Choose the page count from your photograph count, not from your budget. About four photographs fill a page, so counting what you actually have decides the size — and paying for pages you cannot fill produces a worse book than buying the smaller one.
Here is every decision in order.
Decision 1 — page count
The ladder, and what each rung holds.
| Pages | Photos it wants | Price | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | ~32 | ₹499 | One trip, one occasion, a first year |
| 12 | ~48 | ₹549 | A short relationship, a single event |
| 16 | ~64 | ₹599 | A good year |
| 20 | ~80 | ₹649 | A long trip, a full year |
| 24 | ~96 | ₹699 | Two or three years |
| 28 | ~112 | ₹799 | A friendship with real range |
| 32 | ~128 | ₹899 | Five years, or a wedding |
| 36 | ~144 | ₹999 | A decade, edited |
| 40 | ~160 | ₹1,099 | The longest we print |
Steps of four, because a saddle-stitched sheet folds into four pages. That is a binding constraint rather than a pricing choice — there is no 10-page or 18-page version of this format anywhere.
Flat ₹70 delivery on top, to every pin code in India.
Decision 2 — count your photographs honestly
The single most useful thing on this page: count first, choose second.
Sixty photographs and a 40-page book means twenty pages of filler, and the filler is always the weakest images you have. A full 16-page book beats a padded 40-page one at every price, and it costs ₹500 less.
If you are between two sizes, take the smaller one. Nobody has ever regretted a book being tight.
The personalised gift buying checklist →
Decision 3 — resolution, which is not negotiable
WhatsApp, Instagram and most chat apps discard image data permanently. A photograph that looks perfect on a phone can be visibly soft printed on 300 GSM stock, and nothing restores what was thrown away.
Go to the camera roll or the cloud backup. If the only copy you have is forwarded, use it small rather than as a full-page image — that is a real, workable compromise and we do it often.
Decision 4 — paper, and what the numbers mean
Ours is 300 GSM cover, 170 GSM inners. Worth knowing what those do.
GSM is grams per square metre — weight, which in practice means thickness and opacity.
- Inners under ~130 GSM: pages show through. You see the reverse of the next spread behind the photograph you are looking at. This is the single commonest way a cheap photo book announces itself.
- Inners at 170 GSM: opaque, holds ink without bleeding, still turns easily.
- Cover under ~250 GSM: curls within a month, especially in humidity.
- Cover at 300 GSM: stays flat, takes a matte finish that does not scuff.
Ask any seller for both figures. Someone who buys their own stock answers with numbers immediately; someone reselling a print service does not have them.
Decision 5 — size and binding
A4, saddle-stitched. We do not offer a choice here, and that is worth explaining rather than hiding.
Saddle-stitching means folded sheets stapled through the spine. It lies flat enough to read comfortably, keeps the cost down, and suits a book that gets read properly a few times and then kept. It is not built for a decade of weekly handling — that is what a lay-flat hardbound album is for, and ours start at ₹1,299.
What you are actually paying for
At ₹499 to ₹1,099, roughly: the printing and materials, and a person’s time laying it out.
The second half is the part that varies between sellers at identical prices. Software can select images by face detection and sharpness and flow them into a template for the same money. Whether that matters depends on whether you think the choosing is the point.
How to buy without getting burned →
When to buy something else instead
Under 30 photographs. Below the smallest size. A print pack at ₹270 for 30 prints is the honest format.
When it needs to survive years of reopening. An album, not a magazine.
When the date is under five days. There is a design and proofing stage before printing — 5 to 14 days from order to doorstep. Money does not compress it.
Frequently asked
How many pages should my photo magazine be? Divide your photograph count by four and round down to the nearest step. Sixty photographs is a 16-page book, not a 40-page one.
What does GSM mean on photo paper? Grams per square metre — weight, which in practice means thickness and opacity. 170 GSM inners are opaque; below about 130 GSM, pages show through.
How much does a photo magazine cost in India? ₹499 for 8 pages up to ₹1,099 for 40, plus flat ₹70 delivery to any pin code.
Why do page counts go up in fours? A saddle-stitched sheet folds into four pages. It is a binding constraint, not a pricing decision — no printer offers a 10-page version of this format.
Can I mix low and high resolution photos? Yes, with care — lower-resolution images work small rather than as full-page spreads. Say which ones matter most and they can be placed accordingly.
Part of our complete photo magazine guide. See also: photo magazine ideas for every occasion.
Every size, ₹499 to ₹1,099: Photo magazines · All 11 keepsakes
Also worth reading: How to choose a photo gift format · Printing tickets and letters