Last week, I was on the phone with Christine Perry-Burke, the very fun commander in chief at Finao Albums. When I see Finao Albums, I see a company that has their marketing ducks in a row. So, when Christine speaks, I shut up and listen. She has a fantastic marketing blog, which I recommend that any and every portrait or wedding photographer to read. (You need to sign in to Finao to read the blog, which is free).
She has a dedicated post about sample albums on this blog, that I love. Many photographers are inclined to just take their favorite wedding album and print an extra copy. I’ve done this more times than I can remember. According to Christine, this is a big mistake, and I would now agree. Clients may think they want to see an entire wedding to show you can do it. But in reality, they just want to see your best story telling. Leave out the family shots. Potential brides don’t care about someone’s Aunt Edna. But they do care about the story, the emotion and the beautiful shots. They want to see the bridesmaids, the groomsmen and one formal, just to see you can do it and then they want the good stuff. Design bold, with big shots, a few spreads with just one image on it and keep the number of images per page to a minimum.
Lastly, don’t waste your money on a 40 page 10”x10” album. Order the biggest physical album you can with 20 pages. A twenty page 16×20 calendar flip album will have a lot more impact than a forty page 10″x10″ album. Twenty pages is more than enough to show your best work to a potential client. And after twenty pages they start getting bored, anyway.
Christine has a number of other fantastic ideas:
- Start with a bang, end with a tear.
- Less is more.
- Hip counts.
To read the rest of the tips go to the Finao Marketing Blog. You must sign in as a registered Finao client, registration is free.
The images here are of our guest signing book sample at Left Turn Studio. The designs were made using Fundy Album Builder, a free trial download is available at FundySOS. The final album is a Finao Elements Text, an album which has blank pages on the left, for signing, and prints on the right.
8 Comments at "Sample Albums – what to do and what not to do"
Great information. Thank you.
Interesting.
great advice, thanks!
[...] without breaking the bank. When you design samples, you might want to take a look back at our sample guidelines blog [...]
Very useful, as always. I’m about to hit fresh sample mode so this article will be useful. Right.. off to find a 16×20 calendar flip album! Any tips?
Damian,
There are many album companies that are out there and you need to find one that fits your style.
I really like Finao because of all the choices they have in leathers, etc.
These flip albums are some of the more expensive, but when most companies give 50% off on samples, the difference between a 10×10 and a 16×20 flip is only $100. I believe it will book you more weddings, so I think it is a good investment.
Fundy
This is just awesome timely advice! I’m making an album for a client right now and I was just going to make a copy of it as my sample album. But not now! LOL! Thanks soooo much! I think I’m gonna try a 10 x13 album.
nice
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