Lake Pend Oreille Moods: Photobook

I spent the summer in Sandpoint Idaho with my Fuji GFX 50s ii medium format digital camera. My digital philosophy has been to retain and integrate the aspects of film that I enjoy so much. I tend to work with mostly manual lenses and not use a lot of the camera features and menus aside from shutter speed aperture and a new one for me, ISO. I made a series of earlier posts on some of my work which I list below.

I have travelled to this area over the years to visit my father and have always found the lake to be a challenge to photograph. It is predominantly blue in tone in the summer owing to many days of bright blue skies. The lake itself sits in a bowl of mountains that makes golden hour somewhat muted. This was an attempt to channel some of the mood of the lake and reflect that in my photographs. I found the late spring still wet and stormy to be uniquely quiet and later in the summer thunderstorms create some spectacular light.

I have recently experimented with a format of a small photobook that I have found I like. The format is simple, and the size keeps the cost within reason. I work with Mixam as they have done a marvelously consistent job in the past. They are of the best quality and reasonably priced. Their web interface means you can quickly find out how much a new creation will cost. I used them for an A4 landscape project which was fantastic.

The format is A5 landscape (148mm x 210mm or 5-7/8" x 8-1/4") and I generally prefer soft cover. The idea is to make something that does not require a lot of editing and can take a small set of photos out for publishing. It is meant to be a quick project that can be repeated easily due to the low cost and simplicity. Hardcover is more expensive and has a minimum of 32 'sides' or pages. This kind of limits it for my purposes hence the choice of softcover. Furthermore, if I don't mind stapled binding (as opposed to perfect bound with a proper spine that can take printing) then I can use as few as 8 sides, so I am not forced to use marginal photos. This book costs £24 plus shipping for 10 copies.

Cover

The book is based on an earlier template which I tried and stuck to. Not allowing myself much re-invention of the format also is intended to lower the barrier to creation and also give it a kind of signature or legacy. The order is...

Cover
Copyright Page
Introduction (for some context)
Experiences of the Sublime (a few paragraphs of my personal experiences)
Photos (Most on a single page with simple white margins.)
Photographer's Notes (Technical information for those interested in the act of photography itself.)
Back Cover

Here are a few shots of the finished book(let).