How do you handle negative space in an album?

<p>Hello all, my design aesthetic is a bit more spare than I've seen many do, can't say most, just many.<br>

For a 50 page album, I try to average about 70 images total. Resulting in a few pages with images (rarely overlap) and white space instead of picture backgrounds. My goal is to do at least 10% full bleed of a single (in the words of Neil Ambrose) "heroic" images and the rest an evolution of the day as the couple experiences it.<br>

As such I pull back on all but 3 or 4 formals. (I'm sure somebody out there hates that)<br>

Now that's what I do, for those of you of a similar minimalist interpretation, my question is how do you describe negative space to your clients?<br>

Do they just "get it" or do you try to explain your design concept? I try to avoid the former for fear of sounding like I'm being condescending, but my samples all reflect my design.</p>

<p>It's an aesthetic question, again neither right nor wrong in terms of what you like, just for those who feel the same as I, believe in negative space in their albums. How do you work it into the conversation and design</p>

<p>So best wording to this question is, Do you design your albums based on your aesthetic or your clients,<br>

Pt. 2, if it's to your clients wishes when do you start to charge more?<br>

Thanks in advance<br>

D</p>

<p>I have always based everthing I do on my own sense of art and asthetics. At least as far as weddings and portraits go......Commercial images often involve you with the companies art director...and you have to be able to get in that persons head to a, sometimes,startling degree....and from that symbiosis comes the stunning shot everone wanted. (<em>hopefully)</em></p><div></div>

<p>I never call myself a photographer. I call myself an artist. This extends to my album work. I explain to my clients they're hiring me as a representation of work that I've shown them both photographs and albums that I present to them. They hire me for my best judgement and the fact that I present good looking finished products, so I never really wind up having to explain much later on :P</p>

I just upped my album design fee today, just an FYI, as to how much work this method entails. So when I put their

shots up online I give them the fixed up lot of quality images, and I also make a subset called highlights. This is

usually 50-100 of the best images that I feel tells the story if the day, and basically the grouping I would pick when

designing an album for them. Then I let them pick out the images they want. My standard album is a 10x10 flush

mount with 20 pages (10 spreads). I suggest they pick out their 50 favs for me to work with and ask that if there are

any the want as a full page or a full spread with a split down the middle. I ask them about the basic styles they like,

bordered vs collage vs overlays vs transparent backgrounds etc.

 

After I get their flavor of choice I design the first three

pages and ask them if it is in the right ball park theme wise. If yes, I design the rest of the album. After that they get

three iterations of edits. Each time I ask them to be very specific. The output from leather craftsmens print to bind software facilitates this with a notes pdf version that gives space for the client to make notes on each individual spread. Any more edits over 3 rounds is an additional $50

per edit round. This is usually enough incentive for them to really do their homework and review it carefully. They

must pay for the album in full before I put the order in with leather craftsmen. They pay for my design of 20 pages up

front.

<p>Clients pick me for my photographs and then for my album design. They entrust me with the full creative process. Only once did I involve the bride and only because she is a good friend and fellow photographer. I got good feedback, especially regarding a particular person who she really wanted in the album but whom I had not really noticed. Other than that, it's all on me ;-)</p>

<p>My actual career prior to retiring was as a designer/art-director/creative director. I do not use templates to design wedding albums, each one is custom created from scratch for each client. I do not do albums smaller than 15 spreads/30 pages ... and most are 20 spreads/40 pages with a custom designed cover. </p>

<p>My process is to either sell an album as part of the wedding package, or access whether a client will be a likely prospect for one after the wedding and shoot certain things just for their design ... things like sweeping landscapes of their locations, full frame details or close-ups of textures to use as design elements later.</p>

<p>I do also use "negative" space as an element to keep the focus on the photos, and every album has full spread "hero" images ... usually more than two.</p>

<p>I select the images, then once designed I generate a PDF for client review, and allow up to four image swaps before charging additional design fees.</p>

<p>Here is an example of a recent 12" X 18" album for a Boston wedding where the reception was held on a cruise boat in Boston Harbor. This is the cover and opening title page. I try to take advantage of the "place" the couple has chosen, which is how each album becomes more individual without resorting to design tricks to make it feel custom. The background image is downtown Boston in the fog, and the ship in the background of the opening B&G portrait is the beloved USS Constitution ... a once in a lifetime opportunity and indelible memory for the couple. </p>

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