Importance of Photos

1. 39

   Angierposted 13 years ago

   Hey guys,
   
   What do you think the importance is of having photos on your hubs even if the topic go obviously with photos. For example i recently wrote this hub below:
   
   http://hubpages.com/hub/developing-a-reading-habit. Photos of books???? do they really do much?
   
   about developing a reading habit. I have included 5 photos in the top right, i am curious to get your feedback on whether these photos add any value to the hub whatsoever??
   
   Cheers

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      Social Discomfortposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      This link does not work.

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      Marisa Wrightposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Online readers have a short attention span and are easily bored when faced with a big chunk of indigestible text.  Even if photos don't add a lot of value to the text, they add color and life and variety, and help to keep the reader on page.
      
      Don't put your first photo in the top right hand corner,though, that's one of your top ad positions.  Move it down and make your first text capsule just long enough to allow an Adsense ad to appear.

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2. 39

   Angierposted 13 years ago

   http://hubpages.com/hub/developing-a-reading-habit
   
   whoops had a full stop at the end

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      nicregiposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Hi Angier.
      
      Firstly, photos are very good. Instead of wall of text, photos between the lines are a great boost for you.
      
      Secondly, photos can be used for many causes. At times, if you feel the article getting too heavy, simply adding a funny photo might lighten the atmosphere.
      
      Third, you have some great hub Nice writings.

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3. 60

   charlottelacarposted 13 years ago

   If so..is it necessary for me to add more photos in my hub?
   Or 2 would be just fine..

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4. 0

   Rhysjcposted 13 years ago

   It depends whether or not the photos aid the reader in understanding the topic of the hub. For example How to get SNES/GBA/Genesis Emulators and ROMs on your iPod/iPhone using Cydia you can see that the photos show the reader what to do in order to complete the tutorial. If my photo's were just of say for example, a SNES console, then it would not be important to the reader at all, purely something to make the page more visually pleasing.

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      charlottelacarposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      thanks for paying attention to my query..
      
      I'd remember that in making my hub.

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         Rhysjcposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Absolutely no problem, the best of luck

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5. 67

   Aiden Robertsposted 13 years ago

   Photo's are important as they add an extra dimension to big chunks of text, they help your reader visualise what they are reading, they let you add descriptive text to them and search engines like them.
   
   If possible and relevant use a picture or a video, it will help your reader and your hub.

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6. 60

   charlottelacarposted 13 years ago

   Hi everyone!
   
   I have published my first hub..I've used photos on my first attempt but came up on using videos instead...
   
   Thanks for the help

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7. 68

   Michael Willisposted 13 years ago

   I know if I see a site/hub or whatever...if it is only words on a page I will get bored with it very quickly and hit the back button.
   As mentioned earlier, attention spans are short. The worst I have seen is articles or hubs that are endless words with no breaks, pictures or paragraph changes at all. Many readers are the same.
   
   If you add pictures, polls or anything in between...make sure it is relevant to what you are writing about.

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8. 60

   charlottelacarposted 13 years ago

   I am learning every time I read and participate in the forums..this could really be of help to newbies

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9. 66

   alternate poetposted 13 years ago

   Another question related to photos - if I am loading my own photos can it help 'traffic' in any way if I load them up via flickr and then use them in my hub from there ?  can I link them in any way to get some kind of backlink thingy wotsit ?

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      Rhysjcposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I don't think this would really give you much of an advantage I'm afraid. There may be some kind of Google magic that means this will help you, but I can't think of it.

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         sofsposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         I just wrote a poem and decided that there was no need for photos on that subject, since the poem  was small I started looking around for photos and when i finished I added i think four photos. After having placed them properly i thought it made the whole exercise meaningful and colorful.. So Now I am all for photos.

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      wildernessposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I don't believe you will find any benefit.  If you expand the image in an unedited hub and check the url it seems to be on HP., not wherever it came from.
      
      That makes sense; you wouldn't want the pics to disappear because someone else took them down.

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    charlottelacarposted 13 years ago

    So is personal photo not advisable in making a hub? or it can be of help as long as it's related to the topic?

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       alternate poetposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       related to topic must be the best pics I would have thought, if there is no real relation then some kind of supporting information maybe ?   I alos use a couple of photos with a poem, the link is about as loose as the words in most poems but they seem to go together well most times.

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11. 88

    DzyMsLizzyposted 13 years ago

    I, too, struggle with photos.  While I do take a lot of photos, and have in the past, of very different subjects (scenery; landscapes) than I do now (product photos),  I rarely have any that fit in with my hub topics.
    
    I believe that there would be very few pictures applicable to the opening topic in this post, of 'developing a reading habit.'  A bookshelf?  Someone curled up reading a good book?  Both fitting, but static and not very interesting.
    
    When I was growing up, "picture books" were for little children, and by the time a person had reached 7th grade, they were expected to be able to read an entire book, and create their own mental pictures based upon their understanding of the text.
    
    I agree that large, uninterrupted chunks of text with no 'white space' can make any topic seem daunting and unreadable, hence the use of hub pages' capsules, (which I only recently learned how to use).
    
    However, I have little patience with people who simply won't bother to read something for no better reason than the absence of pictures.  The demand for instant gratification, expressed in part by this unwillingness to read is one of the (many) problems facing our country these days.  I say, grow up, and learn to read without reliance on pictures--you're not in kindergarten anymore.
    
    Unfortunately in our current society, there is a climate of catering to the lowest common denominator, which is a self-perpetuating habit that will continue the cycle of "dumbing-down" the population. 
    
    My grandfather used to say, "Those who will not read are worse off than those who cannot."  I cannot agree more.

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       charlottelacarposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       I love the thoughts..they are so insightful
       I would really try to explore and broaden my knowledge in writing
       and making a hub..and would not just simply focus on images..

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    JulieBMackposted 13 years ago

    This is helpful because I often can not find "free" photos that apply to my topic.  I use them whenever I can, but sometimes, I just don't.  I know it may lose some readers, but I think that the hubs are short enough with enough headings to keep their interest. Not sure how it applies to earnings.

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    habeeposted 13 years ago

    I've actually gotten a fair amount of traffic to my hubs from Google Images from my own photos I use on my hubs. When someone clicks on one of my pics on GI, it takes them to one of my hubs.

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