Looking for Website Software Recommendations

Susanmcg · 01-14-2022, 06:22 PM

Hello,
I need to re-develop my website. I've used html to date to create my own site. I would like to create something more professional. I would appreciate any recommendations as to some good software specifically for managing photo websites. I have pretty good technical skills but I don't want to do too much coding. (working in the IT field for about 100 years...).

Apologies if I've posted this on the wrong forum.

Thanks, Susan

The Squirrel Mafia · 01-14-2022, 07:45 PM - **1 Like**

I've used Drupal in the past.

Drupal - Open Source CMS | Drupal.org

Joomla too.

https://www.joomla.org/

They're open source & free.

**AggieDad** · 01-14-2022, 09:02 PM

Wordpress (purported to be the most popular website software) comes in free (Wordpress.org) version and a hosted version (Wordpress.com). Plenty of themes and support.

Hosted sites include include Wix, Weebly, SquareSpace, and Pixpa (my site – see sig).

Hope this helps.

**UncleVanya** · 01-14-2022, 09:19 PM

Wordpress, joomla, and drupal all make sense. The hosted options above also work. My wife uses Wordpress and she’s far from technical.

Kiwizinho · 01-14-2022, 10:05 PM

If you have an Adobe Photography subscription for Photoshop and Lightroom, they toss in Adobe Portfolio that you can use to create your own portfolio sites as part of the plan. I think you can have up to 6 sites.
It doesn't give you as much control as writing your own code, but you don't need to worry about additional hosting costs, as the Adobe subscription covers it.
Wordpress is good if you want pre-packaged themes, and want to get up and going quickly, but if you want to get your hands dirty with some code, and build your own theme, there are alternatives that are easier to work with from a coding perspective.
I personally use a system called ProcessWire that I love for it's flexibility, but then I write code. My experience is that people who don't have much coding experience prefer Wordpress as it's really easy to get up and going, but those who want full control, and the ability to build their own site layout prefer ProcessWire, as it's less opinionated than Wordpress, and coding your own templates is pretty simple, but if you don't want to write any code at all to get a website up and running, then Wordpress is far easier to use.
I built a whole competition management and membership system for my camera club in ProcessWire, so I guess I'm biased. It's really good for data management, which is what I needed more than a blog.
Of course if you want to customise things, you'll need to pay for hosting, even if the platform is free.

house · 01-15-2022, 04:22 AM

I recommend looking at static site generators unless you want a lot of interaction for the users. Static means a lot faster and the HTML is usually a lot cleaner that WordPress /drupal mess.

Its hard to know which would be most suitable.

damianc · 01-15-2022, 04:52 AM

Content management systems like Drupal, Joomla and Wordpress make a lot of sense. After initially building the site you can concentrate on content rather than code. They all offer easy additional functionality through the use of plugins. Personally I found Joomla difficult to use, I built a couple of sites with Drupal but it's very hands on. My preference in later years has been for wordpress.

**UncleVanya** · 01-15-2022, 06:06 AM

Originally posted by damianc

Content management systems like Drupal, Joomla and Wordpress make a lot of sense. After initially building the site you can concentrate on content rather than code. They all offer easy additional functionality through the use of plugins. Personally I found Joomla difficult to use, I built a couple of sites with Drupal but it's very hands on. My preference in later years has been for wordpress.

I will actually agree with that assessment but my experience with them is a several years old.

house · 01-15-2022, 06:32 AM

Static Site CMS with GUI to generate a fast SEO-friendly website
Is static, contemporary and comes with a local GUI. I've only tested briefly but it seems to work well.

https://gohugo.io
Is another one but that requires a bit more hands on approach.

**ProfessorBuzz** · 01-15-2022, 06:52 AM

Any particular wordpress themes you'd recommend for a photographer? TIme for me to redo my stuff.

**acoufap** · 01-15-2022, 08:09 AM

Originally posted by The Squirrel Mafia

I've used Drupal in the past.

Drupal - Open Source CMS | Drupal.org

Joomla too.

Joomla Content Management System (CMS) - try it! It's free!

They're open source & free.

I use Contao. Also a CMS and Open Source.

The problem is that you have to build up substantial know how about a CMS like drupal, contao etc. to build a good site. IMO nothing for people who never developed / programmed software or that have no sustantial idea how such systems work.

If you like to go that way I‘d recommend having a closer look at Contao. IMO it‘s very well structured, supports plugins - all you need.

Kombivan · 01-15-2022, 08:23 AM

Originally posted by Susanmcg

Hello,
I need to re-develop my website. I've used html to date to create my own site. I would like to create something more professional. I would appreciate any recommendations as to some good software specifically for managing photo websites. I have pretty good technical skills but I don't want to do too much coding. (working in the IT field for about 100 years...).

Apologies if I've posted this on the wrong forum.

Thanks, Susan

BS RetroCSS v5.0

Susanmcg · 01-15-2022, 09:14 AM

Thanks to everyone for your great feedback on website recommendations. I wish that my co-workers would respond like that to my emails..

