Zoe Eleni Siskos Photography Review

Review

1. Information architecture

From the minute the site loads, I can already tell that Zoe is interested in pursuing a career in photography since the title of the site says “Zoe Eleni Siskos Photography”. Also, the logo is a picture of a camera so the concept is pretty clear to me already. Since this site is very specific, if the user is not interested in photography, it does not make the user want to investigate further, however, since I love photography, it does make me want to explore the site. The one thing that kind of confused me was how there were 2 biographies: one on the main page and one on the “Bio” tab. Perhaps it would be more beneficial to combine these two.

2. Visual Style

The website catches my attention because of the animated “bokeh-effect” background. The “bokeh” technique is very popular in photography so it does fit in with the theme of the website. The font is also very clear and a good size so it is easy to read. The one thing that takes away from the visual appeal of the website is the large white block in the header. The background colour of the head at the top of the page is purple, but then there is a block of white behind the words, which looks a little out of place. Perhaps, in order to make it look a little cleaner, it would be best to change the entire header colour to just white instead of have that contrast in colour.

3. Content Quality

The content is very specific to photography, which is good because it gives the viewer a very clear idea of what exactly Zoe is interested in and doesn’t jump all over the place. However, there does appear to be a lack of substance in that there are only 2 categories of photos, which are nature and animal photos. I feel that the site would benefit from adding a page with her own past projects or current personal projects that she is working on. Also, it would be captivating for potential employers if she were to include photos that she has submitted to contests or if there are any photos from past photography courses that she has taken. For example, including photos from our projects in our Photography course in Digital Communications.

4. Polish/editing

There are some grammatical errors and awkward wording on the front page biography. Possible fixes could include:

• “Photography has always been a true passion of mine, beginning in high school about 5 years ago.”

• “I have experience in many different techniques and elements of photography…”

• “I am a current student at Humber College working towards a bachelor in digital communications.”

5. Tone

The tone is very fun loving and personal. Zoe chose to go with a first person approach for her bio which allows her to incorporate some of her personality more effectively than a third person approach. I am able to get a feel for her passion for photography through her bio.

6. Professional focus

Her intention is made clear in her bio and she also mentions that she is currently a student at Humber College working towards a bachelor in digital communications. The bio on the “Bio” tab includes a lot more information than the one on the front page, and it also has a more professional feel to it since it talks about her work history as well as what she plans to do.

7. Improvement

Summary of improvements mentioned above:

• Edits on front page:

• “Photography has always been a true passion of mine, beginning in high school about 5 years ago.”

• “I have experience in many different techniques and elements of photography…”

• “I am a current student at Humber College working towards a bachelor in digital communications.”

• Potentially combine the 2 “About me” sections

• Change the entire header at the top to one colour (white maybe)

• Add more content in terms of photography, projects, or content created in past courses