///The only things I didn't like was the way blog could siphon off customers. I would open the blog in a new tab (choice in the nav bar dialog) and turn off the blog bar that links off to other blogs selling who knows what (do a search on google on how to turn blogger header bar off).
I really don't understand the recommendation to use multiple tabs. If the blog has a link back to the photo galleries how is it going to siphon off customers?
If I want a new browser tab I will request one, and if a site starts opening windows or tabs that I didn't request I usually just close the site. I know, that's a personal opinion and habit - but have you ever watched someone get confused because everything they touch opens a new tab or window?
Your wedding and engagement galleries both present a slideshow but neither tells the viewer what it is they are viewing. Have you considered adding a title to each page?
Your email address is included in plain text. That's a good way to attract spambots. I would think your contact page would be sufficient.
For your blog, I'd recommend either matching your blog to your smug site or moving the link back to your photo site higher in the sidebar. As it is your viewers need to look for the link back; it should be easier to find.
The site is very pleasing to the eye. It's simple by elegant.
Really good use of "white" space.
I might add some more details to your homepage - like where you guys are based out of or a value statement or something like that.
Also, I'd like to see a "call to action" on your homepage. What do you want your visitors to do?
Otherwise - it's a very well designed site. Great job.
Thanks for the input. We do have something like a value statement and mention our location but it is kind of buried on our about page. I do think something more visible for where we are based is in order.
Can you elaborate more on a "call to action". Not sure I know what you mean.
I enjoyed visiting your site and the pictures are great.
here my new site, I am still in the process of download galleries.
I love the opportunity to make a page of videos.
Thank you. http://www.deloprojet.smugmug.com/
I think you've met your goals of clean and subtle. Overall I like the look.
There are two things that jumped out at me though. The first is that you have chosen a grid of square thumbs for your Location Portraiture and Head Shots galleries. This does not do the photos justice; I've never understood shooting portraits and then choosing a presentation that chops off the heads.
The second is that you have removed the breadcrumb without replacing it with something else. How will your viewer know what gallery he or she is viewing without some kind of clue? My thoughts on this are in the first post of the thread Are you really sure you want to hide the breadcrumb? Think of your viewers!
Also, on your contact page your logo is showing as a square which means that it is cut off side-to-side. You might want to rethink the image that is used for that form.
New to SmugMug and still working on the site
With more than 7 years worth of posts on my old My-Expressions photoblog, I was disappointed when the service ended in August. I looked around a bit and have given the new SmugMug a try. It's a different experience from my old blog, but I am liking what I can do so far. I still have many unresolved issues but this is the start:
my new site now up
I wanted a clean look with lots of photo space. This is pretty close to what I had on the legacy site, but much easier to tweak and update. Not sure I will keep the guestbook, but for now it's done. If you see any problems or have suggestions for improvement please let me know.
I started with new SM trial, but soon figured out that it won't fit perfectly and was on my way to move on. It was this forum and all these cool customization tweaks, which made me a SM customer due to the fact I found solutions for all important issues which new SM doesn't provide out of the box - so big thanks to all the enthusiasts here and carry on with the good work.
My site is launched, but far away from perfect. I would really appreciate your feedback on what is not working or what you would see as an improvement.
I started with new SM trial, but soon figured out that it won't fit perfectly and was on my way to move on. It was this forum and all these cool customization tweaks, which made me a SM customer due to the fact I found solutions for all important issues which new SM doesn't provide out of the box - so big thanks to all the enthusiasts here and carry on with the good work.
My site is launched, but far away from perfect. I would really appreciate your feedback on what is not working or what you would see as an improvement.
I love the simplicity of the homepage, very nicely done. But do you need your website address under your logo/name? we are already on that website, so it is a bit of an overkill.
I like the fade in/out of the images on your homepage too, but for my personal taste the fading is too long by about a second. It doesn't give me enough time to appreciate each individual photograph.
Any Other Business - is empty - I assume this is something for the future.
the "breadcrumbs", to keep your site nice and simple, my opinion would be to not emphasis the last crumb in the breadcrumb, keeping the text constant throughout. I think it would look better.