01-14-2022, 06:22 PM	#1
Susanmcg Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 46	Looking for Website Software Recommendations Hello, I need to re-develop my website. I've used html to date to create my own site. I would like to create something more professional. I would appreciate any recommendations as to some good software specifically for managing photo websites. I have pretty good technical skills but I don't want to do too much coding. (working in the IT field for about 100 years...). Apologies if I've posted this on the wrong forum. Thanks, Susan

01-15-2022, 08:09 AM	#11
acoufap Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Munich, Germany Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 4,190	Originally posted by The Squirrel Mafia I've used Drupal in the past. Drupal - Open Source CMS \| Drupal.org Joomla too. Joomla Content Management System (CMS) - try it! It's free! They're open source & free. I use Contao. Also a CMS and Open Source. The problem is that you have to build up substantial know how about a CMS like drupal, contao etc. to build a good site. IMO nothing for people who never developed / programmed software or that have no sustantial idea how such systems work. If you like to go that way I‘d recommend having a closer look at Contao. IMO it‘s very well structured, supports plugins - all you need. Last edited by acoufap; 01-15-2022 at 08:16 AM.

01-15-2022, 09:14 AM	#13
Susanmcg Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 46 Original Poster	Thanks for the recommendations Thanks to everyone for your great feedback on website recommendations. I wish that my co-workers would respond like that to my emails..

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01-14-2022, 07:45 PM - 1 Like	#2
The Squirrel Mafia Pentaxian Join Date: Jan 2015 Posts: 3,056	I've used Drupal in the past. Drupal - Open Source CMS \| Drupal.org Joomla too. https://www.joomla.org/ They're open source & free.

01-14-2022, 09:02 PM	#3
AggieDad Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Houston, TX Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,455	Wordpress (purported to be the most popular website software) comes in free (Wordpress.org) version and a hosted version (Wordpress.com). Plenty of themes and support. Hosted sites include include Wix, Weebly, SquareSpace, and Pixpa (my site – see sig). Hope this helps.

01-14-2022, 09:19 PM	#4
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,445	Wordpress, joomla, and drupal all make sense. The hosted options above also work. My wife uses Wordpress and she’s far from technical.

01-14-2022, 10:05 PM	#5
Kiwizinho Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Blenheim Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,295	If you have an Adobe Photography subscription for Photoshop and Lightroom, they toss in Adobe Portfolio that you can use to create your own portfolio sites as part of the plan. I think you can have up to 6 sites. It doesn't give you as much control as writing your own code, but you don't need to worry about additional hosting costs, as the Adobe subscription covers it. Wordpress is good if you want pre-packaged themes, and want to get up and going quickly, but if you want to get your hands dirty with some code, and build your own theme, there are alternatives that are easier to work with from a coding perspective. I personally use a system called ProcessWire that I love for it's flexibility, but then I write code. My experience is that people who don't have much coding experience prefer Wordpress as it's really easy to get up and going, but those who want full control, and the ability to build their own site layout prefer ProcessWire, as it's less opinionated than Wordpress, and coding your own templates is pretty simple, but if you don't want to write any code at all to get a website up and running, then Wordpress is far easier to use. I built a whole competition management and membership system for my camera club in ProcessWire, so I guess I'm biased. It's really good for data management, which is what I needed more than a blog. Of course if you want to customise things, you'll need to pay for hosting, even if the platform is free.

01-15-2022, 04:22 AM	#6
house Pentaxian Join Date: May 2015 Photos: Albums Posts: 3,306	I recommend looking at static site generators unless you want a lot of interaction for the users. Static means a lot faster and the HTML is usually a lot cleaner that WordPress /drupal mess. Its hard to know which would be most suitable.

01-15-2022, 04:52 AM	#7
damianc Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Highlands of Scotland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 360	Content management systems like Drupal, Joomla and Wordpress make a lot of sense. After initially building the site you can concentrate on content rather than code. They all offer easy additional functionality through the use of plugins. Personally I found Joomla difficult to use, I built a couple of sites with Drupal but it's very hands on. My preference in later years has been for wordpress.

01-15-2022, 06:06 AM	#8
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,445	Originally posted by damianc Content management systems like Drupal, Joomla and Wordpress make a lot of sense. After initially building the site you can concentrate on content rather than code. They all offer easy additional functionality through the use of plugins. Personally I found Joomla difficult to use, I built a couple of sites with Drupal but it's very hands on. My preference in later years has been for wordpress. I will actually agree with that assessment but my experience with them is a several years old.

01-15-2022, 06:32 AM	#9
house Pentaxian Join Date: May 2015 Photos: Albums Posts: 3,306	Static Site CMS with GUI to generate a fast SEO-friendly website Is static, contemporary and comes with a local GUI. I've only tested briefly but it seems to work well. https://gohugo.io Is another one but that requires a bit more hands on approach.

01-15-2022, 06:52 AM	#10
ProfessorBuzz Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2018 Posts: 1,903	Any particular wordpress themes you'd recommend for a photographer? TIme for me to redo my stuff.

01-15-2022, 08:23 AM	#12
Kombivan Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2017 Photos: Gallery Posts: 576	Originally posted by Susanmcg Hello, I need to re-develop my website. I've used html to date to create my own site. I would like to create something more professional. I would appreciate any recommendations as to some good software specifically for managing photo websites. I have pretty good technical skills but I don't want to do too much coding. (working in the IT field for about 100 years...). Apologies if I've posted this on the wrong forum. Thanks, Susan BS RetroCSS v5.0