Many photographers have asked me which service I use to produce my web sites. I spent many years working in the tech industry and have a bit of a web development background, so in short, I developed this site myself.
The links that are included below are for products that I have actually used in the past or do use now. Clicking through and signing up or making a purchase also supports the site.
Details:
This site is built on WordPress. It’s the easiest to use Content Management System out there today, if you want to be in control of every aspect of your site and have control over the the size of your site and number of images that you can upload. Otherwise you can use a portfolio site like Zenfolio, Squarespace, Wix, or Weebly.
Also, with WordPress there are many possibilities for expanding your web site with plugins – like BuddyPress for Communities, Groups, and Forums. I’ve used that on many of my sites to create a Community all about cultural travel. Join us there if you like, it’ free!
There are two types of WordPress hosting:
WordPress.com is hosted by WordPress, and depending on your hosting plan, it can be quite limited regarding which plugins you can use or how much content you can add.
WordPress.org is what you get when you “self-host” your own WordPress install in your web hosting account. The possibilities here are only limited by your technical ability and the limitations of WordPress itself.
Hosting:
There are any number of web hosting services out there. I currently use A2 Hosting, which I am happy with. In the past I have used Dreamhost, which I have mixed feelings about as they got to be very expensive once my web site became large and trafficked, but if your intention is making a smaller portfolio site, they have an easy to use Control Panel, auto-installs of WordPress, and it works well.
Image Software:
On any normal content web site, using the WordPress Media Library is fine, but if you are wanting to sell your images or make them available for download, an image organization plugin is a better option. I use NextGenPro. While NextGenPro is a bit bloated, it does offer every option possible for organizing images – tagging, watermarking, captioning, displaying, etc. – into galleries and albums, as well as selling both downloadable images and prints.
I used Adobe Photoshop to edit the images. I edit all images with the Camera Raw Filter.
Look And Feel:
Otherwise known as the WordPress Theme. You may have guessed by now that I’m using an Imagely WordPress Photography Theme. I’ve built all of the ARTIST-AT-LARGE sites on their Iconic Theme. My fine art site uses the Simplicity Theme.
Consulting And Web Development:
I do develop and build web sites for other creatives and businesses. If you like what I’ve done with this site, maybe I could set something up for you. Everything from small site edits to creating the web site to coaching and WordPress tutoring are in my wheelhouse. Use the Contact form to get in touch.
Kimberly Kradel
Photographer and Publisher of ARTIST-AT-LARGE