• Photobook Publishing Today

  • The Development of the Artist's expression

    Start with a Zine .... or go straight for a book

    Photobooks By Women Mari Katayama

    Photobook-Specific Terms:

    • Sequence & Narrative – The arrangement of images to tell a story or evoke an emotion.
    • Monograph - A detailed study by of of one photographer.
    • Spread – Two pages viewed together as a single image.
    • Flow – How the images and text guide the viewer’s experience throughout the book.
    • Dummy Book – A mock-up of the photobook layout and materiality; created in the publishing process or used to attract a publisher.
    • Gutter – The fold between two pages that affects how images are displayed across a spread.
    • Double Truck: An image that extends across the gutter of a page
    • Trim size - The final dimensions of the printed page after cutting.
    • Bleed - The area of an image that extends beyond the trim edge, ensuring no white borders appear after trimming.
    • Crop Mark: A line used to designate where to trim a page.
    • Safety Margin: The area within the trim size where important elements should be kept to avoid being cut off.
    • Full Page Bleed: An image that extends to all edges of the page, filling the entire spread.
    • Text Block/Book Block: The collection of sewn or glued pages that form the body of the book.
    • Tipped-In: A page or image that is glued into the book separately from the main text block.
    • Accordion (Concertina) Fold: Parallel folds that open up like an accordion.
    • Gatefold - a page leaf folded inward that is opened and extended
    • Addendum: Information added to the end of a book after publication.
    • Appendix: Supplemental information added to the end of a book (tables, glossary, bibliography, etc.).
    • Front Matter: Title, copyright, and table of contents pages, located at the beginning of a book.
    • Back Matter: Refers to the appendix, index, and colophon at the end of a book.
    • Edition – The number of copies produced, often limited for art-focused photobooks.
    • Maquette - A preliminary version of a photobook where designers can experiment with layout, sequence, and design before final production.

    Printing Terms:

    • CMYK (Cyan-Magenta-Yellow-Key/Black): A four-color, subtractive printing process used by most offset printers.
    • RGB (Red-Green-Blue): A three-color, additive color process commonly used by electronic screens.
    • Halftone: A printing technique that transforms images into dots of various sizes, allowing an image to be made using one color ink.
    • "Rezo print" ; printing on a Risograph printer, a stencil duplicator that produces unique, tactile prints with a vibrant, spot-color aesthetic. The Risograph process uses specialized inks to create a distinct look, often favoured for zines, posters, and graphic arts.
    • Colophon: Publishing and printing information, usually located at the end of a book; also, a publisher’s emblem, usually located on the spine and/or title page.
    • Offset Lithography: A commercial method of printing books that “offsets” ink from plates to rollers that transfer to paper.
    • Print on Demand (POD): A production method where copies are created by an order rather than in editions.
    Photobooks By Women Book binding

    Design & Binding Terms:

    • Signature: Two or more sheets of paper stacked and folded as a group.
    • Folio: One folded sheet of paper (two leaves/four pages)
    • Leaf: One unit in a text block (front and back pages).
    • Perfect (Adhesive) Binding: Single sheets glued together.
    • Bench Sewing: Sewing through a fold to combine signatures into a text block.
    • Spine: The part of the book that connects the front and back covers.
    • Super: A gauze-type fabric used to reinforce the spine of a text block.
    • Lay-Flat Binding – A technique allowing pages to open completely flat, ideal for uninterrupted image spreads.
    • Spiral Coil Binding - A binding method using a plastic or metal coil to hold pages together.
    • Bench Sewing: Sewing through a fold to combine signatures into a text block.
    • Paper Stock – The type and weight of paper used, influencing texture and appearance. meassured in GSM (Grams per Square Meter)
    • Grain: The fibres of a sheet of paper, aligned in one direction. To determine the direction of the grain, carefully bend a sheet of paper horizontally and vertically. Grain will run parallel to the direction of least resistance.
    • Grain Long/ short: When grain is running the longer side of a sheet/ shorter side
    • Tape Binding: Securing pages with a tape or cloth strip along the spine.
    • Hard cover/ Soft Cover/- Cover choices box, board or soft cover.
    • Book Cloth: Protective cloth used to cover books.
    • Saddle-Stitch: A binding method where pages are folded and stapled through the spine.
    • Kettle Stitch: Stitching used to secure the heads and tails of signatures in order to create a text block.
    • Side Stitch Binding: A method in which staples or stitching run along the side of a book.
    • End Sheets/Endpaper/Flyleaf: The blank pages attached inside the front and back cover, sometimes used for design elements.
    • Embossing & Debossing Blind stamp: Raised or indented design effects often used on covers. A blind stamp is depressed and uncoloured.
    • Hot or Foil stamping: a form of relief printing where pre-dried inks or foil are applied at high temperatures.
    • Slipcase: A storage box with one open end fitted to a specific book.
    • Headbands: Ornamental fabric that may be sewn into a text block for additional support.
    • Awl: A tool used for piercing paper to allow threading when sewing a text block.
    • Bone Folder: A tool used for folding creases to produce sharp, folded edges.
    • Casing: Process of applying adhesive to the outermost endpapers of a text block and fitting it into a case.
    • Clamshell Box: A protective box used for storage or presentation.
    • Deboss/ Emboss/Inlay/Onlay: A sunken or raised design. Cut out area with alternative 'inlay' /Onlay laid on top
    • Deckle: A rough, uneven page edge, typically used for decorative effect.
    • Dust Jacket: A removable cover used to protect a book.
    • Justified Alignment: When text is spaced in such a way to maintain even lines on both the right and left sides of a page.
    • Zine: Derived from “magazine,” this is an ephemeral book typically featuring a saddle-stitch binding.
    Photobooks By Women Printing works

