I have some news to share as the Resident Blogger for Mums Diary! We are looking for bloggers to join our network, to expand your readership by sharing your posts with the Mums Diary audience and be eligible for future review opportunities. Please leave a comment with your blog url and I will contact you! Mums Diary is a fantastic resource for parents online and a free community magazine across Somerset.

You can pick up a copy in all 18 Children's Centres across North Somerset as well as over 80 nursery pre school and Primary Schools in the area. The magazine is widely available at baby and children's activity classes as well as in cafés, shops, community centres and the maternity unit at Weston General Hospital. If you would like a copy find your nearest distributor here. 6000 copies go out for each edition!

The magazine is for local parents and shares news and events, craft and activity ideas as well as competitions and reader offers. It has the largest events directory for what's on for parents in a day by day format to keep your little ones entertained.

Mums Diary

However, the online resource is a great opportunity for all parents regardless of the area you live in to share stories and experiences. You can find Mums Diary on Facebook too!

There are features and interviews with hints and tips to help parents.

Mums Diary

Subscribe to the Free E-edition online here.

You can also sign up for a weekly E-newsletter with all the latest competitions here.

I will be establishing a Mums Diary Pinterest account and updating the Twitter account too so watch out for lots of news! It would be lovely if you wanted to follow and spread some love.

Mums Diary was started by a local Mum for local Mums and aims to empower local and family businesses with affordable advertising. If you have a business please take a look at our advertising packages here.

resident-blogger

The blogs I read everyday all feature imagery, be it illustration or photographs, that I find interesting and engaging.

You do not have to have a fancy camera to showcase beautiful photos on your blog. Anyone with a mobile phone, compact, instant as well as those with an SLR can create fantastic images as long as they are in focus.

There is so much you can do using free apps on your mobile or computer as well as premium applications and programs which may cost you a few pounds.

I always edit blog post photographs. Yes it takes time but it is worth it. I feel so proud of the lovely comments I receive for my photography and it inspires me to be more creative and invest that few extra minutes in making the photographs that compliment my post, a little sharper and little more vibrant.

Here are my top 10 tips:

1. FOCUS

Never post a really blurry image. Take it again.

2. LIGHT

Use natural light. You will be amazed at the difference. I wait now to take my photos in the morning as opposed to at night once the boys are in bed. Of course we don't always have the luxury of time on our sides and sometimes needs must. But I am always disappointed with the posts where I took the photos in the evening like this Moustache Photo Prop DIY. I wish I had been patient and waited until the next day to post it.

I loved all the Christmas tree photos during the festive period but so many had the flash on! By using your flash you lose the effect of the twinkly lights! Steady you hand on a table or chair to avoid camera shake and capture that perfect fairy light tree photo next year.

3. RED EYE

Red eye is just lazy! Edit those evil eyes out!

4. COMPOSITION

Think about your composition and use props. I used my crate, some seasonal pumpkins and an owl from my office in my Mini Broom DIY post, which tied the whole post together as it was for Halloween. (I even edited the name on the crate!)

Blog Photography

5. BACKDROPS

Use backdrops. My favourites to use are wall paper samples (pick up a 3ft sample in your local diy store for free), the wood floor in the lounge, the garden table outside (best for natural light too), my rose print apron, a scratched up old chopping board, scrapbook paper, the gravel in the garden path, grass and our white dining chairs.

Check out my behind the scenes photos - which one is your favourite backdrop?! I also love a cheap chalkboard and reuse it all the time for blog and personal pictures!

Blog Photography

6. EFFECTS

Let filters be your friends. Not just the 'vintage' effects. I love posting in black and white!

7. DETAIL

Remember the little details. What is obvious to you because you are in the room might not be to your reader. Focus in on the little details. Take 3 pictures of the same thing, try different angles and focus on different elements each time. This Rudolph Biscuit post showed the finished biscuit from different angles which I think readers would find helpful when copying them at home.

