How do you go about getting a website?

Helpful :(

First think about the sort of site you want. Is it for showing photos off, for selling, for promotion of services, for family and friends?

Then, I would suggest grabbing a domain name - use 123reg.co.uk for this. Pick something easy to remember.

Start to think about your content - do you want to be able to upload photos regularly? Maybe something blog-based is best. Or will you update occasionally? A simple html solution may then suffice. Decide on what you want, and then seek a hosting package that suits your needs. It may well be that the webspace your ISP may provide is sufficient, and you can point your domain name to it.

Then, design your site as you wish - at one end you can text edit html in Notepad, or at the other produce asp/php code through Dreamweaver. It's up to you.

Then upload and watch the stat counters rise :thumbs:

There are all-in-one packages available, like MrSite, and solutions for photographers, such as Clikpic and Photium. These provide templates that you populate with your own content.

For design ideas, see this thread. And feel free to ask questions on here, and seek feedback. And best of luck :)
 
Dude, Check out www.1and1.co.uk they host my website. They have various different packages avaiable depending on how much traffic/space you need. Are you going to be building it yourself? 1and1 have their own GUI Websitebuilder - bit rubbish though as it is based on templates!
Is it for photographs? If so also check out clicpic.

Hope this helps. Good luck!
 
easy method is site like clikpic, template with set types. you edit galleries, photos and general areas you would like.
buy domain name with them upload photos and edit. then set live.
cost £47 per year.

not a bad site ntil you know how to do it
 
andrewc is right though, it can be that simple if you already have an idea of what you want to put up, pick a name, pick a hosting package, upload your site. Of course if you need more help you need to ask a more in depth question.

There are as many hosting companies as there are people on the forums and you'll find each of them have their advantages. The two most important decisions for you to make are what you want to use your web space for and how much you can afford to spend on it,then go from there.
 
I have absolutely no experience nor knowledge of website building, but I have just managed my first at www.gingerpusspictures.co.uk

UK2.net are hosting the site for about £45 and the site builder they have available was relatively easy to understand. I did go for a free trial with Clickpic but didn't find it as versatile... although it did seem very straightforward.

I have to say it is a very satisfying feeling seeing your site go live!
 
I'm just in the process of doing my site, through Photium. I think its very straight forward and professional looking. Good support too.
Mark.
 
lightkey said:
Dude, Check out www.1and1.co.uk they host my website.
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I wouldnt recommend 1and1 - bloody nightmare if you ever want to move anything away from them. They just ignore some things and like to bill you for supposedly closed accounts etc....talking from personal experience!
 
Jimmy_Lemon said:
I wouldnt recommend 1and1 - bloody nightmare if you ever want to move anything away from them. They just ignore some things and like to bill you for supposedly closed accounts etc....talking from personal experience!
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:D and I thought it was just me!

I wouldn't recommend 1 and 1 either.
 
I'm with 1&1 purely as a trial. Its a cheap service, but you get a lot of space (useful for photos) and so far I would probably recommend them.

I haven't had any problems yet, and haven't moved away, so cannot comment on that side of their service.

For work I use Titan - www.titaninternet.co.uk - fast & reliable and very friendly owners. They're still small enough to care that each customer is a person and not just another number. They get a lot of new business via recommendations.

Not the cheapest, and storage space isn't as generous as many hosting companies - but on the principles most businesses do not need lots of space, it works ok for most people.
 
Jimmy_Lemon said:
I wouldnt recommend 1and1 - bloody nightmare if you ever want to move anything away from them. They just ignore some things and like to bill you for supposedly closed accounts etc....talking from personal experience!
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Totally agree, SCHLUND (their German owners) are a bloody nightmare when it comes to transfering a domain.
 
Hi i use www.clikpic.com . i find it very good , you can get your domain name through them .
if like me you don`t have a clue on how to write them :shake:then clikpic are very very good

here is my site i am buliding with them . still a little we need to add and take out

www.3rdeyedigitalphotography.co.uk

hope this helps

santana007 :thumbs:
 
Hire a web designer. If you want a good solid web site to show off your work do that. If you don't even know how to "get a website" then you really won't end up with a good site that reflects your photos. If you just want to share your work sign up with Flickr or something.
 
santana007 said:
Hi i use www.clikpic.com . i find it very good , you can get your domain name through them .
if like me you don`t have a clue on how to write them :shake:then clikpic are very very good

here is my site i am buliding with them . still a little we need to add and take out

www.3rdeyedigitalphotography.co.uk

hope this helps

santana007 :thumbs:
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I would certainly go with this suggestion because, what I have seen of them it is good and looks easy to set up!
 
