Finding and Using SBI Templates
Since SBI had its huge template contest a while ago, we have been blessed with
dozens and dozens of great templates. (You'll see a few above.) Stick with
those, unless you have a reason to change.
If you do want a custom template, have it professionally designed.
You are welcome to contact
me for a person who can design your type of template.
Handling Images in SBI
BimpLite. This is a nifty free program that re-sizes your images quite
nicely. The screen looks intimidating at first. Take your time going through the options and you'll discover the
ease of sizing, beveling images, even changing the format of images to gif or
jpg.
iStock. Get access to thousands of amazing photos here. Most are
very cheap, about $1 to $1.50. You can take a look without buying anything
at all. When you do buy, buy the smallest. At any rate, don't buy
the biggest. You won't need images larger than 300 - 350 pixels wide.
And while we're on it, What the dickens is a pixel? And why do you want
them on your website?
A pixel is like a little pen marking, like a tiny period. Roughly
speaking, there are about 100 pixels to the inch on a computer monitor. So
if your image is 300 pixels wide, it is about 3" wide. That's about
as big as you want to get for your page. Much bigger and it looks like you
are shouting.
Your header will be wider than 300 pixels. Sometimes it is comprised of
a selection of images. For the most part, leave this to the pros.
If you really want to compose a group of images, you will need a graphics
program. The best known (and one of the most expensive) is
PhotoShop. I use Microsoft Image Composer, a program that came with my
Microsoft FrontPage, so I'm not as familiar with some of the other programs as I
might be. As you run across good programs, I'd appreciate your letting me
know.
Amazon Images
I don't often use advertising as "images", but the Amazon carousel is so
delightful, I couldn't resist.
