Designing a Photobook using Photoshop (CS3 or later)

Updated: 25-Aug-09: ensure that you download and use the new Photoshop templates.

You can create each page as a separate Photoshop file using the templates provided below, and convert them to a single PDF file when all your layouts are complete.

Read these instructions carefully before starting your book design using Indesign. We recommend that you print this page for reference.

Important notes:

• The templates provided are setup in Adobe RGB and your designs will only appear correctly if have embedded colour profiles in your image files

Before starting:

• Download the Momento Photoshop Files
• Extract the contents to a convenient location
• Install the PDF export settings file:
  • Move the file "Momento-PDF-Export-Settings.zip" to:
    • Mac: /Library/Application Support/Adobe PDF/Settings
    • Windows: C:/Documents and Settings/All Users/Documents/Adobe PDF/Settings
• Load the Colour settings file:
  • In Photoshop's Edit menu, select 'Colour Settings…'
  • Click "Load" and select the file "Momento-Adobe-Colour-Settings.zip"
  • Click OK

Designing your pages:

• Open the Photoshop Pages template file of the desired shape and size.
  • Pages can only be designed as Grand (A3) or Regular (a4)
  • Sizes smaller the supplied PDF can be ordered via the website
• There are 4 different coloured guides to assist you when designing your pages:
  • 
  • Red: Bleed; extend images to this line to ensure print-to-edge
  • Magenta: Safe area; keep all important content within this line
  • Light Blue: Gutter; indicates the 5mm that is lost in the binding process and helps position images spanned across 2 pages.
    • Tip: Ensure that the part of an image that is on the blue line on the left page is also on the blue line on the right page.
• Tip: careful naming of the individual page files will make sequencing them in the PDF much easier. For example: Page01.jpg, Page02.jpg etc.

Designing your covers:

• Ensure you have completed the design of your pages so your cover can be designed with the appropriate spine width
• The Cover templates have been setup so you can design your cover as a Dust-jacket or a Printed Hardcover, or both in the one design.
• Open the Cover template file of the desired shape and size.
  Note: you must design and supply a separate PDF for each size that you plan to order.
• Make sure you have Photoshop's guides visible (Cmd+H / Ctrl+H)
• First set the 4 guides to indicate the cover folds to match the number of pages in your book
  • Use the Zoom tool to zoom in to about 400% and at each of the 4 locations marked across the top of the document, drag the existing guide to the correct number of pages on the scale.
  • 
• There are a number of coloured guides to assist you when creating page designs:
  • 
  • Magenta dashed lines: Safe Area; because folds and cuts aren't exact, keep your important content in the Safe Area
  • Light Blue lines: Folds; indicate where the cover will be folded. You must adjust these (described above)
  • Pink block: Dust-Jacket area; extend images to the edge of this area for print-to-edge
  • Light Blue block: Printed Hardcover area; extend images to the edge of this area for print-to-edge
    Note: if you are designing a Dust-Jacket and Printed Hardcover in the same layout, ensure both the pink and light green areas are filled
• You cover files can be supplied as high quality JPEGs or PDFs (PSD files are not accepted)

Saving your pages as PDF files:

• Photoshop CS4: in this version, the PDF export feature was moved to Bridge
  • Important:
    • Ensure your files are saved using the Adobe RGB 1998 ICC profile
    • In Bridge's preferences, tick the option "Preserve Embedded Colour Profile" in the Output section
  • Open Bridge and locate your saved page designs
  • Select your page designs in the order they should appear in the PDF
  • Click on the OUTPUT button at the top right of Bridge
  • Click on the PDF button in the Output panel
  • Set the Size list to Custom and enter the width and height as follows:
    • A3 Landscape: 43 x 30.7 cm
    • A3 Portrait: 30.7 x 43 cm
    • A3 Square: 30.7 x 30.7 cm
    • A4 Landscape: 30.7 x 22 cm
    • A4 Portrait: 22 x 30.7 cm
    • A4 Square: 22 x 22 cm
  • Set the following:
    • Quality: 300 ppi
    • Layout as follows
    • 
    • Disable all of Overlays, Header, Footer, Playback and Watermark
  • Click Save

• Photoshop CS3 and earlier:

• • In Photoshop's File menu, select "Automate > PDF presentation"
  • Use the Browse button to load all the page files
  • Sort the files into the correct order
  • Select to save as "Multi-Page Document"
  • Click Save and enter the PDF's file name and location
  • Use the default "Momento PDF Export Settings" in File Settings.

Check your export

When viewing the exported file in Acrobat (Pro or Reader), the colours should look correct. If an image's colour doesn't look correct, then go back to the relevant page and ensure that the colour profile is correctly set as Adobe RGB.