#22slides

[22slides]

Next-gen image formatting

22Slides now uses WebP image format by default, rather than traditional JPEGs. WebP is a next-gen image format that provides higher quality images and smaller file sizes, which means your images will look better than ever while loading even faster than before.

There's no action necessary, our system automatically converts the images on our end. You can still upload any type of image file you like.

On average, WebP images download around 30% faster than before, while preserving at least the same image quality. In our case, though, we increased our default image quality a bit, while lowering the overall files size.

As of right now, WebP images work with Microsoft Edge, Firefox, Chrome, Opera and Android browsers.

Internet Explorer and Safari have yet to support WebP images, but our system will automatically serve the standard JPEG images until they can handle WebP images.

[jordanvoth]

Did a little interview for 22slides. Check it out here! 

[jakfruit]

I was wondering if you knew any good websites to use to start you're own website for photos!

Check out 22slides! I really love it. It’s very customizable and a total breeze to use. It only costs $10/mo and they give you a month long free trial so you can see how you likey.

[22slides]

Helping during the Pandemic

While we're located in California and happily complying with government's lockdown policies, our business regularly operates remotely and current events shouldn't affect our service.

Many of you are finding this to be a great time to improve your websites, and we want to let you know that we want to do as much as we can to help.

We are temporarily providing complimentary web design services, including help from professional web designers and developers who can help with anything from answering simple questions, to tweaking things here and there for you, to getting your logo looking perfect, to custom-coding an idea you may have in your head.

Think of us as your personal web designers.

We understand things may be difficult at the moment, but we think small businesses and mom-and-pop shops like yours and ours can turn this into an opportunity for all of us to work together and come out of it even better than before.

To take advantage of these services, simply contact us using the chat bubble at the lower-right of your admin area.

Take care and stay safe! - The 22Slides Team

[incolourphoto]

Hey everyone!

We finally have our website up and it would be great if you could check it out here!

Also give us a like on Facebook!

[22slides]

🔒 Free, Automatic, and End-to-End HTTPS Encryption

You may have noticed your 22Slides website now works with https. Some time ago, we quietly launched free, automatic, and end-to-end SSL certificate support with the help of Let's Encrypt.

What this means is your website will display a small 'lock' icon in the address bar, and won't show the default 'not secure' message that some browsers started displaying for standard http websites.

Behind the scenes, though, all traffic between your visitors and your website is now end-to-end encrypted for maximum privacy.

Because of the end-to-end nature of our https support, we were a little late to the https-party. We decided to take our time and do it right, rather than taking any shortcuts with intermediate services that provided the appearance of full-security, but didn't provide true end-to-end encryption.

By default, 22Slides sites are accessible via both http and https, but you can force your site to always use https, if you like, from your 'settings' page:

[22slides]

10 Questions with Chris Charles of Creative Silence

The man himself, Chris Charles.

Chris Charles is an extremely talented jack-of-all-trades, and one of 22Slides' most influential early adopters. From fighting bad guys, to fixing computers, to designing graphics and taking awesome photos, the guy seems to have the job covered no matter what.

http://creativesilence.net http://twitter.com/csphoto_design http://facebook.com/creativesilence

1. Who are you, what have you done, and why the heck would anyone want to read this interview?

My name is Chris Charles, photographer, graphic designer and I'm born and raised on the great planet of Brooklyn, NY. I've been into the arts since childhood but spent a good portion of my adult life jumping out of airplanes for Uncle Sam (US Army Paratrooper) and working in IT. I started Creative Silence in 2008 and haven't looked back. I graduated with a degree in graphic design while slowly taking photos and designing for cool people. Since then, I've had the privilege of working with some awesome artists to include Grammy nominated group The Foreign Exchange, 6 time Grammy nominated jazz vocalist Nnenna Freelon, entrepreneurs up and down the eastern seaboard, as well as some awesome couples and families for my wedding work.

2. How were you introduced to photography?

I'd say I was 10yrs old when I first caught the photo bug. I always had a fascination with the mechanics of a camera and my parents always had them around. From the old plastic kodak cameras with the ice cube brick looking flash units, to the collapsable polaroid. My folks bought our first SLR one summer before a trip to Jamaica and I instantly fell in love with everything about photography, from composing, to the physical acts of putting on a lens and winding film. After that first roll of film was developed, I realized I might be halfway good at it.

3. What kind of work is your favorite?

I'd have to say portrait work is my favorite. A good portion of my work consists of portraits and I've come to realize I have a weird fascination with the human face. I like the challenge of being able to tell a person's story through one photo. I enjoy the subtleties of the human face and how people can communicate without saying a word, while capturing a mood or certain energy in a good photo.

4. Whose work do you look up to the most?

I always looked to the masters for inspiration. Artists like Richard Avedon, Herb Ritz, Barkley Hendriks, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Jamel Shabaaz, Thierry Le Gouès, Paula Scher, Paul Rand, and Gordon Parks. On the contemporary side, there are a few artists who are just amazing, to include Jeremy Cowart, Kareem Black, Kwesi Abbensetts, Qwasimotto on Wax, etc. All have their distinct style but have a progressive feel in common to all their work. 

