How to Upload Images on Squidoo

Don't know anything about web page design or HTML? No worries! Let Squidoo do the work.

Several kinds of Squidoo modules will let you upload an image and store it right in that module. At right is a screenshot of what the image uploader looks like. Each module takes images up to a certain width, shrinking them to fit if they're larger:

Introduction Module: [Max width: 250 pixels] Places your image at upper left, making a logo for the lens.

Text Module: [Max width: 250px] Places your image at upper right. (Example at right)

Text with BIG Picture Module: [Max width: 590px] The image spans the width of the Squidoo lens (from margin to margin just like the text of this paragraph).

Photo Gallery: [Max width: 590px] Image spans the width of the lens. Upload and store up to 10 photos/pictures in the Photo Gallery with captions for each. (No HTML on captions) This module looks fantastic but is a little quirky; see my Photo Gallery Tutorial for some important tips.

Polaroid Module: [Maximm width: 400 pixels] Image in a fancy frame with a caption.

Text and Text with BIG Picture Modules are found under the "Popular" tab in the sidebar of lens workshop. Find the Polaroid Module by clicking "Browse all modules" > "Categories" > "Pictures and Videos" > "Polaroid Module" > "Done Adding". The Photo Gallery can only be found by choosing "Browse all modules" and then searching for it by name and adding it. Then:

1. EDIT the module.
   
2. Click "Choose File" near the bottom of the edit pane.
   
3. Select the image saved on your hard drive.
   
4. Cick "Upload Photo".

That's it!

At that point the picture is loaded onto Squidoo. See how it looks by clicking Save to save the text portion of the module.

There are TWO other option you may set if you wish:

1. URL: This turns the image into a clickable link. It will link to whichever URL you enter here. If you are using Creative Commons for free (legal!) graphics, this is how to give credit. Another idea is to have a small-sized version of the photo on Squidoo, but have it link to a larger version stored off-site. Clickouts boost lensrank. Take advantage of this when possible.
   
2. You may also add a LABEL to the image, words which pop up when the cursor hovers over it. Search Engines see this Label as "signiicant text," so use short, specific descriptions like "Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II" for your label to help attract search traffic.

If you change the URL or Label, you must click "Upload photo" for the update to take effect. Don't worry; it won't wipe out your photo!

Below are examples of the Polaroid and Photo Gallery Modules:

Sometimes Squidoo's built-in modules don't give you enough flexibility. Perhaps you want the image on the OTHER side of the paragraph, or you want several images in a single module, for example. At that point you need to:

(1) Upload an image off-site, on an image host. (See below)
(2) Use HTML codes to tell the web browser exactly how and where to put the graphic.

The basic HTML code that means "stick an image here!" is:

<img src=http://www.somedomain.com/imagename.jpg>

SRC is short for "source." Put the image's URL (location) after the equals sign.

  How to get it on the left?

<img src=http://www.somedomain.com/imagename.jpg style="float: left;">

There many ways to place your images using centering, captions, borders, and/or clickable links. See my Aligning Images on Webpages tutorial for all kinds of tricks.

Google Picasa lets you upload photos into a photo album on Picasa.
You may also display images hosted on Picasa on a Squidoo lens. Here's how.

1. Go to Picasa.
   
2. Sign up for a Google account or log into your account.
   
3. Once you are logged into Picasa, click the Upload button in the top middle of the page.
   
4. Create and name a new album, or choose one of your existing albums.
   
5. Choose and upload up to 5 images from your hard drive at a time. (If you need more than that, download the Picasa program.)
   
6. Click Start Upload.
   
7. Once photos are uploaded, click on ONE photo.
   
8. In the photo's sidebar, click "Link to this Photo." (see screencap at right)
   Choose "Original Size" (unless you want the thumbnail) and click "Image Only (No link)"
   
9. COPY THE URL in the box labeled "Embed Image."
   
10. This is the URL, the location, where the image is stored. Use this as the image location in HTML codes you are using to put graphics on your lens.

TONS of people search the web for images. This is a potential traffic source!

So, before you upload a picture from your computer, be sure to (re)name the file something that identifies it to search engines. Don't use "coolpicture.jpg" or "fig-1.jpg". Use some thing like "bald-eagle.jpg". You may want to use Search Engine Optimization techniques to choose a frequently-searched word or phrase.

Then...

Method #1: Use the filename as a signpost. That filename is retained when you upload a graphic to ANY Squidoo module that lets you upload an image. Picasa and Photobucket will keep it too, although Flickr doesn't. If you have your own web hosting service, that should also keep filenames.

Method #2: If you store your image off-site and use HTML to place an image on your lens, add an "alt tag," text which shows up if there's a net hiccup causing the image not to display. This "alt tag" gives you a second label for the image, doubling your chance to get it picked up by search engines. For example:

<img src=http://www.someplace.com/pisa.jpg alt="Leaning Tower of Pisa">

Method #3: If you use Squidoo's built-in image uploading, be sure to include a specific "Label" like "Portrait of Queen Elizabeth" that people might search for.

Method #4: Use a popular image host like Flickr or Picasa, and include a photo credit and link back to the lens where you're showcasing it. See this example. Some people may find the photo and follow the link.

