Go to https://www.photobookshop.com.au/index/photobooks/smartbooks

Scroll down and click on ‘Start Creating’

Select either the Classic or Layflat Photobook.

Select the size you would like to create.

Select one of our 20 design styles. To preview a design, click the magnifying glass and flick through the pages. When you have found a design you like, click the ‘Create Smart Book’ button.

Sign in or register for a new account.

Select ‘Use the Smart Design Assistant’.

Click ‘Add Pictures’ and select the images you would like to use in your book.

Once the photos have loaded, click ‘Next’ then select two photos to use on the front and back cover.

Enter the title which will be displayed on the front cover of your book.

You can either choose to use all pictures that you have uploaded, or let the designer choose the images for you. We recommend letting the designer choose your images as it will filter out any poor quality or repeated images.

You can then choose the number or pages you would like, or let the designer choose based on the number of photos you have uploaded. We recommend letting the designer choose the best number of pages for you.

The designer will then choose the images it recommends using for your book. If you are happy with the selection you can click ‘Next’. You can select more photos to use here if you wish.

The designer will then build your book and show you a preview to approve. If you are happy with the book you can click ‘Order’. If you would like to make some changes, simply click ‘Edit Page’ on the page you would like to change.

Proceed to the checkout page where you can add your shipping information and any voucher codes, then place the order.

1. Click on 'add text box'

2. Double click on the text box and type your text in:

3. Highlight your text by clicking and dragging the mouse over it. Click on the T symbol to change the size, font etc.

4. Once you are happy with the way your text looks just click anywhere outside the box. If you need to re-edit the text then you just double click on it again and use the same features shown below.

1. First select where you want the pages to be inserted.

2. Click on the 'Page' menu and select Add or Delete.

Photos will always print out darker than you see on your screen as there is no light behind the page. The screen also illuminates the photo making it appear brighter. 

To auto enhance a photo, click on the photo, then on the far right tool bar select the rectangle at the top, then tick the box that says Auto Enhance. 

To lighten a photo, click on the photo, then on the far right tool bar select the rectangle at the top, then move the brightness dial up.

From the bottom tabs, select Page Styles or Background.

Drag and drop the item onto your page.

Your page background has now been changed!

You can also set your own photo as a background. 

First, go to the page you want to add the background to and click on the background tab at the bottom of the screen. 

Click on the gear icon and select 'Add'. 

Another screen will pop up and you can select the photo you want to use. 

You will then need to create a name for the background and select Ok. 

Now your photo is in the background tab and you can click and drag it onto the page!

If you continue to make photobooks in this same template, your photo will stay there as a background and you can continue using it in other photobooks. 

Vertical red steps:

1. Insert a text box
2. Type your text into the text box
3. Click out of the text box onto the page (anywhere on the page) and then click once on the text box you wish to move
4. You will notice a small greenish dot on the top left hand corner of the text box, place your mouse on this
5. Hold your mouse down on the green dot and turn the text box to the left/right to the alignment you would like to use

Vertical blue steps:

1. Insert a text box
2. Resize your text box into a single column like shape
3. Type your text while clicking 'enter' after each letter

You can then select Black & White or Sepia. 

Follow these steps to create a photobook in 30 minutes or less.

First off, the best way to save time is to choose one of the templates in the design software, e.g. Travel Collection, Wedding Collection, Christmas Collection. When the designer opens up, each page will already have a layout ready for you.

Now you will need to load in your photos on the left hand side.

Once your photos have loaded, you can then start clicking and dropping them in the picture boxes on the pages.

If the page style doesn’t suit the photos you want on that page, simply choose another from the ‘Page Styles’ tab and drag it onto the page. Your photos will automatically adjust to the new layout.

To adjust the cropping of the photo, double click on it and the cropping tool will pop up, you can then move the box, make it smaller or larger.

Once your layout and photos are sorted, you can click and drop a background from the ‘Background’ tab onto the page.

If you continue using this method you will have all of your pages done in no time!

When you’re finished, simply click the green shopping trolley to proceed to the checkout page.

Click once on the photo and use the blue dots on the edge of the photo to change the shape.

NOTE: The green dot can be used to change the angle of the photo.

To change the crop of your photo, double click on the photo. A Crop Picture window will appear. Use the bottom right corner to change the size of what will be viewable.

You can now click and drag around the viewable area.

Your picture is now cropped!

You can then click on the photo you would like to delete, then click the rubbish bin icon.

Please note that you cannot delete a photo if you have used the photo in your project.

