Key Words Are Key.
I will readily admit that I am not an expert on SEO (Search Engine Optimization). But the one thing I do know, is that in order for your images to be found, Google and other search engines need to be able to “see” them. To that end, proper key-wording, file names, and captioning are essential.
The last-minute purchase if this image, just 6 days before Christmas, was a strong reminder of just how important. Proper key-wording and a descriptive file name helped the buyer find my image in her search for photos of Baxter Lake, the small lake I happen to live on. As luck would have it, this was to be a gift to the parents of the woman’s boyfriend, who also happen to live on the same lake. Yup, small world.
When I delivered the print, I asked the woman how she found me and this image? She had simply Googled “Baxter Lake,” while looking for photos, and this image of mine came up front row center in Google Images, among others of course, several more of which were mine as well.
Without proper key-wording, changing the file name, and adding a good description in the metadata the sale may never have been made.
Google is blind.
One of the first thing I do with any image that I plan to post to the web, be it my website, Facebook fan page, or right here on my blog, is change the file name. The original file name of the image above was “_MG_0301.CR2.”
Quick, without looking at the photo, only the file name, can you tell me wat that image might look like? Google’s web crawlers can’t either, to Google, and other search engines, it’s just numbers and letters. Now try it with, “baxter-lake-sunrise-with-boulder-and-reflection-0301.jpg,” I bet you and Google will have a better idea of what the image looks like.
More than just a name.
The file name is just part of the equation for getting your images discovered. It all begins with keywords. Second only to telling Lightroom where to put the file upon import, is key-wording. I do this not only to help me find the images later, but also so they are part of the file from that point on.
Here is the list of key words in this images metadata as they appear in my Lightroom catalog.
Helping the blind to see.
The caption, or description, you add to the image file is also very important. You can get as elaborate, or as basic as you wish, but the best description I’ve heard of how to write that caption is to write it as if you were describing your image to a blind person, trying to covey not only the look, but the emotion of the image as well.
Here’s where you get to put your creative writing skills to good use.
What you do before you even think about sharing your image with the world, has a lot to do with how much of the world is able to find it.
Some light reading about key-wording and SEO.
Jeff Sinon Photography 
Another very helpful post Jeff! I try to tag my photos in many different ways, but you have given me some more ideas to think about. Thanks :).
Glad I could help Cindy. Keywords were something I kind of knew about early on, but the importance of file names is something relatively new to me.
A good post Jeff, especially for those who are selling their work. I just blog purely for fun with my photo blog. I need to get off my backside and try and promote my books more!
Nothing wrong with that at all Jude. But, even if you’re not actively trying to sell your photos, wouldn’t it be nice to have someone contact you looking to purchase one because your photo came up in a search and was exactly what they were looking for?
This was an interesting post. I am working on adding keywords in my Aperture library this week. Do you change the image name in any of the fields when you are writing this blog?
Good question. I often do, but upon thinking about it I probably shouldn’t. The reason I do when I do is that, as I’m sure you’ve seen when uploading your own photos, the file name appears in the Title box in the uploader. The file name isn’t the images title though. I’m going to have to look into whether or not changing it removes or alters the original file name. Pending further digging I think I’m going to stop changing it, just in case 😉
OK, I need to think about it some more. I just am spending time thinking about my photo organization in general.
Well I wish you luck with that. My advice, put some serious thought into it. I’ve gone through several “methods” of organizing my catalog before finally settling on my current method. Now I keyword the heck out of everything upon import into Lightroom, than it is simply organized by date.
They would always be imported initially by date, then I used to break it down more. For example, I’d create a Landscape folder, then in that folder I’d create a Waterfalls folder, a Seacoast folder, etc. It added extra work, and I never was very good at sticking to it. Now, if I want to find an image I just search using keywords. Or if I know the date I shot something I can just go right to that date folder.
