I've heard that Wordpress is a hog too, but I have yet to see this. I have forty small new blogs that are running fine on a single dedicated server.
If you use Wordpress I highly recomend a little bit of software called Blog Desk. Think of it like a M$ Word program that allows you to write you posts and upload them. I never ever log into Wordpress these days. The program allows you to size and crop photos, as well as makes thumbnails. Best of all it's free:
http://www.blogdesk.org/en/index.htm
Hit me up on ICQ and I'll gladly show you our blog network and try to help with any questions you have.