How to plan a scrapbook title page
A scrapbook title page names the subject and period, then introduces the book with one relevant image. Place contributors and essential context here rather than crowding the cover.
Use the inside title page for the date range and contributor names that do not fit on the cover. Add a photograph of the venue or subject if it helps identify the book.
Leave space for the title page during planning. Finish its dates after selecting the inside pages, especially if you change the period the book covers.
Try this in your own scrapbook
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Add the subject and dates
Use the subject name and relevant dates. Add the maker or contributors when that information helps identify how the book came together.
- State the years or dates the book covers.
- Name the place when the book records a house or town.
- Include contributor names with their agreement.
- Label approximate dates in a family history book.
Choose one opening image
Use a house exterior for a home book, an invitation for an occasion or a dated portrait for a person's book.
Do not use the title page to hold spare photos. Its image should establish the subject rather than add another crowded collage.
Make the opening easy to read
On a portrait page, put the title in the upper third and a modest image below. Keep dates close to the title so they are seen together.
If the book needs more context, give it the facing page. Avoid reducing introductory text until it becomes a block of tiny writing.
Steps
Subject at the top
Place the title above the image with a clear gap. Align the title and dates to the same edge or centre.
Date range nearby
Put the covered years directly beneath the title. Distinguish the book's subject period from the date it was assembled.
Opening image
Put a photograph of the subject or a scanned invitation below the title. Leave the object's edges visible if they help identify it.
Credits at the bottom
Put agreed contributor names and any brief factual context low on the page, keeping them clear of the binding and outer edge.
Questions
Is a title page needed if the cover already has a title?
It is optional. Use one when dates, contributors or introductory context would crowd the cover or remain unclear without it.
What image works on a scrapbook title page?
Choose a view that establishes the subject: the venue, a home exterior, a dated portrait or the invitation to the occasion.
Should the title page list every person in the photos?
Keep image identification near the relevant photographs. The title page needs only names that describe the book's subject or agreed contributors.