Displaying Images in An Artist’s Website Gallery
If you have a portfolio of work to display on your artist’s website, there are two main methods:
- A simple lightbox gallery.
- A ‘category’ type gallery.
Let’s look at the differences.
Lightbox Galleries
Typically, these consist of a grid of thumbnail images. A visitor can click on a thumbnail to display an enlargement overlay. The enlargement allows for a single, one line caption (although longer captions are possible, the formatting is limited). Click here for a typical example of a lighbox gallery.
The format of the thumbnail grid can vary depending on the plugin used. For example, the thumbnails can be the same size and arranged in symmetrical grid, or they can be proportional to the original image and arranged in a brick like ‘masonry’ format. A degree of customisation of the lightbox enlargement may or may not be possible depending on the software used.
Post Galleries
Typically, a post gallery consists of a grid of thumbnail images. a bit like a lightbox gallery. But that’s where the similarity ends. Clicking on a post gallery thumbnail will take your visitor to a separate page which will allow more space for details about the artwork; perhaps an enlargement and a longer text description. Here is a typical example. Post galleries can also allow for sorting. For example, you may want to offer your visitor the facility to view only a certain type of artwork such as portraits, landscapes etc.. You can assign a category to your post and when your visitor clicks on say ‘landscape paintings’, only landscape paintings will be displayed.
Summary – Lightbox v Post Galleries
Lightbox galleries are easier to develop and are a good way of displaying a lot of images at a relatively low cost. The disadvantage is that only limited captions are possible.
Post galleries are more complex to develop and although they allow you to add a lot more detail about your artworks, they are are likely to add to the overall cost of your website.