Reflections on Photography, Websites, and the Digital Shift
As is often the case, I forgot to post my latest thoughts here. My main challenge recently has been updating my photography website, www.indergopalphotography.com. I realised I had over-chewed by creating too many pages and interlinks, making the site unwieldy. I couldn't fill the necessary pages with images for locations I'd never even visited.
To make matters worse, the software I used for seamless automatic logins stopped working, and I couldn't remember my login credentials. After deleting several old pages and thinning out my navigation, I finally decided to make the website more relevant to the actual data and images I possessed.
The Uploading Struggle and SEO Tactics
To upload the revised site, I purchased FileZilla Pro. It took many frustrating hit-and-tries to finally crack my old login data. My first attempt at a bulk upload failed multiple times, taking far longer than I remembered—my site used to upload in one go! To avoid frustration now, I upload one file or image at a time. While tedious, this process has a silver lining: it keeps my uploads active. I've learned that frequent small changes—even adding and removing a comma in the code—help a site rise in search rankings.
I previously used this technique to rank my old domain, www.indergopal.com, often securing a spot on the first page of search results. I also found it highly effective to study the scripts and key phrases used by successful photographers who ranked ahead of me.
The Shift from Blogs to Instagram
I realise today that very few people actually visit and read blogs. The current 'in-thing' is Instagram. I see many aspiring models posting selfies, often comfortable showing more skin, with some hinting at offering more to get an opening. It feels as though proper, professional portfolios are becoming a thing of the past.
Coffee Table Books and Fine Art Shoots
Besides updating my website, I've focused on creating tangible work. I have composed twelve coffee table/picture books using images taken from past travels, assignments, and special trips covering monuments, festivals, and places of interest. I also have focused books on doors, windows, balconies, and portraitures.
The best development in printing is the rise of print-on-demand services, which allow me to print just a few copies—instead of the minimum 1,500 required by older offset printing methods. I typically print about six copies per title. These are excellent for selling within my contact circle or as gifts instead of buying a generic hamper or bouquet. I also sell or gift A4 framed prints, making sure to sign each copy, as I believe it gives the work greater weight.
Finally, I plan to post some of the fine art figure shoots I've done. I'm currently seeking female muse(s) to collaborate on future ventures involving decent implied or semi/nude images. I only work with posers who are of legally major age and require a government-issued identity and a copy attached to a hand-written consent form by the poser.
Hopefully, I'll be back with another blog post without much delay!
