Helppp! (a question about image-heavy posts on LJ)

[chamekke]

I'm working on a meta essay for lifein1973 that's *cough* just a bit image-heavy. The pics are in JPEG format and already optimized for the Web; that part's fine. But there are several dozen (at present), and even if I reduce the number somewhat and then split the essay into parts... that's still quite a lot. The task is intimidating enough that I've been procrastinating over this like crazy.

So, I want to ask those of you who've uploaded/inserted multiple images into a LiveJournal post: what's the easiest, most efficient method? Do you save the pics to PhotoBucket and link to them? Do you use LJ's Scrapbook feature? *shudder* Or is there another approach that works well for you?

Thanks ♥

And now, because you've been so kind as to read this...here's a Lovely Owl!

 

Comments

[talkingtothesky]

Woot, I'm so excited for your meta! ♥

Photobucket's probably much quicker for uploading lots of images at once, but I find it almost impossible to retrieve the right links afterwards (i.e. the ones that take you directly to the images, where the URL ends in .jpg).

What I tend to do is upload to LJ Scrapbook, copy the links into Notepad, do all the <*img src="url"> stuff there, then copy into the html tab for the post.

[thesmallhobbit.livejournal.com]

Sorry, can't help at all, but the owl is lovely.

[loz]

Photobucket used to be good for this, but now it sucks badtime. I guess scrapbook would be better, though still take time.

[phantym-56.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure my method is not the fastest or easiest, but this is what I do:

My image-heavy things tend to be pictures that came together, whether screencaps or photos straight off my camera and they tend to have names like ABC657.jpg which means all I really have to think about is the number on the end.

I upload them all to Photobucket and then while they're processing, I open Notepad and type the HTML code and the first part of the address (the photobucket.com/user/album/ABC bit) and then I copy-paste that however many times, depending how many pictures I've got.

Then I just add the number of the image onto the end of each line so I end up with:

photobucket.com/user/album/ABC001.jpg
photobucket.com/user/album/ABC002.jpg
photobucket.com/user/album/ABC003.jpg

and so on and so on.

Then I copy-paste that into posting box. It takes quite a while but it strikes me as being much quicker than going through four or five Photobucket pages copying every individual URL.

[thirdbird-fic.livejournal.com]

Photobucket is good for me but I've never had to deal with more than half a dozen images at a time. But I have to agree that the Lovely Owl is hysterical. The kittens are all alarmed at the noises I made while watching it.

[anodyna.livejournal.com]

Preface: HAHA I just read this over, why am I so instructional first thing in the morning? Anyway I hope it helps, even if it is TOTAL OVERKILL!

*****
I use Photobucket--I personally think it's the easiest way though I know everyone's mileage varies. Once you've uploaded your photos there are two easy ways to add them:

To get the code one photo at a time:

1. In Photobucket, hover your mouse over the photo in your album. A box pops up automatically with three links in it.
2. Do one of these two things:
To get just the url for the image, click the "Direct Link" field. The link is automatically copied. Paste it into your LJ and add image tags. You're done!
OR
Click inside the field labeled "HTML code". Go to your LJ post and paste the code in. You don't need to add any tags. This option displays the image and links it back to the original on Photobucket. I usually choose this option, then manually delete the url from the "a href=" part so clicking the photo doesn't do anything.

To get the code for a bunch of photos at once:

1. Hover your mouse over a photo and click the checkbox next to the file name in the popup. Do this for all the photos you want links for.
2. At the bottom of the album page, there's a menu called "Choose Action". Click "Generate Link Codes for Selected".
3. A window comes up with the link codes for all your photos. Do one of these things:
To get just the image urls, copy the code from the "Full Size" box in the second group. You'll need to change the square brackets to carrots when you paste the code into LJ.
OR
Copy the code from "Full Size" in the first group and paste it into your LJ. You're done unless you want to change the "a href=" destination so the photos don't link back to Photobucket.

Tip: With any of these options, if the image is showing up the wrong size in your post and you don't want to have to go back, edit, and re-upload, you can add a "width" or "height" attribute to the img tag. Example:

[img src="http://imaginaryimage.jpg" width="400"]

That forces the image to be displayed at 400 pixels wide, no matter what the original size is.

It's really not different doing a dozen photos vs. one, it's just a scale thing. I'm sure you'll be fine! Just preview a lot and if something breaks just delete that piece of code and try it again.

[basaltgrrl.livejournal.com]

I don't have any advice for you, but...

OWLS!!! I love owls! *glomps*

[draycevixen.livejournal.com]

I think just about everything I have to say has been covered here but, just in case...

What I've found to be the simplest thing is to upload all the images to my photobucket account (I'm careful to create a new album for them first so they're all together in one spot) and then just copy the "direct link" for each into the spot I want it in my posting (in the HTML window of course).

I've never had any trouble with this and it seems to work faster/is more reliable that the LJ scrapbook. I only use scrapbook when I'm posting a single image and then only because it's faster than opening my photobucket account.

[gritsinmisery.livejournal.com]

I once did a two-part and a three-part picspam semi-spoof of two of the episodes of Scarlet Pimpernel, used Photobucket and had no problems whatsoever. I have no problems w/ PB at any time, so if you have any questions, give me a shout-out.

I gave up on LJ's scrapbooking feature the minute I tried to use it lo these many years ago. Got me on Photobucket and never went back. I especially love the thumbnail option.

[saintvic.livejournal.com]

Well I am behind everyone else but just thought I'd drop in and say I use photobucket and like drayce tend to put things for one post e.g. one of my picspams in a new album. I like photobucket as I can edit things a bit there which you can't do in the scrapbook.

[fern-tree.livejournal.com]

Came to this post a tad late.... But I'd say go with Photobucket, too. You can create albums to organise things before posting, and it's a HELL of a lot better still than sites like Imageshack. Imageshack.... *shudders*

And that owl is adorable. HOW DOES IT MAKE THOSE FACES XD