Some background information regarding my questions:

I studies graphic design at university and one of our classes throughout the years was website design. Here we were taught to design the layouts of websites, and after we learned to develop them in Wordpress. We also studied HTML and CSS and JavaScript so that we can customise Wordpress sites. We never used pre built themes. For the school projects we had to find bad design websites on the internet, make a presentation on why they are bad, and redesign the layout of the sites, after build them using Wordpress. For the content we had to use imagery from stock photo libraries and for the text we used placeholder text. So the content for these school projects was sourced by us. We learned that in real life projects content which is imagery and text is always provided by the client.
This is where it gets confusing to me, and I would like to ask experienced designers some questions regarding this. This is the reason I’m asking the following questions, because I would like to do freelance website design in the future, and  the getting the content part of the design process is unclear and confusing to me.

I would like to ask the following questions regarding this. I apologise for the lengthy post. I appreciate all the answers provided. Thank you for your time and effort.


1.
Who decides what images are used in a website’s layout design, the client or  the designer ?

Hypothetically I have to design a website for an Italian restaurant, do I have to give very specific instructions to the client about each image that he needs to send me. For example instruct the client to send me an image for the hero header section of the website, which should be 1280px by 720px and has to display a pizza which is on the right hand side of a brown wooden table with some tomatoes scattered around it and some white flour sprinkled around it, makes sure there is nothing on the left side because this is where the title and sub title will be located. Then repeat this process for all of the other images required for the website?

Or do I use any image the client provides me for the hero image, and also for  the rest of the images?

Or do we decide what the images look like and their composition together with the client?

Do I make this decision entirely on my own, choosing all of the imagery from stock photography?

Does the client hire a photographer who shoots the images? In this case do I just use the images sent to me by the photographer, or do I have to work together with the photographer instructing the photographer what I need, giving him specific instructions about what each images should look like and display?


2.
Who decides what is the written text or the body copy in the website, the text which is in the titles, sub-titles, paragraphs, and in the call to action buttons?

Does the client decide what all of the written text will be?

Does the client have to hire a copywriter who will create all of this?

Do I the designer have to create all of this?


3.
At which stage of the website design process  we have to have all of the content (text and imagery) ready from the client? At school we learned that content has to be ready before we start making the website’s UI design, because we will use the text and imagery sent by the client at this stage. These final designs will be 100% accurate and represent  how the developed website will look in the browser once online. We learned that  before doing all of this, first we have to do some low-fidelity sketches with pen and paper, these show the structure, layout of each web page, and all of the page elements. Next based on the sketches we made, we make wireframes using software like UX Pin or Balsamiq. These wireframes are very basic, monochrome in colour, they use dummy text and the images are represented by a rectangle with a cross through it. We learned that once the client approves these wireframes and we received all the content from them, we start the final UI design, in school we used Adobe XD for this process.

My question regarding this is, should we have all of the content ready from our client before we start the sketching process ?

I am confused about this because I researched on the internet and so far found information that states you should have all content ready at the very beginning, even before you start making the website layout sketches. But I remember the teacher telling us in school, that once the wireframes created with UX Pin or Balsamiq are approved by the client, we then send the client a list of content needed based on those wireframes, and once we receive all of the content we use that to make the final UI designs with Adobe XD.

Based on what do you decide the type and amount of content (text and imagery) needed to be gathered from the client?

I suggest that you make a web site for yourself which markets your new site designer service. In this endeavor consider yourself the customer and answer all of your questions here using this project as the information source. After that I would suggest that you do 3 free web site design projects for friends or family or both and endeavor to answer all or more questions you have on site designing through the accomplishing of these projects. Keep track of time spent and expenses incurred so as to establish prices you will have to charge to make a living and to also be able to be competitive in your pricing. Maintain and monitor these 4 sites so as to find if they are successful in their purpose and objectives. All of this will give you credibility in your site designer endeavors. On your way through this process you can get your questions answered on this forum, but you will or should be more than a guest for that. There are probably as many different answers to your questions as there are site designers here on the forum. This forum is more for technical site designer questions answered such as you got in your college education. Most of your questions go to the heart of policies and procedures of individual designers that establish these things for themselves through time and experience and are considered trade secrets and are reluctant to share on the forums with could be competitors. Read back through the old posts on this subject heading and you will find very few questions similar to yours. You may have to find some other forum to address these questions.

I would suggest that you go to some of the site designers on this forum who have web site designer businesses and study their sites where you will find the answers to many of your questions. When you are a forum member here or more than a guest you can then ask the specific members here specific questions you have in relation to site designing and coffee cup software. You will need to be using the CC software in order to have any legitimate questions for this forum whatsoever. The forum is not for wordpress software. If you want to use this forum to answer your questions you will need to be using CC software. Then you will need to find forum members here who are willing to help you with more than what the forum is meant for.

Hi guest, maybe you could use a name that we can address you by, like e.g. 'Robert'?

This forum is for users of the apps from CoffeeCup Software, and you will appear as a 'guest' until you actually buy a piece of their software. We are not here to answer questions about WP, but since you have studied it, you may know those answers yourself.

Greg's approach is good, and after you have done your own page and some for family/friends, next take on jobs (maybe not too big jobs) from people or businesses near you, so that you can visit the places.

As to your example with the Italian restaurant: Go there and have a meal, look around the place. When talking to the boss (the one who wants a website), make a contract about what you do, and what they do. They should of course provide text and images, and how they do that, employ a photographer and a wordsmith or do it themselves, will be up to them. Or, if you actually know how to take pictures and write texts, you can do it, and add it to the bill. Images should be clear and in focus. For the web, you don't need masses of resolution though. And when speaking with the restaurant owner don't use words like 'hero' images or headers, they most likely don't know what that is.

The owner will also have an idea about what (s)he wants to have displayed. You could ask for say 3 websites that they like (and maybe also what they dislike). When you learn what they like, you will probably get some idea about the layout. When you have visited the place and seen the colours of the place, you will get a feel for what to use on the site. It's always good to take a look at the competitors' sites to see what they have and how it is done.

The owners may like some effects like roll-over images, slideshows, image galleries, videos, sound files, order forms, contact forms etc. Things that take time have to be calculated, and if you have already made a couple of sites, as Greg suggests, you will have experienced how much time they take. When making a contract with the owner, it has to be calculated into the price.

It is possible to start a design without having every bit of the content ready. Ask for large images so that you can size them yourself, even crop them if necessary. You will probably have to make a first design that has to be revised a couple of times. The first one could include a main (hero) image and a heading, the rest might be dummy text and images. The time it takes to get the work done will depend on, among other things, how fast you get the material, and make that go into the contract too.

The question about where to upload the site will have to be agreed, and who will be providing a domain and get it hosted. I don’t use WP personally (well, I edit some, but I don't build them), so I don’t know how easy it is to provide a demo site that can be used for experimenting and maybe let the owner take a peek while the site gets developed.

Anyway, good luck!