Are Blurb books really bookstore quality?
HarlanBear
Registered Users Posts: 290 Major grins
Hello all,
I am starting a project to, hopefully, create a high-quality, coffee-table type photography book and then shop it around; first to local bookstores here in San Francisco and then perhaps branch it out to larger distribution. And since I am not a well-known photographer but do have an idea I think is worthy, I believe the best way to shop it is to have an actual finished book to show.
So my question is to any and all who have used Blurb to create books either for themselves of for clients: are they really high-end, bookstore quality books. This includes binding (I'm looking to do hard bound), paper quality and weight, print quality, etc. All the things a person going into a bookstore would expect from a good coffee-table photography book. I can, of course, create and print one through blurb for my own review, but thought I would mine the experience of my fellow dgrinners as well.
Thanks for any input and opinions.
I am starting a project to, hopefully, create a high-quality, coffee-table type photography book and then shop it around; first to local bookstores here in San Francisco and then perhaps branch it out to larger distribution. And since I am not a well-known photographer but do have an idea I think is worthy, I believe the best way to shop it is to have an actual finished book to show.
So my question is to any and all who have used Blurb to create books either for themselves of for clients: are they really high-end, bookstore quality books. This includes binding (I'm looking to do hard bound), paper quality and weight, print quality, etc. All the things a person going into a bookstore would expect from a good coffee-table photography book. I can, of course, create and print one through blurb for my own review, but thought I would mine the experience of my fellow dgrinners as well.
Thanks for any input and opinions.
0
Comments
Dgrin FAQ | Me | Workshops
Not even close in my opinion! I felt the quality was extremely poor. The quality control seemed non existent. I ordered a book and here are a few of the issues:
- A couple of pages had incomplete coloring (as in a nice white spot of paper about the size of a pencil eraser right in the middle).
- Terrible color casting (even the black and white pages had a purple tint)
- A slightly fuzzy appearance. Just not at all sharp
- When I contacted them about the issues I got the run around.
I would give them a 3 out of 10.---
Atlanta, GA
I agree that i thought the quality was very low (when i got my book some 6-7 weeks late).
Not even close to a book store quality book.
I also had hells trouble trying to get my book. I had to send it to a USA address (smugmug actually) because Blurbs ordering system was broken for days. Anyway i was given a zip code for SmugMug that was out by one number at the end & the book traveled the US in post for several weeks until it got returned to Blurb & they simply left it at that. Im cool with that..my fault.
What got me mad as hell was the way in which Blurb handled themselves from that point on ..no 'gee i wonder if the customer wants us to keep his money without getting his book' follow up what so ever.
I sent several emails asking to see where the book was & kept getting a human reply (you could tell by the wording & punctuation it wasnt a generated reply) That i can not get an answer from that email address but i could not find out at the time whom to email..believe me i wasnt going through this for my own kicks !
So after about 5 emails...they simply told ME..THE CUSTOMER ...that they would no longer reply to my emails.
So i went to their forum & posed the question 'Where is my Book'...they deleted my post !! Even though i made sure it was politely written. It just pointed out that they did not have the ability to handle a simple issue such as a wrong zip code.
They will never see an order from me again.
I eventually got it sorted after embarrassing them in their forum & i asked why they removed my post...they answered
"oh that ? ..we were just tidying up the forum a bit"
I went & checked...no other persons post was removed.
Thanks, Dave. Wish I'd thought of that.
Website
Not good to hear. Consistency is very important to me in case I do get someone to place orders. Last thing you need is a PO'ed client who is trying to sell your products.
Any other experiences or maybe suggestions for other vendors?
Website
I just ordered a book for a senior this week. It's coming from Bay Photo. I have nothing but great work and service from them on my prints, so I am hoping it will hold up on this press product.
I'm not going to try and defend our products and service here, except to say that we feel we have a fantastic value proposition. And, as David said earlier, the way to see if our products fit into your offering is to try us out.
