Tutorial Guide: How to Make a Stab Bound Photobook

Anyone can make a photobook; here's a detailed breakdown of how I do it

After making a few simple handmade photobooks and being asked how I do it, I have put together an illustrated guide that you can use to make your own — using tools and materials you already have (and a few you might need to invest in). I’m also sharing the template I created for my A5 books in Affinity Publisher (referenced in the tutorial).

To see the sorts of books I make, have a look at my Substack posts or visit my website.

👀 What's included in the tutorial:

• My Affinity Publisher 2 A5 photobook layout template you can use, customise, modify as you want

  • It’s easy to change and adapt; and Publisher is an excellent, inexpensive alternative to InDesign

• Tips on image curation and sequencing, with examples

  • This is often seen as huge hurdle and barrier to making a photobook. It needn’t be. I show you how.

• Design considerations

  • A short list of things worth thinking about as you design how your book will look. And how it will feel in the hand.

• Printing and printer profiles

  • The nitty gritty of rendering your images into the physical realm and how to do it to maximum effect

• Cutting, scoring and binding methods with step-by-step photos

  • The final steps… putting the book together. Not anywhere near as hard as it looks.

• Links to all the tools I use to make my photobooks

  • I share everything. No secrets.

👉 Get the PDF tutorial (4.6MB)

👉 Get the Affinity Publisher 2 template (27KB)

If you enjoy it, I’d love to see your photobook — reply to this post or tag me on Instagram!

And if there’s anything missing or you’d like more details, let me know and I’ll put it into the next version.