livebooks blog

Photo: Produced by Spring Studios for White House Black Market

Liz Teich has been a wardrobe stylist for about a decade and with about 17 years in the industry from working at the clothing line Chaiken, as well as an art director for advertising clients such as Maybelline. She has a BFA from Syracuse University in Advertising Design, where she had to not only concept but also execute the ads for her portfolio. She also studied fashion design at RISD for a summer, in addition to taking both fashion and advertising classes in high school. It was a natural transition to take her knowledge of how both the fashion and advertising industries operate and apply it to styling for her clients. More »

CORE Landscape is a boutique landscape architecture and implementation design firm located in Atlanta, GA. They take pride in creating well-thought-out design solutions for exterior spaces ranging from small gardens to large commercial sites. They started in 2004 as a design only firm and evolved over the years to include full design-build services. Their design style tends to trend towards simple materials choices and bold landscape design. More »

Jim Vasquez been a photographer for over 30 years.  He was a commercial photographer for 10 of those 30 years, but left due to some disillusionment and burnout.  He was a master B&W printer, and continues to have a great passion for B&W.  He quit printing years ago due to lower back issues from standing in front of an enlarger for hours on end, so needed to look elsewhere.  The new digital age has reawakened his love for doing music photography, especially portraits! To see more of his work, visit his liveBooks website: http://jimvasquezphotography.com

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

JV: Simple, Visual, Graphic.

Q: How often do you typically update your website?

JV: Constantly.  I like to find out what is working for me visually.  I am always taking new images so I want to keep updating on a constant basis to keep interest in my work.

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

JV: I went with a single photo that really says what I am all about.  There are different views about a single image vs a collage.  A single image should make a statement about your work and encourage the visitor to look further, “come on in”.   A collage can be overload and appear busy.  I struggle with this idea of keeping things simple and talk to art directors for their opinion.  We live in an instant gratification age.

Q: What is your favorite new feature of liveBooks8?

JV:  There are so many that it is hard to pick one.  I like being able to individualize my site with customization on fonts, backgrounds, and colors.

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

JV: Show the work that defines you.  In my early days I tried to cover all the bases and it just didn’t work.  I am now doing what I love and I hope people see that in my work.