Finding Photos to Use

This is the most crucial step. All content should be assumed copyrighted if you did not take the picture yourself. Start from that point. Then work back from there to find content that is royalty-free and available for anyone to republish. If you are ever unsure, feel free to ask us to check first. Be sure you note the photographer's name, as well as the link to their web site or their profile page. You will need this information later for attribution instructions below.

There are many resources for free stock photography onlines. They include:

• Stock.xchng - This is my personal favorite stock photo site. Just be you look underneath the photo to the usage options. Some photos cannot be used, and some require attribution. Type-A Mom requires that all photos have attribution, so that is OK. Still others require that you notify them where the photo is used. Once your article posts, add the link in the comments for that photo.
• FreeFoto
• Morgue File

Also, if you are doing a review or writing about a product, you can often visit the manufacturer's site and look for press images. So long as you are linking to the manufacturer's site or an affiliate site for purchase, this is allowed. Your credit would be the name of the company or the Web site (such as Amazon).

Preparing Your Image

You will not want to use a picture that is 2400x1800 or it will look awful when resized on the page, and it will slow down the page load time dramatically.  

You don't need money for a high-end photo editing software program. In fact, there are several free ones. I like picture2life just because you can get a plugin for your browser. That allows you to right click an image online, and then choose to edit in a new browser tab or window. 

No image should be larger than 300 pixels on the long side. You will want to resize to 300, and then download to your computer (if you are using a web editor) or save.  

Note: If you would like to use the image in your intro paragraph, then the maximum size is 150 pixels on the longest side. 

Photo Guidelines

To keep the site looking good, I just have a couple of guidelines. 

• No graphics, and only photographs.
• No photos with watermarks on them. Odds are good if it has a watermark, it is not a photo you can use anyway.
• Nothing that is pixelated or generally looks unattractive.
• No alterations such as writing or text on the photos.

If there is a reason to give an exception, just note it in your attribution and I'll take a look.

How to Add a Photo 

• To add a photo, simply click the green and blue icon that looks like a scenic picture.
• Go down to the Browse section. Click the green upload button (second from the right hand side, says upload when you float your mouse over it).
• Click Browse to find the image on your hard drive. DO NOT change the name here, because that seems to cause issues. Check the box to select after upload, and then upload.
• Click "Insert" and it should align to the left by default.

Attributing the Photo

At the bottom of your post, add the photo attribution. 

You should word it like this:

Photo of baby, copyright Jane Photog on stock.xchng

Then italicize it (click the slanted I icon), and link the name to the photographer's web site or their specific profile page (highlight the photographer's name, click the chain icon, and enter the proper URL). It should look like this in the end: