Posted by Clint Faile on September 11, 2008 at 11:45 PM
I was hoping you would each check out my new website and tell me what you think of my wildlife photography. Also please advise on the layout of my site and if I should limited the amount of photos. Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts. My site is www.clintfailephotography.com
Posted by Guy Tal on September 12, 2008 at 12:16 PM
The layout is very nice, but I find it a b it odd that you have to click on each category, then on the single gallery in each, before you get to the images. I would expect either more granular breakdown (e.g. by theme, location, etc.) of the categories, or that the main link will take me directly to the images.
Guy
Posted by Kenn Leonhardt on September 12, 2008 at 7:42 PM
It's a good, clean layout, but I think your website could use more character.
Beyond your green banner, it feels like just another SmugMug site to me. I'm not anti-SmugMug, as it does provide a good and functional layout, but its uniformity means that your content needs to be that much more personalized and unique for people to remember it. Therefore, I have three strong recommendations:
1. Add a small bio page about yourself.
2. Give your photos titles/descriptions, even if it's as simple as just giving a general location.
3. Show only your best.
I'm a quality over quantity person that favours limiting the number of pictures so that you're only showing the best. While you have some excellent shots on your website, there are also a couple that just aren't too thrilling. There are also some where you have multiple shots of the same subject (e.g., the deer in your New Photos gallery). With the number of photographs you have, you could easily eliminate those near-duplicates and ho-hums and still have a large enough gallery that'll showcase your talents.
Posted by Clint Faile on September 12, 2008 at 8:00 PM
Thank you very much for your recommendations! I really agree with everything you both said and I plan to do all that was mentioned. I have limited knowledge of CSS and style sheets but work with folks who do, so maybe they will help me out. I plan to trash the so-so and duplicate shots ASAP. Thanks again for your insight.
Discussion
3 repliesGuy
Beyond your green banner, it feels like just another SmugMug site to me. I'm not anti-SmugMug, as it does provide a good and functional layout, but its uniformity means that your content needs to be that much more personalized and unique for people to remember it. Therefore, I have three strong recommendations:
1. Add a small bio page about yourself.
2. Give your photos titles/descriptions, even if it's as simple as just giving a general location.
3. Show only your best.
I'm a quality over quantity person that favours limiting the number of pictures so that you're only showing the best. While you have some excellent shots on your website, there are also a couple that just aren't too thrilling. There are also some where you have multiple shots of the same subject (e.g., the deer in your New Photos gallery). With the number of photographs you have, you could easily eliminate those near-duplicates and ho-hums and still have a large enough gallery that'll showcase your talents.