There are a lot of different designs and ideas for creating your own print based portfolio.
Below are the different types and how much they cost to make, I have guessed a couple of them as they would work out cheaper to be made at home by yourself.
Photo book
(Image found at http://www.popphoto.com/sites/popphoto.com/files/import/2013/files/_images/201303/d03.19photobook3.jpg on 24.05.2016)
Photo books are very professional looking and are nice for clients to look through. If a good quality one is purchased to be made you get great quality print onto good quality paper. A client can tell straight away if the book is a cheaply made one which might make them think that their prints would be of the same quality and they might take their business elsewhere. I like these books but they do have to be a high quality standard.
The cost differs everywhere you go. You can get cheap ones made for £5 or you can spend £40 and have something which is much better quality. You can get them from a lot of places online i.e. Photo box, Jessops, Truprint, Snapfish, Vistaprint and CEWE Photoworld. There are others but they are the main ones.
Portfolio Folder
(Image found at https://www.nyip.edu/images/cms/photo-articles/portfolio_first_works.jpg on 24.05.2016)
I think these are good as a student or professional to store images in to show friends and family but I personally don't think they are very professional looking. They are good for when you need to have bigger images printed to show which wouldn't look right in a photo book. These are easy to make yourself. You get the plastic wallets in the case when you buy it. All you need to do is have the images printed which at A3 for 8 to ten images it can cost up to £60 for good quality ones. The folders can cost £15-30 depending on the size you need. Then you need for black mounting card and some spray which I think you should get enough for £20 from arts and crafts shops.
Printed Images/Pages
(Image found at https://fstoppers.com/diy/so-you-want-make-professional-looking-print-photography-portfolio-4795 on 24.05.2016)
I think these are rather smart but I think it would be easy for images to be lost or creased. If produced on thick paper and high quality you may be able to get away with it. I do like this design and idea and it might be something you could take to meetings with companies to be passed around so there is a constant flow of images in the room instead of people having to wait to see the one and only photo book.
I think with these you can get the presentation folder on ebay and from photo printing places for £5-15 depending on the quality and the size of them. It would be useful to see if a business card holder could be made to fit inside as well so people could take one as they have a look at the images. 8-10 images could be printed from online places or local printing shops for up to £60 depending on the size and quality wanted.
(1.2)
I put two lots of images into my folder to show the class as a presentation. I had just over 40 images and was feeling happier with one style more than the other. My peers were very helpful and made suggestions. We spoke about it and decided it would be better to keep the images from my professional shoot for a client separate to the ones I have taken of places. They are told me which ones they liked the most and which could do with editing a little more to improve them. I have since done this and these are my images below...
I am happy with these images, I have edited some to make them look more aesthetically pleasing to the eye. I think improvement wise I could do with going back and retaking a lot of these images once I have got a tilt shift lens. I would be a lot happier and it would straighten the buildings stop them from looking like they are going to fall over backwards. I think some of them as well look better in black and white while others would look better in colour. Unfortunately the ones I would prefer in colour are ones which where taken as a jpeg file and not raw so they cannot be changed. I only had one memory card on me that day and filled it so I had to change the settings from raw+ to jpeg. I think if I retook some of these images I would also reconsider my camera angles and spend more time straightening them up using a tripod.
(1.3)
I have decided to make my photo book through Jessops. The website puts you through to a separate company that they highly recommend and they have also given me an offer where if I sign up to Jessops I get £15 off the finished book. They look high quality to look at and I have read many of the reviews online and they are all good.
I will show screenshots of the book on here as I finish it and will then post images of the final book when it has arrived.
(1.4)
I think print based albums have their pros and cons in the Architectural and Interior area of photography. I think they are fantastic for showing work to potential clients. At the same time though, you would need to have the images printed to a large scale for them to be able to appreciate the detail properly. For this you might be better with a huge screen and the images being projected. It is also the cost of having them printed to a bigger size. If you think that 8-10 high quality prints can cost up to £60. How much would it cost to have an A2 book made... £100+. On the positive side it is great to have the images to look at close up and if needs be, use a magnifying glass to see the smaller detail. I wouldn't go small than an A4 size book and A3 for normal prints.
The books and print outs are also great in this area as you can post samples to potential clients who would like to view some prints but don't live close enough to warrant having a meeting.
Over all I think they are a great idea as I prefer to have something to hold and look through rather than staring at a computer screen. Everyone is different and have different opinions as well as different likes/dislikes.
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