I’ve seen GIFs used everywhere in the blogosphere. You just can’t miss it. Some people use it for their everyday posts while others use it for their book reviews. I, however, never use GIFs.
Why? I’m ashamed to say that I don’t know how to use GIFs. Well, no, I do know how to use GIFs (it’s called looking for a good GIF online, saving it, and waiting for the right moment to use it), it’s just I don’t want to.
Don’t get me wrong – I like GIFs. I love reading posts with GIFs used in it; it makes the post more entertaining to read about and more relatable. GIFs easily brighten up posts and it’s so fun to stare at them.
It’s just…I can’t bring myself to use any. I’m better with words than with using images, which is plain weird because images say a thousand words. Plus, there is also the fact that I’m lazy to look up the perfect GIF to fit my post. I don’t have a folder full of GIFs to use when the time comes (although I wish I do). Again, I’m too lazy to spend time online to look for the perfect GIF that my post calls for.
Do you use GIFs in your blog posts? Do you find them fun and easy to use?
I’ve never used GIFs in my posts. I find it dead annoying when I’m trying to look at Goodreads reviews and one post with 20 GIFs takes up half the page. I think they are ok for making a specific point but some people go overboard with it. I’m not really a fan.
I know! And the worse part is, when I’m trying to look up reviews on my iTouch, the page takes AGES to load because of all the GIFs. And sometimes Safari will close on itself because it can’t take it.
I don’t mind if it’s used, say, once to three times per review, but more than that? No thanks.
Kelly recently posted…First Year Blogoversary + Three Giveaways!
I’ve only used them once or twice and I doubt that it was all that clever when I did. I have the same problem of actually finding the right GIF. I’m working on fixing this though by building up a Pintrest board of GIFs that I like, so maybe I’ll use them in the future. They don’t work with my review style all that well, but I think I want to use them in discussion posts more since they really help to break up a long post and give people a focus for each section.
Yeah, I’m thinking of using GIFs in my discussion posts too since my discussion posts are usually so short and need something to spice it up.
As for the Pinterest GIF board idea, oh my goodness, that’s brilliant! Mind if I do that too? ;D
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I have just used a GIF for the very first time for my recent ‘Waiting on Wednesday’ post. I don’t particularly like the use of GIF continuously but sometimes the odd one here and there i don’t mind. I was actually quite skeptical about using one yesterday but I did have a few fun feedbacks about it. Maybe I will use more of them but yea, it’s quite a hard decision to make.
Georgie @ What She Reads
Georgie @ What She Reads recently posted…COVER REVEAL: ISAURA #3
I’ve never seen GIFs used on Waiting on Wednesday posts (but I can imagine how it’ll be used), but I’m glad it worked for you! (:
It is quite a hard decision to make. Some people dislike GIFs with a passion and you don’t want to scare them off while others just LOVE them.
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I use them on occasion for book reviews. If I’m trying to be serious, I’ll stay away from them. I can get sucked in trying to find gifs. It’s a time bandit for sure. But for movie reviews, I think they work really well because a film is visual, so it’s fun incorporating moving stills to show scenes that I’m talking about in the review.
Becca @ Nawanda Files recently posted…TV Pilots in Review: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Yeah, I can see how GIFs make a review less serious, even though you meant for the review to be completely serious when you sued it.
I saw your City of Bones movie review and it definitely worked well to show the scenes you were talking about in your review. In fact, I think it’ll be plain without the GIFs to show us what you meant. o:
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I’m constantly using gifs. It’s a habit I picked up from my sister constantly showing me gifs. However I like to think I don’t go overboard with them. Some reviews or posts only contain one or two and a lot of my reviews on Goodreads don’t have any at all. For me I judge my amount gif usage in reviews on a book per book basis.
P.S Loving the gif, its being saved to my folder of gifs right now.
Aisling recently posted…Review: Billy and Me
Yeah, using one or two GIFs per review or posts isn’t too much. It’s just those reviews on goodreads that uses, like, 20 GIFs per review that scare me. -shivers-
I’m glad you love the GIF. I found it on tumblr – tumblr is the best place to find for GIFs right? ;D
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
Haha, I like GIFs, too, but, like you, really use them on my blog. I do have a nice folder titled GIFs where I collect my favorites (mostly from Tumblr) though, and I plan to use them in discussion/random posts eventually. But like you said, it’s hard to find the perfect GIF to accompany your post. And it does take a LOT of time to find one that I didn’t already see a hundred times.
Cayce recently posted…[Book Review] The Rook by Daniel O’Malley
I think it’ll be nearly impossible to find a perfect GIF for your post/book review without it being used by other people already a hundred times, unless it’s a scene from a new movie or something. I dunno, but that’s just my opinion.
