Collage page ideas

Photo collages get a bad rap. Poorly designed spreads without uniform spacing or an overarching theme are little more than a photo dump. (I actually think that’s how my MIL would describe what I do as a yearbook mom. “She just puts pictures on pages.”) Executed well, they become standout spreads. 

How Many Photos Should I Put in a Collage?

Answering a question with a question: is it even a collage if it has fewer than 15 photos? Too few can make the page look sparse, while too many can make it cluttered and overwhelming.

A good range for a collage spread is roughly 20-30 photos. While you can find layouts with up to 65 photo boxes among Treering’s 1000s of pre-designed templates, more photos mean smaller photos. Smaller photos make it difficult to discern who is in the picture. 

That’s the point of a collage: to increase coverage of events and individuals. 

 

Two Must-Have Collage Pages

When our team looks at yearbooks, the standout books have collage pages for each class or grade and the major school events. While collage pages are a great way to include many photos, too many can become monotonous. Aim to limit collage pages to around 10-15% of the total page count of the yearbook. This keeps the content varied and engaging.

Class Collages

Pairing class photos with a collage of candids gives each class a spread of their own. It shows how each class is different. This is also an easy way to ensure each student is in the book more than once: their “official” photo and a fun photo.

School Event Pages

A collage page makes it easy to cover all-school events such as the jogathon or an awards ceremony, where you end up with 100s of photographs. Other ideas include

• Fan sections at home games
• Movie night
• Father-daughter dance
• Homecoming and spirit week
• Game faces for student-athletes
• Vacations (summer, ski week, etc.)
• Field day
• Spring musical (include rehearsal photos!)

Should I Include Captions on a Collage Page?

Captions provide context for the photo. At a minimum, you should include ident captions. Below or beside the photos, add the students’ names and grades [e.g. Soren Ham (1) and Evangeline Romero (1)]. 

Middle and high school staffs should aim to add body copy in the form of a story to unite the spread. 

Including collage pages in your yearbook is a popular way to add more photos and showcase the story of your school year.