At just 22, photographer and filmmaker Bohdan Lee has already built the kind of creative momentum many spend years chasing. What started with an iPod Touch and a curiosity for snapshots quickly grew into a body of work shaped by travel, discipline, and a steady commitment to learning the craft. His short-form tutorials and cinematic videos have earned him a loyal audience online—but his latest project moves in an entirely different direction: into print.

A Semester Abroad collects four months of images made during Bohdan’s exchange program in London, spanning eight countries and countless moments that would have otherwise lived unnoticed on a hard drive. Instead, Lee transformed them into a physical narrative—one that’s designed, sequenced, and printed with intention.

In this conversation, edited for length and clarity, Lee shares how the book came to life—editing on the road, experimenting with layout, hosting a launch event, and learning what it means to make art people can hold. Read the blog, or watch the YouTube video.

***

Want more inspiration like this? Sign up for emails to get a new Behind the Book delivered every month.

For anyone new to you, how do you describe yourself and your work?

I’m a 22-year-old photographer and travel filmmaker living in Vancouver, British Columbia. I just finished my undergraduate degree in marketing, and now the goal is to go full-time into creating—traveling, making videos, and taking photos.

Walk us through how you got started in photography and content creation.

The first time I realized I liked taking photos was when I got an iPod Touch at around 13 or 14. After a while, I decided I wanted a real camera. One of my friends had one, and I thought it was super cool, so I saved up all my money and bought a used Nikon. I used that for a few years until I realized I wanted to get into video, so I upgraded to a Sony. That’s when I started doing freelance and shooting events.

My friends encouraged me to post online, so I started posting on TikTok. I uploaded two videos and forgot about them. When I came back a few days later, they were doing decent, so I kept posting. I got to around 50,000 followers just doing it for fun—not making money, not getting brand deals. I enjoyed sharing my work and wanted to inspire people to get into photography.

One of the things I’m known for is my Lightroom series, where I explain each slider in one video. I hadn’t seen anything like that in short-form content before, so I thought it would be cool. It got a really good response. When I was getting into photography, I watched a ton of YouTube tutorials, so this series felt like a way of giving back using the platform I have.

When I went to university, I stopped posting because I wanted to focus more on my academics. After that first year, I realized I really missed creating content. Once I got consistent across both TikTok and Instagram, my channels started to pick up. After building a following and getting close to the end of my degree—and after a lot of events and freelance work—I felt pretty confident in my skills. Brand deals started coming in, and I worked with creative brands I still love working with today.

Why did you choose to study marketing?

I originally got into the University of British Columbia for the arts program, but transferred into business because I was already doing freelance photography. Marketing really helped me understand how the business world works and gave me an idea of how to market myself. You can be a great artist without business sense, but it’s harder to make money. 

How did you start with freelance work?

I first started doing freelance work by reaching out to companies and brands to see if they’d be interested in videos or photos. Eventually, I got into shooting events—especially events around Vancouver. I still do some freelance work here and there. 

I think it’s nice to mix content creation, which is mainly online, with in-person work because it’s more interesting to do both rather than just one. You can get bored with one easily, so I thought, why not do both? I still shoot events around Vancouver.

Tell us about how you decided to make a book. What sparked the idea?

Last September, I went on exchange to London as part of my university program and traveled to eight different countries. I really liked the images I created from those trips, but I knew most of them would just get lost on my hard drive, and maybe five percent would see my Instagram page. 

I wanted a way to make them more memorable, so I thought: Why not make a book? That’s how A Semester Abroad started. And it feels really meaningful because it’s a physical medium of my art that won’t get buried or forgotten the way digital files do.

How has your audience reacted to you releasing something physical when you’re primarily a digital creator?

The reaction was really good. A lot of creators are selling digital products, and I have some too, but I wanted to do something different and make a physical product. It stands out more because you can hold it and flip through it instead of just having it on your computer. 

I also hosted a launch event in Vancouver with a local café, and about 50 people came. It was amazing seeing people show up for the art, look through the book, buy it, and talk about photography. It created a real sense of community. I’m really glad my book was able to bring people together.

How did you choose Blurb and BookWright?

One of my friends showed me books he’d made with Blurb. He said you can also design the book in Blurb, which was cool, because I’m not really good at graphic design or InDesign. BookWright was pretty intuitive—I didn’t have to Google any tutorials. I just brought all my photos in, put them onto pages, and sorted them into chapters.

What was the design process like for you?

My girlfriend, who does graphic design, helped me brainstorm ways to make the pages more creative. After that, I got experimental and tried to make each page different, so the book wouldn’t feel repetitive. 

Importing photos, laying them out, designing, and writing the text took about five months. It was a process, but because it was my first book, I wanted to put in the time and effort to make it as good as possible.

How did you handle the culling and editing before designing?

