6/19/2006
Another Mermaid
Here's the link for info on the Mermaid Day Parade. I usually wind up at this event. The pull of the ocean and the fun pagan ritual. This year I plan to sneak my camera on the roller-coaster and shoot from there - both the parade and the roller coaster experience. Maybe I'll hide my camera in an airline sick bag.
The Inkjet Photo Book
All this effort to make books, when I don't even think anyone buys books anymore. Nevertheless....
This is the compilation of what I've discovered, on my quest to make a photobook with my own choice of inkjet paper. I don't blame you if you fall asleep reading this. In fact, unless you are interested in reading about the method of trial and error and error and error - I would skip this post entirely.
1) If you want to use a mat finish or high-cotton paper (InnovaArt etc.) and if you're willing to pay about $50 for a post bound book with some paper included) - it's a snap. You can use the Opus Album, or a couple of others. Actually if money is not an issue then just find a bookmaker to use a more professional sewn stitch to bind it for you. And if you don't really care what it looks like - just buy a wire binding system and you can churn out books with your own paper that lie flat for very little money. It doesn't have to be that crummy spiral schoolbook look; they are doing wonderful things with plastic bindings these days (plastic, my boy). It could be black for example.
2) If you are willing to use mat finish type paper, that's light enough, you can do a nice perfect bound book. The thing about perfect-bound (glued) books is that they really don't lie flat. If they do lie flat it's because you've really stretched the glue.
But there is a form of perfect binding where the book does lie flat. I believe they call it the lie-flat method.
To do that - you make the book block (the pages) like a normal perfect bound where the pages are glued together - but you use a slightly different spine, and the front and back endpapers are glued to inside of the covers. Again, these types of books will not work well with a resin-coated, ceramic coated - type of inkjet paper. These papers just don't bend enough and it's like flipping through a book of springy pictures.
3) There is something called a concertina fold (accordian) which will hold heavier paper stock. But you need to make them and the books have a feeling of - I don't know - a ledger / filing cabinet.
4) If you have or can get the case (total cover) together, and where the spine is the right size for the book you want to do - you can drill holes into the back cover, put some screwposts through, punch holes in your paper of choice. Then you have a nice linen cover (no screws in the cover) and a nice screwpost / case binding book. This is - so far my favorite idea. Get the ready-made case from someone like BreezeKit - and then adapt that nice linen cloth cover for to my own tastes.
In other words - the binding for the BreezeKit - it's fine if you use someone's paper that has holes punched in it - and has been creased to bend properly. But if you don't want to pay for very proprietary paper - i.e. you can use your own paper.
But for semi-gloss, luster, gloss paper - you need some sort of page hinging system.
Again - these are available. Lineco makes cloth hole-punched paper hinges with adhesive for the glossy type page to stick to.
Print File also makes a page hinge. And a few others. Some are more expensive than others. Some are double-sided - meaning that you can stick two pages to one hinge; some are single sided. At first thought - you might be leaning towards the double-sided hinge. Not a good idea. Cheaper, but when you realize that by turning one page (top page) you are also turning the second page (second photo attached to the hinge) - when you realize how awful that feels. Forget that and go for the one page hinge - if you are going to go the hinge route.
There is only one problem with the page hinge idea: cost. The cost for the hinges is about the cost for each page of inkjet paper you use. So you are doubling the cost making the print block.
If you do want to use hinges, one way is to make your own. Not as bad as it seems.
And here's how it's done: punch two holes on the short side of the paper to match the two holes in the bottom cover of your bound book. Then slice that paper with a paper cutter about 3/4's inch to the right of the two holes. In other words what you're going to make is a page hinge.
Now - cut a piece of Lineco self-adhesive linen cloth (used for reparing books) - and stick that to the paper you've just cut to put it back together. If you use this method, you cut the cost of the hinging to 1/3 what it would cost to buy pre-made hinges. You also have the ability to space the holes punched into the back of the book where you want them, since you are punching both the book and the hinges.
Another benefit of the cloth hinge is that it doesn't have the bulk or mass of the store-bought hinges. You can cut them quickly on a rotatrim. And to be honest, they don't even need to be exactly the same height - just so that they're shorter than the paper.
I'll have to take the book I made apart and post some pictures.
