Curate your photos
Pre-select Photos Before You Begin the Editing Process
Chances are, your storied day made for hundreds (if not thousands) of amazing photos. How should you decide which ones to print? Try to limit your selection to include those that truly move you or bring you back to the day. Sound impossible? Not to worry. We recommend first going through and picking 20 absolute favorites: the photos you couldn't live without, key moments, and shots of the most important people in your life. Next, select another 40 – 50 favorites that span the gamut of the day. Think: scene-setters, a few of your favorite details, that portrait you gush over. This approach to selecting images will help you to create a wedding photo album that's thoughtfully curated without missing a favorite.
If you're still thinking, "how on earth...?" — we've included an outline below that breaks this down even further, and have a guide to building your photo book with detailed instructions. No worrying here!
Select a book type
Personalize Your Album Through Choice of Cover Design
Think about the purpose and usage of the book you're creating. Is this book going to be displayed on your coffee table? Or is it a wedding gift to your maid of honor or best man, compiled from your favorite Instagram photos from the weekend? Here are a few tidbits on the books we love and why:
Layflat Photo Album
Best for: panoramic wow factor
Why we love it: thick unbending pages
Hardcover Photo Album
Best for: including up to 200 pages of photos
Why we love it: 100% recycled pages
Softcover Photo Album
Best for: gifting photos of pre-wedding events
Why we love it: easy building using our mobile app
Judge a book by its cover
Choose a Book That Fits Your Occasion
Customize your album through unique design elements to make it all your own. Our Layflat Photo Album brings professional-grade materials to your fingertips — choose from 11 fabrics and 4 varieties of foil stamping for a design that's tailored to you and the aesthetic of your day.
Our favorite cover looks? Smoke fabric paired with gold foil & Pacific Blue or Orchidee fabric paired with copper foil.
A way with words
Choose a Cover Title with Timeless Appeal
Simple titles can have great impact, but that doesn't mean you need to stick to the basics. Consider a title that speaks to your wedding in a unique yet timeless way. Some of our favorites? Est. 2015, MMXV, Volume I, 28 August 2015, or simply your last name.
Best part? When you're old and gray, you'll never forget your anniversary date.
Keep it simple
Focus on Single Images Per Page
With so many favorite images from the big day, your first instinct may be to overwhelm the design by placing many images on each page, ultimately losing the impact and beauty of the single image you love most. When it comes to laying out your wedding photo album, our rule of thumb is to include one image per single page. Every now and again you may find it appropriate to include 3 images across two pages, but for the most part we like to stick to simple spreads that let the photos speak for themselves.
Keeping your book layout clean will allow your eyes to focus on what's most important. Not to worry — we've done most of the work for you with our new layouts in the Layflat Photo Album. For twice the impact, we've designed a template in our album editor that gives you the opportunity to create panoramic spreads that span two pages. Trust us, they'll make you do a double-take.
Details, details, details…
Don't Worry About Chronological Order —
Intersperse Your Favorite Detail Shots Throughout
After months of planning and scrutinizing day-of timelines, you know the sequence of events better than anyone. When building your album, try to forget the timeline and focus instead on details and moments that pair well together visually.
Pairing detail photos with defining moments allow you to appreciate everything that went into the day. You'll also find that middle spreads often get the most attention, so consider saving a few of your favorite photos for that area of the book that's opened to most naturally.
Mix it up
Add Variety in the Positioning of Your Photo Spreads
The orientation of your photos next to one another plays an integral part in the overall look of your album, but consistency doesn't have to be key. Having a bordered image next to a full page spread is a great way to relax the eyes through use of blank space. Showing variety within your spreads is sure to make your album feel carefully crafted, so we encourage you to mix it up!
Wondering what to do with group and family photos that may not have made their way into your album? There are plenty of other opportunities to share them with the ones who made your day. Consider photo calendars, photo holders and prints, or framed prints as year-round gift items that are ideal for sharing that collection of images.
So there you have it, our 7 tips for building your best wedding photo book. But if we could narrow these down to just one word of advice, it would be to enjoy. After all, it's built with your moments from your best day — and that's something to look forward to.
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