I’m definitely excited about this next product, because it’s the result of finding just the right business to work with and provide awesome innovation to my clients. So without further ado: the accordion book!

As you can see, it looks like a book from the outside when it’s closed, but opens up in an explosion of accordion-photo-goodness! It’s a really fun alternative to the traditional photo book. It comes with a nice frosted slip cover to keep it protected when you’re taking it everywhere to show friends:

It opens up and the cover is glossy while the pages have a beautiful pearly finish, bounded by a linen strap in the middle:

When completely unfolded, it’s a force to be reckoned with:

I can put one image over several panels, or split them all up to show more of your favorite photos from each session:

The pages are thicker than a normal book, so it’ll be sturdy each time you open it up.

You can have a title on the spine of your book, too! The covers are actually magnetized, so even if you don’t use the slip cover, the book will stay closed unless you open it on purpose, which is very nice.

Each book measures 4×8 inches, so it’s half the size of a normal book, but twice the personality! It really lets you show off your pictures in a fun and unique way, and it’s available with any session from Allison Shamrell Photography!

I offer plenty of other fun products too, such as mouse pads, mugs, and greeting cards. They’re just not unique enough to warrant their own blog post! So rest assured, I offer such things standard, and if you really have your heart set on making a keychain, dry erase board, or even a name tag for your dog out of a photo from your session, I have the ability to make that happen as well. But my last blog post in the “New Products” series is reserved for my most controversial product of all. Yes, controversial! For some, it’s essential, but for others, it’s an outrage. So stay tuned to see what it is…

All right, here is another product! It’s for those of you who refuse to give up the wonderful story-telling aspect of books, but just can’t stand having blank walls. This is called a storyboard. It’s similar to a canvas gallery wrap, in that it can be hung up without a traditional frame, but it’s definitely not made out of canvas! The back mounting is a type of styrene, a hard but light material that’s 3/4″ thick. The front features the images, of course- and on this material (unlike all my other products) I get to design with more than one photo! So storyboards allow us to tell a story on an awesome surface, all while having the modern feel of sticking out from the wall framelessly. Again, pictures say it better than I can:

I included the glare from my lights so that you can see the surface isn’t canvas-like at all. It’s matte; like a photograph without the high gloss coating. The entire surface is on one plane, no dips or ridges, even though the lower images look framed. This is a “digital mat” effect. Pretty cool, right? Here’s a close-up of that effect:

The sides of the storyboard are the same color as the overall background, plain white. The sides have a bit of texture to them, and here are a couple of photos so you can see it better. I think it’s clearer in the darker photo, since the shadows bring it out more, but you should be able to get a pretty good idea from both pictures.

And here’s a shot of the corner.

It’s a modern, new product that you can’t find in too many places. But I love making them for my clients!! They work well with one dog and with multiple dogs, because they can show multiple aspects of one personality, or how different dogs interact with one another. In this one, for example, I included a photo of each of the Goldens that I felt really showed their personality (I think their owners can back me up on that!) and one of them together, because they really are the lights of their parents’ lives. Anyways, it’s another way for me to get creative without crouching behind a camera, and I have a lot of fun designing these unique products! So if you’re dying to hang up a big piece of artwork on the wall (this one is 20×30 inches) but simply can’t choose one favorite from your session, here is your solution!

Next time: a new type of book that’s the young, rebellious nephew of the coffee table album. Just wait until you see it…

Thanks for reading!

Okay, so you thought the canvas gallery wraps were cool, but you’re not really a hang-it-up-on-the-wall person? You’re a tell-the-story-in-a-book person? That sounds good to me too. Here’s what I have for you:

Custom albums!

With the purchase of a Dalmatian or Great Dane package, I will custom-design a gorgeous coffee table album for you to show off to all your friends! It will be 20-30 pages long, and can have anywhere from 1-6 images on each page.

The book jacket has a glossy finish, but the pages inside are matte finish, so that you don’t get fingerprints everywhere!

Are you ready for my favorite part of the books? They have an option to upgrade to a fancy new trend called “lay flat pages”. These aren’t your typical photo books: the pages lay completely flat, like the name suggests, instead of curling up at the binding like magazines and other books! Check out these comparisons:

As you can see, it’s a completely different kind of binding. Here’s a close-up:

The end result is very modern-looking. The pages are slightly thicker than normal photo books, and it turns out to be a completely unique gift- perfect for featuring your completely unique dog!

Hopefully you get the idea by now! It’s a gorgeous product, and I’m really quite thrilled to be able to offer it. But it’s only available to those who select the Dalmatian or Great Dane sessions, simply because it becomes difficult to fill up an album for which every page makes you say “Wow!” when our session is only about an hour long.

So that should satisfy the storytellers out there- a coffee table album with lay flat pages. Oh, but you just can’t decide between an album and a gallery wrap? You like hanging pictures up but you also want to see them tell a story? I have a solution to your dilemma… I think you’ll like my next blog post!

Until next time!

Time for a new series on the blog! I’ve been working behind the scenes quite a bit, getting things ready for the new year and making sure each of my future clients will have an amazing experience! Part of that is offering more than just 8x10s and 4x6s. I’ve been expanding my product line, and I’d like to show you my trademark product, which 90% of my clients purchase simply because of the wow factor!

The canvas gallery wrap is relatively new to the photography world. It’s a digital image printed onto canvas – yes, canvas – which is then stretched around a wooden frame. The effect is almost like the image is floating! You can see at least part of the picture from anywhere in the room, even if you’re 90 degrees from the direction the gallery wrap is facing. The final product is a photo that doesn’t need a frame- because it’s already built in!

Here you can see the canvas texture on the photograph:

It’s obvious from up close, but much more subtle when you step back and don’t use a zoom lens :)

Check out the way it’s folded behind the frame:

You can tell it’s real canvas material, not just patterned paper. Here are a couple of photos of the way it’s attached to the back, and you can see the study construction of the frame as well as more of the canvas texturing.

One suggestion I always make to my clients is, when in doubt, always go big! That “big 8×10” print will seem bite-sized next to a 16×20 canvas gallery wrap, and when you have a photograph that you really treasure, it only makes sense to let it become a focal point of the room. In fact, my canvas gallery wraps don’t come in any sizes smaller than 16×16! My clients love how their photographs suddenly become their walls’ centerpieces, and you just can’t do that with (even) an 11×14.

I love taking my canvas gallery wrap samples to meetings with clients, too, because it’s fun to see their eyes get big and hear them say, “Wow!” These products turn photographs into museum-quality works of art, and it’s just so much fun to hang up something different! I just ordered my sample of 24×36 inches, and I just can’t wait to hang it up in my meeting room!

Thanks for reading, and soon you’ll be hearing about more products which you may never have seen before! Stay tuned!