How to make a photography website?

photography As a photographer, having your own website is really a must. There simply is no better way to advertise your services and show off your skills.

Once your website is up and running it takes care of the job of finding new clients for you, while you’re out and about taking beautiful photographs.

And setting up your own professional website is easier than you might think, especially if you're using an online website builder. This short video shows you how it works:

By the way, this is the site that was being created in the video. We used Jimdo's website builder to make it.

A photography website
Your requirements The site can be updated without any programming skills Relatively small site (about 5 to 20 pages) Photo gallery or portfolio feature Plenty of storage space for high-quality image files Social media integration (e.g. Facebook, Flickr,…) Option for password-protected client access Domain name and email account included Attractive design templates (optimized for mobile devices) Possibility to optimize for search engines Blog option Technical support offered by the provider Cost: US $5–12 per month, up to $25 with e-commerce
You don't need Membership pages with login and different levels of access for different user groups Ability to manage hundreds of individual pages Forum integration
Recommendations If your goal is to impress... Without a doubt Wix offers some of the most sophisticated designs and image galleries available from website builders today. That is the very reason why it has become so popular with anyone who wants to showcase a portfolio. But all that glitters isn't gold: Wix's new website editor is based on a technology called HTML5. There is no doubt that HTML5 will be the future, but there are still approximately 10% of all web users today whose browsers doesn't support HTML5. More on this here. So if it's not a big issue that not everyone will be able to access your website, Wix could be perfect for you! > Click here to try out Wix.com for free If you want a great user-experience for your visitors (and yourself)... Two website builders that also offer great possibilities to present your photos are Weebly and Jimdo. Both providers are very easy to use and generate a mobile-optimized layout automatically. Another advantage is the blogging feature that you can use to write about your latest shootings. While Weebly is insanely flexible and features a stunning header banner with a slider effect, Jimdo provides more sophisticated ways to password protect your galleries and also includes one or more email accounts with your business domain name. > Find out more in our reviews: Click here for Weebly and here for Jimdo. If you want to be able to sell your photos... Squarespace is slightly more expensive, but in return offers e-commerce at its best. You can use the Squarespace Business plan to sell your photos or other digital and physical products. It is not quite as easy to use as the previously mentioned website builders but diving into it could prove as a wise investment for your business. They are one of the few site builders that offer responsive templates, i.e. they will always adapt perfectly to the device your user navigates your site -- be it a smartphone or tablet. A professional blog is also included in the package. Find out more in our detailed Squarespace test report.

A photography website

Your requirements

The site can be updated without any programming skills
Relatively small site (about 5 to 20 pages)
Photo gallery or portfolio feature
Plenty of storage space for high-quality image files
Social media integration (e.g. Facebook, Flickr,…)
Option for password-protected client access
Domain name and email account included
Attractive design templates (optimized for mobile devices)
Possibility to optimize for search engines
Blog option
Technical support offered by the provider
Cost: US $5–12 per month, up to $25 with e-commerce

You don't need

Membership pages with login and different levels of access for different user groups
Ability to manage hundreds of individual pages
Forum integration

Recommendations

If your goal is to impress...

wix.com Without a doubt Wix offers some of the most sophisticated designs and image galleries available from website builders today. That is the very reason why it has become so popular with anyone who wants to showcase a portfolio.

But all that glitters isn't gold: Wix's new website editor is based on a technology called HTML5. There is no doubt that HTML5 will be the future, but there are still approximately 10% of all web users today whose browsers doesn't support HTML5. More on this here. So if it's not a big issue that not everyone will be able to access your website, Wix could be perfect for you!

> Click here to try out Wix.com for free

If you want a great user-experience for your visitors (and yourself)...

Two website builders that also offer great possibilities to present your photos are Weebly and Jimdo. Both providers are very easy to use and generate a mobile-optimized layout automatically. Another advantage is the blogging feature that you can use to write about your latest shootings.

While Weebly is insanely flexible and features a stunning header banner with a slider effect, Jimdo provides more sophisticated ways to password protect your galleries and also includes one or more email accounts with your business domain name.

> Find out more in our reviews: Click here for Weebly and here for Jimdo.

If you want to be able to sell your photos...

Squarespace is slightly more expensive, but in return offers e-commerce at its best. You can use the Squarespace Business plan to sell your photos or other digital and physical products. It is not quite as easy to use as the previously mentioned website builders but diving into it could prove as a wise investment for your business.

They are one of the few site builders that offer responsive templates, i.e. they will always adapt perfectly to the device your user navigates your site -- be it a smartphone or tablet. A professional blog is also included in the package. Find out more in our detailed Squarespace test report.

Examples of photographer websites

Image credits: PNetzer / photocase.com, Felix Jork - Fotolia.com

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