Custom Photo Books: 8 Types for the Coffee Table

Have you ever wanted to revisit your favorite memories by displaying them in a beautiful photo album on your coffee table for friends and family to flip through? A coffee table book is often times going to be the center of attention for new guests in your home. They can be a great conversation starter for casual and intimate moments alike, and can inspire stories and memories to share with your guests. Shutterfly’s photo books allow you to display your favorite photos in a beautifully designed medium to stay in your family for generations, and can be a great custom gift to give to loved ones as well.

Your photos deserve the best presentation. Depending on what orientation your photos are or what occasion you’re documenting, you’ll want to personalize your book accordingly. We’ll show you 8 types of styles for the coffee table so that you can create the best photo book that represents your unique personality. 

Jump to:

• Hardcover Photo Books
• Softcover Photo Books
• Layflat Photo Books
• Large Photo Books
• Small Photo Books
• Instagram Photo Books
• Wedding Photo Books
• Baby Photo Books
• How To Use Shutterfly’s Photo Book Maker
• Wrapping Up

1. Hardcover Photo Books

Looking for a premium type photo book that is both durable and professional? Shutterfly’s photo book options can level up your photo album game by giving you the option to design your own hardcover book with your favorite images. Feature your photos in a glossy laminate on the front and back cover of this durable hardcover book option.

Create your own hardcover photo book that is made to stand the test of time and protect your most treasured moments. Design your own hardcover photo book to sit right on top of your living room coffee table to impress your guests at any moment, or act as a beautiful piece of home decor. Simply find a template that best suits your style, and start designing.

2. Softcover Photo Books

If you’re looking for a more casual photo book option for your coffee table, why not try out our softcover photo book option? With a thick cardstock cover, your photos are showcased on the front and back in an easy-to-flip softcover book.

Easily upload your photos for both the cover and the back of your photo book to design an album that perfectly matches your style. From page designs such as large full-width images on a page to various picture collage designs, the possibilities are endless. You can even choose to add text and customize it in various fonts, sizes, and colors.

3. Layflat Photo Books

With our layflat photo book designs, you can easily showcase your photos to friends and family on a coffee table and have your pages lay completely flat for a seamless display. With large images, choose to have them span across two pages to best display them in your photo book.

Shutterfly’s layflat photo books come in two different options: Standard Layflat and Deluxe Layflat. With the standard option, the pages lay flat with a hinged binding. They’re great as family, travel and everyday photo books. With the deluxe option, the pages are double-thick and satin-finished, allowing them to lay flat for an unparalleled, seamless display. The deluxe layflat option is perfect for wedding, baby, travel and special occasion photo books.

4. Large Photo Books

At Shutterfly, our photo books come in a variety of sizes, from smaller square photo books to larger to 12×12 photo book sizes. Large photo books allow for you to take advantage of your best quality images and display them in a photo book that can beautifully display them.

Not only will you be able to showcase your high resolution images in a book, but a large photo book can allow you to add more design elements for a customized look. Choose from a variety of styles like watercolors, travel, theme park, wedding and family photo books. Resize, arrange and add borders to your pictures. Our standard large photo book sizes are 10×10, 11×14 and 12×12.

5. Small Photo Books

There are countless ways to document the important pictures in your life, and these small photo books are the perfect way to do so. Small photo books will surely catch the attention of your guests, making it super easy for them to pick up from your coffee table and flip through beautifully printed images. Small photo books include 8×8 photo books or 6×6 photo books for Shutterfly’s Instant Books option.

Don’t have a lot of time on your hands? Small photo books are easy to design and don’t require a lot of time spent adding text and multiple photos. Simply choose a collage or template design and drag and drop your photos from your photo library. Small hardcover photo books make perfect wedding photo books, professional photo books, and baby photo books.

6. Instagram Photo Books

Creating a photo book straight from your Instagram account has never been easier with Shutterfly. You can easily connect your Instagram account with Shutterfly, and upload your photos by authorizing Shutterfly to access your account.

With Instagram photo books, we recommend sticking to the classic square sizes, such as our 8×8 photo books, 10×10 photo books and 12×12 photo books. However, you can still use your photos for non-square options as well! Build your own Instagram photo book to share with your guests—They will surely become a conversation starter in any home!

7. Wedding Photo Books

Create the perfect wedding photo book of your dreams with Shutterfly’s wide variety of customization options. Whether you decide to make a more casual softcover photo book or even a premium leather cover photo book, it’s easy to make a photo album that fits your style.

With our photo book cover styles, such as leather or linen, you can make a wedding photo book that is both elegant and durable. Choose design options such as layflat pages, stamped foil, and gold or silver rimmed pages to upgrade your photo book design, so you can display in your home and cherish your wedding photos as a lifelong memories.

8. Baby Photo Books

Ever wondered what to do with the million pictures you’ve taken of your sweet bundle of joy? An elegant way to display your favorite baby pictures is with a custom baby photo book. Turn your digital baby picture library on your phone or camera into a beautifully printed baby photo book you can display in your home.

Document your new baby girl or baby boy’s arrival and any other important milestones in your very own custom baby book. Baby books are the perfect way to capture your favorite baby photos, and make excellent gifts in addition to being great options for coffee table photo books.

How to Use Shutterfly’s Photo Book Maker

Wondering how to make the best photo books? Making a photo book, the best online photo books, and the best quality photo books, can be achieved in just a few steps.

With Shutterfly, you can make your own photo books as a wonderful way to relive your fondest memories. Start by choosing a design and begin gathering those favorite captured moments all in one place. It’s easy to find a template that suits your theme or style, and then customize your own design down to every detail. Shutterfly also offers the Make My Book Service, which allows our designers to create a photo album suited to your style and your photos. 

Once you’ve added your photos, you can easily move and resize each one to your liking. Customize your layout by adding text and personalizing fonts and colors to add your own style. With our easy-to-use personalization tools, it’s easy to make the best photo books online with Shutterfly.

Wrapping Up

Whether you prefer a simple photo book or a premium photo book design, there are many options and details that will suit your photo book and bring it all together. Creating a photo book can not only act as a beautiful decor piece for your coffee table, but can also be a custom gift to design and give to your loved ones to be cherished forever.

Additional Resources:

• Make My Book
• Shop Photo Books
• Browse 6×6 Instant Books