5. What kind of equipment do you use most often?

I'm currently shooting with the 5D Mark II and 40D paired with the 24-70 2.8L or the 85 1.8 mostly. I believe in simple lighting so I stick to the bare minimum when possible. My key light is usually a Canon 580EX or Vivitar 285HV remotely triggered. Almost all of my portrait work is shot using that and a 42" umbrella / soft box combo by CreativeLight. That and a well placed reflector for fill, natural light, or a soft box with fluorescent light all act as secondary lighting depending on the situation.  

6. What’s your photo editing software of choice? Any special tricks of the trade?

My iMac is the workhorse in my shop and is currently running 16GB of ram. All images start in Lightroom 3 (I still haven't upgraded to LR4 yet) and are exported to Photoshop CS5 as needed. I'm currently using Lacie 1TB drives for backup storage, as well as online archiving. I've found online archiving via flickr or Zenfolio / Smugmug to be decent alternatives or backups to hard storage solutions. Illustrator and InDesign are my weapons for package design and layout work. 

7. If you could have done one thing different with your photography career so far, what would it be?

Ha one thing… I only wish I had the balls to start doing this as a profession 10 years earlier. I guess you can say I was a late bloomer in the creative scene due to sitting around thinking about what I wanted to do instead of taking action. After I made the decision and committed myself to learning the craft and building my brand, everything slowly started falling into place. 

8. What are some of your favorite things?

Some favorite things include my iPhone which has served as a major resource for running my business on the go, my midi-keyboard because I still think I'm the next great underground bedroom producer nobody's heard of yet lol, my Brooklyn Circus Porkpie fedora because it just looks good regardless of what I'm wearing, and my 285HV flash….that thing just keeps on going after years of use.

9. What are some of your least-favorite things?

People who talk more than do, social media (it's a great tool but I can only take it in short bursts lol), North Carolina weather lately (too inconsistent), and bad vocals over great music.

10. Why do you use 22Slides for your website?

Around the time I was looking to change website platforms, I knew I wanted to go with a non-flash solution, a horizontal sliding portfolio look, and the options to make minor tweaks to the CSS if needed. 22Slides was exactly what I was looking for and I've gotten great responses from clients and peers alike. I couldn't ask for anything better. Add the great customer service to the mix and you have a winner.

[22slides]

10 Questions with Jordan Voth

We don't know how else to introduce Jordan other than saying he's really good. Really really good. Very few can make natural light work so well and look so easy. Something about the light, vibe, and just plain genuineness of his work make him one of our most popular clients we've been lucky enough to work with.

He's 23, lives in Seattle, has been shooting for 5 years, and we definitely think he's someone you should know about (if you don't already).

jordanvoth.com twitter.com/jordanvoth facebook.com/jordanvothphotography flickr.com/photos/jojo2fast

1. Who are you and why the heck would anyone want to read this interview?  

As you’ve probably read, my name is Jordan and I’m a portrait and wedding photographer based out of Seattle. I’m lucky enough to work with some pretty awesome people who make my job a heck of a lot easier. I hope you’ll like what you see.

2. How were you introduced to photography?  

During my senior year of high school my friend and I used to go out to cool locations and take photos of our cars (pretty lame, I know). Towards the end of that year I got my first dSLR and began shooting bands and soon after geared more towards portraits. I found that meeting new people and hearing so many different stories from different people is what really drew me to that aspect of photography.

3. What kind of work is your favorite?

I love shooting portraits but have recently begun moving more towards weddings. There’s just something about photographing two people in love that is completely awesome (plus you can end up traveling to some AWESOME locations). Engagement sessions are always such a fun time as well; the more unique the better. I really look forward to photographing those.

4. Whose work do you look up to the most?

I have a couple favorites that are more portrait photographers and a couple wedding photographers. Cheyenne Ellis, Collin Hughes & Spencer Combs are a few of my favorite portrait photographers. The candid/real life aspect of their photos is what really drew me, along with many others, to their work. I’ve had a chance to hang out with both Collin & Spencer and they’re two of the nicest and most humble guys ever. It’s really cool. Benj Haisch, Shannen Norman & Carl Zoch are some of the most inspiring wedding photographers to me. I can spend hours on their blogs/websites. Their work is simply incredible. 

5. What kind of equipment do you use most often?

I use a Canon 5d Mark II for all of my shoots. I have three lenses: Canon 35mm f/1.4L, Canon 50mm f/1.2L & a Sigma 85mm f/1.4. Every now and then I’ll shoot film and for that I use either a Canon AE-1 or Canon Elan 7. Since I primarily shoot with natural light, I don’t have much lighting equipment, but I’m hoping to invest in a little bit of that in the near future.

