New (Professional) Website

[honestfool84]

So I finally had my site professional done... instead of being cheap and making it myself. Anyways, it's that time again! I always appreciate the honest (and blunt) critiques I get here... so once again I am submitting my website for your critiques.

This websites does not work well for slow internet connections, I will tell you this. If you have a 56K connection, don't bother... I figured most people have at least DSL, so it shouldn't be a problem for most. Each image is about 185K, just a heads up.

Oh, and if you have a large monitor, check it out full screen. That is my favorite option, by far!

And here is my new site: http://davidteran.com/

Comments and critiques are appreciated... on the website, and even on the photography!

Thanks! :toast

[balli]

Pretty cool site. Obviously sleek. I've always liked your work too. In two seconds though I noticed some mechanical stuff that was wrong (maybe full screen would fix these things, but most people will view your site in the browser window):

http://img593.imageshack.us/img593/8283/screenshotm.png

http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/3880/screenshot1hf.png

[honestfool84]

balli, what's your screen size? i tried the site out on a 13" monitor, and i didn't have that problem...

and thanks, glad you like it! :D

[PM5K]

I don't exactly remember your original site, but I remember it being better than this.

[balli]

balli, what's your screen size? i tried the site out on a 13" monitor, and i didn't have that problem...

and thanks, glad you like it! :D

13" 1024x768

I don't know. I'm running some third party graphics tool on Linux and my display probably isn't configured none too well. Probably a problem on my end, but yeah, there it was.

[King]

Awesome work. I love your lighting. Which park did you shoot the senior photos at?

[baseline bum]

Slick website, but the cursor that changes from a crosshair to a horizontal bar and back doesn't have very smooth animation. Perhaps it's a Flash bug though, as I'm using Firefox on Ubuntu Linux 10.04 32-bit with Adobe's Flash Plugin, and Adobe's plugins have been lousy for Linux.

If you're testing, full details are:

Firefox 3.6.12 using Adobe Flash Plugin
Linux Kernel 2.6.32-25
Ubuntu 10.04 32-bit

[balli]

FWIW, I briefly checked out your site on my phone. Didn't poke around in any of the sub menus so it might be there, but it would be cool if there was a link to the full site. I hate mobile sites. I guess it was designed for flashless iphone, but android heads like me would use a full site link.

[honestfool84]

I don't exactly remember your original site, but I remember it being better than this.

here (http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_HxkzvIx_vzQ/S7f-2c5fwZI/AAAAAAAAAWk/q3FZodwGL-g/s1600/Picture+2.png) is a screenshot of my old site... you really like it better than this one? i am in love with this site...

[honestfool84]

Awesome work. I love your lighting. Which park did you shoot the senior photos at?

thanks! the senior photos are actually taken all over San Antonio.. not one specific park.


Slick website, but the cursor that changes from a crosshair to a horizontal bar and back doesn't have very smooth animation. Perhaps it's a Flash bug though, as I'm using Firefox on Ubuntu Linux 10.04 32-bit with Adobe's Flash Plugin, and Adobe's plugins have been lousy for Linux.

i've actually never tested this site on a Linux computer... that sucks to know that, though.


FWIW, I briefly checked out your site on my phone. Didn't poke around in any of the sub menus so it might be there, but it would be cool if there was a link to the full site. I hate mobile sites. I guess it was designed for flashless iphone, but android heads like me would use a full site link.

actually, the full flash site can be seen on an Android site... if you have mobile sites turned off in your browser settings. i don't have an iPhone.. and i hate the iPhone version of the site. i am planning on changing it, soon... not sure how to override the mobile version...

[King]

thanks! the senior photos are actually taken all over San Antonio.. not one specific park.
.

I was looking at your blog and the most recent two, you said something about it was taken at a park you love, near your studio. Sorry I wasn't more specific. Looks like a great setting, though.

[honestfool84]

I was looking at your blog and the most recent two, you said something about it was taken at a park you love, near your studio. Sorry I wasn't more specific. Looks like a great setting, though.

oh, Friedrich Wilderness Park, across the street from the Dominion.

