advise needed on site and web portfolio

Fidel Marcus

Fidel Marcus

Well-Known Member
I am at a crossroads with the web aspects of my business, I've began a complete revamp about a year ago (photography was always part time for me but going full time now) on everything from contracts and marketing to my site.
I've sort of created a new agenda & procedures for everything but the crossroads parts is the website, I am completely frustrated with what to do, I went from paying a professional to create a website from scratch armed with future-proof tools and backbone to simply creating a personalized web portfolio based on who I am catering to.
Where it gets complicated for me is the wide range of work I am willing to do, I am looking to draw in businesses for product photography and illustration type images, but at the same time I'm looking to do more weddings and event photo journalism style shooting. There is also my artistic side where I'd like to showcase everything from still life to abstract and landscape. So how do I create a central location for all these different potential clients can go and still feel like I am a specialist & not some photographer who will shoot anything for a dollar.

Where I am right now is WIX, I know it's not a great platform but I am so frustrated that I want to quickly and easily throw my portfolio online with wix since I have no live website at this moment and as anyone in the business knows, I can hardly sell anything without a website up.

I am against hiring a web designer because I've yet to find one who can give me tools that are flexible enough to allow me enough control over my content and my site without having to have his or her specialized skills.

Sites like zenfolio promise a lot and have captured some of my interest but I have not yet spent enough time researching this specific avenue.

I really value the opinions of the members of this community and I am posting in here for the experienced professionals to chime in & share their valuable input, I am all ears and thanks in advance for any words of advice :)
 
Well...
I can possibly help here, both personally and professionally ...
Firstly, wix is ok, but I'm not sure long term is serves to provide an entirely professional image, but others may dissagree?
The main issue with it is that it's based on flash which is not ios compatible!
Zenfolio etc, fine, but you have to ask your self the question "what impression does it give of me/my company if it looks like I can't afford a bespoke website"...

Any web design company should be able to provide you with a content management system that would give you the freedom to do what you are after ... I would argue that of they can't do that, then they are perhaps not up to scratch!

Many web design companies will try and sell you a package that works on the basis that they have to update it for you... This allows them to charge you for more than just the build! Ie sell you a maintenance package... It is a good business model for them as it keeps cash flow, but not so great for you!

My advice is to look for a company who will just charge for the build, and ask for a CMS (content management system). A decent Cms will give you the ability to add and ammend pages change all the text within pages etc ...

Depending on how quickly you need it done, my company, F8 Creates, could build you a site ... The only problem is, our time is booked up until late feb/early march... If you can wait, we can help! I could probably sort you out a quote in te meanwhile too!

Much of the core of our work is development, although we do work directly with clients a lot of what we do is dev work through another company. This year alone we have done development work that's been the core of sites for acer, Adidas, Bentley, lloyds pharmacy (you gotta love a name dropper ;))... All sorts, and all built on our in house "F8WM" (the wm stands for website manager). We don't do maintenance contracts, everything we build is bespoke based on in house pre-developed modules. It's all written in code that works on any platform (inc iOS) ... And it would give you the freedom to do what you are asking for! We also offer seo/social media expertise... Our track record is this place ;)

So yeah, there's the sales man bit ;)
I can sell you something, but I'm also happy to advise as a member of this forum who happens to work in the trade, so don't feel like you have to come to me now I have mentioned it... You are possibly better finding someone local to you anyway? :)

As for you issues with how to layout the site ...
That's a tough one!
I don't specialise in any one field!
My website from my old company (no longer trading for nearly 2 years now...) is still up Commercial, Wedding, Portrait, Musician, Photography Worcester | Hamish Gill Photography 08456 434 639 ... That is how I dealt with the problem ... I really hate that website now though, and please dont judge the photography to harshly ... Much of it is embarrassingly out of date :/

There is a problem with not specialising ... Especially in areas where there is a lot of competition...
It can give the impression of a "jack of all trades" ...
I do a lot more as a photographer under f8 creates than I did as hamish gill photography ... As hamish gill photography, I pretty much only did weddings, with the odd bit of corporate and commercial stuff here and there!
I get the work now as we offer it to our clients as an in house service... Spreading your self too thin as an independant photog you risk not giving a strong enough impression to potential clients!
Often companies looking for a product photographer will hunt one down and choose one based on that being their sole expertise ...
But look, that's just my experience, I'm not saying don't do it, but I will say if that is what you are going to do... Then you need to be clever about the image you put across!
Maybe think about splitting services in to 2 websites ... One that is aimed at companies (product, corporate commercial etc) and a completely separate site aimed at individuals for weddings etc ...
That's what I'm going to do when I update hamishgill.com!
(2 websites doesnt mean twice the expense by the way)

... If you need any more thoughts on all this from me let me know, as I say, I'm happy to help on both a personal(through the forum) and professional level :)
 
Sir you are the MAN...
since I posted I went on a mission researching and re-educating myself on web design and what is current & most effective, I literally have not left my desktop since I got home today lol
you nailed it on the head with CMS and so far it appears that none of the mediocre solutions (ie wix & zenfolio) can meet the need here, so the only avenue I can explore and invest my time into turns out is WordPress (your expert advice is certainly welcome on this) specially since I decided recently that photo blogging has to be a feature to have on my site.

