Need Feedback on site and Photo Shoot

[jkbogart]

I'm just starting out, and I'm still getting things together, but I was wondering if anyone could give me feedback on my website and my first photo shoot located on there. It would be greatly appreciated. Http://www.juliabogart.smugmug.com

 

[PinkDoor]

Welcome - and good luck to you - remember that criticism is not always kind. Editing is not consistent, posing is off, crops are too tight, they seem under exposed, and over saturated. You should try shooting from alternate angels (high/low), and focus on posing. The set up seems a bit odd, and recommendation would be to move your subjects a bit farther away from they background. Their candid expressions are great, and that's not something that is easily learned (getting your client to relax and have fun), so bravo there.

 

[Light Guru]

After seeing two photos that had water marks so big that the watermark clearly became the subject of the entire image I left. Your water mark is WAY to big and VARY distracting?

 

[Big Mike]

Welcome to the forum.

If you want feedback on your website, that is one thing. And if you want feedback on your images, that is a separate thing. Trying to do both at once isn't the best option.
For one thing, most people won't bother to go off the site, just to view someone's images. If you want critique on your photos, try posting them directly on the forum, a few at a time.

I've had a look at the website. It looks OK, but I don't think it functions & flows nicely.
For example, the home page doesn't have links for contact or info, just Home, Browse & Search.

I had to click on Browse, then on an image labelled 'Pages', before I could find a way to contact you. If you are using your website to get potential clients to contact you, your contact info should be very easy to get to.

And once I did get that that page, there was weird formatting on the information and it wasn't all that clear.

Call for
an
outside
and
chosen
venue
appointments
today!

Overall, I think the site needs more images & galleries. I know that we all have to start somewhere, but all that I saw was one photo shoot and a couple nature photos. It's not really clear what you are doing or offering. Is the website just for showing off your photos? Are you offering portrait photography? Are you selling nature photos?
Who are you and where do you operate? If someone from Christchurch, New Zealand found your site, would they be able to book you for their holiday photos?

And I do agree with the previous comment about the watermark. It's too big and distracting. I get that you want to protect your images, we all do, but considering that there are billions of photos on the internet, it's probably not worth ruining your images to prevent theft.

 

[amolitor]

The photos of the older couple all seem to be a little soft, and the white balance is all over the place. Some of them are warm yellowish/orangy tones, and then the next one along will be cool blueish tones. I don't really care if you get the white balance "right" but making it consistent from one shot to the next definitely enhances the feeling of professionalism in a portfolio. Your processing is also a little odd, the first two pictures are identical, except the first is vignetted and the second one seems to have an inverse vignette?

The photographs of Stuff Out There (leaves, flowers, bricks) are also mostly kind of soft, although the roses are pretty sharp.

I think you have a bit of an eye here, I like some of the emotion you got from the older couple, and I like a couple of the pictures of bricks and leaves. You're suffering from some serious technical problems, though. Luckily, technical problems are easy to fix. That's just learning a few more details, and practicing a bit.

The site itself seems to be OK. Light on content, but I assume you're just starting out. The galleries worked ok.

Big Mike's point about the formatting occurred for me as well.


ETA: Pick another photo for your front page, one that's sharp. And, don't forget contact information and location information.