How Much Does It Cost Wix Art Store Prints
Best for
Portfolio Websites
Overall rating
What are the Pros and Cons of SmugMug?
Pros
- Beautifully-designed, mobile-responsive portfolio templates
- Quick and easy to get started – become your site live in under an hour
- Wide range of ecommerce options for selling your photos
Cons
- Fewer templates than rival website builders
- Customization tools aren't intuitive
- No costless SmugMug plan
Overview of SmugMug
"Ask any lensman the hole-and-corner of their success and they'll say 'a good heart'. Certain, photography is an art. But you won't get very far in this game without the right kit – and that includes an online portfolio."
Web designers don't come cheap, though. That'southward one reason so many snappers (presumably broke later spending all their money on camera gear) rely on social sites similar Flickr, Tumblr and even Instagram to brandish their wares. It'due south an easy solution, but information technology's non exactly pro.
That's where SmugMug comes in. This code-free website architect lets you create a web portfolio every bit as professional as a custom-made site, for a fraction of the cost. And with SmugMug, y'all're in control.
But is SmugMug the correct tool for you lot, and for your photography – whether your pics are for fun, or profit, or a bit of both?
Who is SmugMug Best For?
"SmugMug may have a light-headed proper noun, but it's serious about making your photos await fantastic."
Dissimilar market-leading website builders Wix and Weebly, SmugMug simply offers portfolio templates. Their layouts vary, merely they all utilise optimal settings to ensure your images load quickly and display beautifully.
That makes SmugMug a swell choice of website builder for anyone who wants to show and even sell their visual work online – including artists and designers as well as photographers.
Yous don't have to be a seller to use SmugMug, though. Many of my pro photographer friends utilize online portfolios as shop windows rather than shops, using their websites to tout for business and share client galleries. SmugMug would adjust them very well.
In fact, you don't even accept to think of yourself as a photographer. Information technology's so quick and easy to get started, you tin publish a SmugMug gallery of smartphone photos in minutes if you want.
However there's no gratuitous SmugMug plan after the free two-week trial, so there'southward not much point in using this website builder unless you're at to the lowest degree fairly serious about your photography.
Click hither to meet the full listing of SmugMug plans and prices, and hither to jump to our discussion well-nigh them.
How popular is SmugMug?
SmugMug is a private visitor (different its rival website architect, Wix), so it doesn't brand its user numbers public. "We don't go very explicit with this," SmugMug CEO Don MacAskill said. "But nosotros're pretty upfront that we take 'Millions of passionate customers, billions of happy photos'."
We'd bet our entire photo collection that SmugMug can't bear on Wix's user numbers, merely that's because information technology's a specialist service. Compared with other portfolio builders, SmugMug is doing fine.
Hither'southward how SmugMug's daily stats compare with other photograph hosting sites, according to data-gathering site HypeStat:
- Flickr : 997,500 daily unique visitors, 4 million daily folio views
- 500px : 183k visitors, 896.7k views
- SmugMug: 99.5k visitors, 591k views
- Zenfolio : 55.5k visitors, 275.5k views
- IM Creator : 30.1k visitors, 88.1k views
We've included Flickr as a point of reference, but SmugMug vs Flickr isn't actually a fair comparison. SmugMug is a portfolio builder, while Flickr is a community photo feed. Don't cull betwixt them – employ both. We'll show you how in a moment.
How Easy is SmugMug to Apply?
"Creating a SmugMug account is a breeze, and edifice your first gallery is almost as quick and easy – just the 'content blocks' can shortly plow into roadblocks."
The speed and ease of SmugMug's setup process filled me with conviction right off the bat.
You lot don't have to cull a template, upload photos, or hand over payment details when creating your SmugMug account. It's quicker than waiting for a loftier-street java.
It's also quicker than getting started with Wix or Squarespace. The departure is marginal, but I did find that SmugMug asked fewer questions during setup.
You lot're invited to cull a SmugMug URL (the text that goes earlier '.smugmug.com' in your spider web address) and say whether you programme to sell photos, just you lot can skip both decisions for now if you want.
Once yous've created your account, information technology's and so almost as quick to create your first gallery. If you've got a batch of photos yous need to get online correct now – whether it'south a pro wedding shoot or telephone snaps from last night's party – and then SmugMug lets y'all do it in a… snap.
Commencement, y'all need to get those photos into your new SmugMug business relationship. We're and then impressed past the range and efficiency of SmugMug's import options that we've devoted a whole department to them (stay tuned, it'south coming adjacent).
One time your photos are uploaded, all you demand to practise is publish. You don't have to hang effectually choosing a template if you're in a hurry.
Unlike the market place-leading website builder Wix, SmugMug has a default template that you lot can use to create a gallery almost instantly.
