A few months back I was able to re-connect with a college friend, Jessica Higgins on Facebook.  I saw that she was starting to take her photography more serious and was looking to branch out. She already had a blogspot site, but I assumed that she might want something more professional. I shot her a message and we began discussing the idea of building a website for her.

After designing the logo (see details here) I started designing the website. My first layout was based on a wordpress blog that would highlight a few recent photo shoots. Jess didn’t want it to look so “blogg-y”. I then opted to keep it simple and design a clean website that would keep the focus on her photography. A white website with a single row of buttons that would be broken up by a centered logo would work perfectly.

The photo galleries were based on another site that Jess had seen before. She was able to find a free photo-viewer. Building it as an XML-based Flash gallery also gave her the opportunity to update her galleries when she wants to.

As I said, her previous site was a blog, so I wanted to add an area where she could post new photos and allow viewers to comment. I modified WordPress’ “default” theme so that it matched up with the rest of the site. (Update: When updating to the newest WordPress, it appears that she had some problems with the theme.)

For the home page, I wanted something that would grab the viewer’s attention. A crisp collage showcasing Jess’ specialties would work perfectly. I usually like to design using bold colors and shapes, but this project allowed me to try something far from my comfort zone.

Click on the website image above or here to visit SialiaPhotography.com