I always think, sometimes for far too little time, about the words I write on my blog. Clarity matters, impact matters, SEO matters. But until now, I hadn’t really thought about pictures. I slap a pic up occasionally when I think people might like it.

As lines between social media and conventional media continue to blur, this made me think back to when I was choosing pictures for newspaper pages, when there was normally an acute shortage of pics but an oversupply of words. Yet pics were the first things laid out on each page, what drew the reader in and what, typically, made the content most memorable.

Corporate blog writers are often told not to make their words too salesy. An obvious point to anyone who has come from the editorial world, yet often ignored.

Why am I banging on about all of this? Well in searching for information about the area where I’m going on holiday this summer, I came across a blog that had biased and saccharine words yet great pictures. It’s intention was to sell me on Corsica – I was already sold, but the pictures were that good that they ‘told’ me where I’d like to visit and what I’d like to do. I forgave the blog its overt salesmanship because a.) it was relevant to me and b.) the pictures were really good.

So many of the blogs I see are too text-heavy, or use the occasional rough picture rather than good shots. In conventional media, pictures are about far more than just supporting the words – they’re a powerful way of conveying news, features and analysis in their own right, and inspiring readers.

Perhaps bloggers can learn some important lessons from picture editors. Citizen journalism should not ignore citizen photography.