In regards to hiring a professional service, unfortunately having to go full time into photography is out of necessity, I say unfortunately because for a decade now I've enjoyed keeping my passion for photography only as it is stated; a passion and not a means of profit, not that I see it as a bad thing to go full time as a business or lack the confidence but I imagine that being selective in what I choose to do shall keep this from becoming an issue when I decide to commercialize my trade per say...

That being said I am left with the only option of building my site myself and so far it looks like WordPress does not come with a difficult learning curve for me, it looks promising to provide a robust content management solution for my immediate needs as well as a solid platform for image management and showcase. I am open to corrections or input here as this truly is fresh knowledge to me.

Another point I hate to agree with but I must is appearing to spread myself thin, you are right about that no matter how risky it is to fall under the "jack of all trades" category, I really enjoy the whole array of services I look to offer. Being someone who has been snapping photos professionally and for fun for such a long time I believe is something that allows me to play on completely different fields and still offer a satisfactory product (at least).

Typically when I learn something new in landscape photography for example I will find myself adapting it somewhere else in product or architectural, I have over the years spent chunks of my time focusing on each and developing a unique style independently. So basically I agree, the solution here is building separate sights, or maybe a splash screen that links to different sites hosted on the same server and linked from one URL, I would hate to juggle different urls with different business cards and what not.

Thank you for the time you took to write up your wonderful response, you solidified my recent findings and I certainly appreciate you sharing such valuable info.

I think I will finally stop reading, it is so late and I have 8 tabs open covering much of what we are discussing here, I'll continue my quest tomorrow :D
 
Last edited:
Wordpress is indeed a fantastic platform

My advice would be to search the internet for "wordpress photography portfolio theme"

you should find sites like this that will give you some ideas ...
14 Superb Portfolio and Photoblog Wordpress Themes (Free) | Freebiesusing a plugin is definitely the way to go if you are not into web dev your self!

The only thing you need then is a domain name and for someone to install and host wordpress for you!
If you would like to know what we would charge for that service let me know!
We offer both Installation and hosting services! (our hosting is provided by a reputable uk hosting company)

You could maybe look at multiple installs of wordpress that could be directed to from a landing page?
alternatively you could look at wordpress multisite What Is WordPress Multisite? | WP Dude - WP Dudelet me know if you need more help and ill do my best to find some time to advise :)
 
I currently own fidelityfotography.com & fidelityphotography.com
I recently kicked godaddy to the curb for hosting and I am on the hunt for a new hosting service, I will certainly look into your company..

I can't think of any questions in the moment until I roll up my sleeves & dive into WordPress, so you will certainly hear more from me in regards to this topic, you have been awesome and I hope I won't end up bothering you too much with questions lol

so for now, what do you think of my current landing page layout? I threw a link in another post you took part in.
oh & obviously I still have to create links to separate sights from this page...
 
Just get this at the moment?

a363f329.jpg


Or is it somewhere else?
Your welcome to link to your site as much as you like on rpf!

Yeah good work on kicking godaddy... Not a fan of Bob Parsons, there is something quite wrong about a man who takes enough pride in killing an elephant to film it!
I'm not a veggie, I eat meat quote happily, but killing for sport as a tourist attraction just makes me feel uncomfortable!
 
correct me if I'm wrong before I freak out, but does parked free mean it's available or is it saying that because I don't have a site attached to it at the moment?
 
& I'm sorry I wasn't clear on the last sentence from 2 posts ago

"so for now, what do you think of my current landing page layout? I threw a link in another post you took part in.
oh & obviously I still have to create links to separate sights from this page..."

landing page layout is the design I'd already been working with on wix;
Wix.com FidelityFotography created by fidelityfotography based on Pure Photographer
I was referring to the post where I dropped it in my reply to you in my "my favorite creations" thread
and the links I was talking about were in regards to the landing page concept in the link above, lol I wouldn't spam the forum with links to my page haha, I'm here to chit chat & make cool friends though I will invite you all to my blog when it's there haha
 
Fidel Marcus said:
correct me if I'm wrong before I freak out, but does parked free mean it's available or is it saying that because I don't have a site attached to it at the moment?
Click to expand...

