ZoomConcept Reviews
Serious Problem on http://www.elfatranydesign.com 1 needs more space to breath 2 this reminds me of wordpress default theme Serious Problem on http://www.elfatranydesign.com/about.html 1 needs space Serious Problem on http://www.elfatranydesign.com/services.html 1 needs to improve typography Serious Problem on http://www.elfatranydesign.com/contact.html 1 wasted space Positive Feature on http://www.elfatranydesign.com/about.html 1 Smile :) 2 Great Images, It just needs a good message. Summary:
I like the black and white minimalist look, But it also gives an impression of unfinished. For me it looks like just a wireframe of a website. I also think you should find a good type combination if your aiming for a clean minimalist look. The current combination of font doesn't go well, IMHO. There are parts that needs more space.
Good Examples: http://www.chamainc.com/ http://jontangerine.com/ http://www.mattbango.com/ http://www.rodrigogalindez.com/ http://www.corporateriskwatch.com/ http://beingwicked.com/ http://simplebits.com/
Goodluck!
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Daniel Suarez commented:Totally agree about the B&W feel of unfinished
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Sammy Elfatrany commented:I agree with the copy type. I hate the way the text looked on a PC but didn't mind on a mac. Perhaps I should look into investing in one of those online typefaces hosts?
As for the black and white feeling unfinished, I guess I can understand that point but I really am weary about using too much color. I sometimes get distracted by the use of too much color in certain websites. I think I will consider giving the site a more polished look.
Thank you for such constructive feedback!
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Penn Folio commented:I think you just need to spend a little more time putting your identity in your website. Lay it out properly, Add more space, and choose a good type that will reflect you or your goal. Some of the examples I showed you above doesn't really use color that much, but their website has impact. Its all about how you present the message/content. You can also get inspiration from a resume of designers, most of the time they still use black and white but try to observe how they use type and space. You will notice they will still manage to create a creative look with it.
Regarding the font, you can either use css3 (font-face) or use cufon.
I hope this helps, Good luck :)
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Sammy Elfatrany commented:
Thank you penn! May I ask if I can use css3 even though I already did my template?
Can I use html 5 and Css 3 with my current template? I did my template using xhtml transitional from a lynda.com tutorial.
I am willing to re do my template if it means I will get a cleaner more impactful looking site.
Thank you guys for being so helpful. I know I keep saying it but I am really appreciative!
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Penn Folio commented:
Yes you can still use your own markup and just add CSS3 on top of it.
Do you use grids on your design? if not I would suggest taking a look at 960.gs or www.blueprintcss.org. This will be helpful in aligning and arranging your stuff.
If you're really gonna be redesign your website, I advice you create your mockup in photoshop first then you get feedback from us here at CF before you code it. This will save you coding it again.
Your current design is a nice start. Try to add more creative ideas in your design and it would be awesome.
Good luck! :)
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Sammy Elfatrany commented:
Back to the drawing board for me! I would like too keep a similar look. I still would like to do black and white, but this time more refined and polished.
I will research 960 grid and css3 before I propose a new draft.
Just tell me where to send the check! Your help has been invaluable to me and I cannot thank you enough!
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Penn Folio commented:
no problem :) glad I could be a help. good luck on your design and looking forward reviewing it again for you.
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Summary:
I do get what you're doing and for the most part the concept succeeds. But from the point of view of a potential client, I find your site somewhat confusing. That's not entirely a bad thing, because you've injected a lot of unique character into the words and pictures. But from a strictly business stance, there's quirky and there's off-putting.
The cats are great, with the exception of the black kitten on the portfolio page. But the captions don't do justice to the striking graphics.
The Hello World and Hello Clients sections are not as well-written as other parts of the site. They strike me as a little self-centred and a trifle indulgent. Doesn't really tell me what to expect (in a business sense) from hiring you.
Overall, my suggestion would be to find a copywriter you trust and collaborate with them to find a better balance of individual style and business-like messaging. Because this really is a great start. Good luck with it.
Hope this helps.
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Sammy Elfatrany commented:
Thank you Steve! Excellent points made! I will definitely look into the wording and make more sense of the overall message I am trying to put out there. I appreciate your comments so much.
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Web Ink commented:agree with the copy, your website needs to communicate well with your audience aside from looking nice.