Or, learn how to build one. It's not as hard as you think. Plus it's cheaper. If so, things to avoid: crappy animations, silly fonts, too many fonts/styles, hi-res images that take ages to load, free webspace plastered in adverts. I'm sure somebody more on-the-ball could list 10 photographers' personal websites that would be good examples of the right way of doing things.
 
I appreciate how handy Clickpic is for photographers but I also dislike them. Everyone uses them and then asks for comments on "their" website. Its not really your website. Its the same as everyone elses just a different shade with different pics. If theres one thing I truly understand about photography its that you need to be different to be noticed. But then thats an important thing for me. I guess if you just want to have a site and show people then go with Clickpic.
 
I'll recommend Clikpic too. Dead easy to set up; if I can do it anyone can. :thumbs:
 
Futher to Pete's comment, I'd say an original name and perhaps a slightly different way of organising pictures to most people would be a good idea.

Typically, as with most things, the amount of time/money/thinking you invest is reflected in the end result.
 
Hi, I'm a webdesigner, and not trying to say we are the be all and end all of web design. The problem with a lot of the site building packages is that they are not easily found by search engines. The other problem that you get with a lot of the template, site buillding packages, is that you get a lot of accessability issues ie, they don't work very well on different browsers! On all websites i design I have to make sure that they work on mozzilla, ie7 & 6, Opera, Netscape & Safari!

If you really don't know where to start, then ask a webdesigner!
 
As someone who works for one of the hosts that have been mentioned above and used to work for another that has also been listed, I will give a simple point with hosting,

You get what you pay for!

If you are unsure about how to build a website it is worth talking to a designer as they will give you what you need without lots of messing about trying to get it to work in all the different web browsers that are out there. Also as nice and simple as the various gui based web builder tolls are they don't generally produce good code and the results do vary. plus if you ever want to move host you have to start all over again.
 
Wow, 23 replies and we still have no idea what sort of website Matt wants, or why he wants it.
 
I'll second that Diabolos!!

The amount of clients I get that have already tried creating their own site, and failed, or it didn't work accross the browser board is amazing. They are only too happy when i give them a price for a fully managed hosting account that they don't have to think about! :D
 
petemc said:
I appreciate how handy Clickpic is for photographers but I also dislike them. Everyone uses them and then asks for comments on "their" website. Its not really your website. Its the same as everyone elses just a different shade with different pics. If theres one thing I truly understand about photography its that you need to be different to be noticed. But then thats an important thing for me. I guess if you just want to have a site and show people then go with Clickpic.
Click to expand...

i know what you mean about there are alot the same , but one it saves me alot of time and it`s so easy to use, and as it`s my photo`s on there then it`s my website , if i get a web designer to do it then that would be the same wouldn`t it . if somebody wants to look at what i can do for them then they can first go to my website , if they still like what they see then i have a portfolio put together

i would hope people use me to do there wedding or portraits because they like what i do and not the fact i`m not a web designer .


santana007:thumbs:
 
santana007 said:
if i get a web designer to do it then that would be the same wouldn`t it .
Click to expand...

No. They would actually design you a site rather than click "This template." All supermarkets are the same really, yet they all have different brands. No fun in going with the flow.
 
justin1 said:
The problem with a lot of the site building packages is that they are not easily found by search engines.

The other problem that you get with a lot of the template, site buillding packages, is that you get a lot of accessability issues ie, they don't work very well on different browsers! On all websites i design I have to make sure that they work on mozzilla, ie7 & 6, Opera, Netscape & Safari!
Click to expand...
Two very good points. Search engine optimisation is very important if you want people to stumble across your website. Potentially this could be very handy for business, if you provide a photography service/prints.

Also, some of the 'one click' sites, as mentioned by justin, have frankly shocking cross-browser compatability. Functions, scripts and menus are too often tested in IE, and then do absolutely nothing in other browsers. No website is better than a disfunctional website.

