First off, Ribblr is the ONLY real world. ^-^
But, what I look for in the pictures for a pattern, is I want to see at least two DIFFERENT angles of the finished product. A lot of patterns i see only show a front angle or 8 images of just barely off angle from that. I like seeing a front and a side or a 3/4 view; it helps give an idea of the pattern.
Ideally, I want one of these to give a sense of size for the plushie, maybe include a person, a hand or a tissue box, something that gives you a sense of scale. And something I see very rarely is a note about what size yarn the example piece was made with. (A size 4 yarn produces a VERY DIFFERENT plush from a size 6, for example.) On that note, an image that denotes these items in multiple sized yarns is great to give one multiple ideas of the size to expect.
I’ve seen a few patterns where one of the example images includes a suggested materials list. Such as, how many different colors of yarn you’ll need, whether you’ll need safety eyes or if you’d reccommend embroidered or needle felted or whatever, reccomendations for a tapestry needle and such.
I’ve also seen some include a list of stitches that may be required. This is nice, but not necessary.
All told, despite the variety I like to see, I don’t know that I’d reccommend too many photos; you don’t want to make it easy for people to try to reconstruct what you’ve made without buying the pattern, after all.
In your bird example, I might suggest a 3/4 view and a side view of the plush, and have someone holding it in at least one of those photos even if you can’t see their face. A hand is a great way to get a general ‘okay, it’s this big’ idea. (I also occasionally use a ruler behind or beside the product when I take finished photos for my tests.) Depending on the difficulty of the pattern, more than the 2 photos might be overkill, but that’s a call you’ll have to make yourself.
Edit: Hoooly… SOrry for the book XD