Gary Fong posted on his blog that the matted look is comming back over collage pages. He happens to be selling some matts also but was wondering what you guys thought.

I don't know about everyone else, and maybe my clients are behind the times, but everyone that I have shown a recent album to (flushmount, collage/etc) has been floored that albums can be done this way. I am kind of from a smaller town around Chicago, but are people really sick of this already? People over here are very much still used to the matted albums and are refreshed to find something "different" ie "not matted"...

Same here. We don't have a flood of clients but from what I've heard I think couples like the flush mount albums. I'd be surprised to see a significant movement toward a matted album, but I'm interested to hear what some photographer/studio's that shoot a lot of weddings are seeing.

My husband and I got a super gorgeous matted Queensberry album for our wedding because it's classic and beautiful and we thought that the flushmounts were going to look dated in the future. But my brides still like the flushmounts I am offering both.

(I agree with him.)


Timeless will always be in style.

I just sold 2 matted 14x10 QB albums to two separate clients who I SWORE would want a flushmount Picto book.

Who knew.

I think matted is coming back, yeah.

Kia

We offer both and always have. I would say that about 1/2 choose each kind.

Recently had a request from a higher end client. Think maybe some buzz is moving around...

Even my portrait clients are wanting matted albums, saying the flush mounts look "dated," while a classic matted album will always be in style. (Of course not every matted album is beautiful.)

I'm offering Cypress Albums.

Other than Queensberry, what do ya'll recommend?

Funny, I have always offered Matted and flush. I only have a matted sample, and not a flushmount sample. So, almost all my brides go with Matted. I plan on doing a flushmount sample so maybe more brides will choose that!

Jorgensen's Art Album... very nice, classy and timeless IMO.

I've been selling these for years. However, most of my clients are wanting flush mount now. That's what happens in the midwest y'know, we're always behind on what is 'cool'.

His post is gone about this topic, but I think Gary post was about the mounted look on a flush mount page. He was selling his actions to create that look for the album design. Much different than a Queensbury style album.

We use Zookbinders for both matted and flush albums and love them.

Love the books... hate - absolutely hate! ZB's numbering system for their mats.

Have you found a good way to actually wrap your brain around writing all of those numbers? I understand how their system works -- but I've had writer's cramps after filling out one of the order forms for the matted books.

I type in the order form using their online form. Seems to go a lot faster than writing them all in. I design them in Labprints, which theoretically I think you can just print the order form that you fill in on there. The only problem for us with that is that I never put cover color or any of that kind of thing because I don't know it yet when I start designing the album. The nice thing about Labprints is that I can just print out the list of mats and then transfer that to the order form. I never have to look anything up. Often I use one mat several times in the album, so I will just copy and paste it onto all the right lines then do the same with the next. Seems to help. If you aren't using Labprints to design and order prints for matted albums, definitely look into it. It is a huge time saver.

Ahhhh. Forgot about Lab Prints.

Got spoiled with Art Leather's Montage software.

Speaking of that. If anyone needs any AL Onyx Large Mats, let me know.

Yes your exactly right, but if that look is comming back why not do it for real? unless a mix of a digital matted look with collage pages is all in one album, would have to be done tastefully. I like the flushmount look without the color faded bars going the legnth of the page and minimal fades (low opacity). To much graphic design makes it look trendy. The point is to keep any album timeless not trendy. Most of the top guys seem to do the fine art book look which is classy, though I like a little more color added in.

In all the clients that Chris and I have sold an album to, every one of them has bought a matted album except for ONE!! i think flushmount books are neat, but I do think they date themselves, and when you can get a really beautiful matted album done (we LOVE Queensberry!) I just think they look so timeless. We offer both styles (and we actually are starting to offer La Vie that's a more contemporary alternative to regular "mattes") but it seems like our brides end up going for the matted albums, even when they initially thought they wanted a flushmount.

I offer both...

I offer both matted and flush albums from Zook as well. Although i display and show both to the clients, majority prefer the look and feel of the matted album.

