Hi Everyone,

Just want to ask you what do you think of people having the same blog, even the welcome words pretty similar.. Everything just looks identical.

Ross from Flosites customized something nice for my blog, and now, my own previous client from last year, having the same and very identical blog

I know a lot of blog were similar anyway thesedays, but this one is actually very identical.. even the Font LOL ... well except their logo and their name offcourse.. hahahha

Anyway, here' s their blog address : thioivansdotcomslashblog and here's mine

Anyone having this experience before?
It's not really a huge Deal but just want to know how u guys feel about this ?

( and I know the couples, I hang out with them a while back in DC ) I did their anniversary shoot last year Link

why cause they are using red? i dont see the similarities.

Identical?

Hardly

I wouldn't worry about it myself. Its definitely similar, but I wouldn't say identical.

Plus they're on the other side of the country and your images are way better!!!!

I know it can suck to be copied, but most blogs by nature are pretty similar, so I wouldn't get worked up about it. But if it is bothering you and you know them, just be honest with them about how you feel.

I see the similarities- especially in the header. They may have been inspired by your blog, but they are still very different. I wouldn't worry about it

There are probably 500 'similar' blogs these days given the popularity of templates such as the prophoto theme. Many are vaguely similar. I have yet to see one blog that is a carbon copy of another.

Save the odd 'my designer did it' copy jobs.

Ya'll are crazy, that's pretty gosh-darn similar. Maybe not identical or an exact copy, but freakishly "inspired by".

Erwin, you rock - many people will try to copy that. Thankfully they will fail, you have a completely unique style that can't just be reproduced.

I think I have to use the word similar not identical LOL.. sorry guys..


I know its not a big deal .... but just want to know what you guys think..
and I know the couples so I think is easy if I want to talk to them..

Thanks for the input guys

its like when i read that someone here was worried about using the same color as another photographer here on her blog - that should nt be a worry - there are only so many colors -

you dont have any specific design on your blog, just colors so i really wouldnt sweat it.

The layout is basically the same. Especially the header and twitter box...

...but before we grab our pitchforks and torches let's be honest. A lot of "inspiration" for a current crop of blogs came from the Infinet Design blogs.

General statement:
It sucks to be outright copied, but that tends to be the nature of many people in the world. They aren't creative so they copy someone who is.

but if were them, If I copy someone else, and at least I changed a little like the fonts, the header / twitter place or something...

I know its not a really big deal.. Sorry to post this topic anyway

Thanks guys

This isn't a bad topic.

It's pretty obvious that they at least "modeled" their blog after yours.

To take Vida's point a little farther, I think that in the Age of Templates it's pretty funny to see anyone get upset about blogs looking similar. (I'm not making fun of you, Erwin!)

The ProPhoto Theme template is nice and clean, but I've been seeing it everywhere now.

dude i don't see a huge similarity. your work speaks for itself! no worries man!

I have the prophoto theme, and so do lots of other photograhers, but I expected that.

He bought a CUSTOM blog, he is not expecting for someone else to have it, especially a client.

i've said this before, but basically there's not much room for originality with blogs, since they all basically do the same thing. when i visit a blog, i care about the images, not the design. i wouldn't sweat it, as long as they arent stealing your images, it's all good

The client does not have it. He has a flosites blog and the other blogger has a generic wordpress blog with what appears to be a theme that can be had simply by searching theme sites.

That said it is clear that Erwins work is way ahead of the other bloggers work. There is really nothing to worry about.

OK... I didn't check all the fine details. Sorrys!

Aren't flosites custom??? I obviously don't know all the details from one company to another. But they do look similar.

Yes, Erwin has custom flosites blog. The copy blogger doesn't.

Sorry for being vague and confoozled.

They are different I would say. The top has the same layout, but it is minor. Flosites usually have a similar look especially at the navbar area which definitely is different between the 2 sites. From looking at both, I wouldn't be worried or be upset.

Dont be sorry that is what OSP is here for to get advice and to vent.

Thanks everyone for the input

yes, definitely, I love this forum so much, any questions or advice I always come here ...

I think Flosites should be mad - the copy-blog looks to be a wordpress template that they purchased.

The intro is so close to yours. I think it would bug me if someone I knew did this - and (because I'm a pretty direct person) I would tell them that it bothered me and explain the difference between inspiration and copying.

They don't really look that similar to me...except they both have red as a strong color. Yes - they have a similar layout - but most blogs do.

exactly - i mean how different can you be with a blog? they all have a column down the middle!

I personally think that the layout has been taken and the header, the customization has been different and as chris said our blogs do have a distinct nav menu which was on purpose for recognition. Our policy is that unless the client asks us to contact the "copycat" we won't take any measures as some will want this dealt with, some wont. Therefore it is what the client wants as to what actions we take in dealing with a situation like this.

We are about to launch a new backend system dedicated for our custom blogs and this is one of our reasons for not taking on new clients, the main differences between custom or customized blogs are in the design and also the backend, a custom blog by ourselves or infinet design are created both from the ground up, meaning we have built our own blog management system, however there are many options to have customized wordpress or movable type systems that are hosted on your server, otherwise you can find freelancers to customize bloggers, typepad, squarespace and xanga.

Tami = there are a lot of new variants of that will be launching on blogs that will have different formats, layouts, animations. As blogs become more popular more and more programmers invest time into new ways to display information.

Heres a little thing I copied though and thought was pretty cool!

It could be worse...The person copying you could be your local "competition," contact you and ask for you to tell them how to copy you. And, yes, I've had that happen!!

Some people just don't see anything wrong with outright copying others...
*sigh*

It does have some similarities, and maybe they did use you as inspiration, which can be unsettling. A little while ago a wedding contact of mine approached my web designer and virtually copied my website, which I had spent weeks designing. I was so mad, I wrote them an email and told them how unprofessional that was and that I would not be able to recommend their services to any of my clients as our sites looked too similar. I was more annoyed at my web guy, and let him know that in no uncertain terms how I felt about him designing a site identical to mine for another person I knew.

As for these guys that you know, the one thing that struck me when I read their bio on the blog is that they don't seem to have a very good grasp of the English language, I'd be put off by that if I was a potential client. At least get the wording right on your website and blog!

+1

It's not like your blog's that unique. Like Jill says above, most blogs look similar.

I see their blog is a Wordpress blog, yours is not. The code is totally different.

Isn't red a symbol of good luck in certain Asian cultures? Perhaps that's why they've gone with a similar color scheme. Whatever the case, your work is unique and no one can begin to copy that & I personally love seeing your image posts on OSP!