Variations on a theme: companies offer simple, print-style photo books, but take different approaches.

Consumers are falling in love with photo books, and imaging companies are responding with a range of options, from very high-end, coffee table-style books to inexpensive flip books. Some consumers appreciate the accessibility of photo books that are simply bound prints, yet even within this category,

The [together] book

You know a product is going to strike a chord with women if Oprah Winfrey likes it. Professional wedding photographer Phyllis Lane and her partner Rodrigo Coelho, co-owners of Bigger Picture Productions, Phoenix, Ariz., found their product, the [together] book, invented by Lane, in the enviable position of being named to the "O List" in the April 2006 issue of Winfrey's O Magazine.

Also featured this year in the publication Real Simple, the [together] book offers customers an elegant and low-effort album made from their prints. Consumers merely visit the [together] book website at www .togetherbook.com, answer a few check-box questions, and then mail in their photos. (The prints must all be the same size.) Three weeks later, the [together] book is delivered to the customer's home or office.

Lane created the [together] book as a way to showcase proofs to her customers. The first version of the [together] book had a screw post bind, but the books didn't lay flat. After working with a bindery on different solutions, Lane came up with a winning, now-patented process that combines glue with stitching.

"I wanted a product to include in my base package that was beautiful and had a high-end appeal. I was just using it with my own customers; but then my online lab, Pictage, saw one of my books and loved it. About 3 years ago, we started offering it through Pictage to all their professional wedding photographers as the PicBook," Lane says.

In January of this year, Lane and Coelho launched their website to begin offering the [together] book as a consumer product.

The [together] book covers are linen and come in eight colors. Customers can choose to stamp up to two lines of text or a logo on the front. The books can hold between 25 and 100 photos. The 4-by-6 books sell for $29.99 each, and the 5-by-7 books are $39.99, regardless of the number of photos. Stamping is an additional $24.99 per book, and slipcases are available for $39.99.

"We don't premake the covers or the slipcases," Coelho says. "We have so many options, and each bind width is different because we keep the number of photos flexible. You can send 77 pictures for one book and 93 for another, for example; so we have to make everything to order."

Customers send their prints arranged just as they want them bound.

"To further customize their books, some people include within the photos vellum or parchment with text or similar things to bind within the stack," he states.

In September, Lane and Coelho started making [together] books from customers' digital images. They are also expanding both the original [together] book service and the digital version by partnering with online photo services and photo retailers.

The Jessops Photobook

In June, Jessops plc, Leicester, United Kingdom (www.jessops.com) began providing in-store customers with spiral-bound Photobooks, which have been available to online customers for about 18 months.

"The new Photobook is a high-quality photo album for the digital era, and offers our customers the opportunity to create a customized album of their favorite digital photos," says Robin Whitbread, commercial director for Jessops.

Consumers can make a Photobook using a self-service kiosk available in all 292 Jessops stores nationwide.

Customers bring photos on any main memory card or disc format, insert it into the kiosk, and follow the on-screen instructions. Additionally, Jessops customers can order Photobooks online at the retailer's new online photo center, Jessops Picture House, which is accessed via www.jessops.com.

"The process is extremely similar, with simple on-screen instructions, although our online product range is broader--offering more sizes and page layouts," Whitbread explains. "Customers ordering online can choose to have the finished Photobook delivered to their homes, or they can collect it from their nearest Jessops store."

Orders placed using the in-store kiosk have a turnaround time of 7 working days, while online orders take 5 working days for production, and 2 to 4 days for delivery.

Photobooks ordered using the in-store kiosk cost 11.99 [pounds sterling], feature a linen hardback cover, and are spiral bound. The online versions are available in a choice of seven different colored linen hardback covers or matte silver, and cost 19.99 [pounds sterling] for the first 20 pages. Additional pages are available at two sheets for 1.49 [pounds sterling].

"In-store Photobooks contain 25 pages which can hold 50 photographs sized 6-by-4 inches. There's also a handy index page full of thumbnail images, so you can see exactly which photos the book contains," Whitbread states. "The online version starts at 20 pages, and customers can add extra pages up to a maximum of 160--with each page containing up to three photos on each side."

Customers ordering online can also choose the page layout, backgrounds and themes, and can add captions to each picture. Photobooks ordered from an in-store kiosk follow a set format.

"Photobooks bring the traditional photo album into the digital era. Recognizing their significant potential and appeal among consumers, we were keen to add them to our range as soon as possible," Whitbread says.

The Shutterfly Snapbook

The Snapbook has been a staple product at Shutterfly Inc., Redwood City, Calif. (www .shutterfly.com), for years.

"The Snapbook is an easy, convenient and affordable way for our customers to showcase their 4-by-6 or 5-by-7 photos. It has a high-quality spiral binding and clear cover, and allows you to be more creative and thoughtful by personalizing your photos with our more than 700 borders. You can add captions on the front of your silver-halide prints, and you can even do back printing," says Jeffrey Housenbold, Shutterfly president and CEO.

To order a Snapbook from the Shutterfly site, customers simply click on "Snapbook," and click to select glossy or matte. If desired, they can choose one of eight themes, add borders, captions or back printing, and then just click "order."

"The process is almost as easy as ordering 4-by-6 prints themselves. It's very streamlined," Housenbold says. "On average, from the time you choose your pictures, do the layout and complete the order, it takes about 5 minutes. We also have an express version, which is just pictures and a title page, and that's even faster."

A 4-by-6-inch Snapbook starts at $9.99 for the first 20 pages. The 5-by-7-inch version starts at $14.99 for the first 20 pages. For either size, additional pages are 50 cents each, with a maximum of 50 pages per book. Shutterfly produces Snapbooks within 24 hours of each order, and they are then delivered to the customer's home or office.

Housenbold says Shutterfly offers Snapbooks because consumers have a need for them. "People were buying lots of 4-by-6 prints and sticking them in photo albums at home, but they had a desire for mobility and convenience. They also wanted to give pictures as a gift, but they didn't want to just send prints. They wanted something that was a little more portable, elegant and durable," he states. "So we created this product, with a cover and a binding so you can put it in your purse or briefcase or give it as a gift."

From a business standpoint, the Snapbook makes sense for Shutterfly because it encourages a higher volume of printing. "In the old film world, people ordered doubles; but we see people ordering four or five sets of Snapbooks to give as gifts," Housenbold says.

Based on the success of the Snapbook and its other photo books, Shutterfly recently added another small alternative--the 4-by-4-inch Brag Book.

"Our customers love the Snapbook--particularly those who either give it or get it as a gift," Housenbold says. "The people who receive it are excited by it, and the people who give the gift feel they are doing something important--which is sharing their memories, and staying connected to the people who matter most to them."