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Custom Fine Art Photography Book Printing

Softcover Photography Book Printing
world-class fine art photography book printing services
Photography Book Printing
Fine Art Photography Book Printing
Custom Fine Art Photography Book Printing
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Softcover Photography Book Printing
world-class fine art photography book printing services
Photography Book Printing
Fine Art Photography Book Printing
Custom Fine Art Photography Book Printing
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Create a stunning and stylish book of your fine-art photography with our custom offset printing services

At QinPrinting we’re proud to be able to help fine-art photographers showcase their work in beautifully crafted print editions. We’ve built our world class reputation in the field of fine art and photographic reproduction on 25 years of success in the industry, an expert team, cutting edge technology, and personalized customer care.

How do I start my photography book printing order?
You can utilize our online quote calculator to obtain EXW prices and click “Shipping Cost” button to get the shipping cost. Alternatively, you can reach out to us directly through the Contact Us form or by sending your printing requirements via email at [email protected]. Upon receiving your request, we’ll promptly provide you with a quote and proceed to the next step accordingly.
How should I send my artwork?

Feel free to share your artwork with us through email, Sprend, or WeTransfer to [email protected]. Or send us a share link via Dropbox or Google Drive.

Which file types can I send?

For printing purposes, we require artwork in high-resolution PDF format, which includes 0.125 inches / 3 mm bleed.

What color mode is used for printing?

Offset printing uses the CMYK color space.

Can I order sample book?

You can get acquainted with our quality, products, and paper stocks by ordering a sample pack from here.

Do you provide templates?

We offer free design templates for book formats along with an expert artwork file-checking service.

You can download on this page.

Instant Quote

Quantity
Enter the total number of prints you need.
Our MOQ is 100pcs.
Size
Choose preset dimensions from the dropdown menu or click “CUSTOM SIZE” to enter your own custom dimensions.
Please use the format, width x height;

size

so, 5.5″ x 8.5″ would mean 5.5″ wide and 8.5″ high.
Binding
Choose your binding type.
We use high-quality sewn hardcover binding which gives a “square” printable spine.
hardcover binding
hardcover wire-o binding
Cover
A hardcover book’s cover is printed on one side only; the outer-facing side. The inside front cover and inside back cover are glued to the end sheets.
Full color printing
Cover Paper
157 gsm

157 gsm ≈ 58.0 lb Cover Paper

Lamination
We laminate only the outside of the cover as the inside is glued to the end sheets.
Grey Board Thickness
Surface

Please choose from the options below.

These options are only suitable for gold or silver foil stamping up to a 5.9″ x 1.18″ area; and embossing, debossing, or spot UV up to a 7.87″ x 1.96″ area. If the special finish area you need is larger than this, please contact us to get a quote.

Besides gold and silver foil, we can foil stamp designs in a range of colors. If you need a special color foil stamp or have specific surface requests, please contact us. We’ll be happy to help.
End sheet
The end sheets connect the hardcover casing and the interior pages when binding the book. So, there are two end sheets, one at the front and one at the back and both glued to the grayboard cover.
blank end sheet option
color end sheet option
End Sheet Paper
If your book size is 8.5″ x 11″ or less with an interior page count of fewer than 320 pages, then a good option for the end sheets is 140 gsm / 95 lb offset paper.
If your book size is larger than 8.5″ x 11″, then 180 gsm / 122 lb offset paper would be better.
If your end sheets will be printed and your book’s interior uses gloss or matte art paper—say, for an art book or coffee table book—to make sure the colors match well, use 157gsm / 58 lb gloss or matte art paper for your end sheets.
1 gsm ≈ 0.68 lb Text Paper
Inner
Full color printing
Page Count
One sheet of paper is equal to two pages.
page-sheet
page-sheet
 
When printing and binding your book, we use “signatures,” with each signature containing 16 pages. While we can print any page count which is a multiple of 4, and using multiples of 16 provides the most economical pricing.
The maximum page count here is 800 pages. If you need more pages, please contact us.
Inner Paper
Please select your paper choice for your internal pages from the dropdown menu.
If you have a special request not listed here, get in touch. 
1 gsm ≈ 0.68 lb Text Paper
Flap Width
inch
Full color printing
Dust Jacket Paper
1 gsm ≈ 0.68 lb Text Paper
Lamination
Surface
Besides gold and silver foil, we can foil stamp designs in a range of colors. If you need a special color foil stamp or have specific surface requests, please contact us. We’ll be happy to help.
To other countries, please contact us
Delivery from Shanghai, China to 90063, USA
EXW Shanghai Price
calculating
Shipping Cost to Door
Please enter zip code and click “Apply”
*Excluding duty and tax
Total
Calculating
*The price doesn’t include shipping costs.*
Estimated weight:
Back
Quantity
Enter the total number of prints you need.
Our MOQ is 100pcs.
Size
Choose preset dimensions from the dropdown menu or click “CUSTOM SIZE” to enter your own custom dimensions.
Please use the format, width x height;

size

so, 5.5″ x 8.5″ would mean 5.5″ wide and 8.5″ high.
Cover
The cover is composed of four pages. They are the front cover, the inside front cover, the inside back cover, and the back cover.
Full color printing
Cover Paper
If you need special paper not shown in the dropdown menu, please contact us.

1 gsm ≈ 0.68 lb Cover Paper

Lamination
We laminate only the outside of the cover.
Surface
We offer a comprehensive selection of special surface finishes which we can apply to most covers, with a few limitations. For example, spot UV can only be applied to matte laminated and soft-touch laminated covers.
These options are only suitable for gold or silver foil stamping up to a 5.9″ x 1.18″ area; and embossing, debossing, or spot UV up to a 7.87″ x 1.96″ area. If the special finish area you need is larger than this, please contact us to get a quote.
Besides gold and silver foil, we can foil stamp designs in a range of colors. If you need a special color foil stamp or have specific surface requests, please contact us. We’ll be happy to help.
Inner
Full color printing
Page Count
One sheet of paper is equal to two pages.

page-sheet

page-sheet

 

The total page count is a multiple of 4. When printing and binding your book, we fold sheets into “signatures”.
If your book is larger, say, 8.5″ x 11″ or A4 size, one signature will have 16 pages. So, the inner page amount should be divisible by 16. Making your page counts match signatures is the most economical solution.
Inner Paper
Please select your paper choice for your internal pages from the dropdown menu. If you have a special request not listed here, get in touch. We’ll do everything possible to satisfy your needs.
1 gsm ≈ 0.68 lb Text Paper
Binding
If your book has 48 pages or fewer, we recommend saddle stich as your binding option.
If you have more pages and choose fairly thin paper, such as 80 gsm /54 lb or 105 gsm / 71 lb text paper, we recommend perfect binding.
If your book has heavier interior paper or the page count exceeds 200 pages, sewn perfect binding will be your best choice.
Wire-O and spiral binding are other options and both of them open flat.
perfect binding
sewn perfect binding
wire-o binding
saddle stitch binding
spiral binding
To other countries, please contact us
Delivery from Shanghai, China to 90063, USA
EXW Shanghai Price
calculating
Shipping Cost to Door
Please enter zip code and click “Apply”
*Excluding duty and tax
Total
Calculating
*The price doesn’t include shipping costs.*
Estimated weight:
Back

Tips for Using the Quote Calculator

Color Printing

Our CMYK color printing covers the cover, inner pages, and color end sheet.

Additionally, we provide Pantone color printing upon request. Please contact us for a quote.

Size

Please input the dimensions of the product’s inner pages.

  • Our paperback photography books have a maximum size of 305mm x 370mm (12″ x 14.5″)
  • our hardcover photography books have a maximum size of 320mm x 420mm (12.6″ x 16.5″).

For particularly large sizes not available for online calculator, please get in touch with us.

Surface Finishes

We offer various surface treatments

spot UV
Spot UV
gold foil stamping
Gold Foil Stamping
Silver Foil Stamping
Silver Foil Stamping
emboss
Emboss
deboss
Deboss

The finish options in the quote calculator are only available for gold or silver foil stamping up to 5.9″ x 1.18″, and embossing or spot UV treatment for areas up to 7.87″ x 1.96″. If you require a larger area of special finish, please contact us.

You can also order one of our sample books on this page to explore the different finishes and foil stamping colors.

Pages

Please note that each piece of paper consists of two pages.

Fine Art Photography Book Paper Options

While a fine art photography book usually contains some text, its photographs are the focal point. For optimal results, we advise printing on glossy or matte art paper. Glossy and matte surfaces are both perfect for vivid printing that will faithfully reflect your photographs’ colors, contrast, and intricate detail. Gloss paper is ideal for publications with full-color or black-and-white layouts with limited text, while matte paper is possibly preferable for books that include more text. Text printed on matte paper is simpler to read without sacrificing the quality of color or black-and-white rendering. Matte can also give your book a more subdued and elegant feel while gloss is shiny and vibrant.

For your fine art photography book, you will need a minimum of two paper types: one for the inner pages and one for the outside cover. You could also include end papers, which can be made from identical paper as the rest of the interior or something else, such as a denser, colored, or textural paper. A dust jacket and a slipcase are also options worth considering.