    Publishing & Production Terms:

    • Self-Publishing – When an artist or photographer produces their own book without a traditional publisher.
    • Print API- lets you seamlessly integrate print on demand functionality into your existing website or app, enabling you to offer a wide range of high-quality printed products to your customers or users.
    • The OnDemand Processing API allows the users to interact with the service to issue and control the orders. It provides functionalities like creation, update, cancellation, pausing and monitoring of orders. This allows the users to have better control over the workflow execution process.
    • Zine- A self-published booklet, often with a simple binding
    • Print-on-Demand (POD) – Books are printed only when ordered, reducing waste and storage costs.
    • ISBN – The International Standard Book Number, required for commercial distribution.
    • Colophon – A small section in the book detailing publication details like printer, designer, and edition number.
    • Copyright: The legal right to control the use and distribution of your work.
    • Proofreading: The final stage of editing to catch errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
    • Backlist: Books that have been in print for a year or more.
    • Frontlist: Newly published books.
    • Imprint: A distinct brand or division within a publishing house.
    • Blurb: A short description of the book, often found on the back cover.
    • Galley: An early, often unedited, copy of the book used for review.
    Photobooks By Women Publishing as method book cover

    Publications on Publishing:

    'Publishing as Method' - Lim Kyung yong and Helen Jungyeon Ku

    'Publish Your Photography Book' - Darius Himes & Mary Virginia Swanson

    Help Small Publishers Cut Costs

    Light Logistics

    LIGHT LOGISTICS is a person-to-person distribution network enabled by volunteers.
    Publishers can get help with distribution to cut costs.

    Sustainability

    The Sustainable Photobook Publishing (SPP) network

    Photobooks By Women library shot

    Buy a Book- APAC

    Section image

    Buy a Book- Rest of World

    Europe

    Untitled -

    Untitled is an independent publishing house based in Prague.

    A platform for photography and visual art, founded by curator and editor Lucie Černá.

    Peperoni Books Germany

    Dienacht Publishing Leipzig

    UK

    Photobook Junkies

    Mack Books

    Oxfam 2nd Hand

    Setanta

    Dewi Lewis Publishing

    PhotoWorks

    Photobook Store

    USA

    Aperture

    Modernism101

    Canada

    Yoffy Press

  • Photobook Publishers

    Europe

    Untitled -

    Untitled is an independent publishing house based in Prague and a platform for photography and visual art, founded by curator and editor Lucie Černá.

    India

    Offset Projects

    Editions JOJO

    Hong Kong

    Blue Lotus Editions

    Brownie Publishing

    Singapore

    Section image

    Hong Kong

    Blue Lotus Editions

    Brownie Publishing

    Singapore

    Malaysia

    Zontiga

    South Korea

    Datzpress

    Mediabus

    Vietnam

    Matca

  • Publishing Stats

    Thanks to 10x10 Photobooks NY, we have some up-to-date figures on Photobooks by Women.

    Where do the numbers stand across Asia?

    Photobooks By Women Explore our curated collection of photobooks created by women, highlighting their invaluable contributions to the art of photography. Celebrate Women in Photography This pop-up library, inspired by 10×10 Photobooks’ recent publication, What They saw: Historical Photobooks by Women, 1843-1999, explores the diversity of photographic books created by women. Throughout history, the contributions of women to the field of photography have often been overlooked. This pop-up library showcases a wide-ranging collection of historical and contemporary photobooks authored by women. Many of these have remained unseen or under-recognised, making this collection a valuable resource for anyone seeking to expand their understanding and appreciation of the diverse perspectives and approaches that have been brought to the art of photography by women throughout history.
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