I think its just because you have nothing on there at the moment ...
If you have bought it, then it just needs pointing at whatever hosting you choose to go with
 
Fidel Marcus said:
& I'm sorry I wasn't clear on the last sentence from 2 posts ago

"so for now, what do you think of my current landing page layout? I threw a link in another post you took part in.
oh & obviously I still have to create links to separate sights from this page..."

landing page layout is the design I'd already been working with on wix;
Wix.com FidelityFotography created by fidelityfotography based on Pure Photographer
I was referring to the post where I dropped it in my reply to you in my "my favorite creations" thread
and the links I was talking about were in regards to the landing page concept in the link above, lol I wouldn't spam the forum with links to my page haha, I'm here to chit chat & make cool friends though I will invite you all to my blog when it's there haha
Click to expand...

We have no issue with links to peoples sites ... really its no issue :)

Yes, thats pretty nice looking, i love the definitions, really nice idea that imo!!
 
Wow, this is interesting to read. I created a website a while ago using Wordpress and re wrote some of the html so it would display the pages the way I wanted, sort of. I'm having a re hash because I think sticking the photos on line like a blog that looks like a publication will be better and easier and I have just learn't what a grid is! I wondered why I always struggled with page layouts and now I know! I would really like to see how this all pans out Fidel.

I hope this doesn't come across as some kind of brown nosing but Hamish really is one of the good guys. He'll certainly steer you right.
 
Cheers Paul :)

Just to cross to bring the convo back to this thread, I'd happily build you the landing page with menu to take users off to the relevant parts of the blog!
We could do that under our "one day website" package (take a look at www.f8creates.com)
I'd include installation of wordpress multisite, hosting, pointing your URLs at the hosting etc ... Probably cost around £300 -£500 (I'd need to do a bit more research to out a final price on it)
Then you would just be left with configuring Wordpress (which is easy) and choosing an appropriate portfolio plugin (which I could also help with)

This offer is open to anyone else btw, should anyone want a simple portfolio site?

This is something F8 creates are going to be offering in the near future to members here anyway... Maybe not using Wordpress, but similar...
 
Hi Paul, I'm glad you joined the discussion and your thoughts are very much welcome, this thread wasn't meant to be a 2 man conversation haha.

Hamish, I agree I am ditching flash & wix all together but I wanted to show you that page because I was curious if it would be possible to duplicate that theme on a landing page with wordpress, what do you think?
So far I have thought about splitting my work into 2 sites, similar themes but two different color schemes so the user has a different experience on either site, I was thinking that I'd put weddings & portraiture on one then commercial & art on the other. I will be making them slightly different where the wedding & portraiture sight supports a database where the client can log in & access their photos on line while on the other site the client can click buy so it would be designed more like a stock photography site than just a portfolio....

I'm going to exhaust all my abilities before I can spend anything on this site, I only say this because my list of equipment I need makes me nervous when I add up the prices =/
Canon 5D MKII body, 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II, 24mm f/1.4L II, 50mm f/1.2L, and that's not mentioning having canon open & recondition a couple of my current L lenses, a new Manfrotto carbon fiber tripod... you get the frightening picture haha
 
I will share my experience, but not give you advice, since our needs may be quite different. I created my own site from scratch and it has been a source of pleasure.

My site goes back more than a decade. At the time, I looked at the available services—Flickr and the like—and did not like what I saw. White pages with blue, red-magenta and purple type struck me that the page had been hit by an ugly stick. Against the vast background of brilliant white, every picture just looks a bit dull. I really wanted my site to have its own unique look that I could control absolutely.

I had the chance to design a site for a clothing importer I knew, and part of the deal was Dreamweaver. It was capable of far more than I needed, still does the job perfectly, running under Windows7. I have never had the need to upgrade. Using Dreamweaver is much like using a desktop publishing application. What you see is what you get. While you have access to the HTML and can edit it directly, you do not have to ever see it. Draw a frame, insert a picture. Draw a frame below and type in the caption. Links can be copied and pasted in a gadget. Software for designers—not programmers.

I found that a large international hosting company who just happened to be located about 20 minutes away by city transit bus. Great company, and being local, I was able to visit while getting my stuff on line with their help.

Tera-Byte Dot Com Inc.

They claimed excellent service and offered hosting packages from a small personal site to big corporate sites. Since I knew nothing about how the web worked, HTML and so on, they were extremely helpful in getting me on-line with my site. Over the past decade, any time there is necessary maintenance scheduled, I have weeks of warning. In all, my site has been off line for less than an hour in all those years. They have cut prices and automatically increased the space several times. They also handled domain registration and any other details.

I create each topic on my hard-drive as a folder which I then upload. If I want to create a new version years later, it is simply delete the existing folder and replace it with the new folder. Very few loose files. I created a main "gateway" page for all major topics, with a link to an "ephemeral" page for minor topics. Very easy to update and maintain.

