I find it rather laughable that I'm doing a post of "how to be a better blogger" because HELLO I HAVE BEEN BLOGGING ONLY FOR A HALF YEAR and there are people way more experienced than I and do I actually know what I'm doing? HAHAHA #NO.
But since the idea was stuck in my head, WHY NOT? Let's look at the positive side -- someday when we are all grown up we can all laugh at me together :P
Now some lucky people (I'm looking at you, Savvy) take all their own pictures to use on their blogs, but let's be real here ... most of us are pathetic photographers. And even if we are relatively good, WHO EVEN HAS TIME FOR THIS. So in this post I'm going to be talking only about stealing photos off websites that offer them for free (!!). (Ha. As if I could talk about anything else.)
Now some lucky people (I'm looking at you, Savvy) take all their own pictures to use on their blogs, but let's be real here ... most of us are pathetic photographers. And even if we are relatively good, WHO EVEN HAS TIME FOR THIS. So in this post I'm going to be talking only about stealing photos off websites that offer them for free (!!). (Ha. As if I could talk about anything else.)
1. KNOW WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR.
That usually means having a color scheme. But let's be perfectly honest here... I HAVE ZERO IDEA WHAT MY COLOR SCHEME ACTUALLY IS. When I made my header I assumed it was something like blue and gray and gold and purple and pink ... in short, THE SUNSET COLORS, but do my images reflect that? NO NO THEY DON'T.
Let's actually look at all my post header images ...
Err... they are not even titled accordingly XD
Well, it's not that bad is it? Gray, white, blue, brown, gold, purple, pink and shades in between ...
But back to the subject!! If you have a color scheme lucky you make sure you know what it is. If you don't have a color scheme yet, vaguely figure out what you are going for!! Because when you go hunting for your pictures, you don't want to be undecided. That makes for a waste of time XD Think about what colors you are looking for. What subjects you need. Notebooks? Books? Sunsets? People? Hair? Color pencils? Animals?
Know what you are going for and your task is 90% easier :D
2. SEARCH IN VARIOUS WAYS IN VARIOUS PLACES.
I use Unsplash all. the. time. But you can also go for Pixabay or Pexels or Picjumbo or Pikwizard or Stocksnap.io. Note: I haven't actually used Picjumbo or Stocksnap.io so I can't tell you how good they are. Unsplash is the best in my opinion! But I actually do recommend using a few sites because VARIETY. MORE OPTIONS. No worrying about exhausting their stocks (ahahahahaha as if that could happen). Basically it's just stretching your horizons. But definitely find your favorite and use that as much as you want to!
It took me a while to discover this but you can actually search in number of ways ...
by keyword ...
This, obviously, means typing your keyword in the search bar, For instance, if you are looking for images of notebooks, search notebooks. Here's an example off Unsplash.
by ready made collections ...
In Unsplash you just click "explore" or "collections" and WOW. THEY HAVE EVERYTHING ORGANIZED. JUST BROWSE.
by color ...
Now this is one to remember. Unfortunately it doesn't work on Unsplash (wot. why. help.) but on Pexels ... BOOM. Just go to "browse" and click "photos by color".
Then scroll and choose!!
3. BINGE COLLECT THE IMAGES.
Now I've observed that it's a big headache to go photo hunting just when you are writing your post. It's just ... big rush. And finding the PERFECT PHOTO is tough. So my solution is this -- BINGE COLLECT.
So take one afternoon to ONLY PHOTO HUNT. Take time to download, like, 50 at a time to use for the next month or two. After you've done that you can even sort them into folders in your computer files like I do so that it's EASY TO FIND WHAT YOU WANT LATER ON.
In this picture I organize my pictures according to color ... seasons ... and other subjects ...
THIS IS WHAT I PLANNED FOR MY CHRISTMAS POST ...
4. MAKE THE PICTURES FULL SIZE.
This is mainly personal preference but I prefer my images to be large in the post. As wide as the text. From side to side. For example ...
When I was an inexperienced blogger I had my pictures small like this:
But these days...
It took me a while to figure out how to get them all HUGE IN SIZE but it's actually really simple.
Now, if you get your images off Unsplash, the pictures have a high resolution and large dimensions so it's fairly easy to get them big. Basically click the picture and then "original size".
But.
If your image is small, as can happen if you take them yourself, or if you download them from Pixabay, you'll have to make them larger. This is simple enough. Go to Canva. (You will have to create an account if you don't have one yet.)