Yes, sure, go with a cheap one click site, but it's going to be as good as your £35/year, and no better. Bearing in mind the amount we'll spend on one single lens, and the amount of effort we'll put into covering an event or shooting a location, perhaps it wouldn't do harm to explore other routes in a more serious way, and put more time and effort into websites? Since when was it ever fun or adventurous to take the first easy option? Why not buy a point-and-shoot instead of an SLR? Put x in, get x out.
 
Over the years, I have had to adapt to new technologies and I am not a complete 'cave-woman' where computers and cameras are concerned. However, being a photographer these days includes much, much more than planning a photoshoot and busting a gut to produce memorable images.

I have a clikpic hosted site and yes it maybe the same old, same old, but it was all I could afford at the time. I have upgraded it to pro package and concentrated on buying the very best camera/lenses combination to further my passion for photography.

I get so bogged down with converting RAWs,photoshopping, upgrading software packages, troubleshooting this that and the other, that to even think about designing my own website would tip me over the edge.

My intention is to pay someone to design what I want and be different as was mentioned above. For this to happen, I need to go out and earn some dosh to pay for it - so until I can afford a bespoke one, I will continue to pay clikpic. Rant over :baby:
 
Gilly B said:
Over the years, I have had to adapt to new technologies and I am not a complete 'cave-woman' where computers and cameras are concerned. However, being a photographer these days includes much, much more than planning a photoshoot and busting a gut to produce memorable images.

I have a clikpic hosted site and yes it maybe the same old, same old, but it was all I could afford at the time. I have upgraded it to pro package and concentrated on buying the very best camera/lenses combination to further my passion for photography.

I get so bogged down with converting RAWs,photoshopping, upgrading software packages, troubleshooting this that and the other, that to even think about designing my own website would tip me over the edge.

My intention is to pay someone to design what I want and be different as was mentioned above. For this to happen, I need to go out and earn some dosh to pay for it - so until I can afford a bespoke one, I will continue to pay clikpic. Rant over :baby:
Click to expand...

I'm building one for a friend at the moment which includes all the shopping cart and ecommerce options he needs to run his photography business. Obviously as this isn't my "day job" at the moment I'll be doing it at "mates rates". Even so for a GOOD bespoke ecommerce enabled site expect to pay far more than 12*£45 (which is what I think he was paying for JUST the ecommerce component).

The worst of it is that a lot of designers/developers will sell you a "bespoke" site which is basically a copy of a site they've already done for someone else. I'm all for keeping a code library but it's not EXACTLY bespoke is it!?

I guess what I'm trying to say is, be careful it's a mine field out there!
 
NathanJT said:
The worst of it is that a lot of designers/developers will sell you a "bespoke" site which is basically a copy of a site they've already done for someone else. I'm all for keeping a code libary but it's not EXACTLY bespoke is it!?
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On the flipside its always annoying building a bespoke CMS site for someone to have them constantly ask us to do text changes :) I've had that before.
 
Make sure to buy the .com (or whichever you want) address SEPERATE from the hosting space. Once you've got the address, you can take it anywhere - to whichever hosting site you feel like.

So first order of business, pick a website address you want and register it somewhere. THEN go looking for somewhere to host your site. Mistake I made when I first started out was buying it as an all-in-one and when I decided the site I was with was too expensive and hiking up the prices just for the fun, I had to buy a whole new website address because it came as an all-together thing. Sucked for me I can tell ya. Especially since the domain I had was actually registered through a Russian site, something I wasn't aware of when I signed up. So it was a lot less hassle just to close the account and start over but I have to now wait until the address has expired if I want to use it again. But of course, you learn by your mistakes :)
 
petemc said:
On the flipside its always annoying building a bespoke CMS site for someone to have them constantly ask us to do text changes :) I've had that before.
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Well I guess there are 2 ways of looking at that. Either they're happy to have an ongoing (chargeable - get it in writing) relationship or the CMS isn't easy enough for a layman to use.
 
NathanJT said:
Well I guess there are 2 ways of looking at that. Either they're happy to have an ongoing (chargeable - get it in writing) relationship or the CMS isn't easy enough for a layman to use.
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3rd way. They were idiots.
 
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