Blogging Bites #43 - π· 4-Step image prep!
Blogging Bites #43
βCOACHING Β· RESOURCES Β· PAST TIPS Β· INSTAGRAMβ
Hey Reader!
One of the most common mistakes I see food bloggers make is not properly optimizing their images. I was guilty of this myself when I first started my blog and let me tell you it is not a quick or fun thing to fix π
There are a few things to keep in mind when preparing your images for your blog!
1) You want the shortest side of the image to be 1200 pixels (px) long.
2) The crop aspect ratio (e.g. 3x4) should be the same as the pixel aspect ratio (e.g. 1200x1600px) when exporting. This helps the photo maintain a high resolution! I personally use 3x4, but you can use whatever ratio you like!
π€ Math explanation: We want a minimum side of 1200px. Say we crop our photo to 3x4. We'd take the 1200px and divide by the smaller number of our crop ratio (3) and get 400. Then, we multiply 4 (the larger number of our crop ratio) times 400, to make sure the ratio stays the same. That gives us 1200x1600px! You can double check this by seeing if 4β3 equals the same as 1600β1200 (they both equal 1.33)!
Common crop ratios with their pixel ratios:
- 1x1 - 1200x1200px
- 2x3 (also 4x6) - 1200x1800px
- 3x4 - 1200x1600px
- 4x5 - 1200x1500px
- 5x7 - 1200x1680px
3) For images on your blog, it's best to export the photo so that the file size is between 200-400KB.
4) Make sure your image filenames match the recipe name!
These 4 steps are important even if you're using a WordPress photo optimization plugin, like ShortPixel. Andrew Wilder talks more about this in this Food Blogger Pro podcast episode!
If you're using Lightroom Classic (LrC) to edit and export your photos, you might find my LrC photo export guide helpful! It's a free 14-page guide that walks through cropping and exporting photos for your blog and social media. I just updated it to include a video walkthrough as well!
π Exporting Photos in Lightroom v2.pdf π
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out! π
New addition to the newsletter: Tune in! π§
It's no secret that I love watching/listening to podcasts, interviews, audiobooks, etc. and supporting other creators! So, I figured I'd share what I'm enjoying with you every week!
If you have any episodes you'd like to share with this community, feel free to send them my way! π
Happy blogging!
-Kayla
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Broken Oven Baking Company
I'm a baking blogger and food blog coach based in Chicago! I've been sharing easy, sweet recipes since 2020. In 2023 I started helping other food bloggers grow their businesses. You can find blogging tips & resources in my weekly food blog newsletter and coaching website!