And Tumblr is GIF galore. :D
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I have never used a GIF, for the simple fact that I don’t know how. I know the process I just don’t know how to save a GIF. But I really want to try and use GIFs relitivly soon, because I think there fun and can say a lot without you writing those words down. Also because they’re really fun and cool :D
Kimberly recently posted…Review: The Edge of Never J. A. Redmerski
You save a GIF like how you’ll save a picture – right click and “save image as.”
Yep, GIFs are fun and cool, but they get REALLY annoying if they’re used too much in one post.
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I think there’s a time and place for a good GIF. And a good GIF-post can really make one laugh. But I’m tired of reading book reviews, for example, that almost exclusively use GIFs. I feel like, we have this incredible thing called language, so maybe we should USE it.
barefootmedstudent recently posted…Series, Sequels, Books
Ha ha, agreed. I know some blogs that always use GIFs with their book reviews, but I guess it’s their way of reviewing books. I don’t really mind if they use one to three GIFs for their reviews though, anymore than that and I’m a bit turned off by it.
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I’ve only ever used one GIF because I was feeling particularly snarky in my review and it was the one time where I could think of a particular scene that would fit.
I personally don’t like reading reviews that rely on using GIFs. If other people enjoy them, that’s fine, but they don’t work for me. I mind it less if it’s a mostly text-based review broken up by two or three GIFs (like Christina at A Reader of Fictions).
I don’t think I’ll ever get into the habit of using GIFs in my reviews. It’s just too much trouble, keeping a folder full of GIFs just waiting to be used. I don’t want to waste time scrolling through to find the perfect GIF when I could be doing other, more useful things.
Nikki @ The Paper Sea recently posted…Concerning Goodreads’s Policy Changes
Ohh, you got a snarky GIF? Now that I have got to see! :D<3
Mhm, text-based reviews + a few GIFs here and there are okay. A review full of GIFs and only, say, one sentence of text is a huge no no for me, with the expectation of one review because the whole GIF review described my feelings for the same book PERFECTLY.
High five on that! Why waste time finding GIFs when you could be reading? ;D
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I use GIFs but sparingly – usually to stress a point. Sometimes they do the point across.
Krutula recently posted…Cover for ‘The One’ is revealed!
GIFs do get the point across better than words sometimes, especially frustrated GIFs. ;D
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I’ve never really used GIFs either. I tried to start a folder of them but like you I just didn’t feel like looking for them. I also never know how to search for one I’ve seen in the past. I like when people use them but sometimes they make it hard for my browser to load.
Jess recently posted…ARC Review : Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer by Kate Aleander
Laziness is the main reason why we don’t use GIFs huh? ;D
And yeah, it’s especially hard for GIFs to load, especially when you’re on your phone. Safari rejects GIFs on my iTouch, which gets REAL annoying.
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I don’t use GIFs but I love the people who do – and I would love to do it myself! I just never know where to find good GIFs!
Annie recently posted…A Short Note Regarding Goodreads
Tumblr! That’s the ultimate GIF finder. :D
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I tend to use gifs when the post has nothing but words in it. Idk why, but I feel it adds more excitement to the post, especially if there’s only a block of text. I use one or two in a discussion post. I just hate it when there’s tons of gifs consecutively because that takes forreeeveerrrr to load it all and takes a lot of laptop energy.
Looking for gifs is sooo time consuming. In my last discussion post, I was trying to find a particular subtle shrugging gif, but the ones I found were extremely dramatic and totally not the emotion I was going for. It really sucks because I’m a perfectionist. ;D
Cee recently posted…BANNED BOOKS WEEK | Banned/Challenged YA Books Through the Decades
I need to start doing that – I feel like my discussion posts are lame and boring because they are just blocks of text and that’s it. It’s the reason why I started putting quotes in my book reviews – to avoid looking at blocks of text and only blocks of text.
And yeah, those evil goodreads GIF reviews. Ugh, they make the page load SO slow.
Ha ha, thank goodness I rarely go find GIFs to use (if ever). I’m a perfectionist too and I’ll get VERY angry if I don’t find my perfect GIF in, like, two minutes. :P
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I’m really comfortable with gifs since I lurked in the fandom part of Tumblr for a few months before starting my blog. Gifs are pretty much the main form of communication over there.
Usually I try to keep gifs out of my reviews, but every once in a while if I have a good one I’ll plug it in there. Most of the time it’s when I have zero words for what I need to say and I have the perfect gif to express my emotions. Otherwise I’d end up rambling on while trying to explain my point.
