Website Builders For Photographers

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Create a Photography Website Today With These Great Website Builders!

Creating a vibrant and unique photography website is one of the best ways to kick start your photo business. An online presence will allow you to market and sell your photographs to a much bigger audience. A few decades ago, you would have had to hire a site designer to make a photography website for you. However, the advent of site builders has now made it possible for anybody to create a photography website. 

 

Although there are plenty of excellent site builders on the market, some builders are geared specifically for photography website building. These photography website builders offer stylish templates, a vast array of features, and easy-to-use interfaces and editors. With these builders, it is also effortless to ensure that your site is optimized and that you will get noticed.

 

In this article, we will give you a short overview of the basic steps you should take when building your site, and will then list some of the best photographic website builders on the market currently.

 

How to Make a Great Photography Website

Photographers should spend their time taking good photographs, and should not have to spend hours trying to build an effective site. Using a photographic site builder will save you time and energy, as they offer a wide range of professional and attractive templates that are specifically tailored to the needs of photographers. These templates include convenient pre-loaded features and add-ons that will enable you to build a photography website quickly and easily

 

To show you how easy it is, here is an outline of the basic steps you should take when building a photo site:

  • Decide on the kind of photographs you want to specialize in, and who your target audience would be.

  • Choose the site builder that is right for you, by taking factors such as pricing, available features, ease of use, template design, and support into consideration.

  • After you have decided on a site builder, create an account and opt for a plan.

  • You can then log into your account and start designing your website. If there’s a specific category for photographers, browse through those templates, or peruse the models in general. After you have chosen a template, you can then customize aspects such as the text, menus, and background.

  • The next step is the exciting part: you now get to upload your photographs and create your galleries. You should also add a clear message to your homepage informing clients what they can expect to see on your website and tell your clients a bit about yourself and your work in the “About” section.

  • Install any applications that can add value to your website in areas such as shipping, marketing, and social media.

  • Ensure that the public knows about your site by tweaking it for SEO.

  • Publish your photo site, and then keep updating with new photos and fresh alt texts and keywords.

Now that you have the low-down on how to make a photography website, here is a list of some of the best photo site builders available at the moment.

 

Wix: The Best Overall Website Builder

Wix is a popular online site builder that you can use to create of the best websites for photographers. It is easy to use, comes with a free plan, and offers many professionally-designed photography templates. 

 

Wix’s free plan includes free hosting, but storage is a bit limited, and Wix will include advertising in your URL and the bottom of each webpage. However, if you’re cash-strapped and just need a simple photography site to get you started, Wix’s free plan will do! To to get rid of the advertising, you will have to upgrade to a premium plan that costs $5 per month. With this plan, you also get access to more features and templates, increased storage, and the ability to add your domain and URL. The eCommerce plan, which costs from $20-$35 per month, is geared for those who want to sell their work.

 

Wix offers two editor types. The first is its WYSIWYG editor, which allows you to drag and drop elements and arrange them on the page any way you desire. The second editor is called WixADI, which is an acronym for artificial design intelligence. This editor will ask you a few questions and then create a page for you according to your answers. You can then edit the page according to your preferences.

Pros

  • The drag-and-drop feature allows you to let your creativity come to the fore and customize your pages in your unique way.

  • Wix’s websites are optimized and will look great on a variety of platforms, including mobile devices.

  • It is effortless to upload, review, and edit photographs on Wix. 

  • Wix allows for in-site SEO optimization through the addition of alt tags for images, and also provides support for site-wide optimization.

  • You can choose from over 500 well-crafted templates, of which more than 30 are specifically geared for websites for photography.

  • By subscribing to the eCommerce plan, you will have the ability to sell your photographs through the site. Or, you can add a link to third-party applications like Etsy.

  • Wix offers excellent upload speeds, which is perfect for uploading photos in bulk

Cons

  • One limitation of Wix is that it doesn’t allow for template changes to the site after they have been published. This can be frustrating if you feel like refreshing the look of your portfolio in the future.

  • Those who are not that adept at web design, or do not have the need to personalize their sites, may find the sheer amount of creative options a bit overwhelming.

 

Squarespace: A Creative Photography Website Builder

If you’re wondering how to start a photography website, Squarespace will help you to create a professional and stylish site. This web builder may not offer the vast array of templates found on Wix. However, the models are well-crafted and attractive.

 

Squarespace does not offer a free plan, however, they do provide a two-week trial period for you to test the program. If you like it, the cheapest plan starts at $12 per month and includes unlimited bandwidth and storage, and connection to your own domain. If you want to start selling your work, you can opt for the Business plan at $18 per month. 

Although Squarespace’s editor is slightly more difficult to use, you don’t need any coding or HTML knowledge to find your way around. As soon as you have familiarized yourself with the editor, you’ll realize that it is quite easy to customize the layout of texts and images and update elements like page font and colors.

