Websites: Setting one up

[specialman]

So, a lot of folk seem to be venturing into setting up their own website (myself included) but what exactly does everyone think are ‘essential’ parts of a website we, as photographers, should be including?

Gallery – obviously to show our work, but how many? Should we all have multiple ones for Landscapes, Action Shots, My neighbour’s dog…? Is it best to keep it to a bare minimum with only our truly best shots on show or have a wider collection that shows our versatility?

Biography – do we actually need to know the far end of a fart about their history with cameras or will a quick round-up of factors that shaped our photography careers be better?

Contact – do we run everything digitally (after all, the viewer is on the internet so must be able to send e-mail) or do we state postal addresses and phone numbers in the hope that a nutter doesn’t try something on as a result? Do we set up an additional phone (business) number to deal with calls?

Print shop – how many of us have true photo-quality printers that can do the sizes of print that punters will want to request (A3)? Is it worth putting a shop on the site or shall we remain a bit more mysterious, with commissions being the only way people get hold of our work?

News – are we actually newsworthy? Okay, if you’ve just won the Pulitzer then maybe have a shout about it, but the local camera club competition – come on, is it really that important?

Extras – downloads, PDFs, video tips. What should we be giving away for free and why?

I’m just putting it out to everyone – especially experienced pros who’ve worked the web to their advantage – to put their two-penneth worth into the pot so we could maybe have a resource for the newcomers to websites to work from.

Let it begin…

 

[Ian T]

I wouldn't call myself a 'web designer', and do not have a photography site, but my views are as follows...

Gallery - I'd say don't split it into the 'usual' people, landscapes, sport, etc - try and be a bit more individual. With that in mind, I personally would avoid using the word 'photography' in the title/domain name. I think the sites with more abstract names stand out a bit more.

Contact details - an email form is good, or provide an email address. However, break the email address link up, otherwise spam bots will get it! I wouldn't include a postal address, but a mobile number could be handy.

I'd say only have a news page if it's going to be updated regularly. You could have a sort of editorial/intro page, which you update every month or so, perhaps saying what you've been doing, or what your thoughts are on a certain matter. Or include a blog?

Free stuff - giveaway what you like. But don't forget, things like useful guides will hopefully bring more visitors to your site, and get the web address spread about a bit. This is all good promotion of your work.

 

[wombar]

I'm an experienced web designer, but not much of a photographer I can give my views as someone who builds sites for companies. My advice would be:

Gallery - Have a selection of shots that show off your best work across a broad range of subject areas. Weddings, landscapes, etc, whatever you shoot best, but not too many or the viewer will get bored. If they like what they see in the first few shots they'll get in contact.

It MUST load quickly, there's nothing worse than waiting 45 seconds for all the photos to load through a flash driven gallery system. People will just close your site and move onto something quicker.

Bio - Tell them what you do, what experience you have (not your life story) and assure them you know what you're doing. Keep it short, easy to read and place a "Contact Me/Us" link on the page so it's easily accessible.

Contact - Put whatever you're most comfortable with. You can go to somewhere like sipgate who give out VOIP numbers that look like landlines. This is free, you get an answer machine service and doesn't expose your mobile/home number on the web.

I'd always advise using a contact form or ensure you use an email jumbler to fool bots, the last thing you need if your email address being harvested and hammered with spam. http://hivelogic.com/enkoder/form is a good one.

Print Shop - No idea, that's more industry specific and will depend on each persons individual set up. If you have the facilities, it never hurts to tell people about it.

News - Again this will depend on the individual. If you have a news page, USE IT. There's nothing more off putting than seeing a news page that was last updated in 2002.

Extras - Again, dependant on the individual.

Anyway, that's my take on it from a web designers perspective. It all depends who the site is aimed at and what you're trying to achieve. Just remember to keep it simple, avoid big, slow loading flash animations and proof read it at least 3 times before putting it live

 

[Craikeybaby]

I'm in the process of doing my site but one thing you have missed off is a copyright statement...

 

[Ian T]

Goes without saying though, surely? You don't need a copyright statement to make your work copyrighted.

On that theme though, it's not a bad idea to have a discreet watermark on the images with your web address, so that if they get hotlinked elsewhere people can find your site.

 

[Trev Rich]

Wombar has highlighted some great points imho. I am still building my site and the biggest point that Wombar said is the page load speed!! Reall has to be fast...
I mean even here on TP some photos take an earth to reveal... so I move on..

Another thing to remember is that the most important page is your homepage. Its your "shopwindow" and must draw people in.

 

[Ian T]

Yeah, on the speed note, keep pictures a sensible size (longest edge 600-800px perhaps?) and compress them as JPEGs - high enough quality that they don't look rubbish, but low enough that the image sizes aren't too big.

 

[Trev Rich]

I find that on some monitors.. 800 is still too much
I keep mine to about 550 max unless using lightbox so it pops up then go up to 700 longest edge

 

[PsiFox]

Speaking as someone else that works for a Web Design company the comment about images is so true.

Use thumbnails linking to larger images. As the viewer has chosen to click the image they will wait a short time for them to load as they expect to.

 

[specialman]

What about people's thought on DIY template sites like www.clikpic.com? To me they seem like a good way of getting a site up and running with little fuss. But are they 'high-spec' enough and fast enough yet not too bloated for regular web suers to view quickly and efficiently