Slde Show or Slider? That was the question and a slide show on the front page of the website just didn't have the wow factor.
The container it sat in was always too large resulting in wasted space above and below and tweaking the CSS did not resolve the problem.

Weebly offer a slider with their Pro account and give you the tools to put one on you site but what they don't tell you is free users can have one as well, you just do not get the tools to do it so have to figure out the HTML and CSS yourself.
Well the good news for me is I figured it out and have changed my slide show to a 1020 x 400px full page width slider. What a difference it makes the wasted space above and below is gone resulting in a much cleaner look with the website logo and the slider filling the screen.
It is not all good news though, the slide show allowed you to link every photograph to another page on the website my buy now page for example. The slider does not appear to have that option available or maybe you know a way of doing this?

For now I am happy and have learn't a bit more about CSS and HTML which not so long ago was like an alien language but is now starting to make some sense, it is lucky that I always think "if there is a will there is always a way" to do these these things.

Providing a sitemap to Google has been another big tick in the box so they can better index My website. This was another feature that is not plainly obvious in Weebly, reading on Google Webmaster Tools about how I should provide one but having no idea how to do this it sat on the backburner not forgotten but in the pile labelled "How the He... do I do this".
Luckily whilst researching the slider I happened to find a page telling me that every Weebly site has a sitemap and you just have to know the magic words to get it. If you want to know those words you had better send me a message.

If you read this and visits My website, please let me know by way of a comment to this post how long the front page takes to load, with my slow connection it is hard to judge the speed.

ManateeVoyager.
April 2013

New Gallery Added    Architecture Photography

Architecture you will either love it or hate it because it is art in its most visible form. In some parts of the world they build boxes which are ugly to the eye but serve a purpose within their walls, Others embrace the style of the architect and build things of beauty.
The World is full of impressive architecture some old with blocks of stone chiseled by hand, others are modern and have facades of steel and glass in each there is beauty the curve of the arch, the detail, the reflective qualities, the textures, the strong lines.
The impressive detailing of the blocks of stone and the reflective beauty of the modern glass facades.live side by side both in the real world and in my photography gallery of architectural photographs. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have creating these photographs

The work continues with major changes to the look and feel of the website. I have designed a new pattern which I have used to create a textured background which has given the website a more classy look.
Each top level page has also been redesigned with a different header photograph for each page.

I'm still working hard on my new website it is now turning into a labour of love and taking a lot of time. But I think it is coming together now,

I have introduced a page for PS tutorials and some PS Actions to download. More to come as and when I get the time.

I now have a guestbook so if you drop by be sure to leave an entry so I know you have been and if you could like the site that would be great as well

ManateeVoyager
4/8/2013

There are days you stand in the cockpit of the boat and look at the sky and know that bad weather is on its way. The first sign of a weather front moving in is the arrival of the Cirrus cloud, those wispy high level clouds made of ice crystals which tells you that in the next 12 - 24 hours there will be a change in the weather usually for the worse at this time of year. But on the plus side those wispy clouds are a photographers dream.

So the bag was packed and we were on the train down the coast 4 stops to the little fishing town of Fuzeta, Algarve, Portugal. A place I have passed many times and wondered what might be there, but the train station does not inspire one to get off the train. Our 5 year old Rough Guide to Portugal says it is a small village on a river with a even smaller port, a little beach on the Ria Formosa, a campsite and a ferry service to Ilha Armona. A place frequented by backbackers in the summer months, with little acommodation for tourists. A place the Tourist explosion on the Algarve has all but passed by.

What You will find is a delightful unspoiled by modern development little fishing town, with enough photo opportunities to keep a keen photographer very happy and today we had those clouds as a backdrop to every photograph. The photo with this post is the lifeboat station at low tide, standing on concrete piers it is a building showing the economic plight in this part of europe with years of neglect. Hopefully the lifeboat inside is in better condition.

The photographs from the Fuzeta shoot will be posted over the coming days and believe me there are some stunning landscapes.  Fuzeta Gallery

So a big thankyou to the cloud gods for making it such a great day and yes the weather did change the rain arrived during the night....

ManateeVoyager
April 3rd 2013