I definitely had a lot of RAW images, but after each trip, I try to edit my photos as soon as possible because that’s when they’re most fresh in my memory, and I feel most inspired. By the time I started the book, I already had my selected, edited photos from those four months. The book includes around 300 edited photos.

What are some of your favorite design moments in the book?

The front cover took a while. Originally, I had the photo full-page, but didn’t love it. I changed to a minimalistic look: a photo centered on a white background with text above and below. 

Inside, I have a table of contents showing all the chapters. The beginning of each chapter has a small block of text at the top and a photo below it. I used the ruler tool to make sure everything aligned. 

Iceland is one of my favorite chapters—definitely one of my favorite trips. The landscapes were breathtaking, and the photos turned out really well. I love full spreads because you see details you don’t notice on a phone. 

I also liked arranging multiple images in ways you wouldn’t do digitally. On one page, I lined up several horizontal images across the spread. It draws your eye across the page in sequence, almost like an Instagram carousel but in print. 

On another, one page is normal, and the next is sideways, so you physically turn the book. The following page is vertical with horizontal images, so again, you interact with the book as an object.

Tell us about sequencing your work.

I tried to make pages that either contrast or complement each other. I’d put photos taken in similar lighting or at the same location together, or I’d pair two opposite colors across a spread to make it visually interesting and easier on the eyes.

There are also spreads where I used photos in ways I wouldn’t use them online. For example, one page pairs a wide shot of me walking under a tree with a close-up of a fern leaf. I’d never post the fern photo by itself on Instagram, but in the book, the blue and green colors complement each other, and the wide versus close-up contrast looks really good together.

What was it like seeing your printed proofs?

The colors look especially nice printed—matte but still pretty saturated—which makes them feel fuller than they do digitally.

I did two proofs, and I looked at the text size to make sure it was readable and checked how the photos were positioned, and made minor adjustments. I also read the book by flipping through it and changing some of the text so it flowed better. After that, I printed another proof before printing the 65 copies for my launch event and for selling to friends and family.

Why did you choose a 10×8-inch landscape softcover photo book?

Over the past year or two, I’ve started shooting a lot more landscape-oriented photos, so I wanted a landscape book that would make it easier to lay out full-page spreads and half-page spreads. I also like the feeling of it, as it feels more like an art piece.

I chose the 10×8-inch size because it’s similar to a sheet of paper and not too big. I went with standard paper and a softcover for affordability. I’m really happy with how it turned out, and choosing those options kept the price reasonable.

I wanted the book to be accessible and for as many people as possible to have it. I’m not focused on making a lot of money on the book—I just want people to enjoy the art.

How did you think about pricing?

The print cost was around $90, but with Blurb’s 50% deal, each copy ended up being about $65 after shipping and taxes. At my launch event, I sold copies to friends at cost and to others for $85. Online, it’s around $120. 

I only make about $20 in profit per book. I priced it that way to keep it accessible so everyone could get a copy.

What was your pre-launch and launch strategy?

I approached it the same way I promote my events or photo walks. I started by teasing the book a little on my Instagram Stories to get people intrigued. About three weeks to a month before the event—after I had secured the café I was collaborating with—I started posting about it on my feed and in Reels. 

I kept reminding people because it’s easy to forget something you saw once on social media. Constant reminders help, even if it feels annoying.

I also had an RSVP list so I could get an idea of how many people were coming. Collecting emails let me send reminders to the people who were most interested.

Now that the launch has happened, I’ll still promote it, but not as heavily. It’s nice to have the book in my portfolio of products, so when people click the link in my Instagram bio, they see everything I offer. I think it’s cool to show that I have a book because it’s not something a lot of social-media-based creators have.

What advice do you have for creators who want to make a book?

Have a body of work you want to highlight—something with a theme or story. Anyone can put a bunch of photos into a book, and it’ll look cool, but having a project with a narrative makes people more intrigued and invested. For me, the exchange semester naturally told a story.

What’s your advice for photographers who also want to grow as content creators?

Something I really stand by, even now, is: Always put your art first. A lot of people focus on making engaging videos, but not on improving their photography. The reason I started social media was because I loved photography and wanted to show people how cool the art form is. I prioritized shooting and improving my skills, and once I felt confident in my work, I shared it.

Even now, sometimes I could make a more “engaging” post with a catchy cover, but I’d rather post a photo as art because I love how it looks. Maybe it hurts the engagement a bit, but it feels true to me. When you stay true to your art, you find an audience that connects with it.

I also try not to put myself in one box. It’s easier to niche down, but I like experimenting with new techniques and different art forms. When I try something new, I share it because I want my audience to know what I’m doing, and I want them to like all the different kinds of work I make. When you make things that are true to yourself, you attract people who relate to that.

Find Bohdan Lee on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Buy his book, prints, and Lightroom Presets too.

***

Blurb supports creators who see print as an extension of their practice. Whether you’re experimenting with a single copy or producing a full edition, Blurb provides the tools to design, refine, and bring your work to the page. Discover what you can make in print.