livebooks blog

Homepage image by David Colvin Photography | http://www.dclvn.com/

Angela has had a love for makeup since her 12th birthday, when her mother took her to get her makeup done. An outing originally intended to find the correct shade for her skin tone and eyes ended up lighting a fire in Angela, causing her to discover an industry that she would later pursue as her career. Upon entering college, she spent two years at Baylor University, and eventually decided to pursue her dream of becoming an artist. She started by getting her esthetician license in Austin, TX and then moved to LA for a Certification at the Makeup Designory. After her education in LA and working there for three years for a leading cosmetic company, she returned home to Texas to be closer to family. You can currently find Angela working the bridal industry in Dallas, Houston and Waco. However, she loves how versatile her job is and can frequently be found on set for magazines, TV and video shoots.

Check out Angela’s beautiful new liveBooks8 site at angelakarr.com.

Q: How would you describe the aesthetic of your website in three words?

AK: Clean, fresh, and simple

Image: Bri Costello Photography | http://www.bricostello.com/

Q: How often do you typically update your website?

AK: I do not update it enough, but I am hoping with the new platform I will update it more often when I have new photos.

Q: How do you choose the photos that you display on your homepage?

AK: I try to select photos for my homepage that showcase my most recent work and a variety of clientele.

Image by David Colvin Photography | http://www.dclvn.com/

Q: What is your favorite new feature of liveBooks8?

AK: I was most excited to add a picture of my clients with their testimonials.

Q: What is one piece of advice you’d offer to someone designing their website?

AK: liveBooks makes the process very simple. I had to redesign my entire website because it was very over do. So, I decided to divide and conquer over a large cup of coffee. I was shocked at how quick and painless the process was. Not to mention, the customer service was always there to answer any questions that I had.

Image: Lindsay Davenport Photography | http://www.lindsaydavenportphotography.com/

Have a site you would like us to feature? Send us an email at social@livebooks.com.

We are absolutely loving the new liveBooks8 platform, and we know that you will too! With endless new features, such as advanced SEO tools and options for customizations, we are excited to provide you and your business with a dynamic and easy-to-use web design platform.

liveBooks8 is an advanced yet intuitive website designer with in-line editing. Additional features include:

• Built in HTML5 – your responsive site will look stunning and uniform on any device. From desktop to tablet or mobile, you will no longer need to create a separate mobile version of your site! This will help improve your site’s search engine visibility and overall user experience.
• Unique gallery options – with a large variety of gallery options, you are sure to be able to fine a beautiful and interactive display that will make your portfolio look it’s best. Additionally, you are now able to add videos to your site with our new and improved software.
• SEO Everything – quickly add tags, descriptions, keywords, image alt text, and more to your your website so that your site is easily searchable and indexed properly.
• Template starting points – with liveBooks, our templates are just a place to start. With endless opportunities to customize your site’s appearance, you have the ability to easily build a space that matches your vision.
• Responsive Editor – update your website on the go with our easy-to-use, responsive editor.

Migration Quick Facts:

• Your site migration will take approximately two weeks to complete.
• Migration of your current site to the new platform will be done free of charge, unless you decide to go with the White Glove option. Once you are migrated to the new platform, we will evaluate where your website falls into the new pricing packages for liveBooks8.
• We will migrate the current SEO tags that you have on your site. However, liveBooks8 has additional SEO options/tags that we encourage you to enter on your own.
• If you select the As Is Migration option, we will send you a preview link before your site is published. You will be able to review and approve any slight differences that there may be with your website.

Click here to pick your current migration option now!

Note: there are still a few features that are not yet available on our new HTML5 platform. These include: client proofing, password protected pages, and splash animation.

If you are brand new to liveBooks and would like to start creating your interactive HTML5 site, sign up for our free 14-day trial by clicking here.