HTML is a powerful way to place graphics exactly where you want them, but there's one problem. Squidoo's built-in modules upload and store the images on Squidoo's servers. With HTML, you need to store the graphics somewhere yourself. No, not on your computer -- hopefully nobody on the web can see your hard drive!

You need an image host! I'll discuss other image hosting possibilities below. But for beginners, Photobucket is a free, quick and easy image hosting solution, and will be all most people need. (If you have a really popular webpage, Photobucket may give a temporary error message showing your 'bandwidth usage' has been exceeded -- each view of a picture occupies a tiny bit of their servers' processing power -- but I have yet to make a page that popular.)

Register for a Photobucket Account here.

The interface on Photobucket is easy-peasy. You can add new "Albums" (folders, subdirectories) at lower left. The Uploader is smack in the middle of the screen, next to annoying ads.



After you've uploaded some images, hover your cursor over an image to get a popup showing you the picture's URL. Choose the "direct link" option at bottom.

Copy it. Paste it on your lens exactly where you want the picture to appear using this HMTL code:

<img src=URL-you-copied-goes-here.jpg>

If you want to do more than just plop it in like a paragraph, see my Aligning Images Tutorial.

Flickr's new policy drastically reduces the pool of available images. Nonetheless, for popular terms like "cat" or "airplane," there's so many photos that some of them will be licensed in a way we can use.

How can we tell if a Flickr photo may be used on Squidoo?


That's a pain in the butt, isn't it? Here's what to do. Go to Creative Commons Search and check the "use for commercial purposes" button. That'll restrict your search of Flickr to pictures that work on Squidoo.

Below is an example Flickr Gallery.

Get the Flickr Module from the module sidebar by clicking Browse all modules and choosing Flickr Photos under "Web Stuff." Then click Done Adding.

Move the Flickr module where you want it in your lens using the sidebar "Reorder Modules" palette.

Click Edit on the Flickr module.

You have three options: Let Flickr Pick, Let Me Pick, or Pick By Photoset.

Don't let Flickr pick. Flickr is stupid. All you can do there is give Flickr a topic like "daisy," and it will grab random pictures people have labeled "daisy". Nine times out of ten, they will be pictures of cats, girlfriends, or some brand of motor vehicle.

You pick. Find images using Creative Commons' Flickr search with the "Commercial" option checked, then copy the URL (address of the webpage) where each photo is found. Paste it in the Flickr module in the box under "Enter links to photo pages on Flickr."

If you've found a good Photostream or Set with lots of pictures you want, see this screencap showing you the fastest way to grab a lot of URLs. If you're looking at one photo and want to see the whole Set/Stream, click See All and then pick the Detail view.

WARNING: Remember to click the "ADD ITEMS" button when done,
or Squidoo will not save the pictures you've selected!
Instead of picking photos one at a time, if you find an entire set you like, choose Pick By Photoset (see above). Enter the username the Photoset belongs to and click Go. Squidoo should retrieve a list of photosets under that person's name. Select one.

Notice the gallery displays a maximum of ten pictures by default; you may want to change that. There is also a "slideshow" option for Photo Sets, showing images one by one at a larger size.

Once you've got the photos (choose "Done Adding"!) or set you want, click Save to close the module and see how it looks.

There's one big hassle with Flickr: you can only use Creative Commons images on Squidoo.

You may register an account with Flickr. The first 200 photos are free, then you have to get a paid account.

To upload pictures to Flickr, log into your account, then pick "Upload Photos and Videos" under the "Organize" tab. Or download the Flickr Batch Uploader to your computer and follow its instructions.

After you've uploaded pictures to Flickr, you need to set your pictures Creative Commons in order to give yourself -- or anyone -- permission to use them on another website.



Go to the "Organize" menu again, and organize your most recent upload (or all your stuff). Drag the photos you want to use into the batch-organize area, and choose "Change Licensing". Here's the popup you'll get:

Explanation of Creative Commons Licensing Permissions:

• Attribution: must give credit (and/or link)
  
• NonCommercial: can't make money with image. Alas, Flickr has sabotaged us: you can no longer display images in a Flickr module on Squidoo if they are marked as NonCommercial.
  
• ShareAlike: if you change image, must give same level of permission
  
• NoDerivs: Can't change, modify image

After you've set them Creative Commons, you'll be able to use them in a Squidoo Flickr Gallery or place them in a text module using HTML code. To get the code, go to a photo's individual page and click on the "All sizes" magnifying glass above the photo. You'll jump to a new page where you can choose what size you want. Below the picture will be some gobbledygook code that you should copy and paste directly into a text module, exactly where you want the image to appear.

If you want to align the picture left or right or have text beside the picture (as I did just above), see my Aligning Images Tutorial.

The Slideshare Module is found under Browse all modules > Categories > Pictures & Video. Slideshare is a special hosting service that allows people to upload and share Powerpoint and other slide-software presentations, including ones with soundtracks.

You can have 1-5 slideshows in a Slideshare Module. The only problem is, the Slideshare Module can't always find "Slidecasts." If you search by words in the title, it might find it--but maybe not. If you search by username, it only returns the first slideshow by that user. I've filed a bug report, so hopefully the bugmasters of Squidoo can fix this! It looks like a stunning way to share photos.