8 prints of my layouts from Costco, then put them into my own empty albums that I had purchased from Michaei's. Sure, you can do it either way, but you must have a membership or a borrowed one when you either pick up or order for delivery. I love Costco's printing quality and their prices for prints can't be beat! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AggieB Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 Sounds like you've gotten some great advice here. And taking it slow but steady is the only way to get this done. It sounds like a huge job - good luck with it. I just wanted to offer some support and say that I hope to see some of these pages here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindarobin Posted July 10, 2016 Share Posted July 10, 2016 My goals are to: 1). Complete a physical art journal at home (which is underway); 2) Share photos on social media (also partly underway); 3) Make a Blurb book (or Shutterfly or whatever). But I feel like I'm in Resize ***. Just trying to get the photos down to 10 MB each is challenging. I know how to batch resize in PSE, so I can get them to 300 dpi. But I'm still left with enormous photos in inches (like 10 or 12 inches) and am not sure how to get them to a "just right" size. Your opinion on who has the nicest photo book, and/or whose software is least intimidating, is also welcome! Using an online photobook site's template is easy and fun, especially if you want to get 300 photos scrapbooked this year! (It would take me forever to make pages in PSE for 300 photos.) I am also impressed with the selection and quality of background papers, frames and embellishments free for use on their photobooks. When I made a photobook this way, I also uploaded one JPG page that I created in PSE, with blends, masks, and Scrapgirl's supplies. I liked having one "artsy" page that could not be done otherwise. I use photolab.ca which is Canadian. Their site is similar to Walmart's. No shipping charge because you pick up at the location nearest you. Regarding batch resizing. Just resample down to 2100 pixels for the longest side. Then all the photos will be well under 10MB, but they will print sharp in your photobook, up to a 5x7 photo. If you want a certain photo to cover the entire page, resample down to 3600 pixels on one side. For social media, do a separate batch resampling - down to 900 pixels on one side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyinblack1964 Posted July 11, 2016 Author Share Posted July 11, 2016 My goals are to: 1). Complete a physical art journal at home (which is underway); 2) Share photos on social media (also partly underway); 3) Make a Blurb book (or Shutterfly or whatever). But I feel like I'm in Resize ***. Just trying to get the photos down to 10 MB each is challenging. I know how to batch resize in PSE, so I can get them to 300 dpi. But I'm still left with enormous photos in inches (like 10 or 12 inches) and am not sure how to get them to a "just right" size. Your opinion on who has the nicest photo book, and/or whose software is least intimidating, is also welcome! Using an online photobook site's template is easy and fun, especially if you want to get 300 photos scrapbooked this year! (It would take me forever to make pages in PSE for 300 photos.) I am also impressed with the selection and quality of background papers, frames and embellishments free for use on their photobooks. When I made a photobook this way, I also uploaded one JPG page that I created in PSE, with blends, masks, and Scrapgirl's supplies. I liked having one "artsy" page that could not be done otherwise. I use photolab.ca which is Canadian. Their site is similar to Walmart's. No shipping charge because you pick up at the location nearest you. Regarding batch resizing. Just resample down to 2100 pixels for the longest side. Then all the photos will be well under 10MB, but they will print sharp in your photobook, up to a 5x7 photo. If you want a certain photo to cover the entire page, resample down to 3600 pixels on one side. For social media, do a separate batch resampling - down to 900 pixels on one side. Thank you. I find MB and pixels very confusing, this helps a lot! If I ever get this project done, I will be glad to share it all with you. I just heard about yet another photo book service: Lumapix Foto Fusion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindarobin Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 Thank you. I find MB and pixels very confusing, this helps a lot! When working with images on your computer, all that matters is pixels. SERIOUSLY. I've worked in professional printing for over a decade and most non-professionals get so hung up on "300 dpi" which is MEANINGLESS without knowing how many pixels. 