At any rate - the material costs are like this:
From BreezeKit:
Linen Case
(front back covers, cloth covered, end papers, spine for about 20 - 35 sheets)
$15
Paper: You have to figure your own costs. For me we're in the neighborhood of .45 cents per page.
Linen Cloth: I think I figured this to .15 per sheet, but I'm going to have to check that).
(amount of pages unknown
ScrewPosts (.25 cents each. You'll need two, top and bottoms so let's say .50 per book).
If you want to assume 30 photographic plates then the cost for materials might be around:
$15 cover + .50 screwposts, + linen strips 4.5, paper $13.50 = the neighborhood of $33.50 per completed linen-covered book. As I say, this is a sort of hybrid book, part-case bound, part post bound. Hey, what's a book anyway. I'd like to see someone define that.
There is another way - completely different cover idea that I'm working on. This way promises to be (I know this is like searching for Eldorado) - but anyway I always had a touch of the inventor in me - this is a different idea where you buy the proper card stock, or mat board, and you have it creased in four places. Either by yourself or by a bindery - and the cost should come down and give you more freedom over the dimensions and be even less costly. The need for interior hinges would still be there though.
Oh - one more thing. Anything I've said here goes for doing a ribbon book as well. Instead of posts get a strip of leather if you want a rugged feeling; or ribbon if you're feeling dainty - and do a stitch through the two holes with that.
You see - this is a little like Treasure of Sierra Madre and what happens to you when you take on the quest for gold in whatever form you seek it. I hope that I'll be more like the John Huston character than Fred C. Dobbs.
This is the compilation of what I've discovered, on my quest to make a photobook with my own choice of inkjet paper. I don't blame you if you fall asleep reading this. In fact, unless you are interested in reading about the method of trial and error and error and error - I would skip this post entirely.
1) If you want to use a mat finish or high-cotton paper (InnovaArt etc.) and if you're willing to pay about $50 for a post bound book with some paper included) - it's a snap. You can use the Opus Album, or a couple of others. Actually if money is not an issue then just find a bookmaker to use a more professional sewn stitch to bind it for you. And if you don't really care what it looks like - just buy a wire binding system and you can churn out books with your own paper that lie flat for very little money. It doesn't have to be that crummy spiral schoolbook look; they are doing wonderful things with plastic bindings these days (plastic, my boy). It could be black for example.
2) If you are willing to use mat finish type paper, that's light enough, you can do a nice perfect bound book. The thing about perfect-bound (glued) books is that they really don't lie flat. If they do lie flat it's because you've really stretched the glue.
But there is a form of perfect binding where the book does lie flat. I believe they call it the lie-flat method.
To do that - you make the book block (the pages) like a normal perfect bound where the pages are glued together - but you use a slightly different spine, and the front and back endpapers are glued to inside of the covers. Again, these types of books will not work well with a resin-coated, ceramic coated - type of inkjet paper. These papers just don't bend enough and it's like flipping through a book of springy pictures.
3) There is something called a concertina fold (accordian) which will hold heavier paper stock. But you need to make them and the books have a feeling of - I don't know - a ledger / filing cabinet.
4) If you have or can get the case (total cover) together, and where the spine is the right size for the book you want to do - you can drill holes into the back cover, put some screwposts through, punch holes in your paper of choice. Then you have a nice linen cover (no screws in the cover) and a nice screwpost / case binding book. This is - so far my favorite idea. Get the ready-made case from someone like BreezeKit - and then adapt that nice linen cloth cover for to my own tastes.
In other words - the binding for the BreezeKit - it's fine if you use someone's paper that has holes punched in it - and has been creased to bend properly. But if you don't want to pay for very proprietary paper - i.e. you can use your own paper.
But for semi-gloss, luster, gloss paper - you need some sort of page hinging system.
Again - these are available. Lineco makes cloth hole-punched paper hinges with adhesive for the glossy type page to stick to.
Print File also makes a page hinge. And a few others. Some are more expensive than others. Some are double-sided - meaning that you can stick two pages to one hinge; some are single sided. At first thought - you might be leaning towards the double-sided hinge. Not a good idea. Cheaper, but when you realize that by turning one page (top page) you are also turning the second page (second photo attached to the hinge) - when you realize how awful that feels. Forget that and go for the one page hinge - if you are going to go the hinge route.
