Photobook

A photobook is a book whose primary content is photographic. It may or may not have text. Many show the work of a single photographer

In Japan

Photographers such as Shinzō Fukuhara were producing photography books in the 1920s. The postwar years brought low-priced photography books, such as the many volumes of Iwanami Shashin Bunko. From the 1950s onward, most Japanese photographers of note have had photobooks published.

However, the simplest Japanese translation of photobook is "shashinshū" (nihongo2|写真集), and the "shashinshū" section of a typical Japanese bookstore is full books of photographs of little or no documentary or artistic merit but instead conventional portraying currently popular celebs. Many are of cheesecake models ("guradoru") famous for little else, or porn starlets ("nūdoru") who also appear in "adult" movies; others are of singers, television personalites and so forth. They can contain as few as 15 or as many as 120 photos.

They are very popular with fans, as they are a good source of high quality photos of a popular celebrity. A musician may release a small photobook with an album or single release.

Vernacular photobooks

Storing digital images in traditional photo albums means printed copies and the pages of an album. With photobooks, a real book with its own images and texts can be created. The resulting book is printed on digital color printers and bound.

Professional printing and binding services offer free software for easy creation of photobooks with professional layouts and individual layout capabilities. Because of the integrated design and order workflow, hardcover bound books with customized pictures and text can be produced very cost-effectively.

References

*Parr, Martin, and Gerry Badger. "The Photobook: A History." London: Phaidon.
**Vol 1. 2004. ISBN 0714842850
**Vol 2. 2006. ISBN 0714844330