If you would like to remove all photos from the picture list, click on the gear icon (next to the + sign for adding photos) and then select 'Clear Picture List'. This will remove all photos from your list.

Please note that you can delete a photo from your picture list if you have used it in your project. The photo will not disappear from the page you have added it to.

To do this, click to add a text box to the page.

Double click in the text box to change the text.

Click somewhere else on the page, then click once on the text box.

You will notice a green circle in the top left corner of the text box. Click on this green dot and drag it clockwise to rotate the text box.

Once you have rotated the text box you can move it to the middle of the page where the spine is. 

Select 'Calendars'. 

Select the size calendar you wish to create.

Choose either small, medium or large dates.

A window will pop up asking if you wish to use the Wizard or not. Click Use Wizard or Skip Wizard.

Name your project and click Create.

When the designer opens up you can enter the month and year you would like your calendar to start on.

Upload your photos by selecting the plus icon on the top left side.

You can change the dates of your calendar at any time by selecting Calendar Settings next to the text box icon.

To add an event or birthday to a specific date, select Calendar Events or simply double click on the date.

Another window will pop up and you can click on the day to type in your event or birthday. Click on Other Events in this window to tick the public holidays/school terms you would like added to your calendar.

You can also add a photo to a specific day in this window. Click on Background, then select Photo and select the photo you would like on this date.

To change the text style of the special events in your calendar, click on Calendar Style.

Another window will pop up and you can customise your text here.

Once you have added all of your photos and special dates you can save your project, then click on the green shopping trolley to proceed to the checkout page!

This simply means that the photo/s are too large and need to be resized in order to upload the project through the internet. 

You will need to resize your photo/s, update the project and order/upload again.

To have your voucher reset please call or email us and we can do this for you.

To resize your photo, go to where the photo is saved on your computer, right click on the photo and click Open With Paint. 

Once open you can click on Resize at the top of the page. 

Another window will open and you can choose to resize by percentage or pixels. If you are resizing by pixels, please change the photo to around 4000x5000 pixels. 

Click ok, then save and exit Paint. 

You will then need to go back to the software, click on Open Existing Project, scroll down to your project in the list, click on it, then click Duplicate and rename it. 

Open up the duplicated project and load in those photos you have resized again. 

Once you have done this you can proceed to the checkout page and order/upload like you normally would.

First click on the page you want to add a plain background to. 

Click on the page icon in the top right hand side of the screen. 

Click on either the left or right page box, then choose a colour from the drop down list. 

Now you have a plain colour background!

Our photobooks come with image wrapped hardcovers (unless you are ordering one of our Softcover Photobooks).

Click on Page Styles at the bottom of the software and choose a template you like. 

Click and drag one of the templates up onto the cover page.

You can then drop your photos into the photo boxes and double click on the text to amend (if you want text on the cover). 

If you do not want to use any of the templates provided in Page Styles, you can simply click and drag your photos onto the page.

If you are wanting a full page image, drag the image onto the page then right click on it and select Fit to Spread. The photo will need to be stretched all the way to the blue line, past the red line. 

Please note that for all text on the cover we do recommend keeping it at least 1cm within the red lines to avoid being wrapped around the cover when it is being made. 

This happens when the photos have been moved on your computer or your USB stick containing the photos has been removed.

Don’t stress, here is a step-by-step guide on how to relocate these images.

If you are receiving an error message like the below you will need to find the new location of your images.

Click Find Pictures.

Click No.

This will bring up the explorer window. Please plug in any external hard drives or USB sticks that contain the original photo files used. Locate the picture file and then Click Select.

Click “Yes” if this message box appears.

Double check the status of all the photos, make sure they are “Updated”. Click Continue.

Your Photos should be restored and you can continue making your Photobook!

You will need to keep your photos in the same location on your computer while you are making the photobook and when you are ordering it. After you have uploaded your files you can then move the folder of photos if you wish, however we recommend keeping it in the same location in case you want to duplicate and reorder the project at any stage. 

1. Make sure you have used the user account you created the project with. Check which account you are using. 

2. The project folders are stored under My Documents. You should see the folder PhotobookShop.com.au Projects.

3. You should find a folder that corresponds to the name you gave your project. An example is listed for you below:

a. For example, “holiday2012.prj”

b. In the “holiday2012.prj” folder you should find a file called “holiday2012.prj”

4. Once you have located this file, copy it to the main folder (PhotobookShop.com.au Projects) and rename it.

5. Now close and open the software and see if your project can be found under “Open an Existing Project”.

If this didn’t work, you could try the following:

1. Look in the folder that corresponds to the name you gave your project.

2. Do you have a folder called “History”? If so, take a look into this folder. You will notice files name with dates and extensions .prj.

