6 Secrets to Easy & Awesome Blog Graphics
One of my favorite parts of my blogging process is making branded graphics. Creating original blog graphics is a two-part process for me, which requires photography and design. While I have worked to standardize my graphics for my blog posts, I do enjoy this creative process and coming up with layout templates and photo ideas—two very important aspects for making consistent and dazzling blog graphics.
How to Take Your Blog Graphics to the Next Level:
1. Create a style guide.
Not only does a style guide make this process easier, it also links your blog graphics to your overall branding. A style guide can reinforce the messages you are saying with other graphics and words on your site. A style guide includes fonts, colors, layout (where text is placed, whether it is justified, etc.) and additional graphics. The more detailed a style guide is, the more crisp and clean all your blog photos can look together. For awesome tips on creating a style guide, check out my post on how to set up a brand board and why you should.
2. Set up templates.
One thing I’ve been doing lately is setting up InDesign templates for my blog graphics. If you don’t know, Adobe products have the option to save files as template files (.indt for Indesign and .ait for Illustrator, for example). This means that you can open up a fresh untitled version of a blog graphic, quickly make changes and ta-da, a new graphic is ready to use! I have made a couple of templates, from simple collage templates to different graphic layouts. These would be great for moodboards as well. It was time that I stopped being lazy, and really create a template and process for all my photos. Easy to do, and such a huge time saver!
If you want to download 10 free InDesign templates for your blog post graphics, sign up to get your free bundle!
3. Use bright photos.
When I decided to take more photos on my own and experiment with photography, I learned the importance of having bright photos for blog posts and social media. Consider taking photos during the day, in natural light. Then, adjust the brightness settings in your favorite photo editing software or apps (Adobe Lightroom—which is what I use—, Instagram, VSCOcam, Canva, PicMonkey, Photoshop, Preview, etc.). Let’s adopt the mantra that bright is best.
4. Make your photos vertical.
We all know vertical photos are great for Pinterest exposure. But they also help out for other sites like Bloglovin’ when we see vertical images on a feed of saved posts or recent posts. In the past, I use vertical images occasionally, but now I use them purposefully in most of my posts in order to have a “pinnable” image. It not only lets you pin your photos, but others do so as well! You can also mix in some horizontal photos for variety, and I like it when bloggers do this too.
[bctt tweet=”6 tips for easy and awesome blog graphics, perfect for any blogger! “]
5. Create infographics for your readers.
Infographics are unique and engaging ways to present information to your blog readers. They are usually fun to read and break down facts or lessons in an easy way. I always love seeing the infographics on Elle & Company’s blog. She even did an infographic about making an infographic. One of my most popular posts and most shared has been my Healthy College Girl Grocery List, which supplies a simple infographic, a list of groceries to buy in college. That infographic wasn’t anything too fancy, but you can be more sophisticated and show some statistics, facts, quotes, photos, graphs or charts to spice up an infographic!
6. Schedule a photo shoot and buy some props!
What I love to do is take a couple hours and shoot a lot of stock photos for my posts. This idea came to me last winter, when I decided to take some photos of my travel journals. Then, I realized the power of the props. Whether it’s finding some desk accessories, confetti, flowers, accessories, craft supplies or yummy food, extra props always add more to the story your photo tells. This is another way to get creative with your blogging and showcase a variety of ways to share your ideas and thoughts to the world. Don’t be afraid of photography, use your phone or read a couple great blog posts. Here are 5 ways to improve your blog photos from Design Eat Repeat!
It’s time to invest in our blog graphics in a new way. Remember you can still sign up to get your free InDesign template bundle – THE tool that has helped me produce all of my blog graphics from the beginning.
Do you have tips to improve blog graphics? What’s your favorite part in the blogging process?