Role
UX/UI
Overview
The Product : The product is a multi-page photographic website aimed at attracting new clients.
Duration
12 weeks
Responsibilities
Research, Wire-framing, Interaction design and prototyping
About
The Knolton photography website is a minimal and modern photography website of the freelance photographer Greg, Who is famous for his editorial-style wedding and portrait photography and is based in Buchanan, Tennessee. Greg Wants to share his stories and showcase his talents so that customers can connect with him and hire him through the website.
Challenges
Increase content engagement: attract clients by providing a professional and elegant web experience.
Gaining visitor's trust and converting them into a client.
Goals
Redesign a photography website in a way that is easy to navigate and makes it very user-friendly.
Declutter the homepage/ landing page.
Improve sites' navigation.
Enhance the appearance / Visual look.
Research
To gain a better understanding of the photography website and website, I Began the research process by analysing exciting popular photographer photography websites and social media platforms. I proceeded with the user research, where I conducted one-on-one interviews with the four potential users. Based on their different usages, the data allow me to understand how users find and interact with the website and also give more insight than required.
Questions:
Income £85000
Location London
User Persona
Based on the insight provided by user research and interviews, I created a persona that reflects users' various needs and pain points.
Amy is a model. She is also a women's accessory shop. She often requires a photographer to capture her new arrivals and later uses it to update her e-commerce website and other media platforms. She wants to find a professional photographer and hire him through the website.
Eby Mathew
Amy John
Job Model, Entrepreneur
Age 26
Income £75000
Location London
Job Software Developer
Age 32
He is working as a software developer. He scheduled his wedding and is actively looking for event managers and photographers. He wants a professional photographer who delivers quality as desired.
Questions:
Empathy Map
Competitive Analysis
After gaining a deeper insight into user thoughts and emotions, I proceeded to investigate other websites. Employing a competitive analysis approach, I categorized and evaluated competitors to understand their strengths and weaknesses in comparison to our own, helping us find the gap for improvements and enhancing our design solutions.
Insights
Ideation
In the ideation phase, we aim to generate numerous ideas leveraging insights from our competitive analysis. To harness these insights effectively, we'll use the How Might We (HMW) method to pose questions that target specific areas for improvement and innovation on our website. This method create an environment for creative thinking and uncovers solutions that may not have been previously considered.
After exploring solutions, I decided to integrate the good aspects of competitor websites into ours. I then created user flows and sitemaps to ensure a smooth user experience, incorporating the best features observed in our analysis.
User Journey
I created the user journey using the data gathered from my research. The user flow preceded the stages of wireframing and prototyping in the development process.
Site map
The sitemap for Knolton Photography is created to address the client's needs and enhance the overall user experience.
Design
The design phase started with creating LoFi based on ideate phase carried by HiFi, visual design and Prototyping.
Paper Wireframing
Following my realisation of the importance of organisation and information hierarchy, I created multiple visuals to explore various screen ideas for a client project. These visuals aimed to present options considering user pain points, client requirements, and competitor websites. Focusing on enhancing human interaction, we experimented with the home page layout for a seamless transition between sections and improved content visibility.
The goal was to ensure a more immersive experience with the website. To provide a comprehensive understanding to both developers and clients, I crafted a wireframe based on research data, offering insights into page structure, layout, information architecture, user flow, functionality, and intended behaviours. This wireframe serves as a clear representation of the proposed website, facilitating effective communication and alignment on project goals.
Digital wireframing
After sketching the necessary screens, I developed mid-fidelity responsive wireframes for the website, considering the pain points experienced by users, the client's requirements and the competitors' websites
High-fidelity Prototype
I added detailed content and visuals while remaining consistent with the photography website. The photography website was redesigned to amend the most critical usability issues.
Key Takeaways
Organised and simplified the navigation bar for improved user experience.
Incorporated testimonials and booking button on the menu bar.
Decluttered the home page by eliminating redundant information for a cleaner, more engaging look.
Provided clear links for users to explore more detailed information on dedicated pages.
Introduced a dedicated testimonials page showcasing reviews from different clients.
Identified and resolved a primary user concern by adding a dropdown menu including various photography sessions on the booking page.
Enhanced the contact page with additional FAQs to address common user queries
These key takeaways showcase the thoughtful enhancements made during the redesign process, highlighting improvements in navigation, information accessibility, and overall user engagement.
Integrating simple interactions helped to improve the overall design. After going through all the steps of Design Thinking, I have now redesigned the Knolton Photography website that can be used. Although this entire process took quite some time, as it was my first time working on a UX project, it was a learning experience that truly taught me a number of essential skills that a UX Designer needs. With my newly attained knowledge and skills, I am confident in my ability to tackle new projects.