Critique my album

[tim]

Couple of minor technical issues, white bal, will be fixed in final step of prep. Any other constructive critique welcome. Album will be a 14x10" magazine style/pagemount/digital Queensberry album, black leather.

Album v1a (http://mrwild.co.nz/unprotected/wp/ss07alb/v1a/index.html) (OLD VERSION)
Album v1b (http://mrwild.co.nz/unprotected/wp/ss07alb/v1b/index.html) (version 2 really)

[LeesaB]

Hey Tim,

I love the white pages...and that last page..wow..

I like the style..simple, elegant.

One thought, perhaps...I beleive I saw one page with a photo as a background, near the end...why not add one more near the front, to kind of balance out the white pages? Just a suggestion...

[tim]

Thanks Lisa :) I like white pages better than pages with backgrounds, backgrounds make pages busy, so I use them sparingly. You're right about balance though, there's far more at the end than the start, i'll think about that one :)

[LeesaB]

I just got back my last album..each one I make, I enjoy it so much, I really really loved this one..it was more scrapbookish, but that is what she does and I knew she would love it..they did.

I love the shots you do with that 4/5 smaller pictures close together telling a story in a story book. That's great..

[Scarlett Nic]

HI Tim, i've had a look at your album pages and here are my thoughts.
1. opening page for me just doesnt have the impact that i personally like to aim for and see...if it were the full opacity i feel it would be better.
2/3 feels a little bland. I know you like clean simple pasges and there is nothign wrong with this but those pages dont hold my interest sorry....how about a very soft background image as you have done towards the end of the book?
10/11 gives me the same feeling as above.. the page just doesnt feel finished to me.

The rest of the book i think looks lovely..especially the last few pages.
NIc

[tim]

Oh, the image on the last page. It was so dark you could barely see your hand in front of your face. The exposure was something like 1/30th, ISO3200, F2.8. Camera was on a tripod, the light on the couple was from a solar garden light held by a groomsman that I cloned out!

[Kai]

Ok here I go... Just my thoughts but I am very hard on myself.
Cover. I like it
1. I like the story. I would move the bottom 3 pictures to the left just a tad. I'm not a big fan of flush to the middle. The hand picture look to have a different pp.
2. I usually don't like mixing B&W with color but I really like the flow of this page.
3.still thinking about this one.
4. The one thing that pops out to me is the picture of the groom. I would have him fill the frame more.
5. still thinking
6. like
7. I like the third picture but I am not sure how it fits with the other 3
8. Like. I wish the two pictures on the bottom right were croped similar, but I know how it is taking pictures of one party and then not remembering for the second party.
9. I know you said color balance would be fixed - Does that mean the two pictures on the left with the barn will end up with the same color balance?
10 and 11. like them
The last page is my favorite. I really is the perfect closing to the story.

Now with this all being said, remember I have never created a wedding magazine style album. This is just what stood out to my uneducated eye.

[tim]

Thanks Scarlet Nic, Audra, all comments are welcome regardless of how educated your eye is!

[danpass]

Overall, looks good, telling the story from beginning to ... next beginning (don't like to say 'end' ;))

The opacity of the front page just doesn't seem right. How about totally opaque with a full color inset picture (perhaps even the same pic) .... or ..... a B&W version of the pic?


02 looks good (going by the html code in the address bar)

03 is a neat 'story' line - "here is the dress, here it is being put on and here is the detail of the fastening"

04 - each party arriving? for some reason the B&W and the color seem to 'clash'

05 - me like ... how about putting the groom the second pic and the bride with dad the first?

06 - very nice. I am tempted to crop out the green dress though LOL

07 - how about a two page spread of the group pic and the other pics on a new set of pages? actually how about the group pic coming over into the first page about 1/3. i don't know what the gutter is like so ....

08 - neat. the one B&W pic seems out of place, how about both pics on the second page being B&W?

09 - nice. the opaque doesn't do it for me but can't verbalize a suggestion sorry lol

10 - like the background. subtle enough that you only see it on second glance. the one lone groom seems out of place how about bride shot and groom shot on first page and two bride/groom shots on second?

11 - somethig subtle in that white space? maybe a pic of the program invitation? or perhaps bringing the page two pic into page one (though I would only do this once in the album)

12 - excellent, nice background. and you show two events, cake cutting, bouquet toss. is there a garter toss? maybe put that on page one?

13 - very cool


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[Kathy H]

I personally prefer 4X6 proofs in a slip in sleeve Walmart album:) Just kidding.

I can't offer much critique on the album layout, because I'm not very good at arrangements. But, if I was the bride, I would like it.

Kathy

[islandphoto]

I really like this layout. It's nice and clean and you can focus on the pictures. My only critiue is I'd like to see more pj style shots in here. Seems like a lot of formas... but that's usually what the client wants so what do I know? I love the last image with the moon. Would you mind sharing the settings and maybe posting the image here so we can see it bigger? It's a great shot!

[notapro]

I really like it, especially the clean white background. The only page I don't like is 6. I like the right side, but he left side's layout seems kind of off-balance to me. Not the pictures you've chosen, just the layout. could be just me. sometimes I'm a little off-balance and the rest of the world looks skewed.

[tim]

Thanks for the critique everyone, i'll improve a few things then send it on to the customer. I'll mainly look at altering or removing backgrounds, doing a better first page, and keeping the B&W/sepia/color consistent on a page. Also will move a shot or two.

The image on the last page was shot at 1/30th, F2.8, ISO3200, 17mm on a 17-55 F2.8 IS, on a tripod. It really was incredibly dark. Lighting was with a solar powered garden light - basically a couple of small LEDs. Here's a bigger version

http://mrwild.co.nz/unprotected/wp/moon.jpg

[MrsOpie]

Tim, as much as I love your photography I don't think your name should be on the front cover. Remove it all together or move it to the back in small type. Also, I'm not a fan of the opacity on the front cover.

[danpass]

How many 'sides' is that layout considered to be?


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[tim]

I've completely changed the front cover, you can see version 1b here (http://mrwild.co.nz/unprotected/wp/ss07alb/index.html). This version has been sent to the customer for their feedback.

Tim, as much as I love your photography I don't think your name should be on the front cover. Remove it all together or move it to the back in small type. Also, I'm not a fan of the opacity on the front cover.

The Queensberry standard for matted albums is the studio name goes on a translucent sheet before the first page, i've just carried that on. Good point though I might move it to the inside back cover like I sometimes do.

How many 'sides' is that layout considered to be?

24 sides.

[Bobster]

a more eligant typeface is called for, after all this is a wedding book..

[mizuno]

a more eligant typeface is called for, after all this is a wedding book..

Yeah, Brushscript should illegal, along with comic sans.

[tim]

The font is "Mistral Standard", happy to hear suggestions. I have the Adobe Font Folio CD with hundreds of fonts on it.

[Storybook Pages]

I question the reduced opacity on the first page. You might try:\layer 1 - full opacity shot. Layer 2 put the reduced opacity over the background. 50-60 % perhaps.
Then, with your brush set to 'clear' , using a brush with a featured edge, brush away the opaque layer 2 over the bride and groom.

Brings out the bride and groom and the background fades into opacity. Emphasizes the stars of the show.

Thanks for sharing.

[tim]

Bit late John, and you're looking at the old version of the album.

[Storybook Pages]

Ooops. Sorry. I'm on the program, now.
Nice job, Tim.