[PakiDan]

Pretty cool site. Obviously sleek. I've always liked your work too. In two seconds though I noticed some mechanical stuff that was wrong (maybe full screen would fix these things, but most people will view your site in the browser window):

http://img593.imageshack.us/img593/8283/screenshotm.png

http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/3880/screenshot1hf.png

Haha... no cross browser testing.... that little problem wouldn't have happened had you gone with my company!

[Creepn]

Do you have to use that upskirt picture for your homepage? Might give off the impression that you are into some kind of artsy fartsy softcore porn pictures or something.

Your website as a whole is good though. I like.

[honestfool84]

Haha... no cross browser testing.... that little problem wouldn't have happened had you gone with my company!

it's been tested on so many browsers.. that's why i'm curious at this. and i didn't remember that you worked on websites!

how much would have that site cost me with you?

[honestfool84]

Do you have to use that upskirt picture for your homepage? Might give off the impression that you are into some kind of artsy fartsy softcore porn pictures or something.

Your website as a whole is good though. I like.

ughh. the "upskirt" picture wasn't intended to be an "upskirt" picture.. everyone tells me that, but that wasn't my intention.

i have it as my homepage because that image just happens to grab the most attention, IMHO.

[Creepn]

I definitely like your pictues though, I'm going to bookmark your page. I wanna take some pictures right now while I have my youth and with different beard styles.

I don't smile though, don't pressure me to smile.

[JMarkJohns]

Looks great on my 15" laptop screen. Love the thumbnail feature.

[TDMVPDPOY]

have you ever thought about expanding ur business into other areas like calender shoots, bikini shoots, or instead of taking wedding photos, how about providing the who photos and video recording of the wedding and providing a band or karaoke system...

[Sisk]

I don't smile though, don't pressure me to smile.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3201/3014771572_2862b4c37e.jpg



I like the website. Your work is also really good.. helps to have some good looking women (high school seniors - either way) on there too tbh

[Slomo]

Pretty cool site. Obviously sleek. I've always liked your work too. In two seconds though I noticed some mechanical stuff that was wrong (maybe full screen would fix these things, but most people will view your site in the browser window):

http://img593.imageshack.us/img593/8283/screenshotm.png

http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/3880/screenshot1hf.png

Same issue here.

It's not a cross browser problem (just FYI I use FF).

My browser is always a window on my desktop (full resolution 1920x1200) and the browser is roughly half the width when the overlap of the nav buttons and phone data happens. If I stretch the window of my browser wider or go full screen, the problem disappears.

It's just an error in the dynamic resizing/positioning (i.e. when the window is too narrow they should go into two lines and not overlap - like if you look at the links in the banner of Spurstalk and keep on make the browser window narrower).

Talk to the designer, he should be able to fix it.

[honestfool84]

Slomo, can you send me a screenshot, please? this should NOT be happening... especially on a 1920x1200 browser...

thanks. i want to send something to the designer.

[Slomo]

Sure

Here's how it usually looks on my PC. As I said I always have th ebrowser in a window about half my desktop (as in the picture). If I make the window larger or go full screen the problem obviously go away. But even at half the desktop size there's enough room to avoid the issue - just a minor tweak really.

http://www.cikava.com/gallery/albums/dump/desktop.jpg

[CuckingFunt]

The way you've separated your portfolio seems odd, to me.

"Portable Art" is unclear and feels like a made-up term. I would find a way to describe that style of your work more simply.

Additionally, the division of your portfolio into "Commercial" and "Senior Portraits" is a strange choice, since all of your work is in fact commercial. Were it my website, I would keep the senior portrait section separate, since that's clearly where you're looking to most directly advertise prices and services, but I would replace the "Commercial" heading with "Portfolio," and then title the sections within according to their contents. Maybe differentiating between studio and non-studio work, since I think that's what your "portable art" is getting at.

[PakiDan]

it's been tested on so many browsers.. that's why i'm curious at this. and i didn't remember that you worked on websites!

how much would have that site cost me with you?

