When you really come to think of it, larger images can provide you a more riveting visual experience as they give you a clearer idea of what the website may be about.

They can even appeal to your emotions. Having recognized these effects of larger images, it is not really surprising why more and more websites opt to incorporate bigger and attention-grabbing images in their web design.

After all, the number of devices that are capable of displaying large images is increasing.

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Why Go for It?

A picture can paint a thousand words; that’s how the saying goes. While this proverb may be old, its truth still rings to this very day. In fact, design expert and professor Don Norman cited in his book, Emotional Design, that visual appearance is powerful in eliciting positive visceral responses.

Science has, likewise, proven that it is 60,000 times faster for the brain to process images compared to reading texts. This means that the kind of images you put in your website has a great impact on its ability to bait in users and entice them to avail of the products or services you have. Eye-catching images can just catch a good amount of money for your business.

Websites Which Have Gone for It and Pulled It Off

These days, there are already a lot of businesses that have adopted the image-focused design on their websites. Some of them are really big businesses while others are just otherwise. Nonetheless, there is one common denominator among them: classy web design, thanks to their being image-focused.

Uber

Uber

Uber’s images ooze with appeal, style, and drama

If you check the Uber website, you will be impressed with the large and classy photos they use. If you are not familiar with the services it offers, you may even mistake the photo as an advertisement for a high-end apparel or cosmetics. It simply oozes with appeal, style, and drama.

Southwest Airlines

southwest

Soutwest Airlines means serious business

Another business that has, likewise, chosen the image-focused design for their website is Southwest Airlines. The image used in their website, in contrast to that of Uber, will immediately tell you what business they offer. The simple-yet-large image gives an impression that they mean serious and good business.

McLellan Jacobs Kayak

Startup with impressive images

Startup with impressive images

This business may not be as big and popular as Uber and Southwest Airlines, but its website is just as impressive, or even better, than the other two previously discussed. A company that sells kayak, the website just knows how to tempt people who have the passion for paddling the waters using this narrow boat, whether for a sporting or recreational activity.

Because web designers can play with the focus, depth, and contrast of photographs, it is not really surprising why the image-focused design is becoming more popular these days. Apart from setting an enticing mood for the website, it also makes it more relevant to its niche. This trend will continue to dominate the future of web designs, much more that designers are already experimenting the use of animations and videos as well.

The Common Mistakes of Image-Focused Websites

  • Issues of Different Sizes: One of the mistakes you need to avoid if you decide for a large image website is the resolution of the photo. You must make it a point to try different resolutions of the photo while taking into consideration the width of different browsers.
  • Loading Time: If you use a high-resolution large image, its file size will increase. This will greatly impact the loading time of your website. Therefore, make sure to use a plugin that will optimize your website.
  • Wrong Format: Some image-focused websites face continuous loading issues because of a wrong image format. To avoid this, use GIF, JPEG, or PNG as these as standard web formats.

Should You Embrace the Image-Focused Trend?

Sad to say, though, the image-focused web design is not for everybody. You need to identify the best approach for your website. After all, a website is not just about images, is it? While it is true that the image you place on your website has a big role in capturing the attention of the users, making them stay, and prompting them to return, this doesn’t mean that it is the only thing that you need to consider. In fact, an image-focused design is not for every website.

The image-focused design is not for everybody

The image-focused design is not for everybody

Things to Consider before Deciding your Web-Page Design

1. Identify the goals of your website

The first thing you need to consider before deciding whether you should embrace the image-focused web design or not is its main purpose.

Is it for the online marketing of the product or service that you offer?
Are the visitors already familiar with your brand?
Will it need more informative content?

These are just some of the questions that you need to ask yourself before deciding to go for an image-focused design. You have to remember that, primarily, images serve a decorative purpose and are primarily used for branding purposes.

Now, do you really need an image-focused design for your website?

2. Pick an image that is related to the brand that you want to promote

Should you decide to go for an image-focused design, bear in mind that your website is not a photo album and must not showcase photos alone. Go for images that will resonate with the goal of your website

3. Pick a striking image

After identifying the purpose of your website, the next step is choosing an image that will surely capture the attention of those who will visit your page.

You may want to consider the use of magical realism and hand-drawn images that are beginning to influence web designs this 2015 and will surely continue to do so next year. You may also opt for the use of cinemagraphs.

Conclusion

While it is true that the web-design trend for 2015 and, most likely, for the coming years, is an image-focused web design, sad to say that this is just not for all websites. There are certain things that you need to take into account before embracing this trend.

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