Other than that, I love your content and your photographs. Nice work mate.
I'm looking for any input I can get regarding the site and the homepage...
homepage is not to creative, but it puts the focus on the pics... not sure what else to add. In old SM I had a neat way to list the top ten popular photos, but I have not figured that out for NEW SM yet....
Here's my site: http://www.brandolinoimaging.com/
Not a lot of photoshelter folks in here. How do you like it?
As far as your design - I find your homepage to be quite busy, but I do like the use of testimonials. I think more pros need to utilize the "social proof" power of testimonials on their sites - especially on the homepage.
But I find your homepage to lack a clear "call to action". What do you want visitors to do when they land on your site?
Overall, I like the use of white, simple backgrounds for wedding (or any photography) site. It makes the text and photos be the focus - not the website itself.
With more than 7 years worth of posts on my old My-Expressions photoblog, I was disappointed when the service ended in August. I looked around a bit and have given the new SmugMug a try. It's a different experience from my old blog, but I am liking what I can do so far. I still have many unresolved issues but this is the start:
Landing on your homepage, I like the "Featured Image" idea. As long as you remember to keep that image updated, it will work well for you.
I'd like to see an "About Me" page and link in your menu bar. Whether you're a professional or not, the about me page is one of the most clicked pages on a site --- people really want to see what you look like and read about and learn who you are.
I'd suggest redoing the image you're using for your logo. If you make the background transparent in photoshop, you won't have the problem of having the black box. It'll look great with the grey background no matter where you place the logo.
After a few years already with Smugmug and a lot of hours reading the forum, my turn to show you my brand new customized website: AB Photography
I wanted a simple and sober presentation, I hope you will enjoy
It's not 100% perfect yet, I still have some minor editing issues, but I'm sure I will find my answers on the forum.
I moved over to the new Smugmug a while back. Did a quick and nasty job but didn't like it. Thanks to the tips on here I was able to find my way around customising the new Smugmug and getting a handle on pages. I did a bit of a better effort this time around:
My next thing is to add a news section on the homepage - which I'll probably do with HTML/CSS and then manually link it off to individual pages. I want to do a thumbnail image for each news story with accompanying text beside it in a grid arrangement.
I'm not sure if I could "tweak" a multiple photos block to do that, but I might try it.
w: Reheat Images Torn between cycling and photography!
The first thing that jumped out at me is that the tag line under your logo is cut off. That's not a good entry to a site - it should either show completely or it should be removed.
Other than that I think you reached your goal of simple and sober.
Originally Posted by Ubrane View Post
AB Photography
The first thing that jumped out at me is that the tag line under your logo is cut off. That's not a good entry to a site - it should either show completely or it should be removed.
Other than that I think you reached your goal of simple and sober.
There are two things that jumped out at me. The first is that I find your site name to be uncomfortable to read. I think it would be improved by using bold text or by moving the letters so they are not on top of a photo.
The second is if I click on the navbar entry to bring up all galleries for that navbar button the tiles are grayed out and again you have very thin text on top of an image, not white on gray with colors. Again, I find it very difficult to read the text. On top of that the grayed out images don't tempt me to enter the galleries.
The first thing that jumped out at me is that the tag line under your logo is cut off. That's not a good entry to a site - it should either show completely or it should be removed.
Other than that I think you reached your goal of simple and sober.
--- Denise
Hi Denise,
Thanks for your advice.
What do you mean by my "tag line" is cut off? "world travels, street, black & white, digital and film photography" is the description of my page which I wanted to be visible on purpose, but that's not my tags.
What do you mean by my "tag line" is cut off? "world travels, street, black & white, digital and film photography" is the description of my page which I wanted to be visible on purpose, but that's not my tags.
That line is cut off for me, see screen capture below. I am using Chrome as the browser on a large screen monitor. It's also cut off in Firefox but it looks ok in IE.
What??? That's weird, I'm also using Chrome (for Mac)... I don't see it like that on m screen.
I just check my dimension settings and my bottom margin was at 0px, that was maybe the reason. I just changed it to 12px: do you see it right now?
