Photo Book Review

Why Photo Books?

With the shift to digital photos from paper you may have fewer boxes and piles of photos lying around your home. However, the digital "stacks" can be equally daunting if all of your photos are tucked away in file folders, never reaching the light of day in a digital photo frame or even your computer's screensaver. Photo book sites can help, allowing you to create lovely keepsakes of all your important family events. They can also help you organize information for a homework assignment, family cookbook, professional portfolio and more. With the amazing customization capabilities photo book sites can act as your own personal publisher in many ways, and the finished product is a stylish hardcover book.

Photo book publishers make uploading, organizing, designing and publishing professionally styled, long-lasting photo books convenient, easy and, most importantly, fun. Many photo book publishers offer additional amenities and spaces where tight-knit groups or communities can come together and share finished photo books and exchange ideas about photography and photo book design. You can post your pictures for public viewing where other members can offer feedback on your pictures and vice versa. Many sites publish engaging, professional images of people and places from around the world for browsing and comment. Some sites even provide a bookstore where users can buy and sell finished photo books.

As you browse this site, you’ll find informative and creative articles on photo books and comprehensive reviews on photo book publishers that will help you make an informed decision on which service is right for you. Be sure to read the reviews of some of our top-ranked online photo book services like Mixbook, Shutterfly and MyCanvas.

At TopTenREVIEWS We Do the Research So You Don’t Have To.™

Photo Books: What to Look For

Photo book publishing services should make it easy to upload, organize, design and publish your photo books, or post them on the internet for everyone to enjoy. The best photo book publishers offer editing tools, lots of storage space, password protected access, the ability to buy and sell photo books, photo book gift services and other conveniences.

Below are the criteria we used to evaluate photo book publishing services:

Features and Options
The best websites offer numerous practical features that help upload, post, share and print photographs, and they allow you to network with other photographers and browse photo galleries by keyword or date.

Ease of Use
Like other internet-based services, photo book publishing tools and applications should be user-friendly, with the website itself being comprehensible and easy to navigate. Anyone should feel comfortable using the service and the tools it provides regardless of their knowledge of computers and the internet.

Quality
By using professional photo book publishers to develop and publish projects, finished works should be of professional caliber, with any defects, missing pages or other publication errors taken care of quickly and without additional cost to the customer. Printed photos featured in the books should be clean and sharp with proper contrast and color balance, not grainy, noisy or blurry.

Help/Support
First-class photo book publishing websites provide adequate help and support in the form of tutorials and FAQs and offer a number of ways, like email, web forums and a phone number, to contact customer service.

The leaders in online photo book services are strong in all areas; look for a service with a lot of useful features, a high quality product, an easy-to-use service and helpful support.

 
 
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Mixbook Shutterfly MyCanvas Viovio Kolo MyPublisher Lulu SmileBooks Jostens MyMemories
Mixbook Shutterfly MyCanvas Viovio Kolo MyPublisher Lulu SmileBooks Jostens MyMemories
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Overall Rating
Ratings
Features and Options
Ease of Use
Quality
Help/Support
 
Services and Site Features
Webware Editing Tool
Free Online Album Sharing
Themed Templates
 
Journaling
Photo Organizing Application
Online Storage
Gift Services
Large Quantity Discount
   
High Resolution Uploads
 
 
Glossy Photo Finish
Matte Photo Finish
 
  
Money Back Guarantee
 
 
Sizing
12x12
 
  
 
11x14
 
 
 
11x8.5
 
   
8.5x11
 
  
8x8
  
5x7/4x6
 
  
 
Cover Options
Leather
 
Hardbound
Softbound
 
 
  
Linen or Silk  
 
Wire Binding    
     
Shipping
Average Process Time (Business Days) 3-5 3-5 5-7 4-7 3-5 2-8 3-12 2-5 1-3 2
Overnight Delivery
 
 
2-Day Delivery
Canada
International
 
In-Store Pickup  
  
     
Help/Support
Email Support
FAQs
Telephone Support
 
 
 
Live Chat
    
   
User Forum    
  
  
Cost Comparison Test
Price for 8.5x11 Custom Photo Hardcover Book w/ 20 pages 29.99 34.99 39.95 22.99 69.50 29.80 25.95 21.95 34.99 24.99
Standard Shipping Cost 8.99 8.99 8.50 11.26 7.83 9.99 8.99 7.99 6.99 8
Total Cost 38.98 43.98 48.45 34.25 77.33 39.79 34.94 29.94 41.98 32.99