300 dpi only refers to pixel density, not pixel quantity, but if you don't have enough pixels, print quality is poor. The simple math is to decide how large you want your print to be, e.g. 8x10 inches, then multiply by 300 dpi. This gives you pixel dimensions. If your image falls well short of these calculations, your print will come out poorly. Therefore, to make a good 8x10 print, your image should be 2400x3000 pixels (or more). Printing services only care about your JPG's pixel dimensions. It means nothing to them if you save at 300 dpi or 200 dpi or 100 dpi because 2400x3000 pixels is simply 2400x3000 pixels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindarobin Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 Generally speaking, the more pixels an image has, the higher its file size, measured in MB. Again, when it comes to quality printing, what matters more is number of original pixels, NOT MB size. I have printed 12x12 scrapbook pages and they come out beautifully (because they are 3600x3600 pixels), and the file size is usually between 3 and 6 MB, when using a small JPG compression factor. You mention that your photos are over 10 MB each. Makes me think these are RAW files, not JPG? If JPG, that suggests you can lower the resolution setting on your camera. That would save you a lot of resampling work. You only need super high res photos for poster size printing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariJ Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 Generally speaking, the more pixels an image has, the higher its file size, measured in MB. Again, when it comes to quality printing, what matters more is number of original pixels, NOT MB size. I have printed 12x12 scrapbook pages and they come out beautifully (because they are 3600x3600 pixels), and the file size is usually between 3 and 6 MB, when using a small JPG compression factor. You mention that your photos are over 10 MB each. Makes me think these are RAW files, not JPG? If JPG, that suggests you can lower the resolution setting on your camera. That would save you a lot of resampling work. You only need super high res photos for poster size printing. This is all so interesting Linda. Thanks for sharing and explaining it all so clearly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyinblack1964 Posted July 12, 2016 Author Share Posted July 12, 2016 Super Scrapper--thanks for the "insider's view." I did a bit of graphic design (worked in PR for 7 years) and I never got the hang of these measurements/sizes/etc. I just didn't get it. You put it in a way I can understand easily. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindarobin Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 This is all so interesting Linda. Thanks for sharing and explaining it all so clearly. Thanks, MariJ, I try! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindarobin Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 Super Scrapper--thanks for the "insider's view." I did a bit of graphic design (worked in PR for 7 years) and I never got the hang of these measurements/sizes/etc. I just didn't get it. You put it in a way I can understand easily. Thank you! You're welcome! So what is your camera like? What resolution setting are you using? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyinblack1964 Posted July 12, 2016 Author Share Posted July 12, 2016 I have a Panasonic Lumix DMZ-CS50. Typical photo is 3840 x 2160 pixels and resolution of 180 dpi. My husband set it up that way to make it easier for me to resize. Super Scrapper--thanks for the "insider's view." I did a bit of graphic design (worked in PR for 7 years) and I never got the hang of these measurements/sizes/etc. I just didn't get it. You put it in a way I can understand easily. Thank you! You're welcome! So what is your camera like? What resolution setting are you using? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindarobin Posted July 12, 2016 Share Posted July 12, 2016 I have a Panasonic Lumix DMZ-CS50. Typical photo is 3840 x 2160 pixels and resolution of 180 dpi. My husband set it up that way to make it easier for me to resize. OK, so 3840 x2160 pixels means you can print those photos as large as 12.8 x 7.2 inches. If you never want to print that large, use the next lower setting. That will save you from having to resize all the time. The exception is if you want to be able to crop large portions off your photo, then you need the higher resolution to compensate for all the pixels you will be deleting. 180 dpi doesn't mean anything because it has nothing to do with your monitor resolution nor your print resolution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smiles Posted July 13, 2016 Share Posted July 13, 2016 thanks for your helpful explanations, Linda! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindarobin Posted July 14, 2016 Share Posted July 14, 2016 Thanks, Gayle! If there's anything you want me to elaborate on, please ask. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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