The more readable and attractive you make your blog, the better the chance that someone will bother reading it. So how can you make it more attractive? Add photos!Here are some blog posts of mine that I added photos to
http://callistasramblings.blogspot.com/2011/11/warning-reading-this-blog-could-be.html (see how this photo grabs your attention and makes you interested in what the post is about)
http://callistasramblings.blogspot.com/2012/02/5-ideas-for-fun-and-memorable-march.html
http://callistasramblings.blogspot.com/2011/03/guest-post-on-road-to-parenting.html
The problem is, you can't just pick any photo you find through an image search and put it on your blog because of a big thing called Copyright.
Copyright laws protect the original creator of a work, such as written text, an image, a video, or an audio clip, from having that work stolen or misused. - sourceCopyright can be complicated but there are some basic things you should know.
Files from the Internet (contrary to what so many people seem to think) are not automatically fair game or public domain. There are public domain photo sources out there but research is about the only way to know for sure. Turning photographs and other images into line drawings doesn't necessarily negate the copyright. And free images frequently applies only to non-commercial use. - source
There are different kinds of photos:
Public Domain - no credit needed. Usually it's because the copyright has expired. Could also be if someone says their work is in the public domain. Unfortunately you have to be careful as someone else could show a bunch of photos that ARE copyrighted and say they are public domain and you wouldn't know if that's right.
Fair Use - Let me quote for this one:
If you're reusing someone else's material on your blog for the purpose of providing criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching or research, then you may not have to seek permission - sourceHow much is considered Fair Use is debatable though. This category is for things like adding book covers and a picture of a product in your review (because you are commenting on it.) However don't go adding all photos from the company's website. I would stick to ones that are displayed in a store or better yet, if you were provided the item for review, ask for some photos to use.
Image via WikipediaSites to Find Photos:
RGB Stock Photos
Kozzi
Dreamstime
Morguefile
Flickr Creative Commons
Creative Commons Search (searches more than one site)
Every Stock Photo
PD Photo (Public Domain)
Open Photo
Every Stock Photo
PicFindr
Your Own Photos - You can of course take your own photos which I suggest if you have a good enough camera. You may want to watermark them with your site name so if they get passed around, it is still credited to you.
Your Challenge
I want you to find and add a photo to one of your old posts. I know some of you don't have all that many posts yet but find one without a good photo, take note of it's subject and pick a site to search. You may need to be creative to find the right one. If your post is about goals, you could try searching for "goals" or you could think about how a sports goal would be a funny play on words and search "soccer goal" or "goalie" or maybe a mountain to show that your goal will get you over the mountain "mountain" etc....
So do that and comment with the link to your post below.
I added my family photo to my intro post I did about a week ago. http://ajewelinthemaking.com/2012/03/an-introduction-to-my-blog.html
ReplyDeleteGreat challenge! It's important for bloggers to know about copyrights so they don't face being sued in the future. And thanks for the list of sites to find photos...I only knew of a couple before.
ReplyDeleteI added a photo from sxc.hu to a recent post on exercise.
http://southerngirlramblings.com/making-exercise-more-enjoyable/
When I first started blogging I didn't know how to add photos. I've gone back to the beginning and have added some pics. I will keep doing so, as time permits, until all posts have at least one photo.
ReplyDeleteLove this challenge!
Awesome!
ReplyDeleteFor better SEO, it's said that you should have a minimum of 3 pictures in each post! Sometimes that's better read than accomplished tho, heh.
I love your link list of photo locations! Have them all bookmarked for easy searching now. :)
http://geekwithstyle.ca/blog/bi-annual-blogathon-bash
Thanks for the list of places to look for photos. I hadn't heard of some of these before.
ReplyDeleteI went back and added some better photos to this recipe post - http://www.mapleleafmommy.com/2012/02/unstuffed-sweet-peppers-recipe-foodie.html
Great! Another challenge down!
ReplyDeleteMakes me smile
http://wisdomwitht.blogspot.com/2012/02/positive-attitude-zone.html
I usually include pics but I found one without.
ReplyDeletehttp://drpepperdiva.wordpress.com/2012/01/04/top-5-business-blogs/
First, let me say THANK YOU for this list!! I generally have one site that I use or I use my own photos, but this is awesome. I love the Morguefile site that gives the HTML with credit and all!! I had a guest post last week that didn't have a pic so I added:
ReplyDeletehttp://goingcrazywannago.com/2012/02/saving-money-with-coupons-legally
Thank you for helping raise awareness about the use of copyrighted photographs. Similarly, people seeking protection for their own photographs should know that there are a variety of “tricks” that can be employed to prevent theft of their work, such as removing an internet user’s ability to right-click on an image or embedding watermarks into the photos. Fair use is certainly a legal exception to copyright protection, but people still need to understand what constitutes fair use before using another person’s photograph or image without permission.
ReplyDelete