How to Add a Header Image to Your WordPress Website

You’ve probably heard of the term “blogger’s block.” What you might not know is that it’s a very real thing that affects millions of people every day.

You’re passionate about what you write and passionate about communicating with your audience. But when it comes to actually publishing your words to a wider audience, you hit a brick wall.

You don’t want to bore your readers with the same old content. You want to inject some novelty into it, make it more interesting, and grab their attention. The problem is, you don’t know where to start. You’ve always written in the hope of one day being able to publish and, after your efforts, feeling proud of what you’ve accomplished. But here you are, staring at a blank page with no idea of how to start.

If this sounds like you, don’t worry. You’re in luck because we’ve got you covered on this front. In this article, you’re going to learn how to add a header image to your WordPress website. We’ll cover everything from choosing the perfect image to the steps required to add it to your site.

The Benefits Of Adding A Header Image To Your WordPress Website

If you’ve ever shopped at Nordstrom, you might have popped into the department store’s cafe section to grab a coffee before you left. One of the many perks of shopping at Nordstrom is that you get to enjoy cafe culture, something you rarely get to do when shopping at other stores. When you arrive at the cafe, you’ll see a long wooden table with chairs on either side. On it, you’ll see a variety of pastries, cakes, and other sweet treats. In the background, you’ll hear the soft thrum of espresso machines as the baristas prepare your orders.

You might not feel like you need a reason to add a header image to your site. It’s quite likely that the image you pick has some personal connection – it might be a photo of yourself, your family, or your pet. But that’s not the point. The point is that having a vibrant, beautiful header image for your site is always going to be a plus.

No matter what kind of blog you write – lifestyle, business, or something in between — having a picture greet your visitors at the top of the page is sure to make them stay a little longer and, hopefully, read all the way to the end.

Choosing A Suitable Image

When selecting a header image, there are a few things you need to keep in mind.

Firstly, make sure that the image is fitting for the blog or website it will be used on. If you’ve got a fashion-related blog, you might want to go for something luxurious and vibrant to emphasize the style and attitude of your content. If you’ve got a lifestyle blog, you might want to go for a simple and elegant photo of yourself or your family to match your laidback style.

Secondly, make sure that the image you pick is high-quality.

You don’t want to put your readers through blurry pixels and poor image compression. Your image should look as good as the day you clicked “save” on your camera. So, if it’s not the “perfect” shot or if it’s somewhere between a 1 and 2, you might want to consider downsizing it.

Remember: the more detail there is in an image, the more it’ll cost you in storage space. The more you have, the better. That means if you’ve got a 4K TV, you might want to look into getting a 4K webcam or getting a dedicated photo booth at your wedding.

The Difference In Quality

When shopping for a high-quality photo, make sure you’re not getting fooled by cheap knock-offs. You’ve been tricked by fake Instagrammers before. They’ll photoshop a pic to make it look like it was taken in front of a green screen, and, for a while, you’d believe it. But, eventually, you’ll notice the pixelation and you’ll realize that the image was actually taken without any kind of screen at all.

So, when searching for high-quality photos, don’t get fooled by cheap imitations. Instead, look for well-established brands like Canva, Square Space, or WordPress itself. With these brands, you can be sure that the image you’re getting is of good quality and won’t be faked. In addition, the photo will be of a decent size, so that when you do eventually add it to your site, the file won’t be too large, hopefully, preventing any performance issues.

Adding A Header Image To Your WordPress Blog

If you’ve ever tried to add a header image to your WordPress blog, you’ll know that it’s not something you can do with just any old picture. To do it justice, you need to follow a specific order, and you need to do it right. Otherwise, you could end up with something that looks like it was hacked together in 10 minutes by a 13-year-old. For those of you who’ve managed to avoid this fate, the following step-by-step instructions will help you add a header image to your WordPress blog exactly the way you want it.

Step 1: Select A Suitable Picture

You’ll need to start by selecting a picture that’s going to be the starting point for your design. This is the one that you’re going to use to create the overall look and balance of your site. It can be a free image from Google or a stock photo selling for $5. In either case, make sure you put a word in the search bar to find the image, and make sure you click on the first result that comes up. This way, you’ll ensure you’re getting the best possible picture for the step.

Step 2: Add Some Texture

Next, you’ll need to add some texture to the image by using one of the many free texture packs available online. These packs will help you add some life to your design by infusing it with color and texture. You don’t need to limit yourself to just adding texture – you can also add a small title, a featured image, or both to catch your readers’ attention.

Step 3: Play Around With The Image

When you’ve got some texture and color added to your image, you can start playing around with the composition of your design. Do whatever you want – zoom in, zoom out, or change the position of the elements on the image. Experiment with the different looks to see what you can come up with.

Step 4: Duplicate The Image

Once you’ve found a decent-looking image, you can start thinking about the overall design of your site. From here, you can either go for a completely different look by choosing a different picture or you can decide to keep the overall vibe of the site and just switch out the image.

Step 5: Add Some Style

With your first image now hanging on the wall, you can start adding some style to it by selecting a complementary paint color and a design style. You don’t need to be limited to just adding color and style – you can play with the size of the font, the design of the letters or symbols, and everything in-between to create a unique and memorable identity for your blog.

Step 6: Add Some Life

Your last step is to add some life to your blog by adding a few unique design elements. For some, you might want to go with a picture frame or a trophy. For others, you might want to use a drawing tool to add some quirky illustrations. The options are endless, so long as you keep the overall design of your blog in mind.

At this point, you’ve almost got yourself a fully functioning blog. All you need to do now is add content to it and start promoting it. If you want to learn more, check out the rest of the blogosphere for inspiration. Or, if you’re looking for some hand-holding, feel free to ask us a question at hello@getsocialweb.com.