How to Use Photos in Online Writing

Hi there Authors. Today I am going to break down the very best method for using photos in your online articles that I have come across. The benifits are that your article will load faster, and your photos will help with your promotion and SEO efforts.

We know that IB does uploads images. But, the bigger images take longer to load and prestent layout issues as well. Here's the process that helps me and will help you as well.

The first thing is that you need a place to organize your photos at an online photo site of your choice. I personally use Flickr since it is free, well known, and easy to use.

Second, you need to take or acquire quality photos that are relevant to your content. If you don't want to take photos then you need a reputable photo repository. I use Wikimedia Commons for the most part because the license is clearly explained in plain English. Next, do your keyword research and compose your article offline. I use Google Docs or Open Office. Both are free and both offer advantages to authors since you can paste the HTML source directly into most editors.

Then I use Easy Thumbnails to create thumbs of each photo that I am going to use in my article. I then will upload all the photos, large and thumbs, to a set on Flickr.

Finally, add titles and captions to your photos using keywords from your research. I also add a link in the description to the article or articles the photos are used in. Check my Flickr Profile to see what I mean.

Now, you will link to the thumbnails in the body of your article. Keep hitting preview until your layout is just right. In this example I am showcasing my newest grandchild on the day she met her older sister. When your layout is perfect, turn the image into a clickable link to the larger photo. Click my thumbnail example to see what I mean.

The HTML to embed an image is (without the outside quotes): "<a href="http://your.photo.whatever.jpg" title="your title by you, on yoursite" rel="nofollow"><img src="http://your.photo.whatever.jpg" alt="put keywords here" align="left" vspace="15" width="150" height="112" hspace="15"></a>"

This code allows you to align the photo and create a buffer of space.

If you found this article useful or interesting please vote it up, pass it around, and comment. Thanks for reading and have a great day.