Best WordPress Themes for Photographers

christian parker

Jun 09 2016

If you’re a photographer, you know the importance of being able to show your work to potential clients.

Because the service you provide is very visual, your target audience can easily get an idea of how good you are and your style by looking at examples of previous work. That’s why it’s so important to create a portfolio website that will showcase what you’re capable of.

Building a website to represent you online is also a way to be discovered by clients you would never have reached otherwise, so if you don’t have a website yet, you should seriously consider it.
One of the most popular ways to build a website is with the WordPress CMS software. It is a favorite among people with no design or development skills, but is also used widely by experienced web developers because of the unmetered capabilities it provides.

When working with WordPress, the first thing you’ll do is look for a theme that fits your needs and represents who you are as a photographer.GET BLUEHOST WORDPRESS HOSTING

What Does Your WordPress Website Need?

One mistake that many people make is to start browsing themes on WordPress or other theme sites. This can be a serious waste of time because there are literally thousands out there. Before you start looking, think of what you want in your theme.

Here are a few things to think about and do:

  • Visit other photographers’ websites and portfolios and look more closely at the ones that you like the most. Is there a structure that you like? Is there a large full-width banner on the homepage? Make a list of design features that you want so that it will be easier to find a fitting theme later on.
  • It’s always important to be realistic about your technical abilities. If you don’t have any design or coding experience, you’ll want a theme that requires few changes and adjustments so you can just add your own photos and texts and avoid anything too technical. But if you can do a little bit of coding or designing, WordPress gives you all the freedom and flexibility you need to tweak and mold any interesting themes to your precise needs.
  • Look for a responsive theme. Today, everyone browses the web on their mobile phones, which can vary widely in terms of screen size and resolution. So, you want your site and photos to look great on any device.
  • If you don’t intend to make any real changes to your theme, this may not matter, but if you do want to change a few things or are worried about things not working, make sure the theme has support. If you can’t find a website or any information on the theme page, you can also look for the theme name in the WordPress forums. Sometimes, there isn’t much support from the theme creators, but other WordPress users can be very helpful and provide you with the assistance that you need.

How to Find Photographer Themes

Themes can be found by searching the WordPress.org website. It has filtering options and it is a good option if you’re not really sure what you’re looking for. If you do have some idea of what you want, you can do a simple Google search and you’ll find that there are many websites that sell WordPress themes.

Great Free Photographer Themes

Here are a few great looking themes that you can use for free for your photography portfolio website.

Illdy

This is a great-looking responsive theme with a one-page layout and a full-screen hero image so that you can showcase your best work. You can change the color palette of the theme without messing with code or anything complicated, so it’s easily adjustable to your personal taste. It’s a very flexible theme and the single page layout has multiple sections that you can easily fill with your own content. Illdy works with a lot of great WordPress plugins that you’ll probably need, like Contact Form 7 for your contact form, Yoast SEO, NextGEN gallery, and more.

View demo here.

J A Mortram

This black-and-white theme is very elegant, and while it may not be suitable for every kind of photography site, it is definitely unique. It has a full-screen image slider where you can upload your photos. Your posts will be featured on the homepage in one centered column with the photo on the left and the description on the right. This is a perfect theme for people who prefer a simple or minimalistic look.

View the demo here.

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Divina

If you have many photos you want to showcase at once on your front page, this is a great theme. It has a beautiful and simple design that is very elegant and looks highly professional. Your menu will be on the left, and you can feature all of your best work on the right.

View demo here.

 

Portfolio Gallery

This theme has a very interesting layout that makes it look professional and memorable. You can feature images in the menu background on the left, in the header above the main title, and underneath. It is fully responsive, and as the name suggests, perfect for photographers who want to feature their impressive portfolio online.

View demo here.

 

There are many more out there, so if these aren’t what you’re looking for, keep searching. You’ll find it!

Great Premium Blog Themes

Not all themes are free, and some can even get a little pricey. There are advantages to paid themes, namely the higher quality, the additional design features, and the support. In some cases, a paid theme is cheaper than a free theme, because they include features that save you from having to buy and install plugins or pay a developer to make changes for you.

Here are a few to consider for your website.

Frame Photography

This is a beautiful theme that can be used by any photographer, but is perfect for professionals who specialize in weddings. It has a minimalistic design with one large featured image on the main page and the rest of the images shown in thumbnails at the bottom where the user can click to view them. It is fully responsive, has a lot of advanced functionalities, and costs $49.

View demo here.

Oshine

With 23 different demos to choose from, this theme is sure to have what you’re looking for. You can choose from multiple layouts and looks, each one different and unique and all of them very professional and appealing. It is also integrated with WooCommerce, an ecommerce plugin, so if you intend to sell prints or other items related to your photography, this is a great option for you. It costs $59, which includes future updates.

View demo here.

Timber

Timber is minimalistic and simple in its layout and has been specifically designed for photographers who want to showcase their best and favorite photos. It has a lot of features, from galleries and video to menu overlay and front-page options. A little pricier than the other themes we mentioned, this theme is $64.

View demo here.

 

When it comes to paid themes, you want to really take the time to look at all of the features that they have, because unlike free themes, these really have anywhere from five to dozens of very useful features for your website. Considering which features you want on your finished site ahead of purchasing a theme could really save you money.

Ready to launch your own WordPress portfolio site? Check out our list of the very best WordPress Hosting Providers to get started.

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