Pros

  • Squarespace’s attractive templates boast stylish photography backgrounds that are geared for creative types.

  • Squarespace’s mobile-responsive sites will look polished and good on any device.

  • As Squarespace develops all its features in-house, you’re assured of only the highest standards.

  • You can update your templates at any given time after publishing.

  • You can add Alt Tags to your photographs for SEO optimization

  • You can effortlessly add a variety of on-page elements onto your page, including galleries, blogs, or contact forms for customer enquiries.

  • With the eCommerce plan, you can either sell directly through the site, or you can add links to other selling platforms like Etsy.

Cons

  • Squarespace’s pricing is higher than those of competitors.

  • As it is a sophisticated builder, it is slightly more challenging to learn how to navigate your way around.

  • Uploading photos with Squarespace is a bit slow, which means you’ll have issues when trying to load pictures in bulk. It is thus more geared for smaller, personal photography portfolios.

 

SmugMug: A Dedicated Photography Website Builder

SmugMug was designed specifically with the idea of providing photography websites for photographers. As a specialized photo web builder, it boasts some impressing features that distinguish it from more all-round platforms. To boot, SmugHug encourages users to grow their business and establish their brands, by for instance providing a watermark function.

 

SmugMug also does not offer a free account, but you can get a 14-day free trial. The cheapest plan, which starts from $5.99 per month includes unlimited bandwidth and storage and will also allow you to sell physical images. If you want to sell digital images, however, you will need to upgrade to the Portfolio plan that costs $12 a month.

 

SmugMug's drag-and-drop editor will afford you a lot of customization and fine-tuning options, such as selecting the grid you want for your gallery or the pixel spacing between photos.

Pros

  • With SmugMug, you can start selling your photos as soon as you sign up. The builder includes convenient functionalities, such as allowing you to charge per photo and creating a custom price list for customers. SmugMug also allows you to keep 85% of all your profits made.

  • You can sync your photo library with Lightroom.

  • You can add custom watermarks and image protection.

  • SmugMug has partnerships with professional printers, so your clients can order prints directly from your site.

  • SmugMug also offers extensive social media integration.

  • The upload speeds on SmugHug are excellent and exceeds the speeds offered on Wix.

  • SmugMug is super easy to use. After you have chosen a template, you are directed to an editor that will allow you to add or edit elements.

  • SmugMug allows for SEO optimization through photo tags, and you can also amend metadata for individual pages.

Cons

  • Because this site builder is specifically aimed at photographers, it may feel a bit limited in available functions and templates for some users. If you don’t specifically want to create a portfolio, then SmugHug is perhaps not the best builder.

  • Priced at $14.99, SmugHug’s full portfolio plan may be a bit steep, especially for newbies.

  • With only about 20 available templates on offer, the choice is a bit limited. However, the tweaking ability of the editor does allow for considerable customization.

 

Weebly: A Website Builder Geared For Small Businesses

Weebly is a great option for small business. This builder boasts a user-friendly and simple interface that nevertheless allows you to create professional websites for photographers. 

 

Like Wix, Weebly offers a free plan that is perfect for users who are looking for an easy way to get their photographs online—as long as you don’t mind the Weebly branding on your pages. If you’re looking to remove the Weebly branding, opt for the Pro package at $12, which also includes unlimited storage, custom domain connection, and will allow you to sell your photographs.

 

Weebly also boasts a drag-and-drop builder, which affords users the freedom to customize their websites.

Pros

  • The user interface is simple and easy to use

  • Weebly boasts an amazing application store that offers a wide range of applications.

  • Weebly offers decent upload speeds which will allow you to upload multiple photos simultaneously.

  • It is super easy to upload images, and you’re able to continue with editing while uploads are taking place.

  • Many of the applications in Weebly’s App Store are geared for SEO, and you can also add alt text to your photos.

  • There are no dimension limitations on uploaded photos.

  • You can effortlessly build contact forms that enable visitor enquiries with the built-in form editor.

Cons

  • If you want access to most of Weebly’s applications, you will have to opt for a premium plan, which is costly.

  • The template designs are much simpler and basic than the stylish and professional templates offered on builders like Wix and Squarespace.

 

Here Are the Frequently Asked Questions That Bother Every User

What are the best website builder for photographers: dedicated or all-around one? 

Nowadays, from thousands of available variants, user can pick the one that is professional and easy to use at the same time. You will find an extanded set of options and friendly interface that does not require special knowledge.

Is it possible to make a photography website for free?

Of course, it is possible. Pick the builder that offers a free trial and create your masterpiece.
 

If you want to take your photo business to the next level, building a professional photography website is a crucial step. Luckily, with these effective and innovative site builders, creating and maintaining an online photo site is super easy. Simply create an account and see the magic unfold.

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