Advice on digital+hardcopy publishing

[clemens14]

Hello,

I am helping my father publish a "cultural" tourist guide about Venice he has been writing after retiring.
It's his first attempt and has put a lot of effort on it, with very good results (both from a personal point of view and from the perspective of many friends who have read it and helped improve it), but we are both lacking experience and connections in the field.
I am a bit familiar with ebooks, but not so much with the commercial services and the options available out there so I was wondering if you could kindly give me some guidance so that I can then help him make sensible choices.

Here are some details:

1. The book is roughly 200 A4 pages long but it contains many color images (over a 100)
2. My father would like it to be also printed since he is of the pre-ebook generation, but he is also excited about the possibility to have it available online for tablets and ereaders.
3. The book could probably benefit from a better layout and although I have done my best to make it as professional looking as possible, extra professional help would be good, although not essential.
4. A Chinese friend of his would like to make a translation of the book, print it and target it to the Chinese market since a famous Chinese writer read a draft and was excited about it and offered to make a nice introduction.


Here are some points I was wondering about (of course many more can be considered and please do tell me about them as well).

a. What are the publishers that would be most likely interested in the book, given that it is related to culture and art in a famous touristic place in Italy?
b. Do you think publishers would risk printing a book with many color images without being paid first? How do things usually work in these cases?
c.In case my father pays for a "publishing package" how does it usually work with the "earnings" part, both for hardcopies and ebooks?
d. Could the "Chinese connection" help the English version? And how?

Thank you very much,

Clemens

P.s. if you are publishers yourselves, please do not hesitate to contact me through PM