The Secret to Getting an Annual Photo Book Done

Hi there, it’s Jess, and I’m very excited to report that I just hit PRINT on the second part of our family’s 2023 photo album (and also that I’m writing my first post on this new site — hello 2024!).

Sometime in the middle of the pandemic, I decided that I needed a new process to organize all of my digital photos. I love how convenient our smartphones have made capturing all of the moments, but we also don’t really need photos of all the moments.

In 20 or 30 years, will I need 80 photos of my kids at 9 months practicing their pincer grasp on blueberries and avocado chunks during their baby led weaning phases? No (and confession, as someone who is mesmerized by their kids eating, I probably had well over 80 images of this exact scene) but I love being our family’s archivist and I wanted to create something both digital and physical for us to easily go back to a certain moment in time.

My goal was to cull away the photos that I wouldn’t miss, edit the ones that were worth keeping, and produce an organized monthly album on Google Photos to share with a small set of friends and family. We travel frequently and gather with friends and family multiple times each month, so even after culling, our average album size is ~300 photos.

From those 300, I download my favorites to put into a physical album, but instead of waiting till the end of the year and making it a big project that I know will feel too big to tackle, I work on each month right after it ends. That is my secret to getting my photo book done so quickly when the year ends. Most of it is done already because I’ve been working on it all year long.

Right after that monthly Google Photos album gets shared, I open a program called AlbumStomp and start laying out the month. Because I’m doing it right away and I’m only covering the month, it feels much more doable. Also I’m able to remember many more of the details about the last 4 weeks so that I can actually capture in text the funny little things the kids said or note the name of hike we actually did. My hope is to create something that we can not only look back on visually but also captures the stories of this precious time that is passing by so quickly, like a very photo-heavy journal.

I do need to carve away ~2 hours each month to get this done, but I enjoy this monthly reflection, and I love both the finished digital and tangible product that comes from these efforts. The kids will often pull these books off the shelf and look through them, and I love that they can do that.

So even though it’s just ~2 weeks into January, I will be receiving my 2023 album, part 2 in the mail soon. Part 2 because we take so many photos that there isn’t an album big enough that can cover our entire year so I split each year into two albums, placing an order in July for the first half the year and the following January for the second half of the year.

There are clearly so many options for photo organizing and printing but I use Google Photos to back up, organize, and edit; Albumstomp to lay out my physical album; and then a company called Printique to print out the physical album. I owe much of this process to Miss Freddy, who I found on Instagram during the pandemic. Between her tips and Family Yearbook course, I now have a monthly photo routine that is manageable and enjoyable. Her yearbook course introduced me to Albumstomp and Printique but I also know good ol’ Shutterfly (and dozens of other photo book platforms) can get it done too, so just use whatever works for you! There’s no need to learn new software if you like your current option.

However, if you are interested in learning more about either, check out Miss Freddy’s Family Yearbook course of which I’m neither an affiliate nor a sponsor — just a huge fan who wants to support another hustling mama out there.

I’m excited for the latest 2023 book to join this growing collection. I started this process mid-2021, and then worked backwards through 2020, fitting it in during those small pockets of time. I’d love to add 2018 and 2019 too. Before this process, I hadn’t created an annual book since 2017 when my second child Bowie was born, which meant there was no physical documentation of our third child Charlie coming into the world in 2019. I’d like her to know that we took some pictures of her first 8 months of life. My goal is to at least get the 2019 albums done by the end of this year.

Before I leave you, I have a few more random tips to share about creating an annual photo book that truly captures your life in a year:

1. Think beyond photos; screenshots capture life too

I take screenshots of texts with friends and family members that I know I’ll want to remember. We spend a lot of our life on digital correspondence, and there are definitely conversations worth saving and looking back on years from now. I also take screenshots of random things like when my kid got Worldle on the first try or my annual reading accomplishments on Goodreads.

2. Include photos of yourself

This tip is especially for parents. We take so many photos of our kids but very few of ourselves but remember, we are worth photographing too. I want my kids to see *me* when they look back at these books, so our books definitely include the random selfie of mom, of course always when I’m having a good skin day.

3. Include your partner’s photos too

Again this tip may be more for parents but if you’re creating a family album, make sure you get your partner’s photos too. My husband has partner sharing enabled through Google Photos so I have easy access to all of his photos.

4. Extra credit: include QR codes

So who knows if QR codes will still exist in a few decades? But for now they do, so I include a QR code at the end of every monthly section. If you scan it, it’ll take you that monthly digital Google Photos album that I’ve organized with more pictures and videos from the month. This is a great way to easily access the dynamic videos of a given month from a not-dynamic photo book.

Now I want to hear everything about your photo process because I love photos and because I’m such a process nerd. If there is anything I can do to help you create a photo book this year, just let me know (reply if you’re reading this via email) or leave a comment on the post.

And of course, I’d so appreciate you subscribing and/or sharing this site — I’ve got so many thoughts, stories, and tips I want to share, and I don’t want you to miss any of it!

x, Jess