3. Copy the latest .prj file into My Documents > PhotobookShop.com.au Projects > your project folder and then rename it.

4. Make note of your new renamed project.

5. Now close and open the software and see if your project can be found under “Open an Existing Project”.

 If neither of these options work please contact our friendly Customer Support Team for further assistance. 

1. Make sure you are using the user account you created the project with. Check whether you are using PhotobookShop.

2. The project files are stored under your main Mac Folder e.g. “Emily”. You should see the folder PhotobookShop.com.au Projects. If you do not see it here, it may be under “Sites”.

3. You should find a folder that corresponds to the name you gave your project. An example is listed for you below

a. For example, “holiday2012.prj”

b. In the “holiday2012.prj” folder you should find a file called “holiday2012.prj”

Start by double clicking on the background of the project you are working on.

A window will appear to allow you to crop and edit the background, simply use the border stop to crop and/or drag the whole crop frame to move. When you’re done, click OK.

You have cropped your background!

Rename each of your photos using the following convention, prior to beginning your project and importing the photos into the software:

100.jpg

101.jpg

102.jpg

103.jpg

If you do not want to rename all your photos you can skip the wizard and import your photos as you need them during the design.

Start a new project:

Choose your book.

Choose your size.

Then click skip wizard, now follow the on screen instructions in our software to add photos or use the wizard to automatically autoflow the images. 

If you have already proceeded and want to autoflow the images, click the autoflow button. This will automatically add all of your photos to the pages using our page layouts. 

You can also change the order your photos are displayed in on the left hand side.

Click the gear icon above the photos on the left hand side. You can then click Sort and choose from the list of how you would like the photos sorted. 

You can currently sort by file name, date created, date modified, picture orientation, picture usage and by rating. 

1. Add a text box on your project.

2. Type in your text and select the font and size you would like to have as your default font.

3. Highlight the text that you have placed in the text box and right click on the highlighted text.

5. Select “Use current style as default text style”.

The next time you add a text box, the text will automatically display in this font and size.

Please note that you must have the latest version of the software to set a default text. If you do not see this option when you right click on the text, you will need to update your software. Simply click on ‘Check for Updates’ and download the latest version.

Locate the text box with the error and either change the font to a smaller size or increase the size of the text box until the error message disappears.

Once you open the online designer, you will see a page count at the bottom of the screen. Click ‘Insert Page’ to add a page.

For example, if your voucher is valid for 3 x Mugs, you will need to have 3 pages in your project, with each mug design on its own page.  

When you are ready to order, proceed to the checkout page and apply your voucher code.

We recommend using the online designer for smaller projects with a small number of photos and minimal customisation required.

If you are creating a Photobook or a project that you would like to be able to customise extensively, we recommend using the desktop software.

Once downloaded, the desktop software works offline. You may also find it is faster as it does not require an internet connection and there are more customisation options.

There will always be a difference between what you see on your screen and what is printed.

If you have never calibrated your screen, haven’t calibrated it recently or if the contrast and brightness controls have been boosted (as is the case with all laptops and most computers), once your photos are printed, the colours may appear different than what you see on your screen.
 
Computers and laptops always display colours in RGB which stands for Red, Green and Blue. RGB is the industry default for digital cameras and computers as it allows you to view colours true to life on your screen. The software converts all image files to RGB by default.
 
All printers operate on a different colour system, called CMYK which stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and blacK. Therefore, an image displayed on your computer monitor (in RGB) will not completely match the print (in CMYK).

Due to these reasons, photos will also print out darker than you see on your screen. The photo on your screen is illuminated by the brightness settings on your computer, whereas there is no light behind the printed photo.

There is no way for our printers to know what the display on your screen is like, or your viewing conditions are; whether you will view your prints under bright lights, or in a darker room. We always recommend turning the brightness down on your computer or laptop for a more realistic representation of how the photos will print. If you have any photos which were taken at night, have shadows in them or are just generally dark the best thing to do is lighten them in our software. You can also lighten them in an external picture editor program if you have one, before you upload them to your photobook.

To lighten your photos in our software, simply click on the picture, click on the rectangle shape at the top of the right hand inspector, then click ‘Auto-Enhance’. If this doesn’t lighten it enough you can brighten it even more by increasing the brightness slider below the Auto-Enhance feature.  See below for a screen shot of the Picture Enhancement section in our software.

This can all be a little confusing especially if you’re a first time Photobooker so if you have any questions at all please ask us and we can help you!