Setting up a website

ShoeQueen · 10 Oct 2011

I want to set up a website but am not sure how to go about it...

I have a friend who can help but I need to know the basics to be able to talk to him about what I might need.

I know is I need a domain name and email addresses - yes?

And hosting - how much hosting would I be likely to need?

I want an introduction page, and a few other pages linking to different types of photography and showing samples, a blog, a prices and info page (and also would maybe like to be able to show password protected client galleries).

Does that sound about right?

Any good links in explaining the basics of websites. If I get a basic one up and running I could refine it or change it couldn't I?

neil_g · 10 Oct 2011

if youre expecting low traffic then a bog standard pack should do you.. see "lite":

http://www.tsohost.co.uk/linux_webhosting.php

you can upgrade it easily if you find youre out of space or bandwidth.

then factor in another £10 roughly a year for a .com AND .co.uk address.

if you dont know anything about making a webpage it would probably be best to get a graphical webpage package (free are available) and should be easy to create and amend.

ShoeQueen · 10 Oct 2011

neil_g said:
if youre expecting low traffic then a bog standard pack should do you.. see "lite":

http://www.tsohost.co.uk/linux_webhosting.php

you can upgrade it easily if you find youre out of space or bandwidth.

then factor in another £10 roughly a year for a .com AND .co.uk address.

if you dont know anything about making a webpage it would probably be best to get a graphical webpage package (free are available) and should be easy to create and amend.

Thanks.

My friend has made a few websites and he'll be doing that part, I just feel very confused by it all and need to get my head round it to be able to talk to him about it. I'd also like to learn about it so I could maintain it myself if needed.

Eg if I want a blog, do I use a different package for that or link to something (I've heard people mention Wordpress?).

neil_g · 10 Oct 2011

you can install wordpress into your website or link to it, i link to it at the moment.

ShoeQueen · 10 Oct 2011

Thanks Neil.

mark1616 · 10 Oct 2011

I would honestly consider a professional package if you are looking to show off your work to its fullest. There are people who can design sites but not many who can do justice to the needs of a photographer. That being the case, I use Zenfolio as it does everything, galleries, slideshows, password protected areas, sales of photos etc etc. Might be worth checking out (there is a free trial) and I find it cheaper than using someone for design..... best bit is it just works and you can fiddle as much as you like.

Feel free to look around my site, most galleries are password protected though.

ShoeQueen · 10 Oct 2011

Thanks Mark, I'll look into that.

ShoeQueen · 11 Oct 2011

OK - can I run through this to make sure I've understood...

- I get a domain name from somewhere (eg 123reg - or are there other places? I also want an email address)

- I then buy hosting and can design my pages with Zenfolio?
(Would the Unlimited be good enough to start with?)

That sounds rather straightforward, is it really as easy as that? If so I could have a basic webpage set up myself in a few days?

(Sorry I know these are really basic questions, feel free to chuckle at me being a dumb blonde as you reply...!)

KMPhoto · 11 Oct 2011

ShoeQueen said:
OK - can I run through this to make sure I've understood...

- I get a domain name from somewhere (eg 123reg - or are there other places? I also want an email address)

Yes, get your domain name - my preference is HeartInternet as I've heard of problems with 123REG but no doubt there are problems with every company.

- I then buy hosting and can design my pages with Zenfolio?
(Would the Unlimited be good enough to start with?)

Yes, the unlimited seems very good to begin with as it allows you to use your own domain name.

That sounds rather straightforward, is it really as easy as that? If so I could have a basic webpage set up myself in a few days?

Yes, it's pretty easy. When you register your domain name, you will then go into the control panel and point the address to the info given you by Zenfolio for hosting.

EDIT: I'd give the Zenfolio trial a run for a couple of weeks to see if it does what you need.

mark1616 · 11 Oct 2011

For internet hosting I use GoDaddy, they are a very good price and the support has always been fantastic. I'm not all that clever with websites etc so they helped me through everything, they are happy to answer stupid questions so can't fault them. I used to use Fasthosts and their service is no where here as good.

jennyb · 11 Oct 2011

ShoeQueen said:
OK - can I run through this to make sure I've understood...

- I then buy hosting and can design my pages with Zenfolio?
(Would the Unlimited be good enough to start with?)

I have not used Zenfolio, so I may be wrong, but I understood that they host your site. So you would not need to buy separate hosting.

Jenny

mark1616 · 11 Oct 2011

jennyb said:
I have not used Zenfolio, so I may be wrong, but I understood that they host your site. So you would not need to buy separate hosting.

Jenny

That's correct, I just keep some hosting for putting up other bits and bobs in the background. For example if I want to put a video file up for a customer to download, I don't want to do that through zenfolio but still want it to be at the same looking web address.

ShoeQueen · 11 Oct 2011

Quoth said:
Yes, get your domain name - my preference is HeartInternet as I've heard of problems with 123REG but no doubt there are problems with every company.

Thanks Kevin, not heard of them, will look into that. (Or ask my friend who was going to help me who he usually uses, then he's still helping me.)

Quoth said:
Yes, it's pretty easy. When you register your domain name, you will then go into the control panel and point the address to the info given you by Zenfolio for hosting.

EDIT: I'd give the Zenfolio trial a run for a couple of weeks to see if it does what you need.

It seems straightforward enough even for me to try.

At the moment I just have a Flickr page and a Facebook page which is fine as I'm not a pro... but I'm getting asked to do stuff (and people are starting to ask do I have a website), so I want something that will fill that gap, and if I do start doing some p/t paid work I want something I could grow a bit.

jennyb said:
I have not used Zenfolio, so I may be wrong, but I understood that they host your site. So you would not need to buy separate hosting.

Thanks Jenny, yes that's what I thought - both hosting and pages both with Zenfolio, but I didn't phrase it very well.

mark1616 said:
That's correct, I just keep some hosting for putting up other bits and bobs in the background. For example if I want to put a video file up for a customer to download, I don't want to do that through zenfolio but still want it to be at the same looking web address.

If I needed some extra hosting my friend could help me with that.

I think I'll give the trial a go and see how I get on with it.

ShoeQueen · 13 Oct 2011

ShoeQueen said:
That sounds rather straightforward, is it really as easy as that? If so I could have a basic webpage set up myself in a few days?

Not even a few days, more like a few hours.

Domain name registered and trial Zenfolio page set up. Really user friendly, I like it so far. Currently on the trial version but will decide in a week which package to go for.

This is just on the basis of about an hour's work so far to see how it all worked.

Thanks for the help!

mark1616 · 13 Oct 2011

Glad you got it up and running. It has to be simple otherwise I couldn't use it

KMPhoto · 13 Oct 2011

Nicely done!

ShoeQueen · 13 Oct 2011

Thanks guys! Great as a simple page to start off with, but lots of features I can add in as I go along.

Thanks Mark for pointing me in the direction of a hosting site that even I can use, its made what seemed a confusing task much easier!