There are a number of reasons to use an image on every post; it is attention grabbing, helps with giving the post personality, and so on, but my number one reason: it just looks better.
So many times I have been to a blog where the post was wonderful; funny, informative, easy to read, all the staples of a great post; but with no images the page was lacking something important: beauty. There are so many resources to get images for a blog post now, both free and paid. The number one source is your own camera- if you are writing about your son- include a picture of your son, free and to the point.
You can also get free photos from places like PhotoExpress, Every Stock Photo, or Free Range Stock among others. If you are looking for a more professional look then try out my favorite source iStockPhoto, where you can find images as low as $1 each.
When adding an image to your blog post, you need to keep a few things in mind before you just throw up an image. Sizing is important- you don’t want to just post a image that is 800px by 1000px. It is a good idea to resize the image to fit your blog’s layout, you can do this with photo editing software like Photoshop- or you can use a free tool online like Resizr. Aligning the images is important too, it bugs me to no end when I see an image with no alignment, simply adding align=”left” to the image code will make the image align neatly to the left of the text. The same works for align=”right”.
Taking the time to pick and edit an image for each post will make a difference in the way readers view your blog. If you have never done it before it may take some practice, but after a few times it will become second nature in your writing process. What are some of your favorite places to get free images for your posts?