There is only one problem with the page hinge idea: cost. The cost for the hinges is about the cost for each page of inkjet paper you use. So you are doubling the cost making the print block.
If you do want to use hinges, one way is to make your own. Not as bad as it seems.
And here's how it's done: punch two holes on the short side of the paper to match the two holes in the bottom cover of your bound book. Then slice that paper with a paper cutter about 3/4's inch to the right of the two holes. In other words what you're going to make is a page hinge.
Now - cut a piece of Lineco self-adhesive linen cloth (used for reparing books) - and stick that to the paper you've just cut to put it back together. If you use this method, you cut the cost of the hinging to 1/3 what it would cost to buy pre-made hinges. You also have the ability to space the holes punched into the back of the book where you want them, since you are punching both the book and the hinges.
Another benefit of the cloth hinge is that it doesn't have the bulk or mass of the store-bought hinges. You can cut them quickly on a rotatrim. And to be honest, they don't even need to be exactly the same height - just so that they're shorter than the paper.
I'll have to take the book I made apart and post some pictures.
At any rate - the material costs are like this:
From BreezeKit:
Linen Case
(front back covers, cloth covered, end papers, spine for about 20 - 35 sheets)
$15
Paper: You have to figure your own costs. For me we're in the neighborhood of .45 cents per page.
Linen Cloth: I think I figured this to .15 per sheet, but I'm going to have to check that).
(amount of pages unknown
ScrewPosts (.25 cents each. You'll need two, top and bottoms so let's say .50 per book).
If you want to assume 30 photographic plates then the cost for materials might be around:
$15 cover + .50 screwposts, + linen strips 4.5, paper $13.50 = the neighborhood of $33.50 per completed linen-covered book. As I say, this is a sort of hybrid book, part-case bound, part post bound. Hey, what's a book anyway. I'd like to see someone define that.
There is another way - completely different cover idea that I'm working on. This way promises to be (I know this is like searching for Eldorado) - but anyway I always had a touch of the inventor in me - this is a different idea where you buy the proper card stock, or mat board, and you have it creased in four places. Either by yourself or by a bindery - and the cost should come down and give you more freedom over the dimensions and be even less costly. The need for interior hinges would still be there though.
Oh - one more thing. Anything I've said here goes for doing a ribbon book as well. Instead of posts get a strip of leather if you want a rugged feeling; or ribbon if you're feeling dainty - and do a stitch through the two holes with that.
You see - this is a little like Treasure of Sierra Madre and what happens to you when you take on the quest for gold in whatever form you seek it. I hope that I'll be more like the John Huston character than Fred C. Dobbs.
m i s c
I've been too busy, partly with a bunch of small orders, and partly with the book binding world to write much recently. There was a back log with the orders because I was waiting for silver rag to come back into stock and also fedex delivered it to the wrong address (next apartment building) even though it was properly addressed. That was scary $450 worth of paper sitting somewhere. But my mailman told me that it was sitting next building over and he is going to get a super fabulous Christmas bonus from me.
Not all work. I was at the Mets game yesterday, and was lucky enough to get shots of everyone screaming their heads off when David Wright hit his grand slam. And also an old seat wiper (if that's what they're called) at the game that got into a conversation with my father, and I was in a good spot to do close-ups of his gnarled hand with the white rag and all that. I miss shooting and as soon as the book thing - which is close now - is finished - I look forward to heading out.
I think next weekend is the Mermaid Day parade. I'd better check that. I don't think I ever did shoot it with the rangefinder. I only pray that for once the day is overcast and not brutally hot.
(The printer is doing six 5 x 7's while I write this. It is a lovely thing.)
Not all work. I was at the Mets game yesterday, and was lucky enough to get shots of everyone screaming their heads off when David Wright hit his grand slam. And also an old seat wiper (if that's what they're called) at the game that got into a conversation with my father, and I was in a good spot to do close-ups of his gnarled hand with the white rag and all that. I miss shooting and as soon as the book thing - which is close now - is finished - I look forward to heading out.
I think next weekend is the Mermaid Day parade. I'd better check that. I don't think I ever did shoot it with the rangefinder. I only pray that for once the day is overcast and not brutally hot.
(The printer is doing six 5 x 7's while I write this. It is a lovely thing.)
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