DIGITAL STARTUP SOCIETY BLOG

In the days when blogging first became popular, it was common for bloggers to simply choose an image they liked and plop it into their post, sometimes with a catchy caption. However, in today’s crowded and competitive market, a simple photo won’t do. Not only does customizing your blog graphics help you stand out, it also creates brand awareness and increases social sharing. Fortunately, you don’t have to be a designer to customize your stock photos. You just should know a few basics to get started. Follow these tips on how to personalize free stock images to create graphics that...

Images serve several purposes in blog posts, but they won’t do you any good if the ones you choose are of less than stellar quality. Professional photos can be quite expensive, though, and the well-known stock photography sites have pricey membership fees. Don’t despair. You may be surprised to learn there are places you can find quality stock images for free. Keep reading to discover some of the best.    Death to Stock   While there is a premium package that grants access to the more than 1500 photos in their library and extras such as videos, you can score...

There are tons of ways to spice up your blog images. Stock photos, paid or free, are a popular option. In fact, most blogs you see today use photographs in some form, either standalone or incorporated into a design. What you may not realize is that you can find a wide array of other types of visuals for use in your images such as illustrations, icons, textures, vectors, patterns and fonts.    Here are some suggestions of where to find graphics, fonts and more for your blog. Some of these offer free resources, while others are retail sites. When choosing...

The best graphic designers often possess natural given talent, along with years of specialized training, but that doesn’t mean you can’t create lovely image assets for your blog as a beginner.    One key to producing professional looking graphics is to understand the fundamental concepts of design. Knowing these rules will help you to avoid obvious mistakes that could make your blog look amateur. Incorporate these basic graphic design principles for bloggers into your images, and you’ll soon be producing images you’ll be proud to share.    Alignment   Alignment refers to the way in which the text is arranged...

If you’re just starting your first blog or even if you’re revamping an established one, you may not have the budget or wish to spend the money for professional graphic design software. The gold industry standard is Adobe, with products like Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign, however, these programs can be expensive. Fortunately, the company developed Adobe Creative Cloud, a monthly paid subscription alternative to shelling out thousands of dollars to own the software. Monthly subscription costs can still add up, particularly if you want access to more than one program. Many believe paid pro tools are the only way to...