It's all good bro. Actually, I don't do a whole lot of web marketing lately. We are about to release our first brain interface video game in late December. FYI I would have done it for a few hundred and some trade. :) -- but it looks nice bro!

[mouse]

Slomo is that folder on your browser for Lighthouse 3?

[Slomo]

www.lighthouse-tech.com

[honestfool84]

Looks great on my 15" laptop screen. Love the thumbnail feature.

thanks! the thumbnail feature was one of my favorites, too. glad you liked it, JMarkJohns! :tu


have you ever thought about expanding ur business into other areas like calender shoots, bikini shoots, or instead of taking wedding photos, how about providing the who photos and video recording of the wedding and providing a band or karaoke system...

no, i haven't really, no. right now i'm really trying to push senior portraits... at least for the next couple of years. my commercial stuff, i want to show off to a few ad agencies and see what becomes of that, but i think in the end what i end up settling and doing is opening up a wedding venue and shooting weddings. i do that a lot already (shoot weddings), but i don't push it much... that's why there isn't a link to my wedding portfolio.


Sure

Here's how it usually looks on my PC. As I said I always have th ebrowser in a window about half my desktop (as in the picture). If I make the window larger or go full screen the problem obviously go away. But even at half the desktop size there's enough room to avoid the issue - just a minor tweak really.


i moved the navigation bar over to the left, next to the full screen button... that problem shouldn't occur, anymore. i figure most resolutions are going towards 1280x1024 nowadays anyway, and it looks fine enough there.. where the links don't run into the logo up on top.


The way you've separated your portfolio seems odd, to me.

"Portable Art" is unclear and feels like a made-up term. I would find a way to describe that style of your work more simply.

Additionally, the division of your portfolio into "Commercial" and "Senior Portraits" is a strange choice, since all of your work is in fact commercial. Were it my website, I would keep the senior portrait section separate, since that's clearly where you're looking to most directly advertise prices and services, but I would replace the "Commercial" heading with "Portfolio," and then title the sections within according to their contents. Maybe differentiating between studio and non-studio work, since I think that's what your "portable art" is getting at.

the term "Portable Art" is in fact a made-up term... those pictures are actually all taken with my phone.. and i just wanted to show that i can take a somewhat OK image with my phone without having to have a $3000 camera with me, trying to showcase what little creativity that i have. haha. maybe i should change the name to "Mobile Art" instead.

in the photography world, the term "Commercial" is used for advertising photography, and that sort of work.. stuff that a Nike photographer or Gatorade photographer would do.

technically, yes, senior portraits are commercial.. but i do want to differentiate between the two. the reason the "Portable Art" section is grouped in the Portfolio section, is because i want to showcase those two specifically to an ad director, or ad agency.. and they can completely skip over the senior portraits section.

ideally (and eventually) i'll have separate websites... one for weddings, one for commercial (advertising) work, and another for senior portraits, for as long as i do that.


It's all good bro. Actually, I don't do a whole lot of web marketing lately. We are about to release our first brain interface video game in late December. FYI I would have done it for a few hundred and some trade. :) -- but it looks nice bro!

well, i'm disappointed i didn't give you a call, then! i am happy with this site, though. there are a few kinks, sure, but it was just launched last week... so i'm hoping to clear all these up soon enough. thanks!

[Bukefal]

Looks good :toast

[PM5K]

I just don't see how it's much better than what you had before. It's basically the same thing for the most part except some shits been moved around. Also the problem CF mentioned didn't even exist on your first website. I guess I just figure if you're paying for something it should be a lot better than what you did for free, but it's not.

[Venti Quattro]

I like your index photo.

[mouse]

www.lighthouse-tech.com

I thought it was lighthouse 3 some lady wants help using it i have no clue.
dude have you tried the windows 7 theme for XP its cool.
also you should tryout this Firefox theme.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/11396/

http://www.techbucket.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Oskar.png


honestfool84 did you ever click on any of those links for contract jobs I posted in your other topic?

[fraga]

I don't exactly remember your original site, but I remember it being better than this.

Yeah I faintly remember you fiddling around with a site on your own...I actually thought you were making it better and better...this looks pretty much like I remember...hope you didn't lose too much money on this "Professional" site...

