Why a Personal Photography Portfolio is Essential in 2025
When it comes to sharing a photography portfolio online, there's an overwhelming pressure to maintain a presence across multiple social media platforms. But over the years, I've shifted my focus and energy toward something that provides more lasting value: my personal website. Let me share why this decision has transformed both how I share my work and how I think about my photography business.
Key Takeaways
My Instagram account with 5,000 followers disappeared without warning or explanation, highlighting the risk of building solely on social media.
A personal photography portfolio gives you complete control over how your photography is presented, organized, and discovered by potential clients.
The email list and client relationships you develop through your own website can't be erased by algorithm changes or platform shutdowns.
When the Social Media Rug Gets Pulled Out
A few years back, I learned a painful lesson about the fragility of social media presence. I was using an automated posting app with Instagram. Nothing spammy, just a tool that helped me maintain a consistent posting schedule while I was out doing street photography or traveling.
Without warning or explanation, Instagram decided I was a bot and deleted my account. Just like that my 5,000 followers were gone overnight.
Five thousand may not sound like a massive following to some, but I had built those connections one by one over the years. More devastating than the number was losing the community I'd created and the potential clients who knew where to find me.
Despite countless appeals and messages, Instagram never responded. My account simply vanished, along with all the engagement and content I'd created over years.
Now imagine if your entire photography business depended on Instagram or another platform. What if your livelihood hung in the balance of an algorithm that could, at any moment, decide you've violated some obscure term of service?
We're seeing this play out in real time with the potential TikTok ban in the United States. Creators who have spent years building audiences of millions now face uncertainty. Their creative business models, built entirely on a platform they don't control, could disappear with the stroke of a legislative pen.
These platforms aren't really ours. Instead, they're borrowed space where the social media landlord can evict you without notice.
A Personal Photography Portfolio
This is precisely why I've shifted my focus to my photography website. It's the only online presence I truly own and control…
My website reflects my vision, presented exactly as I intend, without compression algorithms degrading my images or a feed pushing viewers quickly past my work.
More importantly, having my personal photography portfolio means the relationships I build with viewers, potential clients, and fellow photographers aren't mediated by a third party that could disappear tomorrow. The email list I've built through my website has become my most valuable asset, allowing me to send a regular photography newsletter and keep people up to date.
Why I Use FORMAT
After trying several website builders for photographers, I settled on using FORMAT six years ago and haven't looked back. What initially drew me to the platform was how it was clearly built by people who understand the unique needs of photographers.
FORMAT solves several key pain points that photographers face when building their online presence:
Image-focused design: Their templates are specifically designed to showcase photography without distracting elements. They’re all clean, minimal, and with optimal loading speeds that don't compromise image quality.
Portfolio organization: I can create multiple photography portfolios and organize my work in ways that make sense for different audiences and purposes, something social media simply doesn't allow.
Professional integration: From client proofing galleries to print sales, FORMAT integrates the business tools photographers actually need.
SEO tools: Unlike social media posts, my FORMAT website helps potential clients find me through search engines when they're actually looking for photography services.
Complete control: I can change the look, feel, and organization of my site whenever I want without worrying about an algorithm punishing me for it.
Perhaps most importantly, FORMAT gives me stability. In six years of using their service, I've never had to worry about my entire online presence vanishing overnight. That peace of mind is worth every penny of their subscription fee.
Your Photography Portfolio Deserves Its Own Home
Built using FORMAT.
If you're still building your entire online presence on social media platforms, I encourage you to consider creating a proper website for your work. Yes, maintain your social media accounts—they're valuable for promotion and connection—but don't make them your primary home for your photography.
FORMAT offers a free trial that lets you explore its platform without commitment. You can sign up and test the benefits for yourself.
Your photography deserves a stable, controlled environment where it can shine on your terms. It shouldn’t be at the mercy of ever-changing algorithms and corporate policies. After six years as a satisfied customer, I can confidently say that FORMAT provides exactly that.
Whether you choose FORMAT or another website builder for photographers, the important thing is to establish your own digital home. Because at the end of the day, the only online presence you can truly count on is the one you can control.
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