richard_jones24

The templates at PixyBlog (<a href="http://www.pixyblog.com/">www.pixyblog.com</a>) are pretty minimalist, which

might suit your requirements. Check these sites for example; <a

href="http://www.pabst-photo.com/">www.pabst-photo.com</a>, <a href="http://635images.com/">635images.com</a>.

There's an interesting discussion and poll on this which might be of interest <a href="http://discuss.pixyblog.com/digital-darkroom/how-do-you-organize-your-library-t198.html" title="How do you organize your library on PixyBlog">here</a>.

For photography-biz based websites you may find the following useful. They are photo orientated sites, but are quite customizable so that you can run your own domain, create your own pages, add checkout features such as PayPal.

 

<ul>

<li><a href="http://www.smugmug.com">SmugMug</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.pixyblog.com">PixyBlog</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.zenfolio.com">Zenfolio</a></li>

</ul>

I've heard mixed reviews about it, but don't have an account myself. The search is awful (try it out). The design is nice and sleek/elegant. But it's buggy system (from what I hear).

Check out these:

 

<ul>

<li><a href="http://www.shutterchance.com">www.shutterchance.com</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.pixyblog.com">www.pixyblog.com</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.aminus3.com/">www.aminus3.com</a></li>

</ul>

 

They're all popular photoblog services.

"Are these blogs really a boost for business?"

 

If you can keep them up-to-date with fresh content; sure. However it's very easy to blog, so although it may be a daunting aspect to start one, keeping it going can be quite easy, and having the ability to receive feedback/comments can be very rewarding. They're easy to start too... so why not give it a go... you might become addicted.