They say a picture is worth a thousand words but finding the perfect one can be a challenge.
Stock photos are a great way to add visual interest to your website content and attract readers. Many stock photo sites can also be very expensive.
Although there is a myriad of stock photography sites out there to select from, though you’ll find their vast selection of images is often paired with a dizzying menu of prices. For the prolific content creator, high priced images just don’t fit the budget.
But just how do you find that perfect image to go with the text you’ve so carefully crafted? That’s where these resources come in handy:
1. PublicDomainPictures.net – A public Domain site, some photos may require a property release. Over 94,000 free images are currently available.
2. Commons.Wikimedia.org – A database of over 24 million free to use media files.
3. Pixabay – 300,000 beautiful images & vectors.
4. ImageAfter – More than 27,000 categorized images donated by amateur photographers.
5. Public-Domain-Photos.com – 5,000 public domain mages, 8,000 clipart.
6. FreeImages.com – 410,000 images.
7. FreeRangeStock.com – Thousands of hi-resolution images.
8. StockVault.net – 52,000 images.
9. FreeDigitalPhotos.net – Thousands of photos and illustrations.
10.Creative Commons – This is a large pool of CC-licensed works. Creative Commons has millions of works available for free and legal use under their various copyright licenses.
11. ISO Republic – There are some really great, unique images at ISO Republic. The photos on the site are all free to use on personal and commercial projects. However, there are some photos in their collection that feature products or registered trademarks of companies which will require the proper attribution.
12. Life of Pix – Life of Pix a a high-quality collection of stock photos from advertising agency, Leeroy. Their collection has come really interesting images donated to the public domain, all free to use in commercial and personal projects.
Now, these sites offer photos which are free and in the public domain, however you should be aware that there are also paid images offered. You will also find images that fall under one of the other Creative Commons license types.
Additionally, some images may also have attribution requirements or require property permission to use so be certain that you follow the necessary requirements for any image that you use.
Some sites offer size or file restrictions and only let you download small sizes or a certain number of files for free and offer a site membership for full access.
An important note: Always read the licensing terms of the image you wish to use to determine how to use it appropriately. .
Leave a Reply