Grab "presentation", and upload your image. Stretch it to fit in full size and then download the image (as png or jpg). (See below)
You should find that when you upload it to blogger and make it "full size", it becomes big enough. (Or if full size looks too big, try "large", or "extra large").
5. KEEP YOUR STYLE CONSISTENT.
By this I mean that when you do your post image headers -- the images that have your post titles on them -- keep your fonts and styles consistent. It helps your posts to be recognizable in Blogger or Bloglovin' feeds. It makes your blog look that much more unified. It's CONSISTENT. It's part of this thing called BRANDING. Look at these examples ...
HAHA. SEE WHAT I MEAN? They are all consistent, recognizable, and not helter-skelter or haphazard. As if the blogger planned it and decided on it and spent time perfecting it (AND YES OBVIOUSLY THEY DID).
OK, so I guess we can all agree that this post was mostly me having fun taking screen shots, not really saying anything MUCH at all. Hopefully though, you understood WHAT MY MAIN POINT WAS.
And I don't really know how to end this post, because it's late and my brain is fuzzy >< Let's just say...
go forth and have fun finding your images.
what are your methods and tips for getting the most aesthetic pictures?
also, do you like taking screenshots? ^.^
This inspired me! I have been trying to figure out a theme for a while, but I think I finally have one. Great post!
ReplyDelete~Ivie
WHOOHOO GO ME!! *ahem* I'm happy you liked the post! WELL LOOK AT THAT YOU ARE DOING BETTER THAN ME. In any case I do really like your theme and color scheme!! :D
DeleteOkay so, for only having been blogging for a half a year, you are SERIOUSLY one of the most aesthetic blogs that I follow. You're just so GOOD at design, Lisa! And this post was epic - thanks for sharing! <3
ReplyDelete~ Savannah | Scattered Scribblings
EEP THAT SERIOUSLY MAKES MY DAY, GIRL <3 You're too kind ^.^ Well, I like to think it's my artist's brain at work lol YOU THOUGH HAVE SOME OF THE MOST EPIC PICTURES HAHA. You could be a bookstagrammer, seriously!!
DeleteTHANK YOU SO MUCH - I want to get an Instagram account, I just haven't asked my parents yet, haha xD. (ALSO I tagged you for a thing: http://scattered-scribblings.blogspot.com/2018/02/the-comp-title-challenge.html)
Delete~ Savannah | Scattered Scribblings
Ahh, I love Unsplash. But I hadn't heard of the other sites, so THANK YOU! My color scheme is suffering. But this post was super helpful, so thank you, dear!
ReplyDelete~ Ella Marie
*highfive* SAME HERE LOL. Oh no problem, I just sorta keep a list of useful places in case I ever EXHAUST UNSPLAH'S INVENTORIES HAHA.
DeleteYou are so welcome, Ella <3 Glad you found it helpful!! ^.^
I need to start doing nice blog headers, I want my blog to start looking more professional. Great Post!
ReplyDeleteLol yes blog headers can definitely help with "professionalism" XD I can't say I've really nailed it yet but WE ALL TRY AND THAT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING RIGHT? Can't wait to see what you come up with! It's gonna be fabulous :D
DeleteHeheee, I use those websites all the time...and binge collect....LOL. For a while I was just using Pixabay and then got introduced to Pexels and Unsplash a couple of months ago.
ReplyDeleteI still need to nail down my style of headers. Most of the time, I find a relevant picture to my topic (sometimes frosting it) and adding the text. Most of them don't look all that great. I've started to explore Canva because of RW - maybe I'll start using them on a regular basis.
Awesome post, Lisa!!
Catherine
catherinesrebellingmuse.blogspot.com
HEY AWESOME *fist bump* Glad you can relate so well!! Pixabay is pretty good but Unsplash really has higher resolution images ... OH I CAN CONNECT TO THAT. I'm so undecided over my header style. I actually went to redo all my past headers recently so that my blog doesn't look ... like some amateur newbie was experimenting here (oh. wait. that was me XD) Canva is definitely amazing though, and you can find plenty of style ideas there, so I do encourage you to explore it ;)
DeleteTHANK YOU CATHERINE!!
WOW, you are way more organized than me. xD Thank you for the inspiration and tips-I think I might try to find a new design for my blog headers now. =D Maybe something more original... *shrugs* Loved this post!
