Portrait vs landscape photo books: which one should you choose ?

When you start creating a photo book, choosing the format is often the first step. And it’s a decision that’s worth giving some thought to, because it determines the entire layout. And therefore the visual presentation and the way the photos will be perceived once printed.

Portrait or landscape – each orientation has its own logic and strengths. Neither is inherently better than the other. It all depends on the type of photos you have and the story you want to tell. But also on how you’ll use the book once you have it in your hands.

At AgfaPhoto Print, both formats are available with the same paper and finish options. So that your choice is based solely on what best suits your project. This guide will help you see things more clearly.

What is the difference between portrait-format books and landscape-format books?

Before choosing, it is important to understand exactly what distinguishes these two orientations. It’s not just a question of dimensions on paper; it’s mainly a question of visual logic and compatibility with your photos. Here’s what you need to know.

What is the best format for a photo book?

To be honest, there is no single best format for a photo book. It all depends on the content you wish to highlight and how you want the book to be leafed through.

The portrait format is vertical, taller than it is wide. It is the format closest to a traditional book, the one we’re used to holding in our hands and turning page by page. It is well suited to photos taken in portrait mode, chronological stories and projects where text plays an important role. For example, a baby album, a pregnancy book or a project centred on portraits of people.

The landscape format, on the other hand, is horizontal, wider than it is tall. It offers a generous, open layout, making it perfect for photos taken in landscape mode, panoramic double-page spreads and airy layouts. It is therefore best suited to a travel album, a wedding reportage or a book featuring natural landscapes.

For a landscape photo book featuring holiday photos taken mostly horizontally, the landscape format is almost a natural choice. Forcing these images into a portrait format would mean cropping or reducing them, causing them to lose much of their impact.

Is it better to choose a horizontal or vertical photo album?

Once again, the answer depends on your photos and your project. But there are a few practical guidelines that can help you decide.

If the majority of your photos were taken in landscape mode (phone held horizontally, camera in standard position), the horizontal format will be more consistent. Your images will naturally fill the available space without having to be cropped or surrounded by large white margins to fill the void.

Conversely, if you’re working with photos taken mainly in portrait mode (phone held vertically, close-up portraits, full-length shots of people), the vertical format will make more sense. Faces will have more space, compositions will be preserved, and the layout will be easier to construct.

In practice, many projects mix both orientations. In this case, the horizontal landscape format is often more flexible, as it allows vertical photos to be placed across half a page whilst leaving space for other elements alongside. The portrait format, on the other hand, is less effective at accommodating large horizontal photos without significantly cropping them.

What is the best orientation for a photo book?

To sum up, the ideal orientation is the one that matches the dominant aspect ratio of your photos. This is the most reliable starting point and avoids most layout issues.

But there is another factor to consider: the book’s intended use. A portrait-format photo book is held and leafed through like a novel or a magazine. It is a reassuring, familiar format that is easily passed from hand to hand at a family gathering. It also fits more easily on a bookshelf amongst other books.

The landscape format, on the other hand, requires a different reading posture. You place it on a table, leaf through it with both hands, and take the time to look at each double-page spread as a whole. It is a format that invites contemplation rather than quick leafing through, giving it a more solemn and decorative feel.

For the classic photo prints that sometimes accompany a book, the orientation of the images follows the same logic. Each photo is shown to its best advantage when the medium respects its natural proportions.

Which photo format offers the best quality?

The book’s format affects the layout and legibility of the images, but the final quality also depends on other equally important factors. The paper, the resolution of the files, the layout choices… all these details make the difference between a book you’re proud to show off and one you put away without looking at it. An overview of what really matters.

What is the best paper for photo books?

Paper is one of the most underestimated elements in creating a photo book. We spend time choosing our images and carefully crafting the layout, yet we decide on the paper in two seconds without giving it much thought. This is often a mistake.

Good paper for a photo book must stand the test of time, reproduce colours faithfully and feel pleasant to the touch. The grammage is a good indicator of quality. An inner paper weight of 135 g/m² ensures the pages are sturdy, prevents the paper from showing through from one side to the other and gives the book a sense of solidity that you feel the moment you pick it up.

As for the finish, the choice between glossy and matt depends on the type of photos and the desired look. Glossy intensifies colours and is well suited to travel photos, landscapes and very colourful images. Matt softens the finish, reduces glare and is better suited to portraits, black-and-white photos and projects where a understated and elegant result is preferred.

At AgfaPhoto Print, photo books are printed on 135 gsm paper available in a glossy or matt finish, with a 200 gsm cover that ensures the book stands the test of time.

