photo books

Review: Caption Photo Time offers numerous features but operates slowly

Caption Photo Time tries to bridge the gap between photo taking, sharing, and captioning, but due to a poor interface, slow performance and buggy controls, it falls short in many ways. The app is loaded with features, but many of them were buggy during our tests, either not working properly or taking a long time to load onscreen.

When you load Caption Photo Time, initially, it prompts you to load or take a new image and then add a caption. Without onscreen guides or tutorials, however, finding the menus can be difficult. Even when you do find the menus, they … Read more

Get a free 100-photo flip-book from Groovebook

The other day I told you about an app that lets you order Polaroid-style prints from your iPhone -- for 99 cents apiece.

Today, let's talk quantity. If you snap a lot of photos and frequently hit up, say, Snapfish or Walgreens for big batches of prints, I've got an interesting deal for you.

For a limited time, you can get a free 100-photo flip-book from Groovebook when you apply coupon code CNETGROOVE at checkout. That's a colossal savings of...wait for it...$2.99!

No, seriously. Without that code, a 100-photo flip-book would cost you exactly $2.99. Shipped. What kind of crazy craziness is this? I'll explain.… Read more

Accessible album

As digital photography has grown in popularity, so, too, have digital means of displaying photographs. Bix Photo Book is an easy way to duplicate the experience of flipping through a physical photo album without having to print and mount your photos.

The program's interface consists of an animated photo album displayed on what looks like a hardwood floor. To populate the album with images, simply select any image in the desired folder, and all images in the folder will be included. From there, the album is fairly customizable; users can specify the color of the pages and the background … Read more

Easy albums

MyPublisher's BookMaker is a free photo album maker with a twist: You use it to create, organize, and edit your photo album, and then order online one of several printed photobook options at various prices, which are custom-printed and shipped to you. The choices range from paperback PocketBooks editions costing 10 bucks to coffee-table-style hardcover books that are three times more expensive, as well as calendars, postcards, and greeting cards. While we didn't go so far as to purchase any of them, the examples displayed on MyPublisher's Web site appear attractive and well-made and offer an alternative … Read more

Make a photo book fast with MyPublisher

Since I've amassed digital photos over the years, I've found it more pleasing to turn them into photo books instead of individual prints (plus, they make great gifts when you're running low on time). I've used Kodak Gallery, HP's Snapfish, and Apple's iPhoto to build and publish them with good results. Most recently, though, I've been using MyPublisher.

MyPublisher 4 is a stable, standalone application that is only 11MB, making it fast to download, and it takes no effort to install. Start it up and you're presented with your project options. Books … Read more

Analysts see bright spots in dark photo market

LAS VEGAS--The bad economy has hurt the photography business, but there are a few areas of growth amid the gloom.

Among the bright spots are digital SLR cameras, photo books, memory-keeping moms, and Web sites adapted for mobile phone use., concluded InfoTrends analysts sharing research results at the Photo Marketing Association (PMA) show here Wednesday.

Overall, though, the mood is grim.

"It sure feels different at this year's PMA. There's not so much booth space, not so much traffic. The energy level is down. This recession feels different from back in '01 (which was) somewhat contained to the tech sector," said InfoTrends President Jeff Hayes. "Now it has become an issue of a consumer confidence crisis and has become a lot more broadly based. The photo industry is feeling this." … Read more