Thoughts on SmugMug

[AMD Profile Private message]

Hi,

I am wondering if many of the forum members use or have used SmugMug basically as their Web site. I am thinking of subscribing to the Pro level and using it to showcase not only images for family and friends but also short video clips of shows for clients. I know that one shortcoming is the fact that videos can only be a maximum of 10 minutes and 600 MB.

Any thoughts or experiences would be appreciated.

Ann

[debngar Profile Private message]

SMUGMUG is one way to do what you want.

I chose to do my own site with a blog using Wordpress. You can also do anything with a blog that you can do with a website of sorts and have full control over your content without allowing a company use of your files. Always check terms of use because companies like Facebook like to use their users' content for advertisements and junk. It's pain to have to find the place to "opt out" of those things in those websites.

Having your own site requires a small fee for your domain name and web space via a hosting company but you don't have the hassles of those kinds of "terms of use".

By having your own site, you can upload your shows however you wish and are only limited by the space you pay for to store your files and videos of course.

I have a link to my Photodex site in my blog, links to flash photo gallery portfolios made within Lightroom and can also insert links to Producer flash slide shows if I wanted to. I have a couple of flash shows loaded on my server but they aren't linked in my blog since they're for private viewing only.

[AMD Profile Private message]

Thanks, Debbie, for the info.

I have been playing around with the 14-day free trial Pro level of SmugMug; love the interface and photo galleries as well as the looks of the video but am limited to 10 minutes and 600MB.

I have been looking at the possibility of a blog or regular Web site but don't really know where to start. I have a family Web site that I developed with Dreamweaver and which is hosted free through my Comcast account. I really wanted to get something a bit more substantial, a bit professional, and with a good domain name. I have thought also about a blog and then subscribing to the paid level of Vimeo for imbedding my slide shows for clients, family, and friends since they don't have a length maximum (they do have a limit of 5 GB per week upload, which is more than adequate). Did you get started through WordPress or did you go to a hosting site first? Just curious about exactly how to get started.

Ann

[debngar Profile Private message]

I started with a free Wordpress blog. Later I chose and purchased my domain name and server space through GoDaddy in preperation to hosting my blog so I could customize it.

It's complicated to explain how to do all that here and will take you a while to figure out all the steps. But if you start with a freebie Wordpress blog, the eventual transfer to hosing your own isn't too bad. I use a purchased template which makes changes easier and I don't need to know CSS coding. I chose a 1 column blog. Depending on your needs, you may want something that looks completely different from my blog.

Start here to get a free blog:
http://wordpress.com/

There are some limitations though which you'll find as you get more familiar with this stuff. In order to customize things more, you'll then want to host your own blog.

When you get your domain and web space, you install Wordpress software to your hosted web space through Godaddy.

Go to Wordpress.org and look over that site. There is a ton of info, forum, templates, plug-ins and widgets. Pick a template that fits your need either from the Wordpress.org site or google for others online. Coding CSS isn't necessary since there are so many templates out there to get you started and add-on plug-ins and widgets to add to your blog site.

Good luck. It takes time and effort to get it up and running. But once you get it going, it's not too hard to maintain. You can add and change things pretty easily yourself without some web designer to do it for you.

[Mike Conley]

Don't know if you saw this thread on the same topic. I use Smugmug as my primary website including show clips.

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=12755#p104461

Mike

[AMD Profile Private message]

Thanks, Debbie and Mike, for the information.

Mike, I did look at your SmugMug site and really liked it--really clean and professional-looking. I have been trying SmugMug's Pro trial and absolutely love everything about it except the size of the videos that can be uploaded. I can live with the 10-minute limit, but I prefer the maximum size to be larger; 600 MB is just simply not large enough for my purposes. One simple slide show that I had done had no videos except for my branding at the end--which does use two. It was over a Gig. I also am trying Phanfare. I like most things about it--especially the fact that the videos can be up to 2 GB, but they are not the nice full-screen versions that SmugMug has--not bad--but not full-screen. Both SmugMug and Phanfare have a 10-minute limit on length--the same as YouTube. I may end up using Phanfare for family images and video, but most family members seem to be savy enough to access YouTube and Photodex for the video. I do have a home Web site hosted by my Internet provider which can take care of the still images for family but the small size of my flash uploads is disappointing.

Debbie, I did go to WordPress and now have a blog up. At present it is mostly text with some links to YouTube and some of my work. I thought I might follow your lead and live with it for a bit and then get a domain and a host to make it my business Web site. I have had some prospective clients who immediately ask if I have a Web site from which they can easily view some of my work, so I do need something to reference and also to put on a business card. Even though I can give them my channel on YouTube or send an invitation to view Photodex, a lot of people don't seem to "have a clue" and aren't very adventuresome regarding cyberspace things.

Again, thanks for the response from both of you; your info has been extremely helpful.

Ann

[nwenban Profile Private message]

Hi Ann,

If you want an example of a pro blog, here's the one from the "Best Job in the World" competition.
http://www.islandreefjob.com.au/
Plenty of embedded vids & graphics. Maybe give you some ideas for what you may require?

Neville

PS
The 6 month job included $150K, 5 star island apartment, & all expenses paid experiencing the Aust Great Barrier Reef's 600 islands & other Qld attractions & now he is advertising for helpers!!

[Mike Conley]

I can live with the 10-minute limit, but I prefer the maximum size to be larger; 600 MB is just simply not large enough for my purposes. One simple slide show that I had done had no videos except for my branding at the end--which does use two. It was over a Gig.
Ann

Hello Ann,
Not sure if it makes a difference but I convert my files to MPEG2 720X480 before uploading. A 15 minute show comes in around 500MB. I don't use the site for clients to proof a show so the smaller clips I upload are used for example purposes only. I assume most people will not watch a full show so I find the clips work well just to project a sense of what their show might look like.

Good Luck!

Mike