When I started getting my feet wet in the blogosphere, I knew it wasn’t easy. I knew it took time. I knew it took effort. I knew it took commitment.
I did not know how ridiculously long it can sometimes take to find an awesome picture to accompany your post.
You want a picture that grabs and holds attention. That sparks the imagination and spurs questions. That gets people to click ‘read more’. Oh, and one more thing, you want a picture that makes sense in the context of your post.
Lengthy checklist, eh?
Checking Boxes
How do you check things off this list? Well, if I don’t personally have a photo that works for a certain post, I use the Creative Commons Search. This allows you to search Creative Commons licensed work across multiple site (I prefer Flickr, so that’s what I’ll talk about). You can choose if the work is for commercial purposes, to modify adapt or build upon, or none of the above. Just remember, you must attribute the work to the author or licensor as they specify.
Now, how do you find this perfect image?
- Think outside of the box. If you use common, boring search terms, you’re likely to find common, boring photos. (i.e., I used the word ’”shush” instead of “quiet” to find a great picture for a post.)
- On Flickr, click on ‘Interesting’ when you’re searching. I’ve found that this gets you the best quality and most interesting pictures.
- On the Flickr photo page, click on “All Sizes” to download a picture.
Sometimes this is a relatively painless process. For instance, I found the picture for the post within 10 minutes. Other times, it’s a painful process that can take up to an hour. Sometimes, I just grabbed my Nikon D-80 and went to shoot a picture for myself. I’ve even reached the point where I just made graphics in Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop.
And remember, never forget the photo credit. It’s the right thing to do.