I hear what you are saying. My problem, every time I think about it another “solution” occurs to me. I am also trying to think of something I would stick with, so I hear you on that point as well. Right now I am key wording when I import. Also, I label my projects with something descriptive and put the date on it. I am glad to hear that I am not the only one who has gone through a few “methods”
Cheers!
That is the same problem I had, until I decided to got the “lazy mans route.” Thorough key-wording and simply leaving them in the date folder they originally end up in seemed the simplest solution, for me anyway. For an event, portrait, wedding photographer, my “system” would not work very well at all.
It would just be nice to have a crystal ball to consult, “what is the solution that will work for all time?” 🙂
I just took the lazy way out 😉 Keywords, I was already doing that. I import into Lightroom into dated folders based on shooting date, so it suddenly came to me, why am I killing myself trying to set up named folders when keywords and dates is more than enough for my needs. When I was doing it that way before, half my images never made it out of the dated folders anyway.
Excellent post Jeff. Thanks!
You’re very welcome Edith. It is something those of us trying to sell our images really need to think about. But those of us who aren’t doing this full time often give little thought to it.
Really good post Jeff!
Thanks Tina, I hope you got something useful out of it.
Thanks for the tip, I have certainly been slacking in this department. If you tried to find any of my pictures by the file name alone, you’d be better off setting fire to the computer and taking new photos! You have inspired me to take some time this weekend and sort through my many unnamed photos. 🙂
Certainly a daunting task, no doubt about it. But the potential rewards are huge. The next band that hires you might not be just starting out, but already on top of the charts! And your portraits speak for themselves, but without at least decent, descriptive file names, no one is going to “hear” them.
Interesting post! I will try this file naming in the future. For past posts, will you improve your SEO by going back and changing the file names?
As I mentioned Rick, I’m far from an expert. But I have to assume it would because that unidentifiable string of letters and numbers that is virtually meaningless to Google, is now a descriptive image file name telling Google what the image “looks” like. I’m not sure I would kill an entire weekend renaming all the photos I’ve posted in the past, but a few every time I was already in the process of uploading new images, sure. Soon enough you’ll have changed them all. 😀
Thanks Jeff! Keep up the great work on your blog!
Looks like I got a lot of word ahead of me….
*work
I feel your pain! I wish I had payed more attention to doing this early on. It took a long time to get all of the images I’ve shared “corrected.” And even now I know there are a few here and there that I’ve missed.
Great write up about SEO and how it is so very important to photographers who want to sell their images.
Thanks! There is definitely more to it than I’ve written about, most of it too technical for my techno-challenged brain, but these basics are the minimum any photographer hoping to be “discovered” should be doing. Once it’s part of your normal workflow it really isn’t all that much work.
Terrific photo and great tutorial, Jeff!
Thanks Ruth!
Super helpful!! Now looks like I have a project to start tomorrow….oh joy
If you haven’t been doing it even a little, then yes you do have your work cut out for you. Once I started to realize the importance all images from that point on were properly key-worded etc., then I just went back and little by little added them to the images on my website.
I’m still working on, and not sure I’ll ever finish, the images I’ve shared on the blog over the last 3 years.
Insightful post, Jeff, and this is something I need badly to work on. I’m finally working my imports the way I need to and sorting collections–all Lightroom tools I gaffed off before. My problem now is, how (through Lightroom) can I systematically keyword tag my archives that are untagged? It’s simple upon import, but how do you backtrack to old without tediously working through every image? Any ideas?
The only way I know how to do it is to go into grid view (keyboard shortcut “G”) while in the Library module, then select all the images you want to keyword. Then keyword them 🙂 This only words in grid view though, it won’t work if you try to select them from the filmstrip below the image if you are in single image view.
I hope that helps, now you’ve got your work cut out for you!
All good info, and there is another thing you can do that will help you be noticed – particularly your posts here on WordPress – and that is, limit the number of tags and categories. See this: http://en.support.wordpress.com/topics/
Thanks Val, for the tip and the link!