website questions

RubyGloom · Jan 1, 2012

I have herd over and over again to pick a specific area of photography and do that. I have decided to mainly focus on boudior, glamour and fitness. So my 2 questions are 1) should I ONLY do this type or is it ok to take some family portraits etc. once in a while? and 2) on my website should I only put up those types of photos or should I post a variety of my work? Also I am not taking paid shoots, I am taking business courses and will not be opeing a studio for a while but am working on a website.

Thanks

MLeeK · Jan 1, 2012

At this point you are building a portfolio site that is personal. Put everything you want on it! When it becomes business then narrow it down to only what you want to shoot professionally.

tirediron · Jan 1, 2012

If you only want to shoot one or two specific areas, then concentrate only on those, but IMO, especially as someone new to the industry, you're better off to explore, try a bit of everything and show off your work. You never know what will catch someone's eye. I once booked a full-on formal church wedding on the strength of my travel photos!

RubyGloom · Jan 1, 2012

tirediron said:
If you only want to shoot one or two specific areas, then concentrate only on those, but IMO, especially as someone new to the industry, you're better off to explore, try a bit of everything and show off your work. You never know what will catch someone's eye. I once booked a full-on formal church wedding on the strength of my travel photos!

Thanks for the advice, I was kind of wanting to do that but was advised not too but I think I am just going to do it.

MLeeK · Jan 1, 2012

When you are in business you want to define yourself and your style. It may only be a very specific thing such as boudoir or sports or... I happen to have a sports only website. It doesn't include any portrait or wedding work at all.
I also have a website for portraits and weddings-not any sports. I do not mix the two different styles/areas at all. Someone who is looking for a portrait isn't going to want to see my sports stuff and the same goes for a sports team who isn't going to want wedding and high end portrait photography.

However when you are starting out don't limit yourself at all. You THINK that you are going to specialize in those certain things, but you never know either. You may discover a love for something completely different. I NEVER set out to be a sports photographer. It accidentally happened and now it's a good chunk of my income.
As you go into business you'll clean up and change your website to reflect the direction you are going and you will want to make sure it's focused on the customers it is supposed to attract. Until then? Don't limit! You will learn and grow so much more from trying EVERYTHING out.

RubyGloom · Jan 2, 2012

MLeeK said:
When you are in business you want to define yourself and your style. It may only be a very specific thing such as boudoir or sports or... I happen to have a sports only website. It doesn't include any portrait or wedding work at all.
I also have a website for portraits and weddings-not any sports. I do not mix the two different styles/areas at all. Someone who is looking for a portrait isn't going to want to see my sports stuff and the same goes for a sports team who isn't going to want wedding and high end portrait photography.

However when you are starting out don't limit yourself at all. You THINK that you are going to specialize in those certain things, but you never know either. You may discover a love for something completely different. I NEVER set out to be a sports photographer. It accidentally happened and now it's a good chunk of my income.
As you go into business you'll clean up and change your website to reflect the direction you are going and you will want to make sure it's focused on the customers it is supposed to attract. Until then? Don't limit! You will learn and grow so much more from trying EVERYTHING out.

Thanks for the advice! I am definitely not going to limit myself.

olivia4919 · Jan 4, 2012

If you're unsure of what to post on your website, you can use this one as an example:

Home - Photography 101

ManhattanShutterBug · Jan 4, 2012

olivia4919 said:
If you're unsure of what to post on your website, you can use this one as an example:

Home - Photography 101

I don't see how that would help the OP in what she is asking......

Anyways I agree with the others, showcase everything you may change your mind.

tom_anderson18 · Jan 4, 2012

I'm kind of thinking the same thing at the moment, I have just recently designed my own portfolio site it currently isn't an active site still messing around with a few things but I am thinking until I get better or use it as a business I can't see any reason behind not posting any picture I think people will like to see or that showcases what I'm capable of.

peterbuzzrain · Jan 15, 2012

My suggestion is that you create a website for each specific niche. It makes your website more relevant to your target audience and therefore it can attract more visitors and generate more leads. Targeted is very important on the internet.

Also, it's easy to create websites so there's no problem about creating as many you need for each niche.

Buzzrain - Websites For Photographers That Want More Clients