Guide to SEO for Photographers – Technologist

What Are Good Content Topics and SEO Keywords for Photographers?

Your goal isn’t to rank on page one for every photography keyword in existence. Focus on search terms that attract the right customers.

Service-Oriented Keywords

First and foremost, make sure your website has keywords that highlight your services:

• Wedding photography
• Best places for a fashion shoot in Miami
• Beach photographers for weddings
• Photographers for businesses
• Real estate drone photography

All of these keywords help you find leads that are likely to take the next step.

Local SEO Keywords

Many people looking for a photographer use geo-targeted keywords:

• Photographers in Saint Louis
• Wedding venues with a photographer in New York
• Newborn photography in Houston
• Best photographers near me
• New York photography studio

Local SEO can promote your brand much faster than word of mouth.

Informational Keywords

Look for keywords related to topics that your target audience cares about:

• Mom and baby photography rates
• Love stories photography
• Tips for professional pictures
• Professional photos for LinkedIn
• Should the about page have employee photos

Craft blog articles around keywords you want to rank for, such as “Guide to love stories photography for couples” or “Should you include employee photos on your about page?”  

How Do You Use SEO as a Photographer?

Try a few of our favorite SEO tips for photographers.

Make Your Website Visitor-Friendly

Technical SEO is a big deal for photography websites because of the large number of images. Help your web pages load faster by compressing files (ideally less than 500KB each). Compression utilities maintain the quality of your photos but make them more mobile-friendly.

Embrace Local SEO With Google Maps

Every photography professional should be on Google Maps. Whether your studio is a large warehouse or a home office, you can register a Google My Business account for free.

Use the tools available to include detailed information about your services and what makes them special. Link to your website and provide a phone number or email address for contacts.

Understand the Motivation Behind Each Search

User intent — the reason why someone is searching in the first place — should influence how you approach each keyword. Is the search informational or transactional?

How-to guides solve problems for your readers, such as “How to dress for engagement photos.” Blog posts educate them, e.g., “How much do professional baby pictures cost?”

SEO-powered product pages and landing pages are perfect for transactional searches, connecting visitors quickly with the photography services they want.

Can Images Help With SEO for Photography Websites?

If you’re like many professionals, your average blog post probably includes several pictures. The right images are a major part of your site’s identity and portfolio. If you follow good SEO habits, those images can help your website’s search rankings, deliver traffic via the “Images” tab on Google Search, and make it more likely for people to click on your posts.

Use Detailed File Names

When uploading images for your website, blog posts, or portfolio, don’t use the auto-generated file name from your digital camera. Search engines crawl image files, and a name such as “IMG02-4693821.jpg” doesn’t do you any SEO favors.

On the other hand, if you name the picture “little-girl-eating-watermelon-slice-summer.jpg”, it’s easier to rank for image searches related to “watermelon,” “summer pictures,” “girl eating watermelon,” or similar ideas.

Use hyphens in the file name, not underscores or spaces. Be descriptive, but try to use fewer than 100 characters.

Add Alt Text

Conventional search engines aren’t able to “see” photos. They crawl text to discover what your web pages are about. To make an image searchable — and contribute to the site’s search rankings — you need to describe it in words. That’s where alt text comes in.

When working with alt text, keep a few pointers in mind:

• Be descriptive, specific, and concise
• Keep alt text under 150 characters, including spaces
• Emphasize main subjects or unique aspects of the image
• Describe colors, textures, emotions, backgrounds, and other elements
• Include a few keywords you want to target

For example, the alt text for your “little-girl-eating-watermelon-slice-summer.jpg” might look something like this:

“Humorous portrait of blond-haired little girl eating watermelon slice, cute toddler with freckles, smiling in a green field on a bright summer day.”

Modern website management platforms make it pretty easy to add alt text descriptions when uploading images.

Put images directly underneath the title

A final tip for increasing your web traffic is to always place your first image directly underneath the H1 page title. This makes it more likely for Google to feature the image with your meta title in search results. Imagine how persuasive your blog post called “10 Amazing Poses for Kid Photography” would be with that image of a little girl eating watermelon above it.

Experts in SEO for Photographers

Can’t find the time to juggle your website’s SEO, blog writing, and social media posts? Don’t worry. That’s why we offer SEO for photographers. Our team takes care of the complex stuff and brings your creative vision to life online. Discover our full range of SEO services for small businesses and professional firms right away.