Hamlet
Finally, we have a new customized layout – I had simply been lazy recently and resorted to easy WP themes, but we now have a new proper layout! I made the header, and the wonderful Celyn coded the wordpress element for me (so a huge thanks to her, because I wouldn’t have been able to get it online otherwise!!).
Let us know what you think – I chose to use this photoshoot again (it was also used on the last gallery theme) because it is one of my favourites!
EDIT
Now on the sidebar – we have a ShoutBox! Let us know what you think of the site there, and what you would like to see added!
I’m sorry, but your new format of dark-text-on-even-darker-background format is almost unreadable to me. There’s a reason that usability experts like Jakob Nielsen strongly advise Web designers to emphasize high contrast between text and background.
I can read the body text only with great difficulty. It is *impossible* for me to read the dark-red headings. The only way I can read with with ease is if I click Select All to highlight the text, which gives me the “effect” of high-contrast dark text on white. This, of course, is a hassle for me, and it makes a hash of the design.
I popped straight over here when I saw your tweet about the redesign. My heart sank when I saw the result. I love your site’s content and am grateful for the wonderful work you do, but I can’t see spending much time here if you keep this design. I was perfectly happy with the old one, to tell you the truth. Please, please, please consider boosting the contrast on this page! You may lose a lot of readers otherwise.
Comment by Julia — February 26, 2010 @ 6:41 pm
I have edited the colouring a little for the titles and the main news. Can you let me know if this improves your viewing please?
Comment by Heather — February 26, 2010 @ 7:39 pm
I have to agree with the first poster–it is hard to read the text. The gray stuff is easier to read now, but the red text areas are still very low-contrast and have to be highlighted and/or squinted at to be legible. They’re all muted and dark right now, especially on the banner and right underneath it, and I have a pretty bright screen as well. Don’t be afraid to use bold contrasts, because as the first poster said, that’s just good web design.
Comment by Tiggy — February 27, 2010 @ 3:45 pm