I’m going to write a book

[Ronstar]

Not a typical book, but a travel / photo book of US 66. I’m taking photos and drawing lots of maps to be included in the book. It will basically show the historical alignments of US 66 with lots of current photos.

This will take a couple of years. I’m going to travel segments of the route taking photos, gathering history and preparing maps.

I’m not overly creative or artistic, but looking to create something simple. Something on the lines of a coffee table book.

I’m thinking of doing the whole thing in black and white. I’m looking into publishing options now, but I’m thinking of using something like blurb and maybe sell through Amazon.

I really don’t care if I sell many books or make much money.

I’ve read Trombone Al’s threads on book publishing and picked up a few tips there.

Anyone have any feelings on how appealing a black and white only photo/ map book would be? Or know of any simple methods other than Blurb in preparing such a book?

 

[Nemo2]

Anyone have any feelings on how appealing a black and white only photo/ map book would be?

This guy seemed to be relatively successful:

http://anseladams.com/

Good luck..love the idea!

 

[Ronstar]

That’s partially where I got the idea. I’m a huge Ansel Adams fan and have several books of his works. Thanks for the reminder - I need to look at these books in a different way - not just the photos, but the layout.

 

[Nemo2]

That’s partially where I got the idea. I’m a huge Ansel Adams fan and have several books of his works. Thanks for the reminder - I need to look at these books in a different way - not just the photos, but the layout.

Some things, such as the standard 'old car/truck in the weeds' type presentation, are so much more impactful in B&W.

 

[Ronstar]

Some things, such as the standard 'old car/truck in the weeds' type presentation, are so much more impactful in B&W.

I agree. And that will be the tone of the subject matter. I’m concentrating on ‘old’.

 

[VanWinkle]

I agree on the Black and White as it adds to the nostalgia.

 

[FIREmenow]

I have (what I think is ) a neat idea for you.

If you are handy with photo-editing (or know someone cheap who is), you could start the book out in black and white and as the book progresses, slowly add bits of color to the photos so that at the end you have really bright (photo selection important) colorful images. Kind of like that Disney cruise meal if you've ever been on it.

You could do the selective object coloring like this one

....or you could just fade it in on the whole image bit by bit (pastels, etc.)


Just a thought.

 

[Ronstar]

^ thanks for the idea. That is actually easier to do than it looks. Lightroom software allows the user to selectively turn on and off individual colors.

 

[Ronstar]

This is a rough idea of photo style

 

[Nemo2]

Here's one DW took in Leon, Spain, in 2016:

I like FIREmenow's suggestion/example.

 

[Ronstar]

Yep that’s what I’m looking for

 

[FIREmenow]

This is a rough idea of photo style

That's a great photo! It would look cool with just that car colored baby-blue (of that era) or something......

 

[CoolRich59]

I have (what I think is ) a neat idea for you.

If you are handy with photo-editing (or know someone cheap who is), you could start the book out in black and white and as the book progresses, slowly add bits of color to the photos so that at the end you have really bright (photo selection important) colorful images. Kind of like that Disney cruise meal if you've ever been on it.

You could do the selective object coloring like this one

....or you could just fade it in on the whole image bit by bit (pastels, etc.)


Just a thought.

Thumbs up. That is a terrific suggestion.

 

[Ronstar]

That would certainly add some interest!

 

[IMATERP]

A nice place to start would be at the Route 66 Diner located in Bar Harbor, Maine. I didn't think the food was all that good - but they do have some interesting collectibles around the restaurant.

If you do go to Bar Harbor, make sure you take in Acadia National Park.

I

 

[Walt34]

^ thanks for the idea. That is actually easier to do than it looks. Lightroom software allows the user to selectively turn on and off individual colors.

Re selections, while the learning curve is steep, the pen tool in Photoshop is terrific for that, far exceeding any pixel-based selection tool. It may have been the photographer's intent, but the bleeding red on the right side of the "box office" sign screams "sloppy" to me. That won't happen with the pen tool unless you want it to. I cut out the lunchbox from the rest of the photo practicing with the pen tool.

 

[FIREmenow]

^ thanks for the idea. That is actually easier to do than it looks. Lightroom software allows the user to selectively turn on and off individual colors.

This is a rough idea of photo style

Re selections, while the learning curve is steep, the pen tool in Photoshop is terrific for that, far exceeding any pixel-based selection tool. It may have been the photographer's intent, but the bleeding red on the right side of the "box office" sign screams "sloppy" to me. That won't happen with the pen tool unless you want it to. I cut out the lunchbox from the rest of the photo practicing with the pen tool.

Yeah, there's the quick-and-dirty app-based "color splash" models, then there's the detailed effort. Here's a 20 minute attempt....

 

[Ronstar]

A nice place to start would be at the Route 66 Diner located in Bar Harbor, Maine. I didn't think the food was all that good - but they do have some interesting collectibles around the restaurant.



If you do go to Bar Harbor, make sure you take in Acadia National Park.



I

Thanks for the tip. Just went through Maine- I’ll have to go back for Bar Harbor and Acadia.

 

[Ronstar]

Thanks Walt & Firemenow - got Photoshop a little while ago- I’ll check out the pen tool. That Plymouth looks sweet in that blue.

 

[FIREmenow]

Thanks Walt & Firemenow - got Photoshop a little while ago- I’ll check out the pen tool. That Plymouth looks sweet in that blue.

I used 2 editing layers and a "mask" (in Paint.net). You can read about how to do it in Photoshop.

 

[folivier]

Sounds like a fun project. But do yourself and your readers a favor and have someone proofread it. It is difficult to read something you wrote and find all of the errors because you know what you wrote. An experienced proofreader can pick up errors most people don't see.

 

[Bestwifeever]

What a great idea! Lots of places along the original route might like to sell it too (especially if you mention them in a notes section or elsewhere).

I always thought Route 66 ran between Chicago and Santa Monica, California? Did it start at Bar Harbor?

 

[NW-Bound]

A nice place to start would be at the Route 66 Diner located in Bar Harbor, Maine. I didn't think the food was all that good - but they do have some interesting collectibles around the restaurant.

Route 66 did not go all the way to Maine, did it? I thought I read that it ran from Chicago to LA.

 

[Nemo2]

An experienced proofreader can pick up errors most people don't see.

And even then.......I have, on occasion, read books by well known authors, and distributed by established publishers, with an "it's/its" inaccuracy (or the like) that has somehow escaped notice.

 

[davemartin88]

Sounds like an interesting project, will be fun to see the progress. Good luck.