The flush mount album is just about all I do anymore. I did traditional matted albums for years and to be honest I love the freedom and creativity that designing the pages yourself affords. It has been great for my business.

I think you sell what you show and you sell what you believe in. Most of my clients from the past many years have purchased what I show the most of... in my case, it was matted albums (4 of them on the coffee table vs 1 coffee table sample from White Glove) Hardly a fair match up.

I think both can look timeless, classic and both can CERTAINLY date themselves. When was the last time you saw a matted album of all 8x10's! I don't think it's the album that dates itself so much as the photos themselves... clothing trends, posing and hairstyles... let's not forget the HAIRSTYLES!

Personally, I think you need to offer both if you're catering to a diverse client base. I love the concept La Vie uses and Queensberry albums are just top notch! But really, let's face it, neither of these are your standard, "old fashioned" matted albums... these are works of art in most cases. I think long gone are the days of 4 4x5's and 2 5x7's per page with an 8x10 thrown in for good measure!

Matted albums never went out... they just changed and gave us a million more options to offer our clients!

Therese

Are the Costs fairly similar for a page comparable zook flush and their matted album?

When I first started all I showed and sold was matted, now all I sell and show is flush.

For me personally the flush seems more artistic which may be why I went in that direction.

Interestingly I've had a client and a possible client refer to the flush as yearbook looking. The client had ordered many album copies and the groom said it reminded him of the yearbook he had never had from school (he didn't say why but I think it might have been due to financial reasons). The possible client was someone who was looking at my work from a bridal show. She asked if I did traditional albums as the magazine style looked too much like her high school yearbook. Go figure.

The majority of clients I've shown work too really love the flush as to them it looks less like their parent's albums and they like that. I've considered maybe offering Cypress as an option, though.

I have found that the cost for the matted is slightly more than for the Zookbook. We charge the same for both, of equal sizes. The Zookbooks take us more time to design and usually have more images per page than the matted. So for us, they really have ended up being comparable in costs. Matted, the cost is more for the product and less for our time. The Zookbook the cost is for more time and less for the product.

To be quite honest, I think the type of albums that come back into style are simply the type of albums photographers showcase. Like Therese said, albums look dated because of the pictures more than anything else (assuming the album is such high quality that it doesn't fall apart over time ).

I think matted is making a comeback... but mayhaps I'm deluded. I just got my hands on a Fine art book from Leather Craftsmen, and I think I'm in love I'm going to be offering it to our brides this year as it's a completely different experience from a flushmount album and will round out our offerings nicely.

We'll offer both for our clients as people have very different tastes no matter what is currently in style.

For flushmounts--we're super excited to be getting our first Kiss Album very soon!

I offer both and find that 30 -40% of clients are ordering matted albums.

Not sure on this one, although had a bride tell me on the phone last night that she didnt like flush mount album cause they appeared, "cheap." Guess she's never seen a well put together one!

We had a bride come in hating flush albums. The few she'd seen with other photographers evidently didn't impress her. Once she saw ours, she fell in love with it. It was kind of funny, actually. I resisted the temptation to ask who the other photographers were. She told me who one was, anyway.

Anyway, about matted albums coming back, I don't think they ever left.

we sell 50- 50 of each album. Its funny though. we use leather craftsmen and our flushmount digital albums cost less than our matted albums, but our matted album package is our less expensive package. We are doing something wrong. or right because at least 95% of our clients purchase an album.

For those saying that flush mount will be dated: would you say it's the construction, pages and binding combination that will be dated or the designs that inhabit the pages?

I've worked with photographers who do both. I think you can do a high class, distinguished flush mount design that will stand the test of time.

I also think there is an element of matted albums that signals precision craftsmanship.

FWIW, most of my West coast clients are mainly flush mount.

Most of my East Coasters (especially Virginia, Massachusetts, etc) are matted.

Is matted making a comeback? I don't know. But it makes for an interesting topic!

-Leon