Blogging Equipment

To blog all you really need is a laptop or mobile device to write, upload and share your posts. However to take it that one step further, you might want to  invest in a few extra things to improve your blog. Today's post is all about the typical blogging equipment you might want to have, whether you're a newbie just starting out in this hobby and want to know what you'll need, or someone who wants to know what equipment to invest in to up their blogging game.

Without even taking into consideration any fancy camera equipment or editing software, you are going to need to have something to write about. You're going to need something you're passionate about, that you have an interest in and that you find you are going to be able to write openly about for others to see. There's a whole range of things you could write about, whether that's a set topic, like travel, beauty or food, or maybe you just want a space for you to gather your thoughts and express how you feel. Whatever it is that you feel strongly enough to put into words and write about, then you already have one basic and most important blogging equipment ready there to make use of.

If you want to take this blogging malarkey seriously, then the best thing to do to keep on top of your hobby is to make sure you're keeping organised with it. A great place to start is to pick up an organiser, diary or notebook of some form and make sure you're storing any information regarding your blog inside there. This could be post ideas, collaborations, deadlines, goals. statistics, to do lists or anything you want to put in there that is to do with your blog. Keeping it all in one place helps you to keep organised and you can always look back to it for future referencing. This will prevent you from getting into any issues, such as not having any post ideas in mind or missing a deadline to publish your collaboration post with a brand.

A laptop/computer 

A lot of you that already have blogs, I'm sure will have used your mobile phone to take images for your posts when you first started blogging just like I did. This is absolutely fine and you can quite easily achieve an amazing image from doing so. I've seen so many posts on how to achieve a good quality image just by using an Iphone and using the editing settings or an app to create some amazing quality images, that look like they have been done by a professional or by a high quality camera. Don't feel like you have to go out of your way to spend a lot money on a fancy camera, because when you're first starting out or tight on a budget, you can quite easily just take your pictures from your mobile phone with no problem.

When I got more serious about this hobby, I did invest in a camera to use to take my blog photos and improve my photography skills. I love how much my photography improved just simply from taking that jump from phone to camera. They're so many things a camera can offer that a smart phone can't. But of course, there is the cost and all the other bits that you need to make your camera completely work, such as memory cards or lenses.

This is definitely a piece of equipment that you need to think hard about, whether you want to spend a bit of money to improve your photo quality and what other items you might need to consider also to help your photography.

I don't tend to do a lot when it comes to editing. I normally just up the brightness, add a little contrast, change the highlights and shadow and there you have it. But there are some bloggers who like to take things further with adding filters and changing the settings more through software downloaded onto their computers or through the use of apps. 

3 great editing software/apps to use that are popular with bloggers, include Photoshop - a paid download software that enables you to edit photos with a whole range of tools, Picmonkey - free to use online with editing tools and other exciting features, you can also unlock more features with paid for membership and VSCO - free app with easy to use editing tools and filters.

If you want to get your blog and the content you have produced out there, then you are going to need to promote your blog. This can easily be done through the use of social media. Of course there are other ways like word of mouth or networking, but social media is super easy to use and free. All you need to do is sign up and create an account (if you haven't already of course) and promote your blog for the whole world to see. It sound's scary, right? But it's a great way to get your hard work recognised!

There are a fair few social media platforms to use to promote your blog on, such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. Choosing what one is right for you and your target audience is essential. If you're unsure, take a look at my post on 'Why Twitter is the best platform for bloggers' to help you to come to terms with what you're looking for and hoping to get out of using social media for your blog.

What blogging equipment do you have? What social media platform do you find easiest to use for your blog?

Lauren x