Now, the default template isn't perfect. Its profile/cover photo philharmonic looks just like Facebook, and you may non appreciate that if yous want to create a professional-looking gallery. Simply some of your visitors may similar its familiarity.
My main problem with the default template is that you take to fill the profile and cover photo boxes with photos that are the right shape, and that tin take some trial and error.
SmugMug, you see, uses a system of 'content blocks' that yous can't resize by dragging their edges. You can't reposition photos inside the blocks, either – which is why I couldn't move my cat's nose abroad from my name in the screenshot above.
If you're accustomed to the elevate-and-zoom freedom of photo-editing software, you lot may find SmugMug'south fixed blocks infuriating.
I'll have more than on blocks in the section on customization, where I'll reveal how to bend them to your will (sort of). They're not completely inflexible, only they're not intuitive, either.
If y'all strike it lucky when choosing photos to fit the default template, and information technology all looks great beginning time, then you can accept your first gallery published in minutes.
Can Yous Import from Flickr and Dropbox into Your SmugMug Photos?
"You've probably got photos online already. You may take spent years posting your all-time shots on Flickr, and sharing them in Dropbox – so information technology's bully that SmugMug lets y'all copy your pics straight from those accounts."
If yous already store and display your photos on the web (and we're happy to bet you lot do), then SmugMug's online import option can salvage you a lot of time and hassle.
This is the beginning of several means you lot tin add photos to your SmugMug account. By letting you import straight from online photo-hosting services, it bypasses the need to sort through photos on your computer showtime – or fifty-fifty store photos on your figurer at all.
Supported photograph-hosting services currently include Flickr, Dropbox, and Amazon Drive.
The tool works beautifully. With i click, you link your SmugMug account with your existing photograph-hosting account. Then click to select the photos y'all desire to import, and expect a minute or two while they're copied into SmugMug. It'due south secure, efficient, and easy.
Once your photos are added to your account, you lot can then use SmugMug's congenital-in file manager to organize them into galleries and folders, and even utilise basic crops and edits.
Flickr import is my favorite way to add photos to SmugMug, probably considering I've already got so many photo albums on the web. If you oasis't, you might prefer 1 of SmugMug's other methods of adding pics.
For example you can import photos from your phone or tablet using the official SmugMug apps for Android and iPhone and iPad.
As well as letting you upload photos while y'all're out and nigh, SmugMug's mobile apps permit you create and share galleries on the get – and they're completely free.
Alternatively, yous could just upload your photos to SmugMug from your computer. I say "just" as though it'south an afterthought, only this method is piece of cake and fast. A photo uploaded at about 1MB/2d on my mediocre Wi-Fi connection.
Withal to upload photos from your computer, your photos need to exist on your computer to begin with.
These days, you're probably more likely to have pics on your phone or online than on your desktop. By offering so many innovative import options, SmugMug shows it's keeping up with the mode y'all shop your snaps.
Add together photos like a pro with the SmugMug Lightroom Plug-in
Practice you lot love photography plenty to use Adobe'southward premium software, Lightroom? Then check out the SmugMug Lightroom Plug-in.
The costless plug-in is a tiny slice of software that you "plug into" your installed software to add functions – much like a browser extension. In one case added to Lightroom, it lets you create and manage your SmugMug galleries in Lightroom itself, even while you lot're offline.
Tiny it may be, but the plug-in is powerful enough to allow you lot build and publish a wedding website before your clients have even left the venue. For pros, it'due south a must-take – and it makes SmugMug a must-take, as well.
How Good are SmugMug's Templates?
"SmugMug'due south template gallery is small but perfectly formed. Information technology but has no demand to embrace a ton of template categories and industry types."
SmugMug currently offers 26 portfolio templates ('designs') – a miserly number compared with the 510-plus templates offered by market place-leading website architect Wix. (Here'south our Wix templates review.)
And if you upgrade to SmugMug's cheapest $5.99/month plan after the costless two-calendar week trial, your choice of layouts drops to half-dozen. For the full 26, you have to pay $8.99 a month or more.
Terrible, eh? Actually, we think SmugMug is wise to limit its template numbers.
Instead of churning out template after template, it focuses on choosing templates that are not bad at their chore – which is to make your photos await equally good as possible.And that's important, since 38% of visitors will stop engaging with a website if they find the content or layout unattractive.
What's more, fewer templates are easier to scan than a vast library. No need to go earthworks through page later on page of previews to find your favorite.
Every bit you'd hope, every SmugMug template is designed to evidence off your photos at their best. They all feel mod, smart and minimalist.
Simply unlike templates conform different types of photographer.
Some templates, such every bit Sierra, brandish each photo full-screen. That'south ideal if you accept a minor portfolio of amazing high-res shots that you want to sell as prints. Other templates, such every bit Vida, offer a more informal, photo-blog way to show off your work.