Paper Stock for Fine Art Photography Books

Popular among publishers of high-quality fine art photography books are sewn perfect binding, a type of paperback that can lie flat with the pages exposed without splitting the spine. This binding technique requires a spine thickness of at least 3 mm. A hardcover binding is a common alternative, particularly for an upscale, high-end appearance and feel. In both instances, we recommend 200 gsm / 135 lb gloss art paper for the inner pages if the size of the book is over 8.5 inches by 11 inches. It is aesthetically pleasing, faithfully recreates your original photography, and is durable. At QinPrinting, unless you ask us to do otherwise, we always use the superior sewn bindings, whether softback or hardcover, for fine art photography books and catalogs.

Hardcover Paper

  • 157 gsm / 106 lb cover paper wrapped on 2mm grayboard
  • 157 gsm / 106 lb cover paper wrapped on 2.5mm grayboard
  • 157 gsm / 106 lb cover paper wrapped on 3mm grayboard
  • Other paper, cloth, imitation leather or padded imitation leather wrapped on grayboard (see the example color swatches below)

Cloth Covers Swatches

Fabric-5519
Fabric-5519
Fabric-5403
Fabric-5403
Fabric-5409
Fabric-5409
Fabric-5531
Fabric-5531
Fabric-5111
Fabric-5111
Fabric-5135
Fabric-5135
Fabric-5529
Fabric-5529
Fabric-5402
Fabric-5402
Fabric-5413
Fabric-5413
Fabric-5522
Fabric-5522
Fabric-5206
Fabric-5206
Fabric-5425
Fabric-5425
Fabric-5219
Fabric-5219
Fabric-5139
Fabric-5139
Fabric-5515
Fabric-5515
Fabric-5213
Fabric-5213
Fabric-5104
Fabric-5104
Fabric-5526
Fabric-5526

Imitation Leather Swatches

DF01-5
DF01-5
DF02-9
DF02-9
DF02-10
DF02-10
DF02-12
DF02-12
Y82-3
Y82-3
Y28-4
Y28-4
Y28-5
Y28-5
Y61-3
Y61-3
Y61-8
Y61-8
Y66-8
Y66-8
Y82-7
Y82-7
Y82-11
Y82-11

Interior Paper

Perfect Bound Cover Paper

Bindings for Photography Books

While photo books come in all shapes and sizes, the choice of binding is very important for reasons of appearance, durability, and purpose. Let’s look at the three most common, professional-looking options. You can open all the following bindings flat.

We use this binding style for most photo books we print. We collate the interior pages into sets called signatures, which are then sewn together and fixed into a wrap-around cover made of heavier art paper or lightweight card stock. For photo books with a moderate page count, this is a great option.

In this binding, we organize the interior pages into signatures which are then printed, cut, and sewn, and glued into a hard casing covered by a printed sheet which forms the cover. This binding is the most durable and professional-looking, especially if you add a dust jacket, end sheet papers, and a marker ribbon, for example.

Dust jacket covers

Dust Jacket

A “dust jacket” is a common and practical method of preserving hardcover books. It adds five printable regions to your book, including the front, back, spine, as well as two inside flaps, lending an elegant accent to your publication. For enhanced effects, we are able to print it in all-over color, gloss varnish, matte varnish, emboss, deboss, laminate, and foil stamp. According to the dimensions of your book, dust jacket flaps are typically between 4 and 8 inches wide, providing ample room for an excerpt or introductory paragraph on the front flap and an author biography on the rear flap, for example.

Slip cases are uncommon, but for a sophisticated product, they are an effective way to give your hardcover fine art photography books an upscale appearance and additional protection. We construct them from printed paper folded on grayboard in the shape of a five-sided case, but with the front left uncovered so that when the book is put inside, only the spine is visible. They can accommodate one or more volumes. Depending on your preference, we may wrap the grayboard with printed material, textiles, vinyl, or leatherette. The case may be printed, embossed, debossed, as well as highlighted with spot UV and foil stamped. If you have a series of themed volumes—the four seasons, for example—you can collect them in a slip case to great effect.

Both sewn perfect binding and sewn hardcover solutions allow readers to open the pages flat to give a better viewing experience without damaging the spine as might be the case with standard glue-only bindings. And if you have foldout spreads we can help you with the design so that they are positioned correctly within the signature folds. Whichever binding style you choose, we like to make it easy for you to design your photo book. So, you can use one of our ready-made design templates if you wish. And ask us for paper samples. We’ll be happy to drop them to you in the mail.

Hard Proofs and Samples

A photography book is a large undertaking. To ensure that the printing quality meets your expectations, we recommend that you create a set of hard proofs and 4-16 page offset printing samples. Why? The hard proof color and the final book printing color are approximately 95% the same. The final colors are represented by the offset printing sample. Color differences between hard proof and offset printing can be compared. You’ll see how they look in the finished book.

