1 – INTRO
Photos and images are important parts of any Web site. But building an album of these items unfortunately can be tedious and it’s easy to fall into one of these extremes:
- having a page with pictures that are too big, different sizes, and laid out in a clumsy manner;
- a long page you have to scroll down, with pictures running down the side.
Though the ForMinistry Web site builder doesn’t have a specific picture album tool, there is a way to build a better album. All you need is the instructions below and a little patience.
2 - BEFORE YOU START
Here are some things to keep in mind before you begin:
- Formatting pictures and images before you upload them to your ForMinistry site will help with the quality of each image.
- Saving images as simple image types (such as .jpeg, or .gif) will keep the image file size down so that your Web site will be clean and easy to upload.
- Remember when using non-original pictures and/or images, make sure you know what permissions you need. It is not a good idea to copy and distribute these items without knowing the copyright/usage information.
There are two options described below on how to create an image album. Depending on your needs and desires, follow the instructions that will best suit your Web site.
3 – EASIEST WAY: SIMPLE IMAGE ALBUM
http://www.forministry.com/QUICKHELP/SimpleImageAlbum.dsp
A basic, simple album can be created by uploading your images directly to a page. The size, quality, and quantity of pictures will be determined by how much you want to show on the page you have, or if you desire, on multiple pages.
Before uploading your image:
- Change the size of your images before uploading them onto your Web site. Use dimensions that will make all the images the same (or similar) size. If necessary, crop or trim the images before resizing.
- Grouping your pictures can also be helpful. Horizontal pictures, vertical pictures, square pictures, etc.
- If your pictures are small enough, use a layout that will maximize the space on your page. For example, use the “1 over 2” column layout, where the First (top) column will be a title area (Something like: Photo Album: Scroll down to see our recent pictures), and the two even columns can contain your pictures.
- If your pictures are too large to fit in 2 or 3 columns, just use one column and add images down the page.
Once these issues are taken care of, you can upload your images to your page.
Creating a Simple Album:
- Click on Image next to “Add Item Here.”
- Then add a new image from your computer.
- Click on Browse and select the image you wish to use and then click on Upload.
- If you want to make any changes or edits to your picture, click on Edit, make your changes, and click on Save at the bottom of the page. (Remember, if you don’t click on Save before you click on Save and Update, your changes will not be saved.)
- When finished, click on Save and Update.
- Repeat steps above for other images.
