To get a new administration user without the user name of “admin”, take the following steps:

1. Log in to your WordPress website.
2. In the left column on the administration page, select Users>Your Profile.
3. Because you will be deleting this “admin” account and creating a new one, replace the email address with a different one that you may have. You’ll be using your current e-mail address on the new Administration account.
4. Scroll to the bottom and click “Update Profile”
5. Now, go to User>Add New
6. Create a new user with the Role of administrator inserting your main e-mail address that you want to use.
7. Select “Add New User” to save.
8. Go ahead and log out of your WordPress.
9. Log back in to your WordPress using the New User you just created in step six.
10. Navigate back to Users>All Users and delete the old “admin” account.
11. The final step, very important, go back to User>Your Profile and make sure the “Display name publicly as” section is different than your username.

Sure enough! It works! …but only on Twitter.com and not on Tweet Deck, Seesmic or other desktop clients.

To view an example, check out my Twitter profile page.

• I started with two images at 200px X 200px.
• I cracked open PhotoShop and used the animation tool and worked the magic.
• Don’t get too crazy! You don’t want to annoy folks and make them block or unfollow you.
• Upload the image to your Twitter account.

I think it would be best used for any company that wants to display their logo and also put a face to the Twitter account. If you are a photographer, maybe display some of your portfolio, your image and your Brand Logo.

If you don’t know how to make an animated file, I can do it for you. Just send me a few images, a description of what you want it to look like and I’ll make one for you.

I would love some feedback as to what you think. Please leave a comment.
Contact me for a Twitter Avatar image.

Photography For Real Estate.

This is a great website to learn and gain information on how to start a real estate photography business. Tons of information in blog posts, flickr images and discussions, “get you started” packages, etc. Look through the side bars to contact current Real Estate photographers and gain inside info on how to get your business up and running.

So, you’re setting up a WordPress website and discover all the free themes available out their. Many of them look really good and the “Price is right”. Then you discover a few websites that sell some premium themes. These look even better than the free themes!

So, why are some themes free and some you have to pay for?

Free Themes:

Free themes are great, if you get them from a legitimate website. Most of those sites, I find, are pitching both free and paid themes.

1. The free ones are usually sponsored by outside companies and links can be placed into the footers of the themes. The footers also contain some “special” code that will not allow you to delete the sponsored link. If you try to remove it, the theme will usually shut down entirely.
2. The problem with some free themes is the links in the footers can be “bad” links that go to websites that you may not want to link to. Sure, the theme may look fantastic, but that’s the whole idea. It’ll entice you to use it for there gain.
3. Another problem is the coding in the files. Sometimes they contain hidden code in the header and other theme files. If they’re hidden, then you know what that means…
4. Lastly, there is no support for these themes. If you don’t know how to use HTML and CSS, you aren’t going to be able to get any answers for your numerous questions should you run into trouble.

Paid Themes:

Premium paid WordPress themes are such a blessing! My web design packages INCLUDE a premium theme. If someone wants to use a free one instead, I make them aware of the points I made above.

1. The companies that provide premium themes usually charge between $20-$80. This includes signing up on their website at the time of sale and being provided with support in the form of a forum with detailed information regarding your theme purchase.
2. Administration panels in WordPress usually contain extra tools to be able to adjust and customize your website to your liking with minimal to no HTML or CSS knowledge.
3. Premium theme creators spend extra time to make sure their themes are compatible with WordPress upgrades and plug-in upgrades. They want to make sure their product is versatile and working without any bugs.
4. With all the focused attention on each premium theme, the designs and functionalities are  SUPERB! Some more than others…
5. There are a few “Systems” out there too. They are a framework system for WordPress that can have many different “child themes” applied to them. This creates the possibility to switch around the design and style of your site with minimal effort and zero HTML structural failures.

Here are a few of my go to websites for Premium themes:

• http://elegantthemes.com
• http://ithemes.com/purchase/
• http://www.studiopress.com/
• http://themeforest.net/category/wordpress

Before you buy a Premium theme, make sure it has the set up and functions that you’ll need for your business or personal site. Check to see if it’s set up for a blog or as a CMS. (best if both) I always make sure it has a “Full Width” page template with it.

Do you like the Free ones or the Premium ones?