Most SmugMug templates, withal, strike a happy medium between these ii extremes.
Octavia (below) is a specially constructive gallery design. Information technology showcases several of your photos at once and lets your visitors speedily curlicue through many more. It'southward ideal for nuptials and event clients.
How customizable are SmugMug's templates?
"Imagine you're edifice a house. Your website is the firm, and SmugMug's content blocks are the bricks. You can put the bricks where yous want, within reason – just you can't reshape them."
Every bit we've already seen, SmugMug's templates look swell but they're pretty inflexible. You can move the blocks effectually, but you tin can't drag their edges or reposition your photos inside them.
You'd be forgiven for assuming the only way to tweak your site's layout is to choose a dissimilar template. It'southward the quickest fashion, for sure. Merely if y'all really want to arts and crafts your own unique SmugMug site, yous can.
To do this, only delete blocks yous don't want, then supervene upon them with blocks that testify your photos to their total potential.
Once yous realize you can practise that, the template suddenly feels a lot less rigid.
There's even an HTML and CSS editor if yous fancy using code, but yous'll demand to be on the $8.99 programme or higher to use it. Nosotros'll have more than on SmugMug's price plans here.
Volition your SmugMug site look dandy on mobile screens?
"SmugMug automatically optimizes your site for whatever screen it's viewed on, so you don't take to create a special mobile-friendly version."
SmugMug automatically ensures your site looks adept and works well on telephone and tablet screens, as well equally computer screens. This mobile-friendliness puts it in line with other website builders such as blueprint-focused Squarespace, super-like shooting fish in a barrel Weebly, and all-rounder Wix.
However all those website builders accept a mobile preview mode, and SmugMug doesn't. Wix even lets you edit a carve up mobile version.
All SmugMug volition say is "We do our very best" (right at the bottom of the page) to ensure your site looks great, whatever size and type of screen it's viewed on.
Is that a problem? Not at all, in my opinion.
To find out how your site looks and behaves on mobile, but reach for your phone and so tap in the unique URL SmugMug gave you during setup.
By default you won't be logged in, so y'all'll see exactly what your visitors will run across.
You can then interact with information technology using your touchscreen, explore by scrolling and swiping, and run into how it looks in landscape and portrait style. I reckon that's much more reliable than a 'mobile preview' on your computer screen.
I was delighted with my SmugMug site's mobile-friendly version – and I didn't have to do whatever extra work to create it.
What SmugMug Pricing Plan Should You Choose?
"SmugMug delivers huge value for coin with its $eight.99 Power plan, which lets you customize your portfolio as much equally y'all similar – and sell prints of your photos."
Our biggest gripe nearly SmugMug's pricing is in that location'south no costless plan. Wix and Weebly both allow you create and publish as many portfolio sites every bit you lot desire for free, for equally long every bit you similar – simply with SmugMug, you've only got a 2-calendar week trial before you have to upgrade.
But when you do upgrade, y'all go a lot of blindside for your cadet.
Here's what y'all get on every SmugMug program, $5.99/month and up:
- Upload unlimited numbers of photos and videos – and take them all backed up with Amazon Web Services
- Sell photo prints, photo books and photo gifts, fulfilled past SmugMug's press partners
- Runway your visitors and sales using built-in analytics tools
- Get unlimited bandwidth – so yous can attract as many visitors every bit you want
- SEO (search engine optimization) tools to help push button your site up Google's rankings
- 24/7 email support
So the $5.99 Bones plan is a pretty sweet deal – but but if you don't listen having a SmugMug-branded URL. Unlike Wix, SmugMug doesn't fifty-fifty allow you link your own domain proper noun on the cheapest plan.
If yous want to give your portfolio site a really professional person await with your own URL, ignore the cheapest programme and get for the side by side i up.
The $8.99 SmugMug Power programme lets you sell prints and photograph gifts, create individual client galleries, go the full pick of templates, customize them using HTML and CSS – and employ your own domain name. All for the price of a burger a calendar month.
For almost of u.s.a., the Ability programme offers the best value for money. But if you've got a big portfolio and commercial ambitions, you may desire to move a upward the upgrade ladder.
To sell digital downloads and framed prints, you'll demand the SmugMug Portfolio plan ($23.99). The priciest plan, SmugMug Pro ($41.99 monthly), also lets you offering gift-wrapping.
The prices nosotros've quoted are monthly fees – you tin can save some money by signing upward to a longer contract. For example, the Basic plan costs $v.99 monthly, but costs $48 per twelvemonth, meaning you relieve 33% when you choose the almanac programme.
How Good is SmugMug's Help and Support?
