Billboards are images displayed at the top of pages on your site, either below or behind the navigation menu on each page. The two image-type billboards can be set up to display single images or a slideshow of multiple images, with transition types and durations that you can set.

You can see a billboard in this screenshot, outlined in red.

The size and position of your billboard will depend on the theme which you have enabled. Some themes will display the billboard across the full width of each page, others will be limited to a certain width of the page, and others will have the billboard appearing at the top of the page behind the navigation menu.

If you wish to add a billboard to a page on your site, we have some basic recommendations on image sizes to be used here.

There are two approaches you can take setting up your billboard images:

In this article we will walk you through setting up billboard images for each of these methods using online image editors Pixlr and Canva. It’s possible to use your image editor of choice, but we will be limiting our walkthroughs to these two editors as they are both free and much easier to document than installable applications such as Photoshop.

This walkthrough uses the basic Pixlr editor, Pixlr-X. If you wish to use the advanced editor Pixlr-E you will find the instructions and screenshots are different, and you should switch back to the Pixlr-X editor if you wish to follow the steps accurately. You can access Pixlr-X from here: https://pixlr.com/x/

Cropping Images for use as a Billboard

If your image can be cropped to a wide-but-short format for use as a billboard image, you can easily use Pixlr to do so and ensure it is sized correctly at 1500x500px.

Start by opening Pixlr X in your browser. Once the page is open, you can then either click on the Open Image button or drag your image into the browser window to upload it. You can load Pixlr by clicking on this link: https://pixlr.com/x/

Note: If the image is very large, you will be shown a pop-up instructing you to pre-resize before it can be edited. Click on the Ultra HD button on the left, then on Apply to continue.

Your image will be loaded into the editor, ready for the next step.

Click on the Layout & Template button of the left hand side of the window.

Then click on Resize Image.

On the dialogue window which appears, change the Width value to 1500. The Height value will automatically change to keep the proportions of the image correct. Then click on Apply.

The dialogue box will close, and the image will be displayed smaller in the main window. If you check the size of the image in the lower left of the screen, it should now show the width of the image is 1500px. You can zoom in on the image with your mouse wheel.

For the next step, click on the Crop & Rotate button on the left side of the window.

On the Crop panel which opens, change the Height value to 500. This will change the height of the selection window on the right to be correctly proportioned.

Click and drag the selection window down the image until it is in the correct position. When you are happy with its location, click on Apply to perform the crop.

If you are unhappy with the crop, you can revert back to the uncropped image by clicking on the Undo button on the bottom right, below the image.

When you are ready to save the cropped image to your computer, click on the Save button on the bottom right, and you will be shown this final dialogue window. If needed you can change the File name in the field shown, but you should leave the other fields as shown to save your image as a small JPG. Finally, click on Download to save your image.

Cropping Images for use as a Billboard

If your image can be cropped to a wide-but-short format for use as a billboard image, you can easily use Canva to do so and ensure it is sized correctly at 1500x500px.

Start by opening Canva. You can access Canva from this link: https://www.canva.com

Note: Use of Canva requires that you create an account with them (which is free). If you have a Google or Facebook account you can use that to sign up easily, or you can manually create an account using an email address and password.

Once you’re logged in, click on the Create a design button in the top right.
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On the panel that appears, click on Custom size on the bottom left.

This will switch to a smaller dialogue panel. Enter the Width as 1500, the Height as 500, and then click on Create new design.

You will now have the editor window open, with an empty canvas sized at 1500x500px ready to go.

Next click on the Uploads button on the left menu bar, then click on Upload media on the panel that will open just to the right.

On the next page you will see multiple options listed. In this example I am using images which are saved on my computer, so I will select Device. This will open the file selection window, allowing me to select the image I wish to upload.

After this, the image will be uploaded and you will return to the Uploads tab, with your new image showing in the list of image thumbnails.

Now you should click on the image on the left, and a small version of it will be added to your workspace on the right.

The next step is where we will make the image large by dragging one of the rounded buttons on the corners of the small image. These will allow you to make the image larger while ensuring the proportions of the image remain correct.

Start with the top-left corner, and click and drag the round button up and left until the left side of your image reaches the left side of the canvas behind it.

Next do the same thing with the round button in the bottom-right corner of your image. Drag this down and to the right, until the right side of the image reaches the right hand edge of the canvas.

The last step is to adjust the vertical position of your image. You will do this by clicking on and then dragging the visible section of your image up and down.

Now that your image has been cropped correctly, you should click on the Download button on the top right. On the panel which is then displayed beneath this, change the File type to JPG, and then click on the Download button on the bottom to save your new billboard image to your computer.

Using a Background Image and Adding Artwork to Create a Billboard

If your images aren’t suitable for cropping, you may wish to instead create a mock-up which uses background room images to show how your image would look.

If you don’t have suitable background images you can find some on these sites:

Start by opening Canva. You can access Canva from this link: https://www.canva.com

Once you’re logged in, click on the Create a design button in the top right.

On the panel that appears, click on Custom size on the bottom left.

This will switch to a smaller dialogue panel. Enter the Width as 1500, the Height as 500, and then click on Create new design.

You will now have the editor window open, with an empty canvas sized at 1500x500px ready to go.

Next click on the Uploads button on the left menu bar, then click on Upload media on the panel that will open just to the right.
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On the next page you will see multiple options listed. In this example I am using images which are saved on my computer, so I will select Device. This will open the file selection window, allowing me to select the first image I wish to upload, which will be the room photo I’m using as my background.

After this, the image will be uploaded and you will return to the Uploads tab, with the new image showing in the list of image thumbnails.

Now click on Upload media again and add the photo of your artwork which you wish to use. This will be added to your list of uploaded images.

Next, click on the room photo which you are using as your background. A small version of this will appear in the middle of your canvas on the left.

The next step is where we will make the background image larger by dragging one of the rounded buttons on the corners of the small image. These will allow you to make the image larger while ensuring the proportions of the image remain correct, and will allow you to cover the background completely.

Start with the top-left corner, and click and drag the round button up and left until the left side of your image reaches the left side of the canvas behind it.

Tip: When the edge of your image reaches the edge of the canvas, there will be a thin magenta line that appears along the canvas edge, as shown in the screenshot below. When you see this, you can let go of the button to stop enlarging the image as it is in the correct position.

Next do the same thing with the round button in the bottom-right corner of your image. Drag this down and to the right, until the right side of the image reaches the right hand edge of the canvas.

The last step here is to adjust the vertical position of your image. You will do this by clicking on and then dragging the visible section of your image up and down.

Now it’s time to add your artwork in front of the background. Click on your artwork on the list of images on the left, and it will be added to the center of the canvas on the right.

Now it’s time to adjust the size of your artwork, and position it where you wish to have it appearing. You can click and drag in the middle of the image to move it from where it was initially added.

In addition to moving your image, you can also click and drag the round buttons on each corner of the image to adjust the size of your image while keeping it to the correct proportions.

Once you have the artwork positioned and sized correctly, it’s time to save it to your computer. Click on the Download button on the top right. On the panel which is then displayed beneath this, change the File type to JPG, and then click on the Download button on the bottom to save your new billboard image to your computer.