Designing Minimalist Websites: A Case Study on Aetherial ViewDesigning Minimalist Websites: A Case Study on Aetherial View
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I almost ruined this one.
Just finished a concept site for a nature photography studio — Aetherial View. First draft had everything I usually reach for. Clever scroll animations. A secondary nav. Hover micro-interactions. A bit of texture behind the hero.
Looked great in Figma. Felt awful next to the actual photographs.
A heron at golden hour doesn't need help from a parallax effect. It just needs to not be interrupted.
So I started removing things. The animations. The second nav. The texture. Half the type styles. Until the site basically got out of the way.
What's left: three nav items. An asymmetric grid that gives each shot room. Serif only where it earns attention — pull quotes, section heads. Black background as a gallery wall.
The hardest part wasn't designing it. It was trusting that less would feel like enough.
For a portfolio site, that's usually the whole brief — even when nobody says it out loud.
Ajayi's avatar
Intentional work. Every piece has a purpose.
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