ReplyDeleteMicaiah @ Notebooks and Novels
HELLO MICAIAH!! Well, I try me best? I'm usually incredibly helter skelter lol I'M SO HAPPY YOU WERE INSPIRED THOUGH! I can't wait to see what designs you come up with!! *HIGH FIVE* Thank you ^.^
DeleteUhm except YES. THIS IS SO ON POINT. I have so much fun with graphic design and I love doing it but I'm still not that great? OH WELL. I'm always so impressed by the people that have legit color schemes and super consistent graphics because I aspire to that. xD
ReplyDeleteWELL THANK YOU. I feel honored and rather justified now XD HEY SAME! I LOVE COLLECTING AND TWEAKING MY IMAGES TOO. *highfive* hahaha if you ask me, all of us /think/ we aren't that great, but everyone else is like WOW. like honestly your design is actually one of my models? XD BUT I AGREE WITH YOU LIKE HOW ARE /SOME/ PEOPLE SO GOOD AT IT?? :D
Deletehahahaa this was a awesome post but honestly, I don't use stock photos even tho I've been tempted #ohwell
ReplyDeleteand aw yas branding. something I need to work on IN MY SPARE TIME, right? haha. anyways, great post filled with some great information, here, girl! <33
sarah » the introverted extrovert
THANKS BUT YES, I've noticed you only use your own pictures! Which is actually a really good impressive thing? I mean, come on, you're ONE STEP AHEAD OF THE REST OF US.
DeleteLol don't we all need to work on it in our spare time? BUT WHO EVEN HAS SPARE TIME THESE DAYS? I really need to try working harder on it too. Glad you liked the post!!
I'm SO HORRIBLE at images, so this is SUPER helpful and inspiring! THANK YOU!!!
ReplyDeleteNah you're actually GOOD at it in my opinion? But like ... obviously everyone has room for improvement or change hahaha NO PROBLEM AND GLAD YOU LIKE IT! Thanks for your comment!!
DeleteAwesome post. ;) I always take my own photos though - I love photography. xD
ReplyDeleteWELL THANKS :P Lucky you ;D some of us wish we were that capable lol
DeleteSo cool to read!!
ReplyDeleteeeep thanks so much <3
DeleteAhhh so useful! Even if I've been blogging for 3 years, I'm still so bad at colors and graphics XD Recently I've been trying to start branding my stuff more and try to have a consistent aesthetic but UGH
ReplyDelete(to search by color in unsplash I just straight up type the color into the toolbar and it works)
THANK YOU HANNE. Whew you make me feel so much better lol. But honestly you really do have a great blog!! I never thought, "oh she has terrible graphics" haha AND CONSISTENCY IS SO SO TOUGH
Delete(oh right, *facepalm* of course. How stupid of me! Thanks for clearing that up! EVERYONE ELSE LISTEN TO HANNE'S EXPERT ADVICE OVER HERE)
I have been blogging for seven years now and I am JUST getting the hang of it. o-o Sort of... at least I hope.
ReplyDeleteUNPLASH IS THE BOMB. I love it so much. <3 I might have to try Pexels now because I love the idea of searching a photo by color. THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT. <3
Honestly, these types of posts are LIFE SAVERS. So thank you! <3 Also; I *love* your header. It's so cute!
xx Kenzie
thoughts-of-a-fangirl.blogspot.com
OH THAT MAKES ME FEEL I FINITELY BETTER THANKS XD honestly your blog is just gorgeous and all around #goals ^.^
Delete*high five fellow unsplash lover* it really is the best! And searching by color makes aesthetic photos easier! I'm glad you found the idea helpful!
Thank you so much yourself and I'm so pleased you like me header *grins*
AHHHH I must get better at blog headers. Maybe someday...:PPPPPPPPP This was a super helpful post, though, and I will surely refer back to it....
ReplyDeleteLol someday :P it isn't that hard but it takes TIMEEEEE .... Thank you, I'm so happy you liked it!!!
DeleteI just can't help but think about how different my blog images look! xD I'm trying to make a more consistent design these days, though.
ReplyDeleteGood for you, aiming at consistency! Most of the time I have no idea what I'm doing XD but we all try our best! Go you! Hope you enjoy the process!
DeleteAhhh loved this post! I usually use pixabay but I'm going to have to try unsplash!
ReplyDeleteAWW THANK YOU NABILA! Pixabay is awesoooome but YES YOU GO CHECK UNSPLASH OUT TOO! Hope you like it :D
Delete