Best,
--bw
I ordered a small book to begin with.
I have chosen the black background and the pictures are too dense, too dark.
Talking to someone I know involved in this business, I was told that the black may have influence on the density of the photos.
Globally the quality is good and it looks like a real - but of course it is - book .
I mean, it is not like one I have seen from Hofmann printed in Spain with too strong paper and good for Christmas time and Familly matters.
This is a book for demanding people, for people concerned with quality.
I have ordered another book which is on the way now. With brey background this time.
A more "serious" one. I hope it comes OK. It will.
I post here when it arrives and let you know. (Hope to remember)
I think the book I receive is printed in Holland... Does it matter ? No.
I payed in Euros with the Credit Card.
Bruce,
Thanks for the respose, but it wasn't me that contacted you. That was Gus. I'm just trying to see what others' experience is with you folks. As I said, I am looking for a high quality, bookstore type printing operation which I plan to shop around to bookstores and perhaps as a "portfoilo" and pitch for other publishers, and therefore am still doing research. But I have downloaded your Booksmart software to give it a test drive.
Love to hear what you think when you get it.
Website
I 'know' i got the run around.
I have kept every tiny piece of correspondence & will never pass comments like i did without being able to back them up 100%. You actually had me until you removed my post from your forum & then made an excuse that you were tidying up the forum. Ive been a mod here for a long time...ive a fair idea about the mechanics of a forum.
1) I did have a problem contacting Blurb. After I ordered, I noticed I wasn't getting any order updates. I didn't get any customer service responses either so, thinking it was an e-mail problem, I forwarded a new response address. In the end I provided a total of three addresses -- then the books showed.
2) At first I was thrilled. Then I noticed a number of what are called 'fountain runs' in all four books. (Traces left by printing fluids being squeezed off the paper by the rollers.
3) This communication was answered very promptly, saying a return envelope was being forwarded.
4) When the envelope didn't arrive I inquired again. Blurb apologized for the mix-up and responded that my my reprints had already been ordered.
5) The reprints arrived only a few days later.
6) Reprints were stunning! Soft covers are nice and glossy. (First ones were flat.) The blacks are very black and the colour densities are very good.
A couple of days ago I got a Blurb promo e-mail. Three actually. One to each of the three addresses I provided above!
All-in-all, there were problems. But it was a first order, out of country, and at a very busy time of year heading into the Xmas rush. Most important, the problems were handled very quickly and very professionally.
I'll be ordering more, for sure. But I do suggest you experiment before biting the bullet.
Dgrin FAQ | Me | Workshops
<<< are they really high-end, bookstore quality books.>>>
No. But they only cost a fraction of what you'd pay for high quality printing.
May I suggest paying close attention to how Bruce from Blurb characterizes his company’s product.
<<< except to say that we feel we have a fantastic value proposition.>>>
Bruce does not say that his company offers high quality printing, just good value, which is a function of their low price.
Let’s identify six areas of concern when you’re buying printing;
paper, binding, delivery, price, customer service and print quality.
In my opinion, Blurb offers good paper, good binding, fast delivery (usually) and an extraordinarily low price. They do not offer good print quality nor can they offer much in the way of good customer service.
A company like Blurb or Shutterfly etc. is not well set up for customer service. It just isn’t possible at their price point. They have way too many customers to provide good customer service.
Which leaves us with print quality. They print on HP Indigo presses (Bruce can correct me if they’ve upgraded their presses recently, but it still won’t make much difference.) These presses are well known in the industry. The inks do not compare well to inkjet, or to “regular” 4 color offset litho presses. They are very low quality inks which are not too reflective. This is understandable, given the prices they charge. If you paid thousands more for your book to be printed on commercial presses, frankly the inks would only be marginally better, unless you went to a high quality printer, where the price for your books would be absurdly high.
