Before-and-after galleries that show your real work

Why pairs work

A finished driveway just looks like a driveway. Put it next to the cracked, sunken one it replaced and a visitor can see what you actually did. A pair also shows something stock photos can't: that the job was real and that it was yours.

Getting a matching pair

A pair only works if both photos are taken from the same place. Pick a spot you can find again, like the end of the driveway, a fence post or the corner of the garage. Hold the phone the same way at the same height. Take the "before" on the first day, before anything is moved. It's easy to forget, so make it the first step on every job, even ones you don't expect to show. Shooting tips are in photographing your work.

How to show them

• Side by side on wide screens and stacked on phones, with "Before" and "After" labels. This is the simplest layout and it works everywhere.
• A drag slider looks nice, but check that it works with a thumb and with a keyboard, and that it doesn't slow the page.
• Before, during, after for trades where hidden work matters: base prep under concrete, underlayment under shingles.

Write a short caption

A caption turns a picture into information. Stick to facts:

• Job type: "Driveway tear-out and replacement"
• Material or finish: "Broom finish with saw-cut joints"
• General area: the town or part of town, never the street address

Leave price off unless you're ready to be held to it. Don't write made-up quotes from the owner. If you have a real review for that job, quote it exactly and say where it was posted.

Sort the gallery

A long, unsorted wall of photos is hard to use. Group projects by job type or material so people can jump to driveways, patios or walks. Put your six to twelve strongest projects first. A small gallery of clear pairs is more useful than a huge one full of blurry or repeated shots. Add a few new projects each season so recent work is on top.

Permission and privacy

• Ask the owner before posting, and keep their yes in writing or a text
• Keep house numbers, license plates and people out of the frame
• Name the town, not the address
• Take a project down promptly if an owner asks

Keep it honest

• No stock photos and no other company's jobs
• No editing out flaws or changing colors
• No making the "before" look worse on purpose with bad light or a bad angle
• No pairing photos from two different houses
• No suggesting every job turns out exactly like the photo; sites and materials differ

Keep it fast

Galleries are a common place for a site to get slow. Resize photos to the size they're shown, compress them, and load the ones further down the page only as people scroll. Give each photo a short text description (alt text), like "New concrete patio with stamped border", so screen readers and search engines know what it shows. More in fast websites on phones.

Link it from your service pages

Don't leave the gallery on an island. Put two or three matching pairs on each service page, with a link to the full set. Someone reading about patios should see patios without hunting.