Larry N. Bolch Gateway Page - Photography and tutorials by Larry Bolch

I decided on a bit of a retro look, and created a set of graphics. In Dreamweaver, I created an empty page with all graphics in place all in a folder. When I decide to add a new topic, I duplicate the folder with the new name. This ensures consistency in style and great efficiency. I use it for tutorials, essays and picture pages on a single topic. If someone here has a question that I can most easily answer on the site, nothing could be easier.

I have tried a number of programs to generate galleries. Photoshop was great, but then they changed the template, and I found that I had to spend a great deal of time pounding on it to get it to match the style of the site. ACDSee Pro to the rescue. Extremely easy to configure to my style. Very flexible as well. A decade back, with few having high-speed Internet, I kept the pictures small for quick loading. Now I process horizontal to 1280 and vertical to 1024.

When I have finished processing, I point ACDSee at the folder and in moments it has resized everything to thumbnail size and created an index page, and all the main pages ready to upload.

I have the display pages set to a maximum of 800 pixels in either direction and you can see the full size image by clicking on the page image. It also builds in a slideshow. A large gallery may take 30 seconds to generate and it is ready for uploading. If the gallery is aimed at photographers, I can include any EXIF data I want. I can also enter captions. Very flexible.

Available Darkness Photography with the Nikon D700 Camera

A Decade of Street, Candid and Decisive Moment Photographs

So, I have complete creative control over my site. I have also used it almost like DropBox for transferring large files, and done little answers to very specific photographic questions from friends. Since they are not of general interest, I have not posted links on my index pages. I also have an unlinked set of galleries of personal pictures of a family I have been chronicling for years. They are free to share the URL with friends. Basically, I have a bunch of on-line space to do with as I wish. I have kept the site quite formal and primarily about my work, with not much personal information. When Facebook came along, I decided that it would be my personal place on the web. This has worked out perfectly.

If any of this resonates, please feel free to adopt or adapt.
 
Thank you Larry, very informative.
Many years ago I studied dreamweaver literally when it was macromedia, though in today's evolving tools it seems to me that wordpress would be an easier and more future friendly solution, for example I can buy a theme and make slight modifications to it rather than build the whole thing from scratch, I can add plug-ins for anything from blogging to social media (facebook or twitter) and the fact that it is open source makes it ever growing and if there are enough people with a need for a specific tool it gets created & becomes available to users like me.

The only struggle I had with dreamweaver is incorporating a flash page or typically any kind of graphics takes a bit of time to work out & run smoothly.
I do like your concept and the way you use your site for web storage and image management, that was something I needed a bit of input on, so I thank you for providing insight on the topic :)
 
Fidel Marcus said:
The only struggle I had with dreamweaver is incorporating a flash page or typically any kind of graphics takes a bit of time to work out & run smoothly.
Click to expand...

For the most part, I keep the whole site simple. Nothing to inserting images—draw a layout cell, Select Insert->Image [Ctl+Alt+I] and the image is in place. The cell expands to fit the image, so you don't actually need to draw the cell to size. On the same tool palette as the layout cell, is an Insert Flash icon. Click in the cell where you want it to go, and a requester opens to let you choose the Flash file. Done. I did a morph of friends and output it as Flash. First time through, it is a bit jerky, but then smooths out as it repeats.

AmiCUE Members Morph Movie

I did some large panoramas a year ago, and used Zoom.it to exhibit them on line. I noticed that when the window opened there was a field at the bottom labeled "Embed"

Zoom.it

I opened my empty page, clicked on a layout cell, opened the HTML view and just pasted it into the cell. Upon opening the HTML view, the cursor was automatically in the right place, so just a simple paste did it—no need for any knowledge of HTML. Since that worked, I made a page of navigable panoramas—one as large as 75MP. It does take a bit longer to load the page, which I noted in the introduction at the top. However once loaded, zooming and panning is quite responsive—similar to Google Earth.

Panoramas and Macros via Zoom.It.com

I can not imagine how it could be made any easier, but this is at least a ten year old version that has never been upgraded. It started in Windows2000, worked fine in XP and now in Windows7. I have no idea what the current version has, but this does everything I need and does it with ease.
 
I have adobe Master Collection CS5 I'm going to take a look at dreamweaver & see what they've done with it...
 
Im in the process of messing about with Wordpress. Im using the sliding doors theme at the moment but if you see anty good ones let me know :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Brian Moore
Which Photo Hosting Site?
Replies
15
Views
327
Brian Moore
Brian Moore
Stevenson Gawen
Camera Clubs?
Replies
10
Views
150
Stevenson Gawen
Stevenson Gawen
Stevenson Gawen
Image size on this forum and screen resolution
2
Replies
29
Views
533
Gianluca Drago
Gianluca Drago
Gianluca Drago
Not sure about this
Replies
8
Views
244
Gianluca Drago
Gianluca Drago
Rob MacKillop
Home Again!
Replies
15
Views
207
Christopher Dubea
Christopher Dubea
Back
Top