When it comes to my discussion posts, though, I frequently use them, just because it’s so much text that I need something to break it all up. So I really use them as white space, or to emphasize a point in a certain paragraph.
Finding the right gif is near-impossible at times though, so I understand your frustration!
Kayla @ The Thousand Lives recently posted…Everyone Loves a Good Cover, but What About a Title?
Yeah, I have a tumblr myself and everyday, there are at least fifty GIFs on my dashboard.
Ha ha, I never use GIFs in my book reviews, so I’m the silly one rambling on and on about something. GIFs in book reviews is just not the review style for me. :P
I should start using GIFs in my discussion posts. I just hate looking at huge blocks of text. >___< If only we can summon our perfect GIF with the snap of our fingers! Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I don’t use them in my book reviews because, like you, I feel like I express myself better with words. But, I do use them occasionally when doing a blog meme or feature and I feel like it needs a little something.
Jennifer @ Feminist Fairytale Reviews recently posted…WWW WEDNESDAYS (20)
I think I’ll start using GIFs in my discussion posts to avoid those huge blocks of text. I won’t use them in my book reviews though.
Kelly recently posted…Blogoversary Day 2: Cover Guessing Game
I don’t use GIFs either. I’ve actually tried to upload pictures to Goodreads before, and honestly can’t figure out how to do it, haha. So I think that it’s maybe just a sign I should stick to words. I don’t think I’ve ever used GIFs in a blog post, although I might’ve tried it out once or twice, I don’t really remember. I guess it’s just not for me, and it’s definitely not for some other people either (too many GIFs can definitely get annoying), but when done right it can be hilarious and perfect.
Miranda @ Tempest Books recently posted…Book Review: Kinetic by S.K. Anthony
Ha ha, don’t worry, I don’t know how to put pictures on Goodreads AND make a status on goodreads until I googled it. :P
I’m thinking of only using a GIF in my discussion posts to make the blocks of texts look more interesting. Hopefully that won’t annoy people. o:
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [53]
I hardly ever use GIFs. I use them very rarely. Mostly because I never know when to put when in so I just don’t. But I do love reading reviews with GIFs. They help emphasize the writers point that sometimes words just can’t.
Ashley recently posted…Review: Facade by Nyrae Dawn
I hardly use GIFs either, but now, I’m planning on only using them on discussion posts because huge blocks of text just don’t really look good.
And yeah, a picture is worth a thousand words. ;D
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [53]
I use GIFs all the time in my blog posts. I love them and love spending time looking for them. I don’t do many book reviews, but almost all my blog posts have a GIF(s) in it. I think it looks interesting and breaks up long sections of text. I
Kaitlyn Hoyt recently posted…Late Tuesday Teaser!
Yeah, GIFs break up long sections of text, which is a great thing, but on the other hand, I’m too lazy to look for tons of GIFs to use. =3=
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [53]
I rarely use GIFs on my blog because it really takes up a lot of time finding the right one then saving it then formatting it so it will not look messy on my post. Like you, I do love reading posts with GIFs in it because sometimes, it can express the true feelings of the poster more than his/her words can.
To be honest, I posted one review that GIF filled. The book was so good for me that words cannot describe my feelings for it. So I resorted to using GIFs. ;p
Charlotte recently posted…Feature Follow Blog Hop {8}
To me, saving it and formatting it is really easy. It’s just finding it that’s the hard part.
Yeah, I saw a review of a book that was completely GIF filled and it described all my feels on that book EXACTLY.
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [54]
I’ve used GIFs occasionally in some posts. I find it a hassle to search for the “right” one all the time. Some are honestly a hit-or-miss.
On the other hand, I do love a good post with GIFs because some are right on.
The use of GIFs seem very complicated right? D:
It’s either you do it right or you do it wrong, no inbetween.
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [54]
I tried it once….but I think it requires a different level of wit. :/
I’d like to use them more often, but I have no idea what I’d do with them.
Beth W recently posted…Eye Spy & The Nail Files
Using GIFs definitely require wit, a mostly snarky wit in my opinion. They are fragile and when you use them wrong, beware of the consequences. (I’m being a bit dramatic. :P)
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [54]
I’ve never used gifs, and while I enjoying reading the occasional one, it seems that most people who use them go way overboard.
Sarah recently posted…Interview: Selah Janel
Mhm, those goodreads pre-release reviews! Ugh, those GIFs constantly lag my computer and phone. ):
Kelly recently posted…Book Review: Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer – Katie Alender
I don’t use GIFS, and I guess I’m in the minority in that I find them terribly annoying in book reviews — to the extent that if I open a blog post to read a review and I see GIFs in it, I’ll just move on. Same with Goodreads — the GIFs are everywhere, and it’s way too much. I think there’s a time and a place, but especially in book review, just… no.
Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies recently posted…Flashback Friday: The Caine Mutiny
Ohh, I’ve read some reviews with only one or two GIFs, but never automatically close the page when I see them.
Thank goodness I never use GIFs in my book reviews. ;P
Kelly recently posted…Book Review: Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer – Katie Alender
I totally understand what you mean! I don’t like to use GIFs in my reviews unless they show my utter fangirling towards a book (for example, someone jumping up and down). I usually just post GIFs on my discussion posts & on my memes, they are definitely more interesting with pictures. Thanks for sharing and don’t worry, GIFs aren’t for everyone!
Shelly recently posted…Shelly Seeks Advice: The Goodreads Debate
I’m starting to only use GIFs on my discussions posts now and they look so nice! No more HUGE blocks of text anymore. :D
Kelly recently posted…Book Review: Marie Antoinette, Serial Killer – Katie Alender
I very rarely ever use GIFs. It’s not that I don’t like them, it’s just not really my style. Sometimes I just need to convey what I looked like while reading, and I have a few good reaction GIFs saved on my computer that I recycle.
I don’t mind GIFs in others’ reviews, but I have to admit that when there’s more than 2 or 3, they annoy me. I hate seeing an ENTIRE post stuffed full of them.
Jessi @ Auntie Spinelli Reads recently posted…Nators Discuss: Reviewing Process
I don’t use them – but have nothing against them. The reason I don’t is because my posts take long enough to write up witout me having to look for GIFs to add to it too.
Tanya Patrice recently posted…#WeekendReading {The Shining} Drinking {Jamaican Ginger Tea}
Is it surprising that I’ve never used a GIF before? I’ve just never taken the time to look up good ones and learn how to format it into a post. Don’t get me wrong, I love it when they are incorporated correctly, they can be hilarious, or they can prove a point really well. Love this post!
Jen recently posted…Switcheroo!
I don’t both for your reasons (I’m better with words) and because so many people do it. I feel like I would just be jumping on a trend bandwagon to start using them now.
I use them occasionally but it takes too much time to find good ones. Even when I’ve used them I haven’t always been completely happy with the ones I’ve selected.
I don’t like them much on Goodreads reviews though. On a blog you’re there to read that person’s blog. On GR it’s kind of like one person standing there waving their arms and screaming LOOK AT ME!! unless they’re hidden behind a spoiler cut, which is what I did on a recent review I copied over from my blog to GR. The other reviews, which might be just as good or better/more helpful and informative, get overlooked because my eyes are naturally drawn to the large moving pictures.
Jenna @ Rather Be Reading YA recently posted…Weekly Rewind: September 22 – 28
I’ve only recently started to use GIFS, because they are an important part of a feature I started not so long ago. Sometimes I like to use one to express my feelings (especially when I really loved or hated a book). I always find it enjoyable to read reviews with GIFS, but I also don’t mind when people don’t use it :)
Mel@thedailyprophecy recently posted…Showcase Sunday 33. My first vlog.
I don’t use GIFs because I can’t be bothered to start a collection of ones I think I might use someday. Even if I did, I know I’d end up with so many that I’d never be able to find the one I’m looking for while writing a blog post!
La Coccinelle recently posted…Review – My Book of Life by Angel
I feel the same way. I like GIFs and I like to see them, but I don’t want to save them and look through my folders to find the right one for every post. Sometimes I will, but mostly I won’t.
Kim @ YA Asylum recently posted…Weekly Round-Up: Book Deals, Publishing News & More
I very rarely use them in reviews, they’re more common in discussion posts for me (sometimes they’re a fun way to express an opinion). I think you have to be wary of overusing them though.
Rinn recently posted…Feature: Monthly Roundup, September 2013
I can’t do it either! I think I might incorporate one into an upcoming short review, but as a general rule, I feel like they break up the text of my review in a way I don’t like. I’ve found a few blogs that use them really well and am considering trying to follow their example occasionally, since I like gifs in reviews, but I don’t think it will ever be something I do frequently
Katie @ Doing Dewey recently posted…Fighting for the Press
haha I noticed that you never use them! I love gifs, though I don’t like to use them for every post. I mainly use them for “fun” posts and rarely for reviews, since I feel that they make the reviews less professional. I’m actually do have a folder full of gifs, it has more than 300! I’m so obsessed with saving new gifs, it’s a sickness. LOL