Beta version web site - NEW 1-7-2010

[CaptainTom]

Still lots of things to work out, but we needed to put something out.
K.I.S.S.
Texas Boudoir Portraits

A work in progress..

[tomdrink]

Looking good!
Tom

[oats123]

While I like them all, the images towards the end of the slideshow seem to be the best. You might want to consider putting them in reverse order so the better ones aren't buried at the end.

[elliottmm]

I agree with Josh, the later pictures have a bit more pop of color.

The picture with the lady sitting in front of the mirror, you can see equipment in the reflection. Also, I think that the light blue color of the border on the outer background and slides could be darker. The contrast fights a little too much for me. Maybe try the darker blue in your logo. That's my two cents.

[syuan]

Nice work,Tom!

[CaptainTom]

I'd like to hear more from the female perspective since that will be 99% of our clientele.

We'll be exchanging photos as soon as we get some more.

[Hikin' Mike]

You might want change your title tag from 'Tom Thompson' to something that search engines will find....unless you think your prospective clients are going to search forr "Tom Thompson" to find Boudoir Photography. :)

[dryicerx]

Clean site. Just some quick thoughts.

• Possibly have the "About" "Services" etc always without having to click "click here for information". Navigating around takes for every since you need to click the button, wait for the rest of the buttons to load, you get the idea.
• Have some way to move back and forth the photos. This will make people who want to see the photos quickly run through them.
• Not a big fan of music on sites, but that's just a personal thing.

[Phaedra]

I love how your "About Us" recognizes the fact that Sexiness comes in all shapes and sizes. I would recommend putting your best photography FRONT AND CENTER on your site (which IMHO begins with the lovely brunette with the red corset and ends with that STUNNING black and white photo).

A boudoir party is such a great idea! When I was reading what it was all about, I was interrupted by the next advertisement, "Hostess Can Earn a Free Session". I would maybe pause the transition for a bit longer so visitors can get to the bottom of the Boudoir Party info.

If you had static images/filmstrip on your site the visitor could click on instead of cycling through a slide show (or maybe combine both!) it would generate a lot of visual interest.

I am no expert of course, nor do I pretend to be :) but wanted to respond to your "female perspective" request. Good luck with your site!!

[Cajungaltx]

Okay - def agree with the pp about the better images being later.

I realize that the 'idea' of everyone is beautiful is a good one - but when i go to your portfolio - I don't want to see saggy breasts - or skin damage - or anything that is less than 'model' perfect. UNLESS it's a before & after shot that shows me just how amazing you are as a photographer.

There are several in there that I would remove almost immediately simply because comparing them to the later images - isn't a fair comparison to the woman...or your work.

I don't like the 'required' scrolling - you need to give viewers te option to scroll through themselves. The links at the bottom need to be bigger...

Just my 2 cents. ;-)

[cfortner]

Tom, looks good! As far as design goes, I'd be leary of keeping your main menu hidden until the user clicks for more information. You'll be suprised how many people will close the page instead of clicking on that link.

Also when designing sites with Flash, keep in mind that unless you are embedding your Flash into HTML, your site is not likely Search Engine Friendly.

For example type your URL in to this spider viewer to see what the Search Engine Spiders will see when viewing your page:

Spider Viewer On Page Optimization

I've seen several ways to combat this issue, in this particular case I'd recommend creating a sitemap, that points to text only versions of your individual pages. Throw a few of your pics in there and don't forget to use ALT image tags, the search engines eat that up.

[CaptainTom]

We're changing hosting companies to accommodate the search engine friendliness.

[texxter]

Tom, I am not a designer, so take this for what it's worth. Also, these are comments from a male photographer, not a potential female client.

- As pointed out, the auto scrolling is not ideal. Manual scrolling is much better.
- I agree with reducing and reordering the images. I would stay away from before-after and the collages, to project a more polished image with only perfect images. More consistency.
- Showing color images over a black and white background image doesn't work for me. Perhaps this is not so noticeable if the color images are just a strip that you can scroll yourself.
- I would use a much more consistent and smaller set of fonts, I counted 6 or 7 fonts on your website.
- Don't care for the thick black or colored border around the images.

Comments on images - in general they are overlit - the more shadows, the more volume and shape. Also some of the poses are pretty unsexy, sorry to say.

#1 - dont like it, especially as a first image
#2 - ok, but not great, not erotic
#3 -not sure, looks more uncomfortable than sexy
#4 - not a very sexy pose and the collage looks weird, background very dominant
#5 -ok, but not boudour
#6 - ok, not very sexy
#7 - not sure, window is dominant
#8 - remove before image for consistency
#9 - ok
#10 - good
#11 - good
#12 - very good
#13 - excellent
#14 - nice

[dryicerx]

The new version looks good, but there are a few things.

In the new version, getting the menu is really Tedious (open menu -> enter -> then menu)... why not have all the links to various sections layed out already. From a usability standpoint, this really slows down a user from navigating to different sections.

[dmcantrell]

Take my comments with a grain of salt, as I am not a web designer -- just a web user.
Pros :
----
* The pricing is very clear and descriptive.

* The color scheme you've chosen (inside the flash portion) is pleasing, consistent, and current.

* The purpose of the website is unmistakable. I knew from the moment I opened it what the site was promoting.


Cons :
----
* I don't think it should be so hard to get to the "meat" of the site. There needs to be very clearly labeled links directly on the first page.

* Once I clicked on "Pricing", there is no direct way to get back to where I was without going through the menu mechanics again. It's just too difficult to navigate through the site.

* I don't really like some of the auto-scrolling images, esp the first one. Choose 3-5 of your absolute best ones and leave the rest to be browsed in a gallery at the user's discretion. Your hands-down best image needs to be first in the list.

* I like a simple, monotone background, but this could just be my own personal preference.