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Fine Art Photography Book Design and Artwork Tips

Whether you are designing your own fine art photography book or hiring an expert designer for the job, it is essential to know how to go about preparing the files for printing. You will need to account for bleed zones, safety areas, trim lines, and borders, as well as ensure that the resolution is right and the color space is correct. Keeping this in mind, here are a few helpful strategies for preparing your files for the printer.

PDF

Export your files as vectors in PDF format for the best results. Our recommended software options for photo book design are Adobe Illustrator or Adobe InDesign. These will also allow you to convert your color space from RGB to CMYK which you will need to do for offset printing.

300dpi

If you can’t deliver vectors — say, if you’re exporting bitmaps from Photoshop — then make sure the resolution is at least 300 DPI. With vectors, you needn’t worry about resolution, but all other images must have a high definition to tolerate resizing without becoming fuzzy and “pixilated”.

3 mm bleed zone

You’ll need to add a “bleed zone” of 3 mm around all your pages. A bleed is an extended zone at the periphery of your photo, which falls outside the area that your finished page will cover. Once we’ve printed your pages, we’ll cut them to the exact size needed for your photo book format. This “bit extra” gets cut off and makes sure that the finished image fills the page with none of it being lost.

trim line 10mm

Inside your bleed zone, don’t forget to mark the “trim lines”. These will define the final dimensions of the finished page. Make sure that any necessary elements of your images stop at least 10 mm short of the trim line.

along the center crease

If a photo crosses over two pages in a “spread” make sure that nothing essential—like the subject’s face or other important details—lie along the center crease.

If you’re working with an expert graphic designer to generate your files, they ought to be aware of the requirements to make every detail “print ready.” But if you’ve never used design software before, these are the most important things to consider before submitting your files. You are responsible for sending “print-ready” files. However, do not fear! We will gladly “hold your hand” throughout the process, explain what’s required, communicate with your designer, and personally inspect everything to ensure everything proceeds smoothly and you receive a flawless print edition of your photography book.

To learn more about preparing your photographs, text, and layout for printing, please check out our Pre-press Artwork information page.

Custom Fine-Art Photography Book Printing Costs

Every day, QinPrinting assists fine art photographers in printing photo books of remarkable quality. However, we recognize that not everyone has the financial resources of a major publishing house such as Phaidon or Laurence King. With this in mind, we strive to provide outstanding books at the most affordable rates in the marketplace. If you’re a professional fine-art photographer looking to print an exemplary portfolio of your work, we make our expertise available to you at a price you can afford.

However, don’t take us at our word. You can get a quick estimate what it will cost to produce your unique fine art photography book by consulting our pricing tables. In contrast to the majority of offset book printing solutions, which require an obligatory print order of 500 or perhaps 1,000 books, we offer a minimal order quantity, or MOQ, of only 100 copies at a competitive rate. However, as shown in the graphs, the greater the quantity of book copies ordered in a single batch, the lower the unit cost.

Hardcover Photography Book Printing Price Chart (8.5" x 11")

All prices listed in USD

  • Please note that all prices are EXW our facility and do not include shipping costs.
  • Cover: 157 gsm / 58 lb coated cover paper with matte lamination wrapped on 2.5 mm thickness greybeard
  • End sheets: 140 gsm / 95 lb uncoated text paper, blank
  • Inner: 157 gsm / 106 lb coated text paper
  • Cover and inner: full color printing

Paperback Photography Book Printing Price Chart (8.5" x 11")

All prices listed in USD

  • Please note that all prices are EXW our facility and do not include shipping costs.
  • Cover: 250 gsm / 92 lb coated cover paper with matte lamination outside
  • Interior: 128 gsm / 86 lb coated text paper, full color printing
  • Cover and inner: full color printing
  • Binding: sewing and perfect binding

For a more precise and personalized estimate, take advantage of our convenient online Printing Cost Calculator. If you have questions, get in touch and one of our expert team members — not a chatbot or an inexperienced call center operator! — will be more than happy to help.

Let’s Talk!

Taking pictures is savoring life intensely, every hundredth of a second.

Marc Riboud, famous French photographer

Fine art photography is a form of creative expression which inspires us to look again, with refreshed vision, to see the world anew and recall what it means to wonder. Like any language, the grammar and syntax of light and shade, image and shadow, can reveal the poetry of a moment, tell a story, or bring attention to the unseen.

If you’re a professional fine art photographer wanting to print a stunning portfolio of unrivaled quality and at an unbeatable price, we should talk. Get in touch today to chat through your needs or to ask for a no-obligation quote. We can’t wait to help you make your fine art photography book a work of art in its own right!

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