PHOTO BOOKS
Kirti Jethwa, from Umergaon, is an artist, writer and poet who loves to write about all aspects of life. She writes in Hindi and Marathi and her work has been published in select magazines.
Hello readers, nice connecting with you again. This is the third edition of Printing & Beyond. Thanks for all your feedback which shows that you are enjoying reading on the topic of printing your photographs. We aim to share how prints can take your images further; how prints can help preserve your legacy and family history; how prints can be a conversation starter and much more including how it could be made into a family activity.
This time we will talk about consumer photo books which are different from wedding albums. While more than 1.4 crore wedding albums are printed in India –thanks to the thoughtful couples who insist on printed albums and professional wedding photographers coupled with dedicated printers who are ever willing to create exquisitely designed albums – consumer photo books like travel albums, family albums, birthday albums and similar have not yet reached such numbers but the growth is definite. There are several online platforms – album designers and professional photographers – who provide this service. The best part is that we in India can deliver world-class quality and innovative products.
There are many who have ordered photo books for themselves. And then there are others who are yet to order even one! However, almost everyone with whom I talk about printed photo albums, have always wanted one. Never has anyone refused. And when I ask them why they have not tried to go online and order or walk into a photo studio and enquire or take help from any professional photographer, the answer most of the time is “Yes, I am thinking about this.” Friends, I request you to get at least one photo book printed – a family album. Just some 20-30 cherished family pictures to begin with. Or maybe just select a recent vacation and get a small book done. It does not cost much. Once you receive your first book, you will realise what you were missing out on. Later on, you could increase the number of photographs and pages and create a book every year of just 200 to 250 photographs.
I recently asked a few of my contacts to go on-line and create their first-ever photo book. Please read about their experiences in the pages that follow. This will inspire you for sure. The market for consumer photo books is growing in India. In a few years from now, the volume is expected to grow beyond our expectations.
In a conversation with Arun Raj, Chief Growth Officer at Printo, who are India’s largest print-on-demand platform, this is what he had to say; “We’re excited about two key trends over the past year – since Covid eased up, demand for travel is booming and new life events are being celebrated. These two trends together have added a new demand in photos – from baby showers to travel memories. We think this trend is now here to stay for India.”
Question: Please share your overall experience with the first photo book of your poems and your advice to others who are equally passionate about writing.
Kirti Jethwa: We live in a digital world where screens are overflowing with images. By stepping back and creating a photo book, we can reconnect with our images as well as with those moments in time. As a poet, I always wanted to have a book of my poems along with relevant photographs. Thanks to Vimal Parmar for the suggestion to order one.
Nothing comes close to a personalised photo book. Not only is it a creative way to preserve your memorable work, but you also get to tell your story your way. When I received my first photo book with a collection of my poems, it was indeed a very emotional and satisfying feeling. This feeling is difficult to describe. It has to be experienced.
To keep lifetime memories of your work, I would suggest everyone to go for a photo book. Photo books can be customised to fit any purpose, such as a baby book, a family trip album, a school yearbook or just like my poem book. I got my photo book from www.vistaprint.in and I am very satisfied with their process.