I suppose I might as well just rip off the bandaid: I’m retiring the website and design portion of my business. Twelve years ago I set out to become a photographer. I launched a website, took on a zillion portfolio building sessions, obsessively stalked photographers I admired in order to figure out how they did it, and I took a LOT of photos. I did my ten thousand hours - and then easily ten thousand more. Over the years my business has brought me more joy, connection, and creativity then I ever could have imagined way back then. I’ve photographed countless families and a few weddings, mento ..read more

Squarespace Website Reveal Photographer & Filmmaker Amy Madson Project Overview Which template/package did you book? I choose the Canyon Template, and booked a Branding+Basic Refresh package. Why did you want a new website?My previous site was unfinished, out of date, and needed branding. I really loved the fact that Kate is a photographer and designer who understands our client base, and she took the answers to the questionnaire to really tailor my site to fit my market and who I am as an artist. How did you feel before your new website was in place?I felt a little overwhelmed at first, b ..read more

With website and design packages in a range of prices out there, not all designers are created equal. These are the questions you should ask before making your decision. DO YOU SPECIALIZE IN A SPECIFIC INDUSTRY? When someone specializes in one area, it means they’re confident in not just building a generic website, but in building one that is industry specific and likely proven to convert visitors. This, along with my background as a photographer, is why I’ve chosen to work exclusively with those in the photography industry. I don’t just build pretty websites; I build websites that work. HOW ..read more

Here we are, at the last post of this series! I am so proud of you for doing the hard work and sticking with me to the end. For this last lesson, I want to leave you with some encouragement. I’ve given you tools that will help make self-critique work better for you, but no amount of tools or support will completely make the self-doubt you feel go away. The hard truth of any artistic or passion-based pursuit is that self-doubt will always be there. But instead of letting it get the best of you, think of it as a gift. I know, I know - it feels like anything but a gift. But so much of this game ..read more

Template spotlight Amy Drucker Photography + The Granite Template Tell me about yourself and your business.I am a lifestyle photographer based in New York's Hudson Valley. I work with families, brands and individuals to create authentic images that tell unique stories.  Which template did you purchase?  Granite for Squarespace 7.0 Why did you choose that template?  I wanted to create a site that was responsive and organized. I have a lot of information on my site with a variety of portfolios and I was looking for help pulling them together in a cohesive and user-friendly design ..read more

One of the steepest learning curves when it comes to designing a website on Squarespace is understanding how the styles work - especially if you’re switching from a Wordpress-based website editor. But with a few quick hacks, you’ll find that that learning curve will “click” quicker and the beauty of the Squarespace style editor will suddenly make SO much more sense. The first thing to understand with the Squarespace style editor is that it applies everywhere - so if you update the color for heading three on one page, for example, it updates the color for heading three everywhere. Which at fir ..read more

Template spotlight Claire Westaway Photography + The Canyon Template Which template did you purchase? The Canyon Template Why did you choose that template?It felt like a website I would want to scroll through as a customer. And it felt like it would look super professional and slick whilst still looking like 'me' and like a next step from where it was before. Why did you want a new (or updated) website?I've been conscious of how little time I've put into my website (and SEO) compared with how much time I put into social media (which doesn't actually bring that many enquiries for me). I w ..read more

It’s not often that one image stands alone. Usually it becomes part of a bigger whole - a series of images in a portfolio, delivered to a client, curated into a social media feed or submitted as part of an application, etc. An important part of self-critique is also the ability to see images as part of a series, and understand the things that can make the story, flow, connection, or continuity stronger. It also works well as the culmination of everything we’ve talked about these last few weeks. Each genre and specific type of photographer is going to have different needs when it comes to cura ..read more

I’ve had a photography website since 2009. I originally started out with ProPhoto 2 and stuck with them through version 7. I tried Flothemes for a while, as well as some stand-alone WordPress themes, before finally trying Squarespace for the first time in 2017. At first, I honestly hated it. I knew my way around ProPhoto and WordPress and was always pretty skeptical of Squarespace. I thought all the websites looked the same, and I’d heard not great things about the SEO… but eventually, it was a friend-turned-client who REALLY wanted a Squarespace website… but also REALLY wanted me to design i ..read more

Squarespace Template for Photographers Template Spotlight: Ana Backhaus Photography Ana’s previous Squarespace website was clunky, hard to navigate, and woefully inadequate at showing off her amazing documentary family photography. After booking me for a website audit, we identified a clear, consistent strategy she could use, and she also decided to purchase my Granite Squarespace Template for Photographers. The template allowed her to start from such a better place, and it was just a matter of replacing the demo content with her own, tweaking the navigation slightly to better reflect her spec ..read more