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◎ Pràctica fotogràfica Tots els nivells

Photobook: from concept to object

From body of work to a real book.

Three sessions to turn your photographs into a photobook: concept, digital design and production. Output as PDF, ePub or print via 112books.

An archive is not a project. A book is.

Photos on a hard drive wait. A photobook decides: which ones make it, which don’t, in what order, with what voice. Making a book forces you to understand what your images are actually about — and to defend it on every page.

This workshop is for anyone who has images and wants to make the step. It doesn’t matter whether the project is a year of street photography, a neighbourhood, a family or a darkroom process. What matters is having a real body of work and the desire to turn it into an object.

Three sessions, two intermediate tasks, and a photobook ready to print or distribute.

First edition

The first edition of this workshop is for participants from the From Street to Book course, who by the end of the year already have a body of work and a first image selection. If the group doesn’t fill or you want to join independently, you can add yourself to the waiting list: we’ll let you know when we schedule a new open edition.

The three sessions

Session 1 — Concept, format and narrative

What is this book actually about? We start here, because everything that follows depends on this answer.

  • Conceptualisation: The book’s purpose, who it’s for, what voice it uses, in what context.
  • Format decisions: Number of images in relation to number of pages and cost. Size, orientation, colour or B&W, paper, hardcover or softcover, binding, print run, printing method (digital or offset). Every decision is both aesthetic and economic.
  • Visual narrative: How to sequence images — editing in a book works like editing in film: rhythm, breathing, tension, resolution. How to make the book “speak” through framing, white space and image placement.
  • Textual narrative: If the book carries text — who writes it, what it needs to say, how much space it occupies, typeface, body size.

Task between sessions: Physical maquette. Domestic printouts, scissors, arranging images on a table until you have a first order with all sequencing decisions made. It can be messy. It must be concrete.

Session 2 — Maquette and digital design

We review the physical maquette and move it into Affinity Publisher.

  • Maquette review: sequence, pacing, gaps to fill or remove.
  • Affinity Publisher in practice: document setup (size, margins, bleed), image import, page-by-page layout.
  • Cover and colophon: typography, colour, materiality. Cover decisions often redefine how the whole book is perceived.
  • Paper: weight, finish (matte, gloss, satin). Paper is not a detail: it changes how every image is perceived.

Task between sessions: Complete the full digital document in Affinity Publisher.

Session 3 — Review, exports and production

  • Final review of the document: last adjustments to sequence, design and text.
  • Exports: print-ready PDF (with bleed and CMYK colour profile), high-resolution digital PDF, ePub, web.
  • Custom quote via 112books: size, paper, number of pages, print run and printing method — we calculate it live during the session. Options range from a single copy to short print runs for distribution or sale.
  • Closing: files organised and ready for production or distribution.

The software

The workshop uses Affinity Publisher, available for free since 2024. It needs to be installed before session 2. Llumàtics has its own licence for the studio computers. If you prefer to work with Adobe InDesign and already have a licence, that’s also fine.

Examples of results

Some photobooks produced via 112books that show the range of possibilities — format, paper, binding, tone:

What to bring

  • Your body of work: at least 50–100 high-resolution images (digital, scanned or both)
  • For session 2: the physical maquette completed
  • Laptop with Affinity Publisher installed (for sessions 2 and 3)

Not included

  • Printing of the photobook (custom quote via 112books, calculated during the workshop)
  • Domestic printouts for the physical maquette (participants bring these ready-made)

Workshop details

Objective
Transform a photographic body of work into a coherent, producible editorial object: with concept, narrative, design and files ready for print or digital distribution.
Methodology
Three 4-hour sessions with intermediate tasks between them. Session 1: concept, format and narrative. Task: physical maquette. Session 2: review maquette and digital layout in Affinity Publisher. Task: complete the document. Session 3: final review, exports and print quote.
Outcome
A complete photobook file (Affinity Publisher), exportable as a print-ready PDF or for digital distribution, ePub or web. A custom print quote via 112books calculated live during session 3.
Prerequisites
A personal photographic body of work: at least 50–100 images from the same project or theme. No previous Llumàtics workshop required.
Who it's for
Photographers with a set of images who want to make the step to a book. The natural next step after the From Street to Book course, but open to any photographer with a project.

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