Lena Moreau Photography
High-end editorial and fashion photography portfolio with cinematic lighting and bold color grading.
About This Project
Lena Moreau Photography follows a fundamental principle of portfolio design: the work is the design. The near-black background serves as a gallery wall, allowing the photographs — with their cinematic lighting and bold color grading — to provide all the visual energy the site needs.
The fixed vertical side navigation is a deliberate departure from conventional horizontal navbars. It references the gallery exhibition experience where wayfinding is peripheral, not dominant. This layout decision gives the photographs maximum horizontal real estate while keeping navigation always accessible.
The masonry photo grid uses CSS columns rather than a JavaScript masonry library, ensuring fast load times and smooth scroll performance even with high-resolution images. Hover overlays reveal project details without requiring page transitions. The Ken Burns hero animation adds cinematic movement to the landing experience, slowly panning across a selected image to create an immediate emotional connection. Publication credits are presented in a minimal, magazine-style layout that adds credibility without visual noise.
Key Design Decisions
- Fixed vertical side navigation references gallery exhibition wayfinding, keeping navigation accessible while maximizing image display area
- CSS-column masonry grid instead of JavaScript-based layout ensures fast paint times and smooth scrolling with high-resolution images
- Ken Burns animation on the hero creates cinematic movement that draws visitors into the portfolio within the first 2 seconds
- Single-line footer and minimal chrome ensure nothing competes with the photography — the work speaks entirely for itself
Industry
Category
Professional
Tech Stack
Design Direction
Near-black gallery where photography provides all the color
Key Features
- Fixed vertical side navigation
- Masonry photo grid with hover overlays
- Ken Burns hero animation
- Alternating selected work strips
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