The Media Library: Images & Files

Your Media Library is the home for every image and file you use on your site: your logo, photos, PDFs, and more. Upload something once and you can use it anywhere: in a blog post, in a page section, or as the image shown when your site is shared on social media. You'll find it under Content → Media.

Uploading files

There are two easy ways to add files:

  • Drag and drop: drag a file (or several at once) straight from your computer onto the Media Library.
  • Browse: click to upload and pick files from your computer the usual way.

You can upload three kinds of files:

  • Images: photos and graphics, by far the most common upload.
  • PDFs: brochures, menus, price lists, and printable forms.
  • Plain-text files.

Each file can be up to 50 MB. Most photos are comfortably under that; if a file is too large to upload, you'll need to resize or compress it on your computer first.

Alt text (always review it)

Alt text is a short written description of an image. It matters for two reasons: screen readers read it aloud, so visitors who can't see the image still understand what it shows, and search engines use it to understand your photos, which helps your SEO.

Alt text is required. If you leave it blank, StoutStack fills it in automatically from the file's name, which is rarely a helpful description (something like IMG_4821 tells a visitor nothing). So always review the alt text and replace it with a plain description of what's actually in the image, such as "Two designers reviewing color swatches at a studio table." A good rule of thumb: describe the image the way you would to someone over the phone.

Sizing, cropping, and focal point

When you upload an image, StoutStack automatically creates several smaller versions of it and shows the right size for each spot on your site. That keeps your pages loading quickly without you having to make multiple copies yourself.

You also have two tools to control how an image appears:

  • Crop: trim an image down to show just the part you want.
  • Focal point: mark the most important part of the image, such as a person's face or your product. Because different spots on your site may need the image cropped to different shapes, the focal point tells StoutStack what to keep in view, so the important part is never accidentally cut off.

Reusing images across your site

The Media Library is shared. Upload a file once and choose it anywhere you need an image: a post's featured image, a section image on a page, your logo, or the picture shown when your site is shared on social media. You never need to upload the same photo again and again. Whenever you're picking an image anywhere on your site, you're choosing from this one library.

Replacing an image everywhere

If you replace a file in the Media Library (say you get a cleaner version of your logo), the new version automatically appears everywhere that image is already used. That's a real time-saver: update your logo once and every page, post, and section using it updates too. Just keep in mind it's site-wide, so double-check that the replacement suits every place the image shows up.

Private files

Most files you upload are meant to be seen by everyone. That's the whole point of a public website. But now and then you have a file you don't want on public display yet, such as a draft price sheet or an internal document. For those, turn on the Private checkbox on the file. A private file is hidden from public visitors and can only be seen by people signed in to your site.

Important: Marking a file private hides it from your public site, but a file's web address can still be guessed by someone determined to try. Do not use private files for highly sensitive documents. Anything with personal, financial, or truly confidential information does not belong in your Media Library. Use "Private" for "not ready to show yet," not for genuine secrets.

Good to know

  • Give files clear, descriptive names on your computer before uploading: it makes them far easier to find later, and gives you a better starting point for alt text.
  • If you delete a file, it will no longer appear anywhere it was being used, so check where an image is used before removing it.
Was this helpful?