For years I dreamed of putting together a photo book on Buffalo's architecture. I wanted to call attention to the city's relatively little known and under appreciated collection of high quality buildings. It was a distant dream until about 5 years ago, when I served as editor and publisher of The Chicago Architectural Club's Journal #10, entitled "Influence Across Fields".
With the experience gained in that endeavor, I found confidence in my ability to pull off a book of my own. So I began to plan for the Buffalo book more seriously. Still, the prospect of luring a publisher or raising the money for self-publication seemed quite daunting. There was also the massive task of adequately documenting Buffalo's architecture too. In over 25 years of photographing the city's amazing architecture I have amassed quite a sizable image collection. Even as my catalogue of photos grew to substantial size, I felt I had not covered enough of the city to make the book comprehensive. Eventually, I decided I had to make some decisions on what could reasonably be covered, at least initially.
I kept planning (slowly) and never stopped collecting new images. As time passed, some images were dropped from consideration and new possibilities emerged; new buildings were constructed that I felt should be shown. And so it would have continued, if I had not stumbled onto a newspaper story featuring an intriguing new Internet publishing company. The story described an on-demand printer that provided book layout software (free). After you lay out your book ,you simply upload it to their site, and they sell it for you. You can order any quantity from 1 to infinity. I had seen commercials about on-demand publishing, but did not really understand exactly what it was or how it worked. It sounded simple and very interesting. I thought, "Why not give this a try?" (I will put up a story about the publisher in the near future.)
I uploaded a proof copy of the book and received it today (within a week of ordering). Though the company web site showed beautiful looking books, I had my suspicions. I can report that the proof copy looks amazing and is as high in quality as anything you would find in a bookstore. As soon as I can work out a few graphic and technical issues, I will be releasing it for sale to the public. I hope you will all buy a copy and help spread the word. I will not get rich on this project, however, I will be enriched if more people come to know about Buffalo's hidden architectural treasure.
Release
for sale is anticipated to be around May 1st.
I'll buy.