Avoid the 5 most common Website design mistakes

There’s no doubt that a photographer’s most important marketing tool is their Website. Images may look better in a print portfolio, email blasts might reach more people and personal networking is still the best way to build relationships. But a Web site is a photographer’s chance to create a complete package for presenting their work, experience and personality to prospective clients.

Unfortunately, many photographers’ sites come up short in the area of usability. Too often, the desire to make a site look distinctive overwhelms the need to have it function as an effective marketing tool.

Here are 5 of the most common mistakes photographers make when designing their sites.

#1. Creating Flash files that load too slowly.
Flash has been a boon to Web designers because it gives them a degree of control over the look of a site that can’t be equaled using just HTML. But unless the Flash is created very efficiently and the design of the site is cleverly structured, the amount of time it takes for a site to load can feel excruciatingly long. No matter how great your images are or how beautiful your site might be, no one wants to watch a progress bar slowly inch along the screen. Put yourself in the shoes of a busy art director or photo editor.

It should take no longer than 5 seconds for a site to load at lower DSL speeds. (Remember that while many offices are connected to the Internet at ultra-high speeds, the connection is shared among dozens or even hundreds of simultaneous users. As a result, the connection at their desk is often slower than typical home DSL or cable speeds.) If it takes longer than 10 seconds to load your site, then redesign it. Now. Otherwise the visitor, your potential client, will already be annoyed with you before they even see your images. No fancy Web site design is worth that.

It’s possible to design your site so that it only partially loads at first and displays something meaningful while the rest of the site loads in the background. But this takes a certain level of sophistication on the part of the site designer and Flash programmer, and is therefore more costly to develop.



#2. Including too many images on the site.
What’s the purpose of your Web site? If it’s a stock site, or you’re selling prints, then quantity can be a good thing. (But not always, it depends on the selection of images and how they’re organized.) However, if you’re trying to get commercial or editorial assignments, less is more. You only get a limited amount of attention from each visitor. Even if they spend the time it takes to look at all of the images on your site, their ability to really absorb what they’re seeing begins to wane after a few minutes. It’s better to leave them wanting more than to bore them with a mind-numbing barrage of images.

Of course you don’t want to have so few images that a visitor doesn’t get a feel for your very best, most relevant work. Your site should contain at least 12 images, but never more than 40 unless you’re already well into a long and distinguished career.


If you feel compelled to have more images on your site, then clearly divide your site between your current portfolio and additional images that might be “greatest hits” from the past or a selection of pictures from a favorite project. These images might be of interest to some visitors but keeping them separate won’t bog down the experience of the busy photo editor or art buyer.


Keep in mind that any images on your site that aren’t your absolute finest dilute the perceived quality of even your best pictures.



#3. Using non-standard interface elements.
Having a site that’s distinctive is good. Having a site that’s difficult to navigate is terrible. The principles of good site architecture and navigation apply to everyone. Don’t force your site’s visitors to learn a new, non-standard interface. If they are busy professionals, they won’t bother. They’ll go elsewhere, to another site that’s has clear and intuitive navigation no matter how good your pictures might be.

Always have links to the home page and contact information clearly marked on every page. (Better yet, have your essential contact information such as phone and email address visible on every page.) Make it easy to navigate from section to section without having to go back to the home page. Don’t make triggers for links that are tiny or otherwise hard to see, and don’t have them move. Don’t use obscure or cryptic icons. Rollover text is fine for captions, sometimes, but never use rollovers for essential navigation. Playing hide and seek with navigation is not a way to endear yourself to potential clients.


Cleverness counts for nothing if it prevents people from seeing your work. The design of the site should never create a barrier for visitors who want to see your images, learn about you and find your contact information.



#4. Failing to include a sign-up area.
Anyone who takes the trouble to visit your site and look at your pictures is someone you want to keep in touch with. They’ve already expressed more interest in you and your work than 99.9% of other potential clients. You need to encourage these people to let you know who they are, and to give you permission to contact them.

The most effective way to do this is to have on the home page, or better yet every page, an area where they can enter their email address to keep in touch with you. There are many ways to phrase the call to action. It could be as simple as “Sign-up here to join my mailing list.” Or “To always see my latest work, sign-up here.” This is also a benefit to those who sign up. They like your work. Don’t make them go out of their way to hear from you


The email addresses you acquire this way are golden. They will be much more likely to result in assignments and stock or print sales than contacts acquired from almost any other source.



#5. Using thumbnails that are too small.
Thumbnails should allow someone to receive enough information about an image to decide if they want to take the time to see it larger. Many photographers are more concerned about cramming as many thumbnails as they can into a limited space than with actually making them useful. When looking at a thumbnail, if you can’t tell why it might be a compelling image the size of the thumbnail is too small.

Thumbnails that are large enough to be useful can act as a valuable navigation tool. If they are too small, they create a level of frustration in the visitor because they contain more information than can be conveyed in the small space. It also shows a subtle lack of respect for the images. If an image is scrunched down so small as to be indecipherable, it robs it of any meaning.


Thumbnails that act as links should never move. It’s fine if you want images, including thumbnails, to be animated and move across the page as long as it’s done well. But if the thumbnails are also navigation elements, even if they just link to a larger version of the same image, they should stay put. Don’t force your potential clients to chase an image across the screen.





The one common thread that runs through all these pitfalls is this: Respect your audience’s time and attention. Your site is very special to you but it’s only one of dozens that a typical art buyer or photo editor might visit each week. It’s good to stand out, but not at the expense of creating a frustrated or confused visitor. Aside from showing off your best work, you want to convey the message that you’re efficient and easy to work with. Your site should function that way as well.

Quick Tip
Hire Your Client To Test Your Site

The most common mistake photographers make when creating their Web sites is not in the design itself, but within the design process. Typically a photographer will work back and forth with a designer, the photographer communicating their vision and the designer trying to interpret it, often providing creative input of their own. When the site is at or near completion, the photographer might show it to a friend (often also a photographer) or maybe a family member for feedback.

What’s missing from this process is input from the intended audience of the site. Depending on the type of work the photographer does, it might be a photo editor, art buyer, creative director, gallery owner, curator or someone in corporate marketing. If you have a friend who has the appropriate professional role, offer them dinner or a good bottle of wine to spend time with your proposed site and give you feedback. Ask them to be thorough and frank. If you aren’t close to someone in the right position, then hire one of your clients on a freelance basis. Many will be glad to have the work and their feedback will be invaluable.

If the stakes are higher, as with a stock agency or rep, then include money in the budget for usability testing. There are dozen of large firms that perform these services and many more smaller ones. But also make sure to have the specific type of industry professionals you’re targeting provide input as well.

The best ways to make your site attractive and relevant to your target audience is to have them help you design it.

Jon Hornstein is Principal of Creative Touchpoint, a marketing services firm for photographers, reps and stock agencies. You can learn about Creative Touchpoint here. You can send Jon email at jon@creativetouchpoint.com.

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