Professional Calendar Printing for Photographers

By Sarah Harris

Photographers have many avenues for transforming their images into profitable products. One excellent option is a photography calendar, which can be a promotional tool given away as swag or a glorified business card. It can also be a beautiful, glossy, high-quality item meant for purchase. 

Calendars are effective because they are practical items that hang on the wall for an entire year, keeping your brand top of mind and your skills on display. To make sure the calendar makes it to the wall, use professional calendar printing from the pros at Print Bind Ship. 

Types of Professional Calendar Printing for Photographers

The calendar type or types you choose depends on why you’re making calendars in the first place. Which is right for you?

Wall Calendars

Wall calendars are best for showing off 12 high-quality, large photos. Each month is another opportunity for your customers to see one of your incredible images. Typical sizes are 8”x11” and 12”x12.”

Poster Calendars

If you have one killer picture that stands above the rest, it may be perfect for a poster calendar. These can range from 11”x17” to 20”x28” and beyond. 

Day-to-Day Calendars

The upshot with desk calendars is that your customers get to see a new image every day as they tear off yesterday’s page. The downside is that your calendar photo shoots may be long and involved since you’ll have to supply up to 365 images. Also, the pages are small, usually 5.25”x4.375,” so the images will have reduced detail.

Desk Calendars

Like wall calendars, there are 12 pages for the 12 months of the year, but desk calendars are meant to stand on their own on desktops and tabletops. Unlike wall calendars, the dimensions aren’t square — they are rectangular. Generally, desk calendars are less than 12 inches wide.

Magnet Calendars

While magnet calendars can be single images directly applied to a flexible magnet, you can also create small-sized printed calendars with multiple pages and a magnet adhered to the reverse side. These usually end up on the fridge.

Pocket-Sized Calendars

Even in this digital age, people are again becoming enamored with physical, tangible objects, and pocket calendars are no exception. Yes, your images will be small, but the convenience for the customer makes up for it.

Features to Consider in Professional Calendar Printing

Your calendars need to show off your photos in a way that will impress your clients and customers. When choosing a printing partner and designing the calendar, consider the following:

Quality of Printing

The printing method and skill level of the printer matter. Digital printing can look fantastic, but you can really impress with traditional offset printing. 

Paper Options

Thick, 100-pound gloss or matte stock offers a weighty, high-quality feel for the cover. Inside pages can also be 100-pound stock, but usually, they are lighter at around 70-pound. If you want customers to be able to write on your calendars, use uncoated stock. For day-to-day calendars, you can use thinner, uncoated paper. 

Customization Options

Flex your creative muscles and craft a unique calendar for the ages. Perhaps you want to make a pop-up calendar with complex designs or incorporate scratch-and-sniff features. Maybe you could even incorporate holographic paper to make moving images.

Binding Options

For wall calendars, center folded and stapled — also known as saddle-stitching — is standard. Spiral binding is common on desktop calendars, and day-to-day calendars use perfect-bound pages designed to easily tear away.

Choosing the Right Photos for Calendar Printing

Consider the size of your calendar, and make sure to choose high-resolution images. If the pixel count is too low, the photos will end up looking blocky or blurry. Think about your theme or narrative and use images that flow naturally. Does your calendar feature pictures of adorable puppies? National parks? Classic cars? Make sure each calendar design is consistent.

Design and Layout Tips for Professional Calendars

Daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly calendars all demand different layouts, and whether you use single or double-sided paper greatly impacts your design. Ensure your calendar grid portion doesn’t detract from the images, assuming you have them on the same page at all. If you do have the grid and image on the same page, use complementary colors and fonts so the two don’t obscure each other.

Printing Services and Providers for Professional Calendars

For professional results, use a professional printer such as Print Bind Ship. We craft custom calendars for clients around the world in a huge variety of sizes, pages and binding types. With our Mail Genius service, your calendars can arrive at your customer’s homes with fun swag, custom “handwritten” and personalized notecards and unique offers.

Distribution and Marketing Professional Calendars

Once your calendars are finalized and printed, it’s time to sell them. If you have a digital storefront, Print Bind Ship can use it to fulfill orders. Whether you have calendars printed in advance or on demand, we can get them to customers around the globe. You can also collaborate with physical retailers for distribution, especially locally with small businesses. 

Your social media presence will also be crucial as you connect with potential customers and promote your photography.

Print Bind Ship Is Ready to Print Your Calendar

Creating a calendar is a phenomenal way to show off your photography, but only if you have the right printing partner. For high-quality, durable calendars, you need Print Bind Ship. Our design team will work with you to ensure your photos look spectacular on every copy. Mark it on your calendar to call Print Bind Ship.

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