Do-it-yourself tips

So what can I do myself?

For the basic package you can save yourself lots of basic costs if you can do some of the things yourself. There is a charge for processing images as well as setting up of domain names and creating a hosting account. You may incur these costs again when it comes to updates, so it may be worth learning these techniques as they can be used for other purposes as well. So I'm going to explain some of the basics here. More advanced tips and techniques can be found in my blog.

Here is a list of contents. They are all on this page. Click on the links to take you directly to that part of the page. I will add more tips if you request them. And do get in touch if anything is unclear and help me to update the tips section.

Image Editing and Processing

In the basic template, all the images used are the same size. They are in .jpg format and they also have a very low file size so that they load faster even for people with slow connection speeds. They are also composed using a technique called the "Rule of Thirds."

So first I'll explain why they have these characteristics and then show you how to do it. You will need some sort of image editing software such as Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Fireworks in order to do the processing.

I have put all the images in the right hand column and 200 x 324 px fits in there nicely in a portrait orientation. The ratio also conforms to the Golden Ratio or Golden Section.

Create a new file in your image editor and set the canvas size to 200 x 324 pixels. Make sure that it is pixels and not inches or centimetres. Use the import command and navigate to the folder where you have your photo and select it. Change your view settings down to 12% or lower and then using the scale tool to reduce the size of the photo to the canvas size or just a bit bigger. Increase the view to 100% again. Move the picture around your canvas until you have framed it as you would like. Move it up and down or left to right. That's it!

You can do the next two steps at this point. Before you export your newly created image you have to check the export or optimise settings, depending on which software you are using. Set the file type to .jpg. You can use .gif, but with photos the final final size will end up being a bit bigger than with .jpg to get the same quality of image. You can also use .png but not all browsers will deal with it properly. So go for .jpg as it will be accessible to a wider audience. Try the higher and lower quality settings and you should end up with an output file size that is just under 10kb but without looking blurry or fuzzy. You could use other tools in your software in order to play with the brightness and contrast or the sharpness.

The next part isn't really necessary, but is included in the image processing fee. It's a little bit more in depth and if you want to have a go then I'm going to refer you a detailed article in my blog.

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Taking good photos

If you want the best quality photos on your site then of course the obvious way is to hire a photographer to take them. But how can you do it yourself? Just because you have a new digital camera doesn't mean that your photos will come out looking professional. So here are a few basic tips.

A few simple tips that will greatly improve your photos. If you can, ask another yoga teacher or student to take the photos as they will have an idea of what you are looking for. The basic template only has six photos, so you don't have a big job on your hands. It is better to take lots so you many to choose from. Make a list of postures you'd like to use, and a close up for the "About Me" page. If you haven't done a yoga photoshoot before, it's hard work so be ready for that. You'll be holding those poses for ages!

Use a tripod. Even with fast shutter speeds, there can be camera shake, and you could have missed your best shot. Get a half decent tripod on ebay and then sell it again or borrow one. The same with the camera.

A plain background will show you off much better than a busy background or a pattern or strong colour. You'll end up becoming part of the background and won't stand out so much. A plain light coloured wall is always good.

If you've been in a photographers studio you'll have seen all the fancy lighting. That's all to get a more natural effect. And of course the easiest way to do that is to do it outdoors. If it's bright and sunny it's better to wait till the late afternoon. When it's really bright, you'll end up with glare and shadows.

Clean the lens. Sometimes those grainy effects come from a dirty lens. A soft cloth and a wipe and suddenly your pictures look a lot cleaner. Easy, but always forgotten. Now you'll be able to get that shot in focus.

You may not need to focus as your camera has auto focus, but they will improve if you switch to manual. If that means spending hours reading the manual, then perhaps give it a miss. Usually all you have to do is to hold down the button half way until the image is sharp before you take the photo, ie press it all the way down.

I've mentioned this already, but it's worth mentioning again. Posing for yoga photos is hard work. It's like going to some kind of advanced workshop. Take time to do some warm ups and then go through your list of poses. Think about what you'd like to wear and have a few alternatives ready. Take a spare camera battery as well as they discharge pretty fast. A packed lunch and you're all set. Happy shooting.

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Domain Name Selection

Part of the process of creating a website is registering a domain name. First you have to think of a name. The domain name is the main way in which the search engines look for you on the internet, so it's good to choose one that describes you accurately. It should also be one that is easy to type and remember. You should also think of a second choice in case your original choice has been taken. The easiest is your name and what you do. My name is Arup and I do web design, hence arupdesigns. It's easy to remember and easy to type and describes clearly what I do.

Suesmithyoga.co.uk serves the same purpose. It say that my name is Sue Smith and that I do yoga. Or janejonesmassage.co.uk. Again very clear. Avoid sanskrit names or anything peculiar to you.

How much is it and how do you get one? Easy, from any domain name supplier or registrar and it's around £10.00 for a year for a .co.uk domain. You then get a user name and password and a certificate as well. I will charge a fee to do this, but of course if you do it yourself then you will save yourself some money. With the custom package it is included in the price. Or if you buy it from the company below by clicking on the following link, then again there is no charge for the domain name set–up.

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Opening a Hosting Account

Your webpages have to "live" somewhere where they can be accessed 24 hours a day by typing your domain name into the address bar of a browser. Or by clicking on a link that points to your domain. Where they live is called your web host. You can think of it like a hotel that is open 24 hours a day and is open to visitors. But you have have to pay for that hotel room and some hotels are better than others.

The average price for a good hosting package is about £35.00 for a year, including VAT. There are cheaper hosts but they tend to go bust before you know it or their customer support is pretty bad. Their "uptime" may not be what they promised and you may find that your potential customers can't see your site. So it's worth going for something a little above the cheapest you can find. All my hosting is done with the company below and if you set up an account with them then there is no extra charge for setting up the account.

If you are given a choice of Windows or Linux then go for Linux on Apache. I also use ".htaccess files" which are for the Apache server. Linux servers are also usually cheaper to run so it would work out cheaper for you too.

Setting up the account is easy. You just click on the link below, which lets them know that you've come from here and fill in the form on their page for setting up a new account. The basic plan will probably be enough unless you want to pool your resources with another teacher or therapist and split the costs between you.

You will get a further discount if you register the domain and create a hosting account at the same time. But that means that they will own the rights to the domain. What does that mean? It means that if you want to move your domain and your website to another host, you can't. With a reputable host like this one that shouldn't be a problem, but something worth thinking about.

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Writing Content

Writing for the screen is an art in itself, but by following a few simple rules it should be a lot clearer. Before I look at writing, let's take a look at reading. How do you read web pages? Do you read or do you scan and try to pick out the best bits? Have a look at this article about web reading if you want a more indepth study.

Even though you may spend hours thinking about your wording and phrasing, people won't read the whole thing. They will skim read and try and find exactly what they need to know. So again I say, how do you read when you read web pages. How would you like them to be?

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