Produce and share a Zine - do something with your photos!

That photo looks intriguing though (y)

I wish the rest of them did.

The editing is proving more difficult than I'd imagined it would be, I fear because the pictures are crap!
 
I wish the rest of them did.

The editing is proving more difficult than I'd imagined it would be, I fear because the pictures are crap!
I'm sure you'll get somethting together, talking of which, I haven't even started and I see Ian @Harlequin565 has got prints on the way :eek:
 
IMG_1259.jpg

I'm not happy with how I designed the cover (top tip - spend a bit of time on your cover design!) but am very happy with the print quality this time (vs natural paper which was very faded)
 
What paper type did you go for? and which was, to coin a phrase, crap :)

Heh, there's two threads going at the moment. One is a "make a zine" thread, the other is this project thread. I'm posting my findings/pitfalls and experiences on the other one. But to save a click, I used "Natural" paper for my test zine which had a lovely texture (exactly what I wanted) but it soaks up the ink so much that the blacks end up dark grey. It gave the whole project a washed out feel - especially considering it was a monochrome project! This time I used Silk and the blacks were much punchier.

I may drop a note to MIxam asking them if it was something I did, but whilst colour could be open to interpretation and require profiling etc, when you use black text and it comes out grey, it's not a great experience.
 
Heh, there's two threads going at the moment. One is a "make a zine" thread, the other is this project thread. I'm posting my findings/pitfalls and experiences on the other one. But to save a click, I used "Natural" paper for my test zine which had a lovely texture (exactly what I wanted) but it soaks up the ink so much that the blacks end up dark grey. It gave the whole project a washed out feel - especially considering it was a monochrome project! This time I used Silk and the blacks were much punchier.

I may drop a note to MIxam asking them if it was something I did, but whilst colour could be open to interpretation and require profiling etc, when you use black text and it comes out grey, it's not a great experience.

ah, now watching that one too :)

Going to have a play with Mixam this afternoon and see how it all fits together. I know what I'll be doing for this and the photography is complete, so it's a matter of me getting my head around the publishing side of things, which is pretty new to me
 
Going to have a play with Mixam this afternoon and see how it all fits together.

Good luck!

My experience was that making the PDF/PDFs to upload is the trickiest part at first.
 
So I just looked at Mixam and realised that I have not got a clue about this. Do I want a magazine or a booklet? Do I want a cover - why wouldn't I? Do I want a finish on the cover? I downloaded their template which seems reasonable but like @flook999 I've got to work out how to create a PDF (I assume that's what they want) in LR/PS
 
So I just looked at Mixam and realised that I have not got a clue about this. Do I want a magazine or a booklet? Do I want a cover - why wouldn't I? Do I want a finish on the cover? I downloaded their template which seems reasonable but like @flook999 I've got to work out how to create a PDF (I assume that's what they want) in LR/PS
Magazine, brochure or booklet are different names for the same thing in different sizes.

All selecting a cover does is make it so the front and back pages (the cover) can be in a heavier weight paper and with a different finish to the inside pages.

I don't think there is a way to export useful PDFs for printing from Lightroom. So it'll have to be Photoshop (I can't help you with the specifics of that) or desk top publishing software of some sort.

I've used Gimp to create PDF's for ad copy for print, I'm assuming the process will be similar in PS. Start by making a file with the dimensions of your page, then add pics and text. When exporting as the PDF ensure graphcs (fancy text etc.) is exported as vector graphics so it will resize (if necessary) without jagged edges.

I prefer using DTP software as I can make the whole zine as one PDF, but I can't recommend anything as what I use is clunky and I still haven't got to grips with it fully. Maybe if I wasn't a skinflint and coughed up for some software it might prove easier to use. Although I did once have a bootleg copy of some professional publishing software and it made no sense to me whatsoever!
 
I've got as far as creating templates in photoshop to match the downloaded PDF's from Mixam, which was surprisingly easy.

I've selected the 16 images plus a reduced size one to include on the frontcover, and added 2 text blocks to the inside of the front cover (although I'm not sure at this point whether I can specify printing on that page, or what I'm including in the text boxes)

I haven't looked into the specifics of creating the PDF pages, but assume thats straightforward............
 
Thanks Dave, I'll have a look at some DTP software
 
I haven't looked into the specifics of creating the PDF pages, but assume thats straightforward............

Probably an option on export.

Thanks Dave, I'll have a look at some DTP software

If you find something simple to use and free/cheap, please let us all know!
 
If you find something simple to use and free/cheap, please let us all know!
Have you tried Scribus? I've only had half an hour with it and it seems to work (for my exceptionally limited needs at least) and claims to output print ready PDFs, although, again I have no idea how one checks that a PDF is print ready...
 
Have you tried Scribus? I've only had half an hour with it and it seems to work (for my exceptionally limited needs at least) and claims to output print ready PDFs, although, again I have no idea how one checks that a PDF is print ready...
Scribus is what I use at the moment for more than a few pages. The problem I've yet to solve (admittedly through not trying very hard) is getting elements to snap into place. The PDFs have all worked fine so far for printing.
 