Blog Photography

8. TITLES

Remember to amend the photo title when you upload it to your blog. As a reader when you hover over a photo in a post it comes up with a text box with a title. The number of times I have seen "IMG 3542" or similar, instead of "A trip to the Zoo" or "DIY Craft" for example. You can also add descriptions and captions as well as tags for further search engine optimisation, but just a basic title is a great habit to get into if nothing else.

9. IMAGE SIZES

Image sizes. High resolution images take ages to load. Keep your images at blog-friendly pixel sizes. I resize mine to fit within 1024 pixels. They are still large though because I am all about the images!

10. LITTLE ASSISTANTS

Get your little ones involved. If they don't want to pose and smile, no problem! I like to focus in on my boys hands so it doesn't matter if their face is like this!

Blog Photography

Blog Photography

Blog photography is a huge subject so I wanted to concentrate on one aspect in detail, which will hopefully help when photographing your posts.

Everyone loves a good tutorial, a step by step guide of how to create the latest crafty masterpiece.

Photographs are the best way to engage with your blog readers! Photographs let you share an idea easily using Pinterest (if you are not familiar with Pinterest it will change your life, click here for my guide to using it) and allow readers to see the process as opposed to just the finished article. Don't forget your titles as that is the label that pops up automatically in the Pin description.

• Remember to photograph all the materials you need. Label the photo with text if you have time and tell your readers where you can source the materials if it features something out of the ordinary.
• Photograph each step, no matter how obvious it is to you, and several of the finished piece.
• If you use a watermark make it subtle. I see lots of blogs where the watermark of the blog name is across the middle of the photo! Try a subtle smaller text box in the bottom corner.
• Leave a space in the frame for text in one of your photographs and give your tutorial a name which is easy to read and can be seen in a thumbnail if you upload the post to a linky. People are more likely to choose yours to read if you have a more engaging photo!
• Fill your frame occasionally. I used this photo in a post about alternative gift wrap, as well as other photographs of the entire present.

Blog Photography

• Play with angles. I love photos from above. I have a post coming up about different ways to display flowers as I love a bloom or two to bring the empty house to life again, after the Christmas decorations are put away. Here is one of the photos from that post. Far more interesting than a front on shot.

Blog Photography

Here are some of my behind the scenes photos!

Gift Wrap Kit

Blog Photography

Perfect Glass Rims and cocktail ideas

Blog Photography

Blog Photography

Granny's wedding memorabilia

Blog Photography

Christmas Tree Crispy cakes, Snowball Pops and Santa Pops

Blog Photography

Blog Photography

Blog Photography

Blog Photography

Tutorial posts rely on details so if your camera doesn't seem to want to let you focus in really close then crop it! I adore this photo of Ollie's smile. But it is a small part of a larger photo. The cropped version has so much more impact!

Blog Photography

Blog Photography

I am an Apple girl so I edit my photos on my MacBook Pro using Aperture (iPhoto is great too), Photoshop and other applications with filter effects including Camerabag 2, Analog and Pixlemator for adding text. I also use PicFrame to create collages. All of which you can download from the Mac App Store.

Photoshop is a pro package and expensive. You absolutely can create beautiful photos with free apps. You might need to play around for a while but once you find the one you love there will be no going back!

I never use Instagram on my iPhone. I prefer to use Afterglow, Vintique, Pixlr-o-Matic (available for Android users too), Photo Toaster Jr, Lomo Lens (for a lomography effect) and MoreNoel or Bokehful for bokeh effects (the lovely hearts, stars and light effects you apply over your images). Some are free and some I paid just under and just over £1 for.

If you have an Android phone try Lightbox, PicSay, HDR Camera by Amalence, Camera 360 or FXCamera, all of which are free.

For Windows users try PhotoScape, Serif PhotoPlus, Photo Pos Pro, Pixia and PhotoFiltre. All free and get good write ups. Please let me know of any others you would recommend too.

