As one's portfolio grows, comes the question of what to do with it. A website follows as a matter of course. It compiles all of one's work and makes it readily available to viewers the world over, and is neither inordinately difficult nor expensive to produce. But is it enough? Images look much better in print than on a screen--especially if a viewer is heretic enough to view them on a phone. So there is the benefit of controlling to some degree the conditions under which an image is seen. Then there is the matter of promoting the work--for instance, to galleries. How much of an impact does it make to send a link to a website?

In this regard, a book may be worthwhile. It makes a substantial impression and at least somewhat slows the viewer to allow the images to be better absorbed. It demonstrates a commitment to the work. And if done well, it adds a degree of professionalism to one's self-presentation.

"If well done" is a significant qualification. To design and prepare a book is a very time consuming and rather expensive project. There are two primary purveyors of photography book services, Blurb and Mixbook. Blurb, interestingly, is integrated with Adobe Lightroom, allowing a photographer to output a series of photographs into a formatted book. Nonetheless, in part because of a Wirecutter recommendation, I used Mixbook.

Mixbook makes the process reasonably user friendly. A book is an online project, prepared using design, text and layout tools that are not perfectly intuitive but on the whole pretty good. Where I had doubts about how to achieve an effect Mixbook's online help was responsive and knowledgeable. Rather like creating a website, one chooses a template for the cover and book style then creates a layout using a wide selection of page templates. A review and verification process at the end ensures at least that there are not layout errors.

Layout takes some thought. Image order, colocation, framing and sizing on the page, are all important elements of the book design. A book is not a portfolio. Make it interesting so that a viewer wants to turn the pages and sees some variety of presentation.

Text is a bit complicated. I found myself eyeballing placement of plate numbers and other text blocks, which worked but could have been easier with a formatting grid. If one was available, I couldn't find it. The longer introduction wrapped over into subsequent pages neatly. Thought needs to be put into your text--you don't want to regret not making improvements or proofreading well. The book is an introduction to your work; your text should reflect a considered, artistic voice.

Finally, there are the hard choices of formatting. Will the book be hardcover or soft? Layflat or regular? What quality paper will be chosen? The answers depend on what kind of an impression one wants to make. If, for instance, you want to use the book to promote your work to galleries, a quality impression matters. But each choice can add significantly to the cost of the project. At least, however the suppliers constantly supply generous offers to reduce the cost of the project by as much as 50%.

I'm very pleased with the quality of the printing from Mixbook. Now to see what I can do with the book to promote my work.