Both bindings give you a rigid, photo-wrapped cover. The difference is inside, and it decides how your pictures look across the middle of every spread.
Layflat: no lost centre
A layflat book opens to 180 degrees and the two pages meet without a curve. A photo can run straight across the middle, so panoramas, skylines and group shots stay whole. The paper is thicker, so layflat books have 24 to 80 pages and cost more.
Hardcover: the book to keep
A standard hardcover is case bound: the pages curve into the spine. Keep faces and horizons away from the centre fold and it looks excellent. It holds more pages for the price and stands upright on a shelf.
Our rule of thumb
- A wide landscape or a wedding: layflat.
- A story told in many small pictures: hardcover.
- A trip you want to hand to ten people: softcover.
