Add Some Color with Pictures!
There are a couple of ways to add images and media to your blog. If you know you are going to be using several images, you can go straight to the “Media” link on your dashboard and upload them. They will then appear in your “library” to choose from. To upload images one at a time to an actual blog post, just click on the picture frame next to the upload/insert text on top of your writing pane buttons. If you are adding an image from your computer, just navigate to the file, click on the image and the image uploader will bring it to your word press files. It will be ready to insert after you choose from a few options.
It is advisable to use a photo editor to reduce the size of your larger images to no more that 40K . If you have a mega pixel camera, you can start by resizing them in a program like Microsoft Office Picture Manager. You do not want to upload an image that is 3600×2800 pixels! You need to reduce them in physical size so they can be uploaded and displayed faster. I find it easiest to reduce the size by a percentage rather than dimensions. I start with around 15 percent of the original size, aiming for a new size of around 300 x 600. Picture Manager will display the new size when you enter the percentage. You can make them even smaller if your original percentage is still too large. If your images are slightly larger than that, its okay because WordPress will crunch them and allow you to choose a suitable size for insertion into your post.
It’s very handy to create a file folder JUST for your blog photos. You can save the changes to your image into that file, and not save the changes to your original photo, so you still have the original image sized in megapixels, and a smaller one to use in your blog posts.
Once your image is uploaded you will see a box like the one to the left. You can change the title and if the image is your own image, name it so that it identifies you or your blog. You can choose a caption to appear beneath the image if you like, but if you move your image in the blog, the caption will stay where the original image was placed… Because of that, I rarely use captions. Describe your pictures if you like, it may help search engines to find you!
The link url default is to link the image to your POST. If you want the image linked elsewhere, just replace the URL to the link you choose.
Positioning and size is next. Do you want to use the full 600X 800 size you uploaded? Probably not! There will be other options. Do you want the image to appear to the left, with your text wrapping the image, as shown in this example? Or in the middle or to the right? Just choose your option. It can always be changed if you don’t like the effect. Your final step is to INSERT the image. Click the button and you are in! You will want to save your draft and preview your blog to see how it looks in the blog post. Sometimes it takes a few delete and re-adding to get it just where you want it. If you end up removing it and want to re-add it, when you click on upload image, use the library button. Your image will now be in your “gallery”. Click “show” and you will be able to reinsert it again.
Adding an image from the internet is also easy. If you find an internet picture you want to link to and have it appear in your blog just navigate to the url of that picture, copy the url from the address bar and paste it into the box that will appear.
Adding a YouTube video can be done through the add video button or simply by using the imbed code from the YouTube video and pasting it into your post via the HTML button to the right of the viewing pane. I know I told you you didn’t need to know HTML, and you really don’t, But the HTML window is perfect for adding the HTML that someone else created! The YouTube code is a simple copy and paste job. Give it a try, you’ll love the effect! You Tube videos are made to be shared, you can add just about anything you find that interests you or your audience.
Here is an example with a You Tube video about .. adding images to your Word Press Blog.
Its easy and fun to work with media files and they add a lot to your post!
