A picture is worth a thousand words. But if the pictures on your website are less-than-stellar, then they might not be saying the thousand words that you want them to say. When it comes to picking photos to use on your website, not just any photo from your camera roll will do the trick—there are several best practices to keep in mind that we’ll cover.
When taking or choosing photos for a website, remember these two rules:
- Use a landscape (horizontal) shot.
- Keep the subject wide, not tight.
Take a look at some of our favorite websites and consider why their images work well.
Harbinger Tours
With one glance at the Harbinger Tours website, you’ll be ready to pack your bags for an unforgettable group trip. Why? Because you immediately see beautiful travel photos that fill the screen. These pictures do not necessarily have a single focus, so they fit on any screen, from a narrow iPhone to a wide desktop monitor.
The Exchange
Unlike the travel photos on the Harbinger Tours website, the main photo on The Exchange’s home page has a central human subject with a wide background to fill the screen. The lady in the image is centered, so she stays fully in the shot, no matter what size screen you use.
Milner’s American Southern Restaurant
Even a small subject like food can fill a wide shot. Milner’s American Southern Restaurant arranged utensils and napkins in their pictures to add some interest without taking away from the appeal of a well-prepared meal. Once again, the wide images respond to any screen size without cropping important parts of the photos.
Whether you are designing a new website or updating an existing page, choosing a horizontal photo with a wide subject will help tell the story of your brand. If you’re ready to give your site imagery a refresh and want to talk more about best practices or what you can do to improve the overall look of your site, simply reach out to us using the form below.