"SmugMug'due south support team will answer to your emails 24/7, and the manufactures are great. But to exist world class, SmugMug support needs to exist more interactive – a live conversation tool would be a welcome addition."
My first impressions of SmugMug'due south Support Center were excellent.
There's searchable database of articles in categories such as Content Management, Selling Prints, and ''Privacy and Security''. The manufactures are articulate, friendly, and informative.
There'south also a brilliant collection of video tutorials (the best of which you'll also notice on SmugMug's YouTube aqueduct) and a SmugMug Business organization School packed with ecommerce tips and pro inspiration.
SmugMug can even help you amend your photography. For snapping advice, cheque out SmugMug'south Digital Smile forum and partner site, The Lensman Academy .
And if you demand one-on-one help, you can electronic mail a "real man" 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 364 days a year. (Even SmugMug elves need Christmas off.)
I did hit a couple of blocks, notwithstanding.
First, I wanted to find a uncomplicated, easy-to-understand guide to ecommerce options at each subscription level. I wanted to know who handles your printing, and exactly how much commission you pay. The information is in that location, but it's confusing and, at time, inconsistent.
And so I remembered when I used to build client galleries. "When", as in: what time. It'd always be in the middle of the night, later a tough twenty-four hours of shooting and photograph editing. I knew my clients would be hassling me for the URL by breakfast.
What if I had technical problems at 5am? What if my photos refused to display properly? I'd want to selection upward the phone to the SmugMug support squad, or fire up an instant messaging tool like Squarespace alive chat.
I wouldn't want to write an email, then wait for a reply to information technology, so write another e-mail clarifying what I meant, and and then await for a reply to that.
Perhaps it's unfair of me to question the efficiency of SmugMug's email support. I've heard good things about information technology from other users, and I oasis't yet tested information technology myself (I will – spotter this space). But in this 24-hour interval and age, email is too clunky to experience similar a helpful conversation.
SmugMug'southward knowledgebase is beautifully presented and more often than not very helpful. Merely I'd love to meet a more interactive one-to-one back up tool, along the lines of Squarespace alive chat. Sometimes yous can't look for an email reply – you want to talk to a SmugMug expert right now.
SmugMug Review Summary: Should You Apply it to Build Your Online Store?
"SmugMug is an excellent selection of portfolio website builder, whether yous're starting out in digital photography or ready to launch a scaleable online concern."
SmugMug can't match Wix for versatility or broad appeal, but it doesn't endeavor to. It's only interested in one thing (well, two things): to make your photos look incredible, and to help you sell them.
Its curated range of portfolio templates is small just perfectly formed, and its ecommerce options are superb. You can sell your photos every bit prints or digital downloads, and even accept them gift-wrapped – depending on the toll plan yous choose.
And then there are clever ideas similar custom right-click letters, digital watermarks, and the Adobe Lightroom plug-in. They all seem to propose that SmugMug is a service created by and for photographers.
But not all its features are so snapper-friendly. We rate Wix as the best website architect for creating a photography portfolio, because its template editor is much more than versatile and intuitive than SmugMug'due south.
What's more than, Wix lets you lot create and publish as many portfolios as yous want for costless, while SmugMug doesn't have a complimentary programme at all.
We'd as well love to see alive conversation or telephone support. SmugMug'due south e-mail support and knowledgebase are great, simply sometimes you lot demand instant one-to-one aid – especially if you lot've got clients waiting on a gallery.
When SmugMug is good, it's very very good. You'll demand patience and (a little) cash to get the very best out of it, merely you'll be rewarded with a site that makes your photos shine. This is i of the spider web's all-time tools for turning your hobby into your livelihood.
Become over to SmugMug's homepage and whorl downwardly to the Stories department for the latest option of real-life sites made by satisfied SmugMug customers.
We'll get out you with our favorites, all created using SmugMug templates…
- Gilmore Gang – Absurd, mod family unit portraits by Austin, TX photographer Brent Gilmore (beneath)
- ShooTokyo – The urban streets of Japan, equally seen through the lens of photographer Dave Powell
- VonWong – Special effects photography from Toronto-based Benjamin Von Wong, who says: "SmugMug has become an essential tool, like Lightroom or Photoshop, in my workflow"
10
FAQs
You can definitely utilize SmugMug to sell your photos, non just display them! This architect has all of the basic tools you'll need in club to make some money from your work. That said, if you want to turn your photos into a total-time business organisation, and so we recommend looking into a dedicated ecommerce website builder instead, because while these options are frequently more than expensive than SmugMug, they have a lot more to offer in terms of growth.
Nope! Because SmugMug is a website architect, information technology takes care of all the more than technical aspects of getting online for you. That means that when y'all create a site with SmugMug, it's already hosted on the web for you – you won't take to outsource hosting yourself!
Source: https://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/website-builders/smugmug-review/
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