Just try it, take your photo, sharpen it a little, up the contrast, increase the saturation of the colours and boost the brightness a touch.

Last but not least never post a photo of your home address. If you receive a pretty parcel great, share a photo on your blog, Facebook or Twitter but blank out the details. More of a security tip than photography but an important one!

Happy snapping and thank you so much to Michelle at Mummy From the Heart. This post was originally published as part of the New Bloggers Fortnight on Friday 1st February 2013.

Blogging. I am only 2 months-ish away from my first anniversary and I've realised in this short time, that you can help yourself when it comes to staying fresh, focused and motivated. I'm using my blog envelopes as inspiration this year but my obsession with blogging has resulting in me reading daily blogs from others.

On a daily basis I will check in on:

• A Beautiful Mess
• I Am Momma Hear Me Roar
• Simple as that Blog
• Emily Beale

I have some other favourites who I know will post every few days like

• Awesomeville
• See Vanessa Craft
• Totally Tates also better known at Mummy Daddy and Me Makes Three
• Meagan's Musings
• and I hope to read lots this year from Claire at Blue Daisy

I have got into a habit of posting everyday, which I love. Something new for regular readers to check in on and only one post a day that doesn't clog up people's inbox!

I have some golden rules for helping you blog that I try and stick to:

THINK BOGOF blog posts

Don't give it all away in one go! We are off to America next month and I will post the three days we have planned as three posts and a separate post for my holiday shopping list, a travelling without children guide and no doubt several afterwards documenting our visit.

At New Year we had to cancel our plans as Sammy was poorly but I still managed to talk about our cocktail ideas, upcycled mini bar and I'm still to post my How to do Tapas menu!

I have used our wendy house in lots of my posts but have never explained the reason we have it, which is worthy of a post in itself.

A blog is all about letting people into your life, so share!

USE YOUR PAST & PRESENT

It's easy to get caught in a trap of posting about the here and now, meaning more pressure to type up events as they happen and think of something new each day or week. But we all have great memories to share that happened way before we all discovered blogging. I am desperate to share my sister's hen weekend as a prelude to her baby shower I am planning for March. I have never posted about our wedding, her wedding or the boys births or Christenings, which if they were happening now would be all over this blog. If you are stuck - look back.

I posted recently about my 30th even though I will be 31 this year! Crumbs!

BE TRUE

I have stopped reading a few blogs which seem to only post reviews and giveaways. I never get a true feel for their writing style and it can sometimes feel like they would go to the opening of an envelope! Some people court publicity, asking for review opportunities and do great self promotion but as I started this blog with no expectations that's the way I'd like it to stay .... for now!

USE EVERY OPPORTUNITY

One of the blogs I read religiously joked the other week about their father not being able to breathe without the girls blogging about it!

I am in awe of the people who blog anonymously, whose partners are in the dark about their cyber world. I LOVE talking about this blog and adore hearing comments back, good and bad. Although constructive is better! I am amazed by the people who read my little on line adventure and I am so grateful. I am pretty sure my father in law reads it regularly, he reeled off word for word a comment someone posted at Christmas. For those of you that do, you are my inspiration!

I look at almost everything we do as a potential post!

BEST FRIENDS VS BLOG

The best tip I read was not ot use your blog as your best friend. If you need a moan ring someone!

I love reading about lovely things. Every post from The Start Up Wife makes me smile and keeps me reading more.

USE YOUR OWN WORDS

I never use the word however in real life conversations so I don't know why I have used it so often in blog posts. Starting now, I want to only type the words I say. Hopefully this will lead to more engaging posts with readers who will be able to identify and understand me. The virtual and real life me.

TRY A PHOTO A DAY

If in doubt post a photo. A photograph can be interpreted in a hundred different ways. These were my photos from today (and one blurry one from Sammy)!

Sammy's Photo

Today

Today

Today

Today - treat tea

Moose on the stairs

Moose sitting like a gentleman

Happy Friday!