What makes a good photo book?

A good photo book is something you want to open again and again. Not just on the day you receive it, but months or years later. What creates this attachment is rarely the technical aspect alone. It is the coherence between the images, the care taken with the layout and the book’s ability to tell a story.

The selection of photos is probably the most decisive factor. A book with fifty well-chosen photos will always be more powerful than a book with two hundred images, half of which are redundant or trivial. Every photo must contribute something, be it an emotion, a detail, or a transition between two moments.

Visual coherence also counts for a great deal. Photos with very different colour temperatures, incompatible editing styles, or compositions that don’t interact with one another create a sense of disorder. Even if each image is beautiful on its own. Taking the time to harmonise the photos slightly before importing them into the editor makes a real difference to the final result.

Finally, a good photo book allows its images to breathe. Overcrowded layouts, with too many photos per page and margins that are too tight, tire the eye and reduce the impact of each image. Sometimes, a single photo on a page says more than four crammed together.

What are the common mistakes in photo books?

Certain mistakes crop up time and time again, and the good news is that they can all be avoided with a little care beforehand.

The first is failing to check the resolution of the photos before adding them to the book. An image that looks sharp on a smartphone screen may turn out blurry when printed large. The 300 dpi rule for the final format applies here just as it does for any other print. Below this, details become blurred and the overall quality of the book suffers.

The second classic mistake is neglecting cropping in the editor. When you place a photo in a template, the editor may automatically crop certain areas if the proportions don’t match exactly. A face cut off, a crooked horizon or an important element trimmed at the edges. All these small details often go unnoticed on the screen but stand out once the book is printed.

The third mistake concerns the cover, which is often rushed through even though it’s the first thing you see. Choosing a photo that’s too busy, an illegible title or an unbalanced composition for the cover. This gives a poor first impression of a book that deserves better. The cover deserves just as much attention as the best inside pages.

For a square photo book, these mistakes are even more noticeable. The symmetrical format puts every image in the spotlight, without complex layouts to hide any shortcomings.

How to create a beautiful photo book?

Choosing your format is one thing. You still need to know what to do with it once you’re in the editor. A beautiful photo book can’t be completely improvised, but with a few well-established habits, the result can truly exceed expectations. Here’s how to approach the creation process in a practical and effective way.

How to choose the right photos for your chosen format?

The book’s format should guide your selection of photos, not the other way round. It’s a habit we don’t always have naturally, but it makes the layout work much simpler later on.

If you opt for a landscape format, choose mainly photos taken horizontally. Panoramic double-page spreads work particularly well here, and wide images have all the space they need. A travel book featuring photos of open landscapes, beaches or architecture lends itself very well to this type of selection.

For a portrait format, vertical photos are naturally at home. Close-up portraits, full-length shots, and interior scenes with a distinct vertical composition. These are the images that will make the most of the book’s orientation. A family album focused on children or a pregnancy project will naturally suit this format.

In any case, bear in mind that a carefully curated selection almost always results in a better book than an overly abundant one. Forty strong photos are better than a hundred images, half of which look alike or add nothing to the story.

What are some ideas for the layout of a photo book?

Layout is what transforms a collection of photos into a genuine published work. And contrary to what one might think, good layout does not mean filling every available centimetre.

The first rule is to vary the layouts from one page to the next. A single large photo on one page, two photos side by side on the next, a layout with three different formats further on. This alternation gives the reading a rhythm and avoids monotony. Most online publishers offer dozens of different templates, so make the most of them.

Also consider transition pages. Between two sequences of photos (a meal and a walk, for example), a page with a single striking image or even an almost empty page with just a title or a date gives the eye a breather. And it prepares the reader for what comes next. It’s a detail that gives the book a much more pleasant rhythm.

When it comes to text, simplicity always pays off. A short caption, a place, a date. That’s often enough. Long descriptions weigh down the pages and compete with the photos, which must remain the true stars of the book.

Portrait or landscape, the main thing is to get started

Choosing between portrait and landscape format is never really a bad choice. It’s above all a question of consistency with your photos and with the story you want to tell. Once that initial choice is made, everything else follows naturally.

What really matters is not letting your photos lie dormant indefinitely on a phone or a hard drive. A photo book, even an imperfect one, is infinitely better than a digital gallery that nobody ever looks at. And often, the first book you create makes you want to make a second one, with even greater care.

At AgfaPhoto Print, portrait, landscape and square formats are available with the same paper and finish options. So your choice is guided solely by your project. All you have to do is select your photos and get started.