The Beauty of MagCloud

Like most photographers, I love seeing my stuff in print. But, like most hobbyists, much of my work only gets to live in a digital space. What I do print often ships straight to my occasional clients, and I don't have the money or space to be printing all of these for myself.

When I first heard about print-on-demand books, I was enthralled with the idea, and the price in comparison to getting an actual book published was amazing. Still, though, the cost can be pretty steep for a book of any good length or size. I do believe that there is an important place for Blurb and companies like it (I have a book in the mail as we speak), but there's something that a little company called MagCloud is doing that is just astounding, and it just might be that middle ground I've been hoping for.

MagCloud is designed to be a print-on-demand magazine service. You create the magazine (from scratch; no drag-and-drop templates), upload it as an 8.5x11 PDF, and they print it. There aren't a lot of confusing options; it's 20 cents per page plus shipping—that's it. If you're thinking of actually creating a regular magazine, they can even handle the subscription and shipping service themselves.

I'd been itching to try this thing out for quite some time, but didn't know what to print. Finally, after a wonderful session with two sisters a few weeks ago (here, here, and here), I decided to make a straight-forward, picture-only magazine to get a real feel for the print quality. I made it 20 pages (covers included), and because your proof copy is free, I only had to pay $1.20 for the shipping. (To order now costs $4.00 plus shipping.) I ordered it on Friday and it arrived the Friday after.

And I couldn't be more happy with it.

The magazine arrived in a sealed, clear plastic sleeve (not shown). Bulk orders are shipped to you in boxes.

The print quality is stunning, and seeing a picture printed on a full page is beautiful.

The paper quality is also very nice. Depending on the length, it's printed on 100#, 80#, or 60# paper. Because the paper is so bright and thick, it does unfortunately make any bends or dents pretty visible. I'd rather this than have a lower quality paper, however.

The two-page spread is absolutely gorgeous. My one afterthought would be to not place it at the center to avoid having the staples show.

The bottom third or so is reserved for the mailing label. I actually expected the "To" address to be a sticker for some reason, but it is very nicely and boldly printed on the magazine itself. MagCloud also gives you space for a little tagline at the bottom, which is where I decided to put my website address.

I will most definitely be using MagCloud again. As I prepare to work as a missionary in Ukraine soon, the idea of sending home magazine reports with beautiful pictures and layouts is so exciting. I'm getting antsy just thinking about it.