[honestfool84]

honestfool84 did you ever click on any of those links for contract jobs I posted in your other topic?

they were expired links when i click on them... or expired postings (when i clicked on them back then). i didn't know what they ever where.. you did say photographer gigs, though.

[honestfool84]

Yeah I faintly remember you fiddling around with a site on your own...I actually thought you were making it better and better...this looks pretty much like I remember...hope you didn't lose too much money on this "Professional" site...


it's not the look that i paid for, though that is a part of it. it's the entire back end, where i can upload to clients, and deliver the final products to them. that, more so.

[PM5K]

I know a local photographer that has a really nice light box on his site. You can click on the thumbs and the photos pop up, but you can also click on other photos and bring more than one up, you can move them around and everything, it's very nice.

[PM5K]

it's not the look that i paid for, though that is a part of it. it's the entire back end, where i can upload to clients, and deliver the final products to them. that, more so.

I guess. Keeping that in mind, it's just not that great to me but if very minimalist is your looks, I guess it works.

[honestfool84]

I know a local photographer that has a really nice light box on his site. You can click on the thumbs and the photos pop up, but you can also click on other photos and bring more than one up, you can move them around and everything, it's very nice.


I guess. Keeping that in mind, it's just not that great to me but if very minimalist is your looks, I guess it works.


simplistic and minimalist is definitely what i was going for here... i don't like when there is a learning curve on websites.

[PM5K]

I don't know that it's about a learning curve, it's just too simple.

I don't think it's a perfect site, I could probably make a few suggestions, but the light boxes are fantastic, and I don't normally like them.

WinfieldLittle (http://winfieldlittle.com/)

[honestfool84]

I don't know that it's about a learning curve, it's just too simple.

I don't think it's a perfect site, I could probably make a few suggestions, but the light boxes are fantastic, and I don't normally like them.

WinfieldLittle (http://winfieldlittle.com/)


well, just out of curiosity, what are some suggestions? that's why i'm here, actually..


and what a small world - i work with Winfield.

[PM5K]

well, just out of curiosity, what are some suggestions? that's why i'm here, actually..


and what a small world - i work with Winfield.

Suggestions? Make it more like Winfields, lol.

[mouse]

they were expired links when i click on them... or expired postings (when i clicked on them back then). i didn't know what they ever where.. you did say photographer gigs, though.


Dude every time i go to craigslist i see photographer jobs!

http://sanantonio.craigslist.org/med/2044341078.html

[JoeChalupa]

Nice pics. :tu

[lefty]

So I finally had my site professional done... instead of being cheap and making it myself. Anyways, it's that time again! I always appreciate the honest (and blunt) critiques I get here... so once again I am submitting my website for your critiques.

This websites does not work well for slow internet connections, I will tell you this. If you have a 56K connection, don't bother... I figured most people have at least DSL, so it shouldn't be a problem for most. Each image is about 185K, just a heads up.

Oh, and if you have a large monitor, check it out full screen. That is my favorite option, by far!

And here is my new site: http://davidteran.com/

Comments and critiques are appreciated... on the website, and even on the photography!

Thanks! :toast

How much did they charge you?

[honestfool84]

How much did they charge you?

a few hundred, and $17/mo for hosting fees.

[stretch]

wow this sucks ass

[stretch]

a few hundred, and $17/mo for hosting fees.

waste of money for your blow-ass site

[honestfool84]

waste of money for your blow-ass site


:tu

[lefty]

a few hundred, and $17/mo for hosting fees.
Thanks

[honestfool84]

Thanks

why do you ask?

[lefty]

why do you ask?
Cuz I want one too

[mouse]

Female In Need of Photographer

http://sanantonio.craigslist.org/crg/2061572806.html

[mouse]

Affordable Photographer Needed (San Antonio)

http://sanantonio.craigslist.org/evg/2057878610.html


Hiring-Creative Photographer-Prefer w/ Studio! (San Antonio)

http://sanantonio.craigslist.org/crg/2057645426.html

[honestfool84]

two of the links wanted TFCD... which = free. I'm not really interested in building up my portfolio anymore.

the last one, I'll give him an email.

thanks, mouse!

