What are Chatbooks? It’s the mobile app that creates “Ongoing Photo Book Series” from what you post to social media and effortlessly creates a timeless album. Something to be treasured for generations to come. Here are the 6 reasons I love Chatbooks for creating family albums.
No More “I Haven’t Printed Pictures” Guilt
“Print your photos,” Everyone says.
“What if your phone or computer crashes? Gets lost? Is stolen? Catches fire? You’ll lose your precious memories,” Everyone says.
“Family albums are priceless treasures.”
Everyone is right.
But I’m a rural living cowboys wife, mom of two littles, traveling wedding photographer and supposed to be blogger. I’m just tryna keep up with meal prep, laundry, clients, drinking enough water, keeping the lil-man out of the toilet and running a few miles every day.
Confession: It’s actually is more like wogging (you know, walk/jogging) every day. But only the cows are out there judging me so it’s cool.
So how am so gonna find time to actually sit down, sort through thousands of photos, write 100 captions and design a $50+ album, with slow internet, multiple times a year? It’s just NOT GONNA HAPPEN.
Cue the “I’m a terrible mom (and photographer)” feelings.
So let’s talk Chatbooks.
I discovered them about the time Paisley (5) was born.
I downloaded the Chatbooks App to my phone and got in my first album shortly after. Just like that, all my guilt-for-not-getting-precious-photos-printed went away.
You might also enjoy reading my blog Transfer, Edit & Print Everyday Photos talking more about how I get pictures from A to Z aka “Print Ready”
They Are Generationally Sharable Treasures
My family albums are prized possessions! If you’ve been a guest at my home, you’ve probably seen my Chatbooks on the shelf. Or proudly and strategically placed where you might happen to pick it up… Because I just know everyone is dying to see alllllll my kid pictures.
The photos I am using in this blog were not staged or taken because I was planning this blog, that came later. My mom and grandma came over for lunch and were sitting in the living room looking through our most recent Chatbooks with the kiddos. I just grabbed some candid photos. I love them!
While many of our immediate family have Instagram and see what I post day-to-day, a lot (like all the Amish/Mennonite in-laws and cousins) don’t. So I pack these albums (in a ziplocks, because I’m fancy) all over the country so that I can share a glimpse of our life with them.
They Are Quality
So in all honesty, if you lay a $10 Chatbooks album next to a $600-$1200 wedding album, you’ll notice the quality difference. But it’s still REALLY GOOD. (And that’s coming from the standpoint of having been a professional photographer for almost 10 years.)
And it’s hands down WAYYYYYY better than any of the crappy albums I’ve ordered from some of the Chatbook competitors.
It’s Effortless
After I take a shot that I know is gonna make it to the family album I post it to the Instagram account I have synced/linked with Chatbooks.
After every new 60 photos I post to my linked Instagram account, I receive my next installment of my 6×6 Chatbooks “Family Albums Collection” in the mail.
That’s it.
If I want to add/remove photos, choose a cover photo or change captions before it goes to print…it gives me fair warning before printing.
I have a private Instagram account where my bio literally says “Where I post for the sole purpose of getting my @chatbooks family album. I’m telling ya, you’d rather follow me over at @lyndseygarber or @callmelynz.” The only followers I have on that account are folks like my aunts, sibs, grandma, mom, childhood BFFs and 87 of Nelsons cousins.
If Instagram isn’t your jam, Chatbooks can also link to your Facebook or you can manually add your own photos right from your phone’s camera roll! Or you can do all the above, sync it with Instagram, Facebook AND add photos yourself. Personally, that’s too complicated for me. I just post to my private Instagram account knowing it’s going to be my family album.
It’s also easy peasy to create custom albums without it having to be posted to a social media platform (annoying all your friends with a sudden flood of random photos.) Think a Christmas gift for Grandma or a whole album dedicated to your recent vacation.
You might also enjoy reading my blog Transfer, Edit & Print Everyday Photos talking more about how I get pictures from A to Z aka “Print Ready”
They are Affordable
You guys, it’s like $10 per Chatbook or something ridiculously cheap and it only charges when your album has 60 photos and it ships. Which is something like every 2-4 months for us.
If you use THIS link to signup, you’ll get the first book free!
Their Customer Service
In the years since I’ve used Chatbooks, I’ve contacted customer support twice. Once because I somehow managed to double-subscribe to my album and I was getting two albums (and getting charged twice.) But a two-minute chat with their support fixed that.
The second time was when I received an album and the black tones of the printed images were kinda off…like the printer might’ve been in the early stages of being low on black ink. Probably something no one but a quality-experienced wedding photographer would’ve noticed. But I did notice and it bothered me. I contacted Chatbooks and in a matter of days, I had a replacement in my hands…free of charge.
Copyright Lyndsey Garber // 4 Reasons I love Chatbooks For Creating Family Albums
*Disclosure: Keeping it real around here. Sometimes (not always) the links in my posts are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase I will earn a commission. You will never get charged extra through affiliate links…and sometimes you’ll even get a discount! BUT you can always trust that I link these products or companies only because I BOUGHT them with real money and USE them in real life…and not because of any commission I may or may not receive from your purchases. Whether or not you decide to buy something is completely up to you.
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