I’m happy to announce the release of our 4th design, TriBeCa.

(click to make bigger)

(click to make bigger)

Here are the major features I think you’ll enjoy:

• Images advance quickly as a low res fpo loads first then the original image snaps into place (this is optional).
• All galleries are represented by a thumbnail image for quick viewing.
• The Menu is hidden but appears when you mouse-over the top menu bar.
• The Thumbnails load in the background and are hidden until you chose to view them with the mouse navigation or the text/icon link.
• All the features along the bottom navigation bar can be customized (insert your own labels, use icons, text or both).
• As with our other sites you have full control over the colors, fonts, logo, galleries, categories, pages, video, border widths, image size, number of images, number of galleries…
• *bonus: when clients head for the url box in their browser to visit another site the menu drops down for one last chance to check out more work*

Here are two demo sites I’ve setup:

http://robhaggart.com/

http://72.32.9.12/~demo4/

Here are photographers already using the new design:

matthoyle.com
scottfrances.com
garrettgrove.com
johndeckerphotography.com
paulpark.com
ricklohre.com
robertbenson.com
jamesweberstudio.com
allensullivan.com
gregfosterphoto.com
michaelsebastian.com

If you have any questions send me an email:

rob@aphotofolio.com

I hope you enjoy our latest design. I think it’s fantastic.

UPDATE: I need to add this to the main website but until then I’m bumping this post.

This has been a long time coming but I think you will agree it was well worth the wait. We didn’t just create some video feature as an afterthought we fully incorporated video into the design. In fact I’m so excited about how it turned out I think Directors of Photography and Video Artists will want use it for a portfolio. I don’t think there’s anything out there like it.

Here’s a brief overview of the features:

1. Videos are added in the admin just like photos.


2. All videos are stored in the video bank where each one can have a unique thumbnail.


3. Video categories and then galleries are created just like with photos.


4. As many videos as you like can be added to each gallery and deciding the order they play is as easy as drag and drop.

5. Supported video formats are mp4, m4v, mov and flv.

6. Videos in Design 2 and 3 are capable of resizing to fit the browser window just like the images.


Ok, check it out for yourself on these sites already using video:

http://www.ryanschude.com/#/Bunny%20Suits/bunnysuits/1
http://www.cutraro.com/#/+Motion
http://jamesweberstudio.com/#/Behind%20the%20Scenes/Behind%20the%20Scenes/1
http://antoninkratochvil.com/ (select multimedia)

Some size tests in the three designs can be found here:
Design 3 - Brooklyn Bridge
Design 2 - Manhattan
Design 1 - Brooklyn

APhotoFolio.com Website Comparison Sheet (All Sites)

Onetime cost: $1000 (that’s it, nothing extra to buy)
Recurring cost: $17/month

Bandwidth/Monthly Traffic: Virtually Unlimited
Storage Space: Virtually Unlimited

Image Size: Unlimited for all designs except Design 1 which is fixed at 878×585
Number of Images Per Portfolio: Unlimited
Number of Image Portfolios: Unlimited
Number of Pages: Unlimited
Number of Images I Can Upload At Once: Unlimited
Number of Links on the menu: Unlimited
Number of Links on the pages: Unlimited

Video: Yes
Video Size: Unlimited
Number of Videos: Unlimited

Blog: Yes, installed with your site

Deep Linking: Yes (clients can email a link to individual images)

Google Analytics: Yes (paste the code in the admin stats box and you’re good to go)

HTML Mirror Site For SEO: Yes
IPhone Mirror Site: Yes
Mobile Mirror Site: Yes (for blackberry and palm phones)

Image Captions: Yes, unlimited
Can I Combine Two Singles Into A Spread: Yes

Email Addresses: 50
Email Storage: 7.3 GB per address
Spam Protection: Yes, via google apps (the most powerful there is)

FTP access for sending client files: yes
FTP access for building client lightboxes: yes

Password protect or hide galleries for clients: yes, unlimited

Can I upload and position my logo on my own: yes
Can I change all the colors on the site on my own: yes
Can I change the fonts on my own: yes
Can I add text and pictures to the pages whenever I want: yes
Can I move galleries and pictures around and rename stuff whenever I want: yes, yes, yes

Can I have a slideshow on the opening page: yes
Can I have a flash opener: yes
Can I have an html opener with links to other sites including the fullscreen version: yes

How long does it take to launch a site: 2 hours to 1 day depending on how decisive you are

Can I switch designs: yes, once for free and for $100 thereafter (we will have at least 3 new designs a year)
Will all my images, galleries and pages stay intact if I switch designs: yes

PDF download of galleries: no (it IS possible to create a PDF for clients to download from the menu)
Music: no
Slideshows in individual galleries: no

Do you put a link on all the templates like “created by APhotoFolio.com,” so viewers know I’m using a template: no

Email me if you have any questions- Rob

We’re working hard on the next design. Hope to have it out at the end of the month but I don’t want to set an official date because the debugging always takes longer than we expect. I will keep you posted.

I’m always amazed at the many ways photographers find to design their site using the settings we give them. I’m constantly adding more control to the settings of the websites and I worry that it’s overwhelming for people, but when I see a site like this I know it’s the right move:
http://www.sanganphotography.com

I’ve just updated the video of our admin control panel to include most of the new features we’ve released recently. I thought if you were checking out the sites it might be helpful to see. Narrated by yours truly:

http://aphotofolio.com/admin-video/

If you like our designs but can’t decide which one go ahead and sign up then switch for free if the one you picked isn’t working for you. This doesn’t go against the free switch we give you once your site is live.

Things just keep getting better over here at A Photo Folio. We’re just now releasing a couple major upgrades to the admin control panel to make managing your images a little easier.

I never want to put any restrictions on how our photographers use the websites, but when we realized some people were loading 1000 and even 2000 images into the image bank it started to get pretty messy in there so we decided to find a solution.

Introducing folders for organizing your image bank:

-

Then we realized that most people have huge screens now and part of the beauty behind Designs 2 and 3 is that the images will expand to accommodate any size screen, so why can’t the admin do the same.

Voila, introducing the liquid layout for the image bank:

(click for large view)

and also liquid galleries:

Now that’s spectacular.

Here are some sites using our latest design for you to check out:

http://alexandreweinberger.com/
http://stacymehrfar.com/
http://keenpress.com/
http://patrickandrade.com
http://ricardofunari.com
http://calindustries.com

We’re working hard to get the video added by the end of the month. It might take untill early January for all the sites to have it (Design 3 will be first) but I guarantee you will love how easy it’s going to be to use and how seemlessly it will fit within your design.