Sometimes, the idea of sitting down at a desk and organizing photos on the computer to then put into an album is just too daunting. After all, if you’re like us, you probably have, well, thousands of snapshots right there on your phone. Guess what? It’s easy to turn those into books, as well. Lindsey Roberts investigates.
Mosaic
For parents, one of the easiest ways to turn phone photos into keepsakes is the app, Mosaic, which won a 2014 Appy Award and allows you to see photos clearly on your phone, select 20 for a book, choose black or white backgrounds, and presto! Place your order. (Make sure to edit photos in an app such as Lightbox before you start your Mosaic.) The process is so fast that I had a 7-inch-by-7-inch photo album with a beautiful linen cover of my family’s summer vacation within days of our return. The price for a Mosaic is $20, plus $5 for shipping.
GrooveBook
GrooveBook’s twist on the printing-from-your-phone idea is that for only $2.99 total a month, you get 100 of your phone photos printed in a 4½-inch-by-6½ inch-book. The pages are perforated, should you want to tear out the photos and use them for a different purpose—for sharing on your fridge or family cork board, for example.
Print Studio
Turn your hip filtered photos into a photo book with Print Studio, an app that takes photos from Instagram or your phone and for $25, turns it into a clean-lined 7-by-8½-inch photo book, with 38 pages and your original hashtagged captions, if you like. You can also order minibooks, sticker books, and our favorite, the Tiny Book—a 1.7-inch-by-1.5-inch book that holds 24 photos. The books even have magnets in them to stick together or to your fridge. Order a set of three for $10.
Artifact Uprising
“Off your device, into your life,” is the motto for Artifact Uprising, a company, that for $16.99, will print your smartphone or Instagram photos onto a 5½-inch-square softcover book. Choose a cover photo, design, and text, then pick 30-100 of your photos (40 if you want to stick with the base price). Crop photos, choose page layouts, rearrange page order—all in the time it takes to wait in line at the gas station.
Keepshot
If the iPad is more your style, try MyPublisher’s Keep Shot. Pricing for a classic hardcover at 8 ½ by-11-inches is $35.99, including 20 pages; $0.99 for each additional page, at 100 max.
Roberts is a freelance writer. She can be reached at www.lindseymroberts.com.
Like On Parenting on Facebook for more essays and parenting related info.
You may also like: