Website Design for Authors, Photographers, and Other Creatives

Whether you're an author promoting your next release, a photographer showcasing your best shots, or an artist trying to sell prints… In 2025, your website is the cornerstone of your operation’s online presence. You’re missing out if you aren’t maintaining a website as part of your long-term marketing efforts and ongoing brand/platform development.

But if you're creative instead of technical, it can be overwhelming to get started…
Who do I hire? What will it cost? And how long will it last?

Let’s look at the do’s and dont’s if you’re searching for website designers for authors, photographers, or any other art-driven profession.

‍

First, You Need A Budget. Let’s Look At Costs:

No two websites will cost the same. The final tally depends on complexity, features, and the designer's experience. Here's a rough guide for creatives:

• A simple portfolio or author site: CAD $1000–$1,500
  
• Custom-designed creative site with SEO & mobile optimization: CAD $1,500–$3,500
  
• E-commerce or booking features (selling prints, accepting clients, etc.): Add CAD $500–$1,000 depending on which features you’re adding.
  
  

What Are My Development Tool Options?

In 2025, there are more options than ever before for website design and development. So much so that it can be overwhelming to get started. So let’s break down the most common tools as well as their pros and cons:

• Do-It-Yourself: The cheapest option, there are many ways to get a website up and running. Chief among them is the free, open-source tool that powers about 1 in 5 websites in the world: WordPress. If you need more features or functionality later on, WordPress is also easy to upgrade or move. However, expect a huge time commitment if you want to make a quality website starting from scratch. Even if no programming experience is required, the world of website development can be vast and complicated.
• Website Builders: Tools like Wix or Squarespace are easier to use out-of-the-box for those with little programming experience. However, these offer limited control and customization across the board. Additionally, they can make moving the site or introducing custom features far more difficult later down the line. Finally, they usually work with rigid payment structures, which means you may be caught in a situation where one payment option offers too little, and the next one offers too much for your purposes.
• Niche Builders: Sites like Pixieset are built specifically for photographers, and those like BookBub or Tertulia are built specifically for authors. While these sites can suffer from the same problems as traditional website builders, they are almost always a better choice than them since they’re built with your profession in mind.
• Hire a Developer: Website developers (good ones, at least) should always be happy to listen to your specific needs and find the best platform and point out the most important features for your needs. This is typically more expensive than the other options, but if you select a developer who knows their stuff, you’ll be able to rest easy knowing you are getting the most out of your money. Your website will end up being designed professionally and set up to work as hard as possible through SEO techniques and responsiveness. They can often set up your site such that it can be easily updated into the future - no tech experience required.

💡 At Maximum Website Solutions, we specialize in affordable custom web design. That includes authors, photographers, and artists - with transparent pricing and flexible options.

‍

Ease of Use: You Shouldn’t Need to Call for Every Update

Every creative should have at least basic control of their site - whether that’s updating a gallery, changing a bio, or adding a new book release. You’ll be constantly working on your next projects, so you want to streamline the process of adding content to your site as much as you can.

That’s why we at Maximum Website Solutions offer two options after launch:

1. Full control with simple training and full instructions on how to update your site well into the future.
2. Ongoing management if you’d rather place your time and energy where it matters: on your work. Support will be ongoing and help is only a message away.
   

Either way, your site works for you - not the other way around.

‍

Other Creatives Who Need a Website

If you're a creative professional of any kind, your website is often your portfolio, resume, and storefront - all in one. Here are other careers that benefit hugely from a well-built site:

• Visual artists (painters, illustrators, muralists): Showcase galleries, sell prints or commissions
• Musicians: Share tour dates, embed Spotify or SoundCloud, sell merch
• Designers & digital artists: Display past projects and accept freelance inquiries
• Craftspeople / makers: Sell handmade goods without relying 100% on Etsy
  

90% of general customers looking for a product report beginning their search on the Internet. Thus, it is more important than ever for you to have a site that works hard and ranks well in order for you to stand out amongst the crowd. We help creatives build websites that are affordable, easy to update, and built to grow with your career.

‍

Ready to Build a Website That Reflects Your Creative Work?

Whether you're searching for website designers for authors, website designers for photographers, or just want a better online presence without overpaying, we’re here to help.

👉 Book a free consultation
👉 See real examples of websites we’ve built

Your art deserves a home online that looks great, grows with you, and reflects exactly what makes you special!

‍