WordPress Media Library Basics: What It Is & How to Use It

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This article is part of the Beginner’s Guide To WordPress Series. This tutorial will show you how to use the WordPress Media Library. It allows you to display your galleries, audio and video correctly and is easy to manage.

Similar to editing text in the past, you used to have to download, edit, and then upload your images to make basic changes.

Your images and media are not the only thing that can be stored in your media library. They can be edited, formatted and worked on directly from your website without the need to download them into another program. These are the basic features of WordPress’ Media Library.

Media Library

Go to Media on your sidebar, and then select Library. This is where you will see all items that have been added to your library. You can upload PDF files, graphic files, audio files and video files. All media from the past, including pages and posts, will be accessible here. You can use them in future pages and posts.

Navigate to the top of your display box to choose how you want to view your media. You can choose between a list or grid display. You can sort it by date or type.

Clicking a file in the grid display will open a preview of it and provide information. Navigate through your files using the arrows at their top.

You can also edit the media information from this page. To view your media file displayed as a post on your site, click the View Attachment page. To access an alternative editing page, click Edit more Details

To delete a media file click on it and scroll down to the bottom of the display to Permanently. You can also click Bulk Select to delete all items at once. Click on the items that you wish to delete and hit Select.

If you are viewing an image file, an Edit Image button will appear under the image. This will open the image editor which we’ll discuss later in this post.

Adding Media

Navigate to Media on your sidebar, and click Add new to upload files. You will now be able to upload multiple files. Simply drop your files here to upload them. You can also click Select files to open a drop-down menu from which you can select files from your computer.

A progress bar will appear when you drop a file in the uploader. After it finishes, click Edit. This will take you to the media editor where you can make any modifications you desire.

**Note: If your browser has trouble with the multi-file uploader you can use an older version that works better on your browser.

Image Editor

Go to Media in your sidebar, and then select Library. Choose the image that you want to edit. You can click Edit Image to access the Image Editor.

You can edit your image by clicking the buttons above it. The buttons above the picture allow you to rotate the image clockwise or counter-clockwise. You can also flip the image vertically or horizontally. You can also undo or redo any of your actions.

To crop an image, click and drag the image. To crop your selection, click on the Crop button. After making any modifications to your image, click Save.

You will also find helpful information in the crop section. This link provides details on crop selection and aspect ratios. Enter your preferred dimensions to resize the image. The other value will be automatically calculated to ensure that the image has the right aspect ratio. To make changes, click on the scale button.

Scroll down to Restore Original Image, click Restore Image, and decide if you wish to restore the image to its original state.

Next steps

You should be aware that any media you use on the internet can lead to legal problems. You’ll be fine as long as copyright rules are followed. How to Find Amazing Royalty Free Stock Photos and 59+ Other Ways to Get Free Images.

Take a moment to explore the Media Library and then add some pictures to your posts.

Check out the Beginners’ Guide to WordPress Series!