Thanks again Denise.
Overall your site looks good but unless you have problems with people grabbing your images I would rethink your watermark. At the very least remove it from the photo you are showing on your homepage. My eyes were drawn to the lines of the watermark, not to your photo.
What??? That's weird, I'm also using Chrome (for Mac)... I don't see it like that on m screen.
I just check my dimension settings and my bottom margin was at 0px, that was maybe the reason. I just changed it to 12px: do you see it right now?
Thanks again Denise.
Definitely weird.
I cleared the browser cache in both Chrome and Firefox, closed the browser, reopened. I'm still seeing the problem.
Might be worth a check from another windows user...
I'll look again later.
Yes, that would be great to have a check from someone else to confirm...
I also just checked with Safari and Firefox as well, my tag line is fine on my screen.
Comments
If I want a new browser tab I will request one, and if a site starts opening windows or tabs that I didn't request I usually just close the site. I know, that's a personal opinion and habit - but have you ever watched someone get confused because everything they touch opens a new tab or window?
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
A couple of suggestions though...
Your wedding and engagement galleries both present a slideshow but neither tells the viewer what it is they are viewing. Have you considered adding a title to each page?
Your email address is included in plain text. That's a good way to attract spambots. I would think your contact page would be sufficient.
For your blog, I'd recommend either matching your blog to your smug site or moving the link back to your photo site higher in the sidebar. As it is your viewers need to look for the link back; it should be easier to find.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
www.kellwoodphotography.com
Thanks for the input. We do have something like a value statement and mention our location but it is kind of buried on our about page. I do think something more visible for where we are based is in order.
Can you elaborate more on a "call to action". Not sure I know what you mean.
I enjoyed visiting your site and the pictures are great.
-W
three guys | portfolio | flickr | facebook | twitter | tumblr
here's my site (so far)...i'm going for clean and subtle. lots of tweaking to do still, but would love some feedback!
http://www.iellisphoto.com/
thanks!
I love the opportunity to make a page of videos.
Thank you.
http://www.deloprojet.smugmug.com/
Here is my site, I hope you like it, I'm thinking to change a new design, any suggest?
http://rahm.infoinnova.net
Regards.
I have to scroll down to see your logo and social links, definitely not optimal.
Jarboe Doggart Photography - jarboedoggart.com
There are two things that jumped out at me though. The first is that you have chosen a grid of square thumbs for your Location Portraiture and Head Shots galleries. This does not do the photos justice; I've never understood shooting portraits and then choosing a presentation that chops off the heads.
The second is that you have removed the breadcrumb without replacing it with something else. How will your viewer know what gallery he or she is viewing without some kind of clue? My thoughts on this are in the first post of the thread Are you really sure you want to hide the breadcrumb? Think of your viewers!
Also, on your contact page your logo is showing as a square which means that it is cut off side-to-side. You might want to rethink the image that is used for that form.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
Your website is spectacular. Love it! Which new Smugmug template did you use?
With more than 7 years worth of posts on my old My-Expressions photoblog, I was disappointed when the service ended in August. I looked around a bit and have given the new SmugMug a try. It's a different experience from my old blog, but I am liking what I can do so far. I still have many unresolved issues but this is the start:
forgingahead.net
Bob Foss
Cohoes, NY
I wanted a clean look with lots of photo space. This is pretty close to what I had on the legacy site, but much easier to tweak and update. Not sure I will keep the guestbook, but for now it's done. If you see any problems or have suggestions for improvement please let me know.
Bob
My site is launched, but far away from perfect. I would really appreciate your feedback on what is not working or what you would see as an improvement.
http://www.fotozauber.de
Kind regards,
Magus
Germany
Magus,
I love the simplicity of the homepage, very nicely done. But do you need your website address under your logo/name? we are already on that website, so it is a bit of an overkill.
I like the fade in/out of the images on your homepage too, but for my personal taste the fading is too long by about a second. It doesn't give me enough time to appreciate each individual photograph.