[nkdlunch]

yup looks like softcore pornsite judging by homepage.

and the girl looks underage :wow

[honestfool84]

yup looks like softcore pornsite judging by homepage.

and the girl looks underage :wow

i can't tell if you're kidding or not... and she's 19 years old in that picture.

[CuckingFunt]

the term "Portable Art" is in fact a made-up term... those pictures are actually all taken with my phone.. and i just wanted to show that i can take a somewhat OK image with my phone without having to have a $3000 camera with me, trying to showcase what little creativity that i have. haha. maybe i should change the name to "Mobile Art" instead.

in the photography world, the term "Commercial" is used for advertising photography, and that sort of work.. stuff that a Nike photographer or Gatorade photographer would do.

technically, yes, senior portraits are commercial.. but i do want to differentiate between the two. the reason the "Portable Art" section is grouped in the Portfolio section, is because i want to showcase those two specifically to an ad director, or ad agency.. and they can completely skip over the senior portraits section.

ideally (and eventually) i'll have separate websites... one for weddings, one for commercial (advertising) work, and another for senior portraits, for as long as i do that.

Keep it the way it is if you're happy, but I still think it's a confusing way to separate your sections.

As a photographer, I personally would not list any portion of my portfolio as "commercial" unless it contained images that had actually been used commercially. There are distinct styles that are often used in commercial and advertising images, but "commercial" is not an aesthetic style in and of itself. Additionally, your portfolio should advertise your talents and your diversity, not tell people how/where each image is supposed to be used.

"Portable art" is still confusing. "Mobile art" would be equally so. Calling your own work art can be tricky, for one thing. For reasons similar to the problem with calling your own work commercial. Just let the work speak for itself. Also, the title implies that the work itself is portable, which makes not an ounce of sense.

Again, were it my website, I would keep everything related to the senior portraits the way it is. It makes sense that you would want to keep that part separate, and it's easy as a viewer to understand why that section includes its own portfolio. For the rest, however, I would change "Commercial," "Portfolio," and "Portable Art" to "Portfolio," "Studio," and "Non-Studio" respectively.

[Shelly]

I like your pictures and it's nice that you're open to criticism so you can improve. Good luck to you and I hope you get your website exactly how you want it.

[honestfool84]

I like your pictures and it's nice that you're open to criticism so you can improve. Good luck to you and I hope you get your website exactly how you want it.


thank you, i appreciate that. :toast

[honestfool84]

Keep it the way it is if you're happy, but I still think it's a confusing way to separate your sections.

As a photographer, I personally would not list any portion of my portfolio as "commercial" unless it contained images that had actually been used commercially. There are distinct styles that are often used in commercial and advertising images, but "commercial" is not an aesthetic style in and of itself. Additionally, your portfolio should advertise your talents and your diversity, not tell people how/where each image is supposed to be used.

"Portable art" is still confusing. "Mobile art" would be equally so. Calling your own work art can be tricky, for one thing. For reasons similar to the problem with calling your own work commercial. Just let the work speak for itself. Also, the title implies that the work itself is portable, which makes not an ounce of sense.

Again, were it my website, I would keep everything related to the senior portraits the way it is. It makes sense that you would want to keep that part separate, and it's easy as a viewer to understand why that section includes its own portfolio. For the rest, however, I would change "Commercial," "Portfolio," and "Portable Art" to "Portfolio," "Studio," and "Non-Studio" respectively.


i never really liked the name "Portable Art" much, anyways... so i did go ahead and change that to "Phone Art". as for the names "Studio" and "Non-Studio"; all my work is shot on location, in other words, not at a "studio"... and the "non-studio" section is purposefully meant to showcase my pictures from my phone. i see your point about the terms "Studio and Non-Studio", but i think i want to offer a phone section.


i do appreciate your comments, though. and i am actually changing the title from "Commercial" to "Portfolio", and then changing "Portfolio" to "Portraiture"