Custom coffee table book commemorates a cruise
Travelers often visit a gift shop at the end of a journey to buy picture books of the trip they have just taken. The hope is to purchase a keepsake that will feature many of the vacation attractions seen along the way.
But today, with a good camera and a good eye, a quality hard-cover book can be custom-bound to spotlight personal photographs taken on the actual trip. It’s a more personal feature because specific images are selected by the vacationers.
Dave and Mary Jackson of International Falls took a seven-day, Alaskan inside-passage cruise in May along with Mary’s nephew, Bill Gustafson and his wife, Liz Gustafson, of Circle Pines, Minn.
Liz recently gave the Jacksons their own book to commemorate the journey. She was both the photographer and the designer.
At first glance, the book looks like any nice-quality coffee table book — with hauntingly beautiful images of Alaska’s glazed mountains against tangerine skies; birds in flight above turquoise icebergs; and glistening humpback whales undulating in the indigo sea. But a closer examination reveals that the photos are dotted with the familiar faces of the Jacksons and the Gustafsons — and memories that will be preserved in a celebratory edition.
The book is mostly pictorial, with a cover page of text for each leg of the journey. Liz shot 4,000 images but a much smaller selection of photos encapsulates the experience, and represents the voyage in a simpler way.
After driving to Seattle, the two couples boarded the Star Princess ship.
“With a beautiful view of Mt. Ranier and downtown Seattle we took off out of the Puget Sound,” the book begins, with a corresponding photograph. They proceeded to experience all the sights, sounds and smells that a sea voyage captures.
They arrived in Ketchikan, Alaska, in the early morning and other stops included the Tracy Arm Fjord, Juneau, parts of Canada, and Skagway. On the return trip to Seattle, the ship’s passengers visited the colossal Butchart Gardens and other wonders of Victoria, British Columbia.
The book was printed by Apple Photo Services in California, available through on-line services. Liz utilized the program IPhoto on her Mac and did the layout with a basic template of options.
“All of the pages have different text and photo layouts; from full-page bleed photos to all text if you prefer,” she told The Journal.
Any quantity can be ordered with possible discounts for multiples. Liz paid $114, including tax and shipping, for the book she gave the Jacksons. The cost is variable based on the size, with a minimum of 20 pages required and a maximum page allowance at 100.
Weddings, adoptions, births, birthdays, reunions and other special occasions would be potential themes for these custom-designed books.
More information is available at http://www.apple.com/ilife/iphoto/print-products.html.
