I have two major suppliers with whom I work.

One makes wonderful hand-made albums in Italy, the other makes, probably, the best albums in the world.

I don't do budget albums. Why? Because I have not found a company that produce anything I would be happy giving to a couple to cherish for the rest of their lives. Pure and simple.

Mid Range Albums

These are hand-made in Italy and can be man-made materials or real leather.

They are traditional albums with overlays - the card that goes over a photo / several photos, and one I highly recommend is called the Milano. This comes in a smart briefcase.

The other album I would highly recommend is the Verona. This does not come in a briefcase but is real leather and has its own sturdy box for protection.

Here is the choice of overlays for each page to give you an idea how it might look. There is a variety of colours and also real leather options. Approximate cost for either of these is £400 to £600 for the finished album including your photographs, depending on how many leaves you require. If you would like a different album from this manufacturer, please let me know as I can easily accommodate.

Top range Albums

I think these are the best albums in the world: Jorgensen of Australia

These again, are all handmade, but there is an almost infinite choice of covers, insides, colours and materials. These overlays are designed in software so there are an infinity of shapes and sizes available. The quality speaks for itself. £900 and upwards. Each one is totally unique. They make it how you want it. You want leather, they ask "What colour?", you say "Red", they ask "What grain?" You want a wooden cover, they ask "What kind of wood would you like?"

It can be portrait, landscape, square, small, large, huge, and in all of the above options! It can contain anything between 6 and 35 pages (12-70 sides) and also extra large fold-out pages. Parents' albums (smaller versions of yours) are easily accomplished and can be identical to yours or you may wish to have different photographs included in theirs.

Custom computer-cut mats. These are the apertures or overlays you see your picture through. Traditionally, you had one per page of your album, and that was it. Now you can have several apertures on each page, rectangular, diamond, square and any other shape you can imagine. I will take a brief from you and start the design. As I reach certain stages, I will email / post a digital copy of your album to you for approval. When you are happy, I send off the order and the album is assembled and delivered. It is that straightforward, but YOU have full control over your album, which will make It something you will want to take out, look at and show off for many years to come.

Please email me now with your wedding date and location and I will advise you of my availability. Lycett@gmail.com or 07977 596662 / 01562 861951.

www.richardlycettphotography.co.uk