Fair is fair. You get what you pay for. Notice that Bruce says his company offers a good value, and it’s just impossible to argue with that. You are not paying for good print quality, and you are not getting it. Whether or not you are satisfied with their print quality is up to you, and as this thread shows different people have different quality needs. In the industry, the print quality of these presses is considered very low. But this is irrelevant if you are someone who considers their quality to be just fine for your tastes.
Hope this helps,
Jim
I don't want the cheese, I just want to get out of the trap.
http://www.jimwhitakerphotography.com/
Yes it does help.
I'll be more careful when I look for a really good book of photography.
As I said before some where: you look and you don't see.
This may be happening with me ... I mean, it is happening with me.
I just look to the books which I think are supposed to be good and I don't see their lack of quality...
Jim,
Yes it does help quite a bit. I think for family & friends kind of this Blurb would work fine. But it looks like it would not work so well for my end product ideas. Though it may work as a presentation to a publisher, if I could get one to look at my stuff. And considering the the costs it may be an okay idea to get one as a mock-up (rough draft, if you will) kind of project. I'll have to do some more research and check with people I know who are in the print business to one degree or another.
Thanks for the information. Very informative and thought provoking.
And thanks to everyone who has taken the time to help me with this.
Website
I use Bay Photo as well and would love to hear how this book turns out!
www.heatherdunnphotography.com
My Blog My Facebook Page
GIVING BACK - How will you give?
Im very happy with the results, the colors were right on.
You can see the book here
www.exposed-images.smugmug.com/gallery/4299736_BhWHC
Pamela
Pamela
www.exposedimages.net
It's the second book from Blurb.
The first one is small and just to see how the books looked and feeling.
The second one is a more serious one.
Others will come under my annual project concerning bull fights and bull fighters pictures, which are to be public and available to the World and for those who are interested in this activity.
The 1.st book has the background in black.
The photos turned out to be dark, too dark, too dense.
Excuse: may be it was the black which could have ... etc etc etc.
Then I moved to gray.
I received the book today and the photos are dark and dense and before or worst.
What am I supposed to do ?
I am guiving Blub guys this link in order they might give anwsers here to evreyone and not only to me.
I need to fine tune this thing ! I need to trust Blurb. I don't want to move from printer to printer.
I need this and need it badly. I have a plan for shooting an engagment and wedding and things must be tunned up.
My books were printed in Switzerland. Are you, Blurb, changing my last book for another one ?
Thank you.
Also, there are some basic tips for adjusting images for Blurb books on our blog here http://blurberatiblog.com/index.php/2007/03/16/tips-on-how-to-synchronize-your-color/. This may help you get closer to your expected output.
Hope this helps!
Best,
--bw
If I want a decent book I'd use blurb again. But if I want a spectacular book I'll fork over the $$$ for Asuka.
A former sports shooter
Follow me at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bjurasz/
My Etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/mercphoto?ref=hdr_shop_menu
It helped yes. Thank you.
I am sorry but I may have to move as I want more quality, even at a slightly highter price.
I saw books in Portugal printed from Hofmann and I did not like them at all.
Blurb books are better but not enought as I don't want to sell books with my pictures showing them not so good as they really are.
Assuming they are good of course.
cry
Thank you for the tip.
I thought I could use Blurb but I was wronge.:cry
I will go and have a look at Asuka.
However, I may use Blurb in a not so important book as the one I want to make about bull fighting.
Thank you so much.
It's a good product at a great price.
Dgrin FAQ | Me | Workshops
Cuong
thumb
I am not sure that it will fill my original desire to print a high-quality art photo book, that I leave somewhat to my more learned book publishing friends, but it is as good if not better than many photo bokks I've seen in regular retail book stores. And their turn-around from upload to deliver was very impressive - like 3-4 days.
So hats off to Blurb. For the money I don't think you can beat it. And, as I said, it did meet and beat my expectations. So thanks to Bruceblub, too.
Website