6. What’s your photo editing software of choice? Any special tricks of the trade?

I’m a Photoshop man. I also will use Capture One every now and then as well. Lately, I’ve been really digging the VSCO sets. Every photographer should know how to use layer masks, it helps a ton.

7. If you could have done one thing different with your photography career so far, what would it be?

I wish I would have started shooting weddings sooner and wouldn’t have been so afraid to just say yes and book one. Basically this just means get outside of your comfort zone, it may be the best thing ever! I turned down quite a few because I felt they were too nerve wrecking and I didn’t think I was capable of doing a good job but now that I’ve shot a few I think they’re just awesome to do! I rarely find myself too stressed out at all. Don’t be afraid to try new things.

8. What are some of your favorite things?

I love being outside and exploring new places. Driving my car and listening to music go hand in hand together and if gas wasn’t so expensive, I would probably drive around the country again. I’m also a huge fan of movies, hot chocolate & spreadsheets.

9. What are some of your least-favorite things?

I hate ranch. I’m probably one of the few people who do, but I cannot stand it haha. 

10. Why do you use 22Slides for your website?

I was in the process of looking for a new website company to use and came across 22slides through a friend of mine. Their sites were exactly what I had in mind for a new site. I signed up for a trial and couldn’t get over how easy it was to update and maintain my website. Their customer service is top notch as well and is a large factor as to why they’re such a great company. I highly recommend signing up for a trial and giving 22slides a try if you’re in the search for a new website. You won’t regret it.

[22slides]

We’ve Joined Instagram

We’ve joined Instagram! Follow us at @22slides.

We’ll be using the account less for announcing things to do with 22Slides itself, but rather to feature some of the great work our customers do.

If you’re a client of ours and would like us to feature some of your work, just let us know, or tag your photos with “#22slides”.

[22slides]

Unbranding Ourselves

Today we made a big decision about a very small feature: We added the ability to remove the 22Slides branding from our websites.

Since the beginning, we've relied quite heavily on this little logo to get new clients, so removing it is a big deal to us. Cutting out a major source of leads isn't exactly a typical business practice, but we feel it is something that our existing clients will appreciate (and we think it's more important to cater to our existing clients than chase new ones).

The option can be found toward the bottom of your "Settings" page in your control panel. Enjoy!

[22slides]

New "Blurbs" & Custom Footer Text

Today we're releasing an update that allows you to place text in your website's header/sidebar area. We're calling the feature "blurbs", and you can add these to your site by choosing the "Informational Blurb" page type when creating a new page.

These should be perfect for adding abbreviated contact info right to your home page, or dividing up your navigation into section by using these blurbs as headings (like the image above). They'll also offer another tier of hierarchy to your pages, if used in conjunction with drop down menus or other page groups.

Also with this update, we're adding customizable footer text. Before, your copyright notice at the bottom of your website was set in stone, but now you can place whatever text you like there.

Note: Explicitly forbidding usage in your copyright notice doesn't actually carry any more legal weight than our previous more "minimal" copyright notice, but it could help scare people from even trying.

[22slides]

New and Improved Code Editor

Our new custom code editor was released today! Although this is big news for our more advanced clients, there are definitely some benefits that everyone can take advantage of:

Syntax coloring: This makes it a bit easier to understand the code at a glance and identify typos.

Automatic resizing input fields: The input areas now automatically resize to fit the amount of code they have, so you no longer need to scroll around to view all your code.

Error highlighting: Now if your code has any errors, it will be highlighted to draw your attention.

New structure: Now custom code is divided between "Head" and "Body" code, instead of "CSS" and "Javascript". This makes it much more universal and opens up possibilities to include any sort of code you like, including HTML.

Meta tags, etc: Now it's much easier to add meta tags for things like search engine optimization and site verification (We still advise against using the "keywords" meta tag though).

[22slides]

New Ways to Share your Images (Yes, that includes Pinterest)

We just released a new toolbar that can be added to the top left of the images on your site, allowing people to share that individual photo on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

You can enable this for your site from the "Social Media Sharing" section on the "Add-ons" page in your control panel.

[Screenshot from JordanVoth.com]

[22slides]

One-Click Domain Setups with Hover

Domains are confusing. There’s no reason a normal person should have to worry about CNAME records or things like that.

This is why we’ve partnered with Hover.com to provide 1-click domain setups for your 22Slides site. Now, instead of carefully editing your DNS records yourself to get your website to work, you need only to click a button and it’s all done fore you.

More info can be found here

[22slides]

Sell Stuff with PayPal

We're constantly working to increase the value our service provides to our clients, and today we're happy to announce the addition of PayPal "Buy Now" buttons!

You can now quickly assign prices to images on your site to sell things like prints and collect payments via your PayPal account.

To try it out, find the "PayPal" section in your "Add-ons" page of your control panel and enter your PayPal email address. Then you can "flip" any image on your website over by clicking the icon at the bottom right of its thumbnail and enter pricing options there. That's it!