Already? Yes, already.
I built this site in the spring of 2012. Here in December (actually, it launched in November, but tempus, it fugits), I’ve rebuilt it.
Why, you might ask? (God knows I was asking at some points.)
Because I fell prey to some designer-hubris – I’ve got a million ideas and I want to implement them all, without stopping (or at least slowing) to figure out what worked and what was too much. Who has two thumbs and needs a good editor? This guy.
So, after the glow of creation wore off (it’s kind of a gamma-ray green that often results in HULK SMASH), I was able to see it for what it was – a somewhat disjointed mishmash. Some things worked, and some things didn’t – at least in their context.
Between life and, y’know, life – it took me some time to get back to it. But that also gave me time to figure out what I really wanted it to be able to do:
Show my photos, sell my photos, blog, and show graphic design work and published written pieces.
After some research, I went with a Photocrati Wordpress theme. I learned HTML and CSS for the first site, but if I’m going to be able to spend more time updating, I need to spend less time coding.
I had been working with SmugMug to sell prints. Nice people, but it’s not the easiest site to use in the world. I consider myself pretty tech-savvy – I swim in the Adobe Creative Suite all day long – but getting what I wanted done without hiring someone was not easy. Frustration led to wanting to spend less time on it. Counterproductive, to say the least.
I stripped off a lot of the geegaws and widgets - yes, the photo rollover trick is fun, but I don't need it on EVERYTHING - and got back to basics. Words. Photos. Speak for themselves.
Now it’s very much plug and play, which is great. It's easier to shop, it's easier to use and it's easier to add to. I’ve got a local lab lined up to make prints, and I’m off and running again.
Buckle up, buttercup.