Jill’s interest in photography began in high school and continued into college. Taking elective photography classes soon led to picking up photography as a hobby, which has since turned into her career. This is her story:

After college, I travelled around the world for seven months before returning home to San Francisco to find a ‘real job.’ I took photos with a point-and-shoot camera to chronicle my time abroad. The positive feedback that I received from my photographs when I returned home encouraged me to submit my work to a variety of photography exhibitions, invest in a better camera, and figure out a way to continue traveling while improving my portfolio. Eventually, I decided to enroll in the Academy of Art University in San Francisco to pursue a master’s in Fine Arts degree in photography. For my Master’s thesis project, I chose to spend nine months documenting life in the Himalayas. I travelled throughout Nepal, India, Kashmir, Bhutan and Tibet, working with a variety of non-profit agencies. In 2009, I won a National Geographic YourShot photography contest, and I had my first photograph published in National Geographic Magazine. This was the opening that I needed to move my photography career to the next level. Since 2011, my photography has been represented by National Geographic Creative. In 2012, I received my first assignment from National Geographic Books and was sent to Sydney, Australia for five weeks to photograph the National Geographic Traveler: Sydney Guidebook. Following that, I became an intern and then freelance photographer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Since 2011, I have been spending my summers teaching photography to high school students in countries all over the world for National Geographic Student Expeditions.

At home in San Francisco, I photograph events, editorial, lifestyle, architectural and food-related shoots. I also provide private/group and corporate photography workshops, mentoring and portfolio reviews.

My style is my own personal vision of stories I am drawn to, that are unique to me. I photograph issues and iconic places which I find compelling. My goal is to create a visual of places in the world many people may not have seen while exposing them to the beauty and reality of cultures they may not have experienced.

Check out more of Jill’s recent work on her liveBooks8 site at: www.jillhsphotography.com.

Q: How would you describe the aesthetic of your website in three words?

JS: Bright, colorful, exotic

Q: How often do you typically update your website?
JS: I typically update my website every few months, after any trip that I take, or whenever I have new work to show.

Q: How do you choose the photos that you display on your homepage?
JS: For my homepage, I typically pick photos that I am particularly drawn to. No specific formula. I choose photos that are vibrant, colorful, thought provoking or unique moments.

Q: What is your favorite new feature of liveBooks8?
JS: I love the new liveBooks8 platform! It is very user friendly. I particularly like all of the new design features. It has a very clean and modern feel. There are more options for easier search optimization, as well. Now, I am anxiously awaiting the capability to sell my images from my website.

Q: What’s one piece of advice you’d offer to someone designing their website? 
JS: Take your time and have patience. It took me a couple of weeks to design my website. If you have questions, call the liveBooks customer service, as they are very helpful. Show your best work…quality over quantity. A editor once told me: “you are only as good as your worst photograph on your website,” and while this may sound harsh, it always stuck with me. Try to leave people wanting to see more of your work, rather than getting bored and moving on from your site.

Have a website you’d like us to feature? Email us at social@livebooks.com.

At liveBooks, we love seeing clients integrate their captivating images into their websites. Whether you are a photographer showcasing your best work, or a makeup artist advertising your newest look, displaying your portfolio has never been easier than with our gallery feature. With options ranging from grids to slideshows, you are guaranteed to find a sharp and responsive gallery that will be sure to catch a potential client’s eye.

Check out the tutorial below to learn about adding and customizing galleries on your liveBooks8 site.

To add a gallery page to your liveBooks8 site:

1. Log into the liveBooks8 editor
2. Select the Content tab and click add new page

3. Select the gallery page option and add the new page to your site.

4. To add images to your gallery, select your new gallery page from the content tab. Upload images from your computer or select images from your existing image library.
Pro-tip: reorganize the images in your gallery, using our drag and drop technology. Use your cursor to grab images, and drag them into your desired order.

Customize the design of your gallery:
1. After creating your gallery page, navigate to the Design tab.
2. Select the page or gallery that you would like to edit from your navigation bar and select the Page option.
3. Click “Image Gallery” and navigate to the “Type” section to select the styling of your gallery.

4. Select your desired gallery preset from our 12 customizable options.

Standard Grid with Large View

5. Customize the look, layout and settings of your new gallery page, using the customization options found in the design module. With the option to customize everything from columns to image display time, you are able to create a gallery that is unique to you and you and your brand.
6. Press save.

Interested in learning more about a specific liveBooks8 feature? We want to know! Send us an email at social@livebooks.com with the subject line: Tuesday’s tip.