Photo by ba1969
Do you ever wonder where bloggers are finding the images they include in their posts?
The answer is… well, lots of places!
Some things to know if you want to include images in your blog posts:
1. Don’t just do a Google image search and grab an image. You want to be sure that you know where an image came from and what its license is.
2. There are lots of sites where you can find free to use images as long as you follow their license terms (usually you need to give credit to the photographer/artist).
3. There’s an awesome thing called “royalty free stock photos” which allow you to purchase the rights to legally use an image for a one time fee of $1-2 and up, depending on the website, the image and the size.
Here are some sources I use and how I setup my images for my blog posts in WordPress.
Free Stock Photos:
- Stock.xchng
- Morgue File
- Free Digital Photos
- Unprofound
- Every Stock Photo
- Free Range
Royalty Free Stock Photos:
- StockFresh (this is my favorite site, it’s about $1 per image)
- iStockPhoto
- Big Stock Photo
- Dreamtime (this site also has some free images)
Another option is to search Flickr for Creative Commons licensed photos. Be sure to read the various licenses to be sure the photo you want is available for your planned usage. When in doubt, skip to a photo you can find clear licensing terms for.
Here’s a quick video showing how to format an image in your blog post, add credit, and some of the cool features at MorgueFile.
Click here if you can’t see the video above: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ij_9cClMm0s
Good information and a pet peeve of mine… If using work make sure you give credit when do and make sure it is license such as to allow you legitimate accesss rights for the usage you in intend. KUDOS!
Definitely important. Sometimes beginning bloggers don’t realize how important that is — and how easy it is to do, as well. :)
That’s great, Michelle! I use iStockphoto a lot. ~Jeanine
I’ve probably spent more at istockphoto than any of them. lol But stockfresh is catching up now as I’ve been using it more lately.
Michelle these are great lists of places to get images and photos. I have used Big Stock Photo for 5 years now. This is good info to share with others.
Big Stock Photo’s a nice site. They’ve got a good selection.
Michelle, I use istockphoto often, but also find that the images in ms word are good – quite quick to use too.
Very cool, Sandy. I’ll have to take a look at those. Thanks for the tip!
Fantastic video demo, Michelle, and I started smiling when you clicked over to Morgue File. I remember recommending that site to you sometime last year because I love it! As I commented then, it has an “odd” name but it’s super cool. I think some people shy away from visiting because of the “other” meaning of “morgue”. :)
You’re the best – I love your posts – and your demos are always extremely helpful.
That was you! I remember that now. :) Thank you – I love that site and their little crop and resizer. Makes my life so much easier.
Thanks for the great info Michelle, have now signed up for Stockfresh, got exactly what I wanted. Its so great to get recommendations – looking forward to reading more.
Also thanks for UBC, its so motivating and have met some wonderful people, all so diverse and extraordinarily talented in their passions
I love doing the Ultimate Blog Challenge! :) It’s been such a blast for Michele & I to get to host it together – we’re meeting so many cool people and really just having fun. Thanks for jumping in to play with us.
Thanks Michelle, I’ve just been using google images but i won’t from now on. Loved this tutorial. Liax
Thanks very much for these great links. It’s really helpful to find new sources of excellent quality photos.
I appreciate you making the terms of use so clear.
Great post and the video was quite helpful. No wonder blogging can turn into a full-time job. : )