Example · photobook
A photobook, from 301 photos to a hardcover order
A three-day family trip, 301 photos on a camera card, one afternoon with Claude Cowork. The result is an 80-page 9 × 9 inch matte hardcover with a cover designed from the photos, four short stories in the author's own words, and two copies on their way. This is what happened, so you can do the same.
301photos in, 95 inside the book and 2 on the cover
80pages, 9 × 9 in matte hardcover
≈ 1 h 50 mfrom the first contact sheet to approved print files, including time reviewing proofs
≈ 5 minfrom uploading the files to a placed order
This example used Claude Cowork. The children's book example used ChatGPT, and the same steps work in either. New here? Start with how making a book works.
Part 1: build the book
- Give it the folder and the goal. The author connected the photo folder and asked for a 9 × 9 matte hardcover for Quantum, one chapter per day, and to look up Quantum's print specs before designing anything.
- It looked at every photo. It made contact sheets of all 301 frames and scored each for sharpness, exposure, clipped highlights and faces, and grouped near-duplicates.
- It cut the bursts and picked the best. Burst sequences were laid side by side and reduced to the sharpest frame with the best expressions. About 110 selects were grouped into sections by day and place.
- It collected the stories. It made a story sheet: numbered thumbnails of the key moments, so the author could write or dictate a few sentences about each. Four stories went in, in the author's own words; captions cover the rest.
- It got the print sizes and designed the cover. It asked Quantum for the exact sizes for this product at 80 pages (the diagram below), showed two rounds of cover options, and built the chosen one with guides showing the spine, the wrap and the safe areas.
- It laid out the 80 pages and showed proofs. The pages used a small set of layouts (full-page photo, two-page spread, grid of four, story with photo and others), with a focus point on every photo so cropping keeps faces. The author reviewed proof spreads and asked for changes, such as swapping the photos on one page.
- It built the print files. Every photo was lightly touched up and placed at 300 ppi. The interior came to about 190 MB; the cover to about 8 MB.
The sizes it worked from
Part 2: order it
- Upload. The files went straight from the author's computer to Quantum: the cover in one piece, the interior in 16 MB parts. About 198 MB took around 70 seconds.
- Check. The files are checked against the product's sizes: 80 interior pages, every one the right size, and a cover of the right width for the spine. Quantum's file check reads books of up to 500 MB, so a 190 MB interior is no problem.
- Quote. It priced two copies with standard shipping to the author's home and showed the breakdown. Nothing was charged.
- Say yes. The author replied “ok place the order”. The assistant placed it with the quote and the approved total, then read the order back to confirm.
What it cost
| 2 books at $16.40 (80 pages) | $32.80 |
|---|---|
| Order handling | $1.50 |
| Shipping (standard) | $3.91 |
| Sales tax | $2.53 |
| Total charged | $40.74 |
Prices depend on your plan; see pricing for the current numbers. A live quote now includes the sales tax, so the total you approve is the total charged.
The prompts
These are general versions of what was asked. Replace what is in brackets.
Make a photobook from the photos in my [folder name] folder for Quantum's 9×9 matte hardcover. It's [what the trip or event was, where, and when]. Call get_print_specs first. Pick the best photos, cut duplicates and blurry frames, and organize it [one chapter per day / by place / in time order]. Show me cover options and a proof before you build the print files.
Here are the stories I want in the book: [your stories]. Put each one next to the right photo and keep my wording exactly.
Use [the photo] for the front and [the photo] for the back. Put [title] on the cover and [title and year] on the spine. Don't repeat the cover photos inside the book.
Upload the print files to Quantum, run check_files, and quote [number] copies with [standard / express] shipping to [address]. Show me the total, tax included, and what it covers, then wait for my yes before you place the order.
What we'd tell you
- Ask for a proof before the print files, and look through it page by page. Changes are cheap before the final files are built.
- Your own words make the book. Give the assistant a story sheet and let it set what you write rather than inventing captions.
- The spine changes with the page count. If you add or remove pages, ask the assistant to get the sizes again.
- Photos print best at 300 ppi at their printed size, and a big book is a big file (this one was about 190 MB). That is normal.
- Run it as a sandbox order first if it is your first time.
Next: a children's book, a company book, or go back to how it works.