It’s no secret that blogs that use great photos are among those that are the most popular. A great quality blog photo added to well written content, turns the post into one that engages your reader and keeps them coming back for more. How do you take a great photo? You practice edit, tweak, and play with the shot until you feel it’s ready to post, just like you do with your content. Here are some simple solutions to help you out if you are making these 5 common blogging photo mistakes. And at the by the end of the post see if you can spot the one mistake that I have made.
1. Using on camera flash, everything looks washed out, harsh, the whites have lost all detail. What to do? Solution: Turn off the flash on your camera. Set up your indoor shots near a bright window and use a large piece of white cardboard to reflect light onto your subject.
2. Using too many shots of the same angle, each photo looks like a clone of the one before it, and it’s boring your reader. Solution: Change it up, add something, take away something. Shoot from below, over top, the sides, grab the readers interest by changing the subject, or the angle. Make this a habit while shooting and you won’t regret it.
3. Using too many images in a blog post, it’s photo overload, there are too many images, and the reader starts scanning through the blog post trying to get to the end faster. Solution: Break up the blog post into two parts. Or use the extra photos for another post. Not every photo you take needs to be posted. Aim for quality, not quantity. Teach yourself to take less photos while taking the time to compose the shot, rather then just clicking away aimlessly.
4. Not using images that support your blog post. The photos you used in the post have nothing to do with the subject you wrote about, and it confuses the reader. Example, they are reading a post on making cupcakes, expecting to see a food image, and instead see a image of a dog because that’s all you had. Solution: Think ahead and shoot what you need for your blog posts. Shoot some everyday images that can be used for different posts, or shoot something that illustrates a blog idea in your head. Don’t have the right photos, work the post around the photo subject, and try to keep the image connected in some way to the subject.
5. Not watermarking your photos. Posting photos on your blog without watermarking, or adding metadata first. Making it even easier for thieves to steal your images. Solution: Use Picasa, Pic Monkey, or Photoshop to watermark, your images. I use Picasa, it’s has two different quick and easy ways to add a watermark to all of my images, sure it can be removed, but it takes longer to do so. You wouldn’t leave your car unlocked, why not watermark your photos, you’ve worked hard to compose and edit the shot, it’s yours, now own it! But remember not to have the watermark so large the image can’t be seen correctly. Now, did you catch #4, not using supportive images for your post? Yes, I am guilty myself of not using images that added anything to the blog post. It’s not set in stone that you have to, but being prepared makes a big difference in the quality of your post. I hope that these easy hints will help you develop into a better photographer, and avoid the 5 common blogging photo mistakes that we all sometimes make.