Every PhotoShelter member receives a personalized website address in the form of custom.photoshelter.com. If you prefer to use your own custom domain, you can purchase a domain from a domain registrar like GoDaddy or Bluehost and follow the steps below to point your domain over to your PhotoShelter site.
In this scenario, PhotoShelter is your website host, but your domain name will be registered through a domain registrar. If you use GoDaddy or Network Solutions as your domain registrar, we have support articles dedicated to setting up a domain on those platforms. You can also refer to our registrar-specific information for additional tips.
Read through the different goals listed below to see which one best fits your needs.
Goal #1: I want my domain to be used primarily for reaching my PhotoShelter site
Scenario: Your PhotoShelter site can be reached at both “yourdomain.com” and “www.yourdomain.com”
Follow these steps:
1. In your domain registrar account, create a CNAME record in the DNS settings. The CNAME record should include the following info:
- Alias/host: "www"
- Value/Points to: “custom.photoshelter.com” (exactly as written, not your PhotoShelter address)
Note: If your DNS settings already contains a CNAME record with “www” as the alias, edit the existing record to include the alias/host and values indicated above. You cannot have two CNAME records in your DNS settings.
2. To ensure your domain works both with and without the “www,” create a forward/redirect in your DNS settings. The forward should look like this:
- yourdomain.com forwards to https://www.yourdomain.com
Note: If given the option when creating a forward, do not use framing/masking/cloaking, as this will cause problems loading your website.
3. Once your CNAME record has been saved, navigate to your General Settings in PhotoShelter. Enter your domain name including “www” into the Custom Domain (CNAME) field and click Save Settings.
Note: If you receive an error message (i.e Failed to Connect), you may need to wait for your CNAME record to propagate across servers. This can take anywhere from 30 seconds to 48 hours.
If the SSL status shows as In Process, the CNAME record was set up correctly.
SSL certificates ensure that your domain loads over a secure connection. It generally takes 5-20 minutes for the SSL certificate to generate. Once it’s active, your site should load successfully over your custom domain.
Goal #2: I want my PhotoShelter site to be a subdomain
Scenario: You use another site as the main landing page for your domain, and want PhotoShelter to appear as a subdomain (e.g. "archive.yourdomain.com” or “sales.yourdomain.com”)
Follow these steps:
1. In your domain registrar account, create a CNAME record in the DNS settings. The CNAME record should include the following info:
- Alias/host: subdomain (e.g. “archive” or “sales”)
- Points to: “custom.photoshelter.com” (exactly as written, not your PhotoShelter address)
2. Once your CNAME record has been saved, navigate to your General Settings in PhotoShelter. Enter your subdomain name including “www” into the Custom Domain (CNAME) field and click Save Settings.
Note: If you receive an error message (i.e Failed to Connect), you may need to wait for your CNAME record to propagate across servers. This can take anywhere from 30 seconds to 48 hours.
If the SSL status shows as In Process, the CNAME record was set up correctly.
SSL certificates ensure that your domain loads over a secure connection. It generally takes 5-20 minutes for the SSL certificate to generate. Once it’s active, your site should load successfully over your subdomain.
FAQ
I set up my CNAME properly, but I’m not able to save it in PhotoShelter.
Changes to your website's domain can take several hours to fully update. Try again later. If it still won’t save after 48 hours, contact support to troubleshoot.
What if my registrar asks for an IP address? Can I use an “A” name/record?
A records rely on IP addresses and our IP addresses are subject to change at any time without notification. For this reason, we do not recommend using an A record.
What are nameservers, and do I have to worry about them?
Nameservers are what contain your DNS records, which are the records that tell a computer where to find your website. With the CNAME setup we recommend, you’ll want to use your domain registrar’s default nameservers.
I receive email at my domain. Will this affect it?
If you’re currently using your registrar’s nameservers, there should be no change. If you’re using an outside host’s nameservers, they’re most likely handling your email hosting as well. You would want to arrange for email hosting elsewhere; most registrars offer email hosting and would be willing to configure it for you. PhotoShelter does not provide email hosting.
What about SEO?
CNAMEs do not negatively impact search engine optimization (SEO). CNAMEs properly resolve to the canonical address, which is a fancy way of saying they do not confuse Google or other search engines.
What if I have more than one domain name that I’d like to load to my PhotoShelter site?
We only support connecting one domain to your site through the recommended CNAME set up. In this case, you’ll want to choose which domain you want to be your primary domain and follow the CNAME setup instructions for that domain. For your additional domains, you can set up a forward/redirect in your domain registrar so that they redirect to your primary domain. When setting this up, be sure that you do not use forwarding/masking, as this can cause problems with your website.
I’m seeing a “your connection is not secure” error message when I visit my site. What should I do?
This likely means that we were unable to generate your SSL certificate, which is what ensures your site loads securely over HTTPS. Typically this happens because your domain is not set up with the proper CNAME record pointing to “custom.photoshelter.com.” Review the steps above and make sure the appropriate record is set up in your domain registrar account.