Any Other Business - is empty - I assume this is something for the future.
the "breadcrumbs", to keep your site nice and simple, my opinion would be to not emphasis the last crumb in the breadcrumb, keeping the text constant throughout. I think it would look better.
Other than that, I love your content and your photographs. Nice work mate.
homepage is not to creative, but it puts the focus on the pics... not sure what else to add. In old SM I had a neat way to list the top ten popular photos, but I have not figured that out for NEW SM yet....
Here's my site:
http://www.brandolinoimaging.com/
With the assistance of a fellow SM'er I was ablre to get this page working too. I had a version on my legacy site and was able to move it over to NEW SM
http://www.brandolinoimaging.com/Info-Pages/Help-Pages/n-zvWvH
Hudson Valley Wedding Photographer
Hudson Valley Photography Blog
Not a lot of photoshelter folks in here. How do you like it?
As far as your design - I find your homepage to be quite busy, but I do like the use of testimonials. I think more pros need to utilize the "social proof" power of testimonials on their sites - especially on the homepage.
But I find your homepage to lack a clear "call to action". What do you want visitors to do when they land on your site?
Overall, I like the use of white, simple backgrounds for wedding (or any photography) site. It makes the text and photos be the focus - not the website itself.
I think your site is very usable....
Hope some of that feedback helps.
Ryan
www.photographyontheside.com [My blog about creating a part-time photography business]
Create A Gorgeous Photography Website with Smugmug in 90 Minutes [My free course if you need help setting up and customizing your SmugMug site]
Hi Bob,
First - welcome to SmugMug!!! Glad you're here.
Landing on your homepage, I like the "Featured Image" idea. As long as you remember to keep that image updated, it will work well for you.
I'd like to see an "About Me" page and link in your menu bar. Whether you're a professional or not, the about me page is one of the most clicked pages on a site --- people really want to see what you look like and read about and learn who you are.
I'd suggest redoing the image you're using for your logo. If you make the background transparent in photoshop, you won't have the problem of having the black box. It'll look great with the grey background no matter where you place the logo.
Other than that, it's a great start.
And again - welcome to the SmugMug community.
Ryan
www.photographyontheside.com [My blog about creating a part-time photography business]
Create A Gorgeous Photography Website with Smugmug in 90 Minutes [My free course if you need help setting up and customizing your SmugMug site]
AB Photography
I wanted a simple and sober presentation, I hope you will enjoy
It's not 100% perfect yet, I still have some minor editing issues, but I'm sure I will find my answers on the forum.
Cheers!
http://reheatimages.smugmug.com/
My next thing is to add a news section on the homepage - which I'll probably do with HTML/CSS and then manually link it off to individual pages. I want to do a thumbnail image for each news story with accompanying text beside it in a grid arrangement.
I'm not sure if I could "tweak" a multiple photos block to do that, but I might try it.
Torn between cycling and photography!
www.twistedculturemedia.com
Opinions gratefully received!
Other than that I think you reached your goal of simple and sober.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
I'm not seeing anything cut off
There are two things that jumped out at me. The first is that I find your site name to be uncomfortable to read. I think it would be improved by using bold text or by moving the letters so they are not on top of a photo.
The second is if I click on the navbar entry to bring up all galleries for that navbar button the tiles are grayed out and again you have very thin text on top of an image, not white on gray with colors. Again, I find it very difficult to read the text. On top of that the grayed out images don't tempt me to enter the galleries.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
Thanks for your advice.
What do you mean by my "tag line" is cut off? "world travels, street, black & white, digital and film photography" is the description of my page which I wanted to be visible on purpose, but that's not my tags.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
I just check my dimension settings and my bottom margin was at 0px, that was maybe the reason. I just changed it to 12px: do you see it right now?
Thanks again Denise.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
I cleared the browser cache in both Chrome and Firefox, closed the browser, reopened. I'm still seeing the problem.
Might be worth a check from another windows user...
I'll look again later.
--- Denise
Musings & ramblings at https://denisegoldberg.blogspot.com
I also just checked with Safari and Firefox as well, my tag line is fine on my screen.
Thx.