Your website is a vital component of your business. Indeed, it is where potential customers first get a glimpse of your creativity, skills, and the services you offer. 


It is what prospects use to see if you are the right photographer for them.

First impressions last, so it is essential that you have a website that effectively captures and retains your target audience’s attention. Below are some tips that will help you understand more about the elements that make up a successful photography website.

 

1. Simple and Straightforward


The best photography websites are often simple ones filled with compelling visuals and cohesive text. In photography, less is more, so emphasize the essentials and remove unnecessary details. An uncomplicated website also helps improve your user's’ browsing experience. Choose a straightforward photography website template devoid of extra features that you are not going to use. Then organize your content in a simple way to avoid confusing your viewers.

Check out this blog about tips in building a photography website. It is also important to know web design mistakes that you need to watch out for.

2. Easy Navigation and Usability


Most visitors leave a website because it requires an excessive number of clicks to get to the information that they want. Your site, therefore, should be easy and quick to navigate. Observe these best practices to improve navigability.

  • The number of menu items should be limited to five or six.
  • Place the main menu in conspicuous places such as the top or the left side of the page.
  • Provide a way to the home page, usually a “Home” menu item or a hyperlinked logo.
  • Call-to-action buttons should point to the right pages.
  • Navigating between pages should be easy and quick.
  • Browsing in and out of your gallery should be easy.



3. An Impressive “About Me/Us” Page


The About Me/Us page is the second most visited place on your website next to the home page. In this page, introduce yourself to your viewer and articulate to them why you are qualified to do the tasks they require. How? Include your skills, certifications, achievements, photography events, formal trainings, and other aspects that show you are the right person for the job.

4. Complete Contact Page


Prospects who are impressed by your photos and skills will want to know more about your services. Let them easily get in touch with you through a comprehensive contact page. Your contact page should have a Contact Me form as well as your e-mail address, street address, and business phone numbers.


If you are uneasy about putting your email address directly on your contact page due to spam or bots getting a hold of your information, try adding your email address using this format; email[at]mail[dot]com. This will ensure that spam and web crawlers are not able to get your exact email address and fill your inbox full of useless information.

5. A Useful Blog


Augment the power of your photos with the power of words. Yes, we are talking about putting up a photography blog within your website. A blog is a venue where you can showcase your work, share useful information, advertise promotions, and more!


With a good blog, your website becomes more than an advertising tool. It becomes a rich resource and a venue to create a closer connection with your audience, helping you become a thought leader in your niche/industry. Additionally, a quality blog that is hosted within your website provides great SEO benefits which will help you to drive traffic to your website.

6. Customized theme/look


Your website should have a unique theme or look that distinguishes you from your competitors. That is why it is not advisable to use generic and free themes. Rather, invest in photo website templates that can be tailored according to your own personal style and needs. A professional web design company can help weave that template into a customized site that speaks volumes of your brand.

Alternatively, you can opt to create your own website. Indeed, you can do so with easy-to-use builders such as our Folio Websites web builder, even if you don't have coding skills. 

You can also check out this link for hot trends in web design so you'll have an idea on how to make yours stand out.

7. Mobile friendly or “responsive” design


With the advent of smartphones, tablets, and mobile devices, mobile browsing is more popular than ever. In fact, one of Google’s significant ranking factors is the mobile-friendliness of a website.

Therefore, your website portfolio should be able to be seen clearly on any size of screen to allow an enhanced browsing experience. The term for your website being mobile friendly on all devices is called “mobile responsiveness”.

Here are a few tips on how to make your website mobile friendly.

 

8. SEO Friendly


A great website design can do wonders, but that is only half of the work. The other half of success is having an extensive amount of visibility on the Internet. You need to know techniques on how to drive people to your website, how to make them interact with your site, how to share your content to a variety of channels, and ultimately, how to convert.


You can do all these with a sound and efficient search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. SEO is a set of processes and techniques to help improve your website’s visibility and ranking in search engines. There are a whole lot of techniques in SEO, some of which are:

  • include keywords that your prospects will be looking for in your content. Keywords may include specific locations (e.g., real estate photography in Grand Rapids, Michigan), niche (e.g., specializes in special event photography), and more.
  • write content around answering common questions such as “how to communicate with your wedding photographer,” “how to prepare for a real estate shoot,” and more.
  • develop a sound link-building strategy. For example, write great content for photography-related websites and link them to your website.

    Check out this blog on tips on optimizing your website for better ranking and visibility.


Your photography website is your branding manager and salesman in the Internet. With these elements in mind, you are assured you have one powerful and effective online presence.