There are still many people who, after taking a trip, having an event or simply because they want to, have photo albums. These allow you to save a limited number of photos and organize them in such a way that, with the cover of that album, you can know what is inside. But how to make photo album covers?
If you want to give originality to a photo album but you have never done it before, or if you have been entrusted with this project, then we give you the keys to make it perfect for you. Shall we start?
What is on a photo album cover?
The first thing, before getting fully involved in the design of a photo album cover, is to know what elements are part of it in order to know how to organize them, leaving space for the result to breathe, and it looks much better.
En general, The elements that you find on a cover of a photo album are the following:
Album title
The album title is one of the first things a person notices when looking at a photo album cover. This can be for example, the name of the person or of an event.
In other words, imagine that you just had your first daughter, and you don't stop taking pictures of her during the first year. By taking them out and having them physically, you can create a photo album of that first year and as the title of the cover it could be the name of your daughter.
principal photography
Sometimes many choose to have a photo, illustration or collage on the album cover. It is a way to personalize the album even more since it not only has the title, but it is also accompanied by something visual that reinforces what you are going to find inside.
Of course, both the title and the principal photography are optional. You can put one or the other, both or even neither and have a more general album with a cover with a neutral design.
Author's name
This element is also optional although, When it comes to a professional photographic report, it usually appears on the cover of the photo album almost always.
The name of the author refers to the name of the person who has taken the photographs. When these are taken by a family member, they are not usually included.
Date
Another of the elements that belongs to the cover of photo albums but that is optional if we are talking about more "personal" works (understood as family or among friends).
The date it is put on the cover in order to remember when those moments were captured. Instead of doing it in the photos individually (or in groups if there are many), he puts himself in the "prelude".
Now, if within the album there are several events in that period of time, it is possible that there is a second classification and a subtitle is put to separate them from each other.
Tricks to make photo album covers
Now yes, we are going to help you to know how to make photo album covers. Remember that, for this, you will need an image editing program, either paid or free, online or installed on your computer.
Before starting work, it is important that know what kind of photos you are going to put in that photo album. If it is single-themed, that is, it is about an event, a person or something similar, then the cover will be totally different than if it is for several family members, for friends or if it covers a fairly long period (one or more years).
It will also be necessary that make a sketch before you get down to it, where you establish what the elements will be: a main photo, a title, the date, the name of the photographer...
Once you have all that data, it's time to get down to work. And for that, you must start by opening a blank canvas in the image editor the exact size of your album cover. In this way you will not have to enlarge or reduce it (and thus you will avoid the pixelation of the image).
Start designing by entering the important information that you have decided to include on your cover. For example, you can create a background collage design for the cover with several photos that will be inside and put the title of the album in the middle. Just below, the dates that it includes and, to the right, the name of the photographer.
Or you can place a central image, below the title and at the bottom, to the left and right, the date and the name of the author respectively.
You need to the cover is visual, attractive and striking, and for this there is no choice but to play with the design.
You can make several examples and play around with the variations a bit, then print them out and see which one looks best to you. Why print? Because sometimes seeing it through a screen is not the same as if you see it physically. You may like more or less the design you chose at first.
It is not convenient that you overload the cover too much, it is important that it has free spaces so that the design “breathes”, so to speak. Also, a simple change in the font of the title can completely change the result, keep that in mind.
Finally, when you decide on the album cover that you like the most, You will only have to print it or continue with the design of the album. It all depends on where you do it.
As an extra, we don't want to leave the subject without telling you about the special finishes that you might want to include on your cover. We are talking about albums with a relief effect, those that change the photo when you move them, with texture... It is true that printing them are much more expensive, but sometimes, if it is something special, it is worth investing a little more in something that you know will it will last you many years (and it can even be passed from parents to children, grandchildren...).
As you can see, making photo album covers is not complicated if you have well defined the essential elements that must arrive. Then you just have to play with the design until you find the perfect combination in terms of element placement, typography and photos. Would you dare to create your own custom now?