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Minor Problem on http://www.elfatranydesign.com 1 Need spacing between paragraphs Serious Problem on http://www.elfatranydesign.com 1 intersting idea, but at simple view, I thought it was some kind of zoo or animal rights website New Idea on http://www.elfatranydesign.com 1 Cool graphical idea, but need to integrate something more interseting with type Summary:
It's a nice layout overall but I see a couple of problems with it.
If this is the final the black and white is not really working looks more like a paper scan of final product (black and white)
The idea of having the animals gives the wrong impression to your website at simple view. If you want to integrate that idea use it in not so important places and give more emphasis to your actual work.
- All of the text needs to be better styled. Choose better typefaces more spacing
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Sammy Elfatrany commented:
Thanks Daniel!
You know what, I am sooo happy I joined this site! You guys are all awesome and I love getting an outside perspective on how to improve my site.
This is my first draft. I launched it for testing and unfortunately I am getting visitors, but nothing huge so I still have time to tweak it!
I am going to revisit the imagery. I love tigers/lions and I like how deep blacks sort of make you stare into an image. I really wanted to tie that into my site somehow, but I think from what I am hearing from you all, I need to definitely re think my strategy. I want to make sure my message is clear.
I shall reward you all I am so happy to have received such awesome feedback!
Serious Problem on http://www.elfatranydesign.com/services.html 1 there is less space above the first headline than the following headlines Positive Feature on http://www.elfatranydesign.com/services.html 1 i think your footer needs to be reorganized. also do not separate links with the ”|” character. this is bad form, and should instead be accomplished with css. New Idea on http://www.elfatranydesign.com 1 Rethink your choice for the headline font. I would not use a serif font here. 2 i would vertically align the navigation text Summary:
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Sammy Elfatrany commented:
Thanks Gerda!
This was my first shot at making a CSS based website, so I am still learning.
I am going to take more tutorials on CSS and propose a new design here. Thank you for the feedback!
May I just ask how would I go about making space between the links on the footer via CSS? I just used the space bar but I guess that is incorrect? I do not want to have messy inefficient code.
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Penn Folio commented:
Hi Sammy, You can use either padding or margin in css, it depends on your goal.. but just a tip, Padding is the space inside the border and Margins are the spaces outside the border.
in your case you can do it like this.
a { margin: 2px 0px 2px 0px; padding: 5px 10px 8px 10px; border: black solid 1px; }
The above rule targets all 'a' elements and apply those property. You can narrow your target element by using id's or class. or you also do it something like this
footer a {
margin: 2px 0px 2px 0px; padding: 5px 10px 8px 10px; border: black solid 1px; }
that means a elements that are just inside the #footer element.
here's a good read: http://www.yourhtmlsource.com/stylesheets/cssspacing.html
goodluck!
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Penn Folio commented:
Hi Sammy, You can use either padding or margin in css, it depends on your goal.. but just a tip, Padding is the space inside the border and Margins are the spaces outside the border.
in your case you can do it like this.
a { margin: 2px 0px 2px 0px; padding: 5px 10px 8px 10px; border: black solid 1px; }
The above rule targets all 'a' elements and apply those property. You can narrow your target element by using id's or class. or you also do it something like this
footer a {
margin: 2px 0px 2px 0px; padding: 5px 10px 8px 10px; border: black solid 1px; }
that means a elements that are just inside the #footer element.
here's a good read: http://www.yourhtmlsource.com/stylesheets/cssspacing.html
goodluck!
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Summary:
Menu is ok, I like what you have done with the logo have it coming out from the top of the menu navigation but not everyone might not like this/get on with it. I would have an image mixed in with the logo's typeface/font too. :D
Footer is good, maybe social icons/media like a twitter feed and instead of get in touch within the footer; You could have a basic contact form on every page like name, email, and message/requirements.
- Peter
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Sammy Elfatrany commented:
Thank you Peter! I definitely feel there are some good parts of the site, but it does not have a polished look. I guess I was so anxious that I launched a website that was not 100% complete!
I agree with you on the footer, I want to use more visuals to link my behance profile, linked in, facebook, twitter etc.
I am taking everyones suggestions and making a new page via photoshop so I will be working on it! I appreciate the feedback Peter and all!
Best, Sammy
Summary:
maybe one live color for example yellow detail somewhere, will be good. just an idea.
I love your celan minimalizm but left right center blocks need some space for the To get rid of a mixed view.