Best book format?

Format, as in size and orientation?
Orientation might depend on the ratio of horizontals to verticals. Or, square. Then factor how you want to lay out each on a page. Full bleed, or with white space. How will you treat spreads?

Size might be determined by how much grain you want to show, the impact and tone of the subject matter, etc.

I'd suggest you find a designer. Your work is too good to risk to amateurish design and typography.
 
Simon, for design, my favourite photo book is Here, Far Away. Great use of white space. Similarly, Walker Evans: American Photographs (a smaller book).

Both books showcase the photographs very well. I think your photos would look good with similar treatment (agree with CK Dexter Haven).
 
After much agonising over the first book, and a couple of doing a couple of versions, some two years work before I was even remotely happy with it ... I can say for me it's 12"x12" square, white gloss ground, with the photo on the right-hand page any text on the left-hand facing page, at the moment I'm using the Stag font set for the typeface, but that could easily change.

Mind SWMBO always said that I'm picky for a living
 
Smaller books. Those like reprints of The Decisive Moment and Gypsies are huge, and almost too big to handle.

I think something that is comfortable to sit in your lap, or hold. Minutes to Midnight, and Songbook are good examples of the largest that fit in that category in my view. But Robert Franks The Americans, and Paris, which are smaller, making them more manageable.

I prefer square, and different sizes and layouts through the book.

Hope this helps Simon!
 
It depends on the subject matter, of course, but I have a fondness for large panoramic landscape books, with photos taking a two-page spread. Harder for binders to make, to be sure, specially with the gutter a factor.

As an experiment, I made a portrait (aspect ratio) photobook of child photos. The ordeal gave me a renewed respect for the craft of book layout.
 
CK Dexter Haven said:
Format, as in size and orientation?
Orientation might depend on the ratio of horizontals to verticals. Or, square. Then factor how you want to lay out each on a page. Full bleed, or with white space. How will you treat spreads?

Size might be determined by how much grain you want to show, the impact and tone of the subject matter, etc.

I'd suggest you find a designer. Your work is too good to risk to amateurish design and typography.
Click to expand...

Yes, you go bye the orientation for the most part. But there are exceptions to the rule. If most are landscape why go portrait, unless you like to have lots of 2 page spreads.
 
I sit here and look at shelves full of books of photos. Some large, some small. Some square, some horizontal, some vertical. But none of them would be better in a different format than they are.

So I believe the answer to your question is the same as one about the best f-stop. It depends.
 
I never saw single loose prints. A few days ago I found a flat metal box suitable for this purpose. Since I like to live with images I like for a while (put them on a desk, clip them on a whiteboard etc.) single prints are much better than a book. And the cost for binding the book could be invested in higher quality prints on thick durable paper.
Only few images harmonize with double page prints, Salgados Otras Americas is a fine layout despite double side prints.
I dont like the the "tora-style", fancy but unfunctional
22617953cl.jpg
 
the box was made for sweets. total cost 5 euros, sweets included. btw, how much is the cost for binding and layout compared to the final price generally?
 
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