I've selected the 16 images plus a reduced size one to include on the frontcover, and added 2 text blocks to the inside of the front cover (although I'm not sure at this point whether I can specify printing on that page, or what I'm including in the text boxes)

If you're using Mixam, I've found the following tips to be useful.

Page Naming: Page 1 is the front cover (call it "front cover.pdf"). Page 2 is inside the front cover (the reverse of the cover - call it "inner front cover.pdf"). Page 3 is the 1st facing page you see when you open the book. Pages 4 & 5 are the next two pages once you've turned page 3. Everything from page 3 on should be "page xx.pdf" (where xx is the actual page number). The last page is the back cover. Call that "back cover.pdf". If you keep this naming convention, they all fall into place when you upload.

Multiples of 4: Make sure your total page count is in multiples of 4. I made up a blank page for this purpose. It's handy for the inner front cover (because there's rarely anything on it) and the page before the back cover and for stuffing if you need it.
 
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So it's not just one PDF with all the pages in it?
 
If you're using Mixam, I've found the following tips to be useful.

Page Naming: Page 1 is the front cover (call it "front cover.pdf"). Page 2 is inside the front cover (the reverse of the cover - call it "inner front cover.pdf"). Page 3 is the 1st facing page you see when you open the book. Pages 4 & 5 are the next two pages once you've turned page 3. Everything from page 3 on should be "page xx.pdf" (where xx is the actual page number). The last page is the back cover. Call that "back cover.pdf". If you keep this naming convention, they all fall into place when you upload.

Multiples of 4: Make sure your total page count is in multiples of 4. I made up a blank page for this purpose. It's handy for the inner front cover (because there's rarely anything on it) and the page before the back cover and for stuffing if you need it.


Presumably I can print on all pages?

What I mean is, I can print a title/image on the front cover
intro text (or rude limerick) on the inner front cover
next 16 pages are image pages
text again or maybe blank if I've run out of things to say on the inner back cover (or what about a photographer bio with small image?)
and finally maybe date/title as text on the back cover
 
Presumably I can print on all pages?

What I mean is, I can print a title/image on the front cover
intro text (or rude limerick) on the inner front cover
next 16 pages are image pages
text again or maybe blank if I've run out of things to say on the inner back cover (or what about a photographer bio with small image?)
and finally maybe date/title as text on the back cover
Correct.
 
just ran a test print through photoshop, it's as easy as "save as" pdf so that's good

I'm again assuming here but you have the option to embed a colour profile which I think is a good thing....... can you tell I don't print much :)
 
So it's not just one PDF with all the pages in it?

I think Dave did it as 1 pdf and I did it as 28 pdfs so you can presumably do both.
 
I think Dave did it as 1 pdf and I did it as 28 pdfs so you can presumably do both.
I did indeed do mine as a single PDF. Which Mixam mixed up and printed in the wrong order! They have corrected their error FOC. (y)

The advantage of a single PDF is that you have the pages in the correct sequence before uploading.

Don't forget to confirm the page order on Mixam's site before committing, though. Just in case. Mine was correct in their preview which is why I was initially concerned that my PDF hadn't fitted their requirements, but all was good in the end.

If Mixam is like Doxdirect you will also be able to upload a mix of PDFs with different page counts. I did a text only book with Doxdirect and uploaded it chapter by chapter plus front and back covers IIRC. Certainly multiple files as they have a limit on file sizes.
 
OK, plan A is looking like a non-starter, over to plan Aii (B, C, ? in the wings ;-) )

this really is an education and a whole new world :thinking:
 
OK, plan A is looking like a non-starter, over to plan Aii (B, C, ? in the wings ;-) )

this really is an education and a whole new world :thinking:

After mastering zine publishing it's on to making video. :banghead: :ROFLMAO:
 
After mastering zine publishing it's on to making video. :banghead: :ROFLMAO:

I tried that once and should have learned from Homer Simpson - "You tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is, never try."
 
Playing around making dummy copies of my project. Never done this before, which suggest to me that it's not going well. :coat:
 
Well that's annoying! Mixam offer a trial of two copies but it only allows portrait and I've got mine all laid out in landscape ...
 
I did a series once of photographs of the detritus left after new years eve. I got some funny looks for that one, but congratulations sir, I'd never have come up with this
That sounds like my kind of project. (y)

I've been photographing lost balls for almost ten years. Not as earnestly as when I stated, but I think that's because I want to put off hitting my target of 500. The latest ball was number 476. :giggle:.
 
That sounds like my kind of project. (y)

I've been photographing lost balls for almost ten years. Not as earnestly as when I stated, but I think that's because I want to put off hitting my target of 500. The latest ball was number 476. :giggle:.

Thats either dedication, or lunacy, and to my eternal shame I'm not sure which :rolleyes::)
 
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