If you have a blog, you will probably know this – adding images to each post will make it more visually appealing to the reader. Images break up the text, if you put them between paragraphs, and this improves readability. Put some effort into your posts to make them more visually attractive – this will mean you up your chances of your post getting shared around the web.

However, many people don’t realise that if you just go and Google an image, those resulting images are not yours to use.

If you use an image you find via Google images, you are essentially stealing.

The same goes for Bing!

The image will be one that is on another person’s website or blog. This image could have originated by someone taking that picture themselves, or finding it on a licensed photo library.

Or, there is a chance that whoever put that image on their website also “stole” it. If they Googled a word and decided to use the image they found on Google images.

The responsible and legal thing to do is to use one of the many photo libraries out there. It might be a hassle to source good images which go well with your blog post/website, but imagine if the show was on the other foot:

• Imagine if you were a photographer. You created images which could be used online, either commissioned or on a photo library. And then you find one of your images on someone else’s blog, Facebook page, advertisement or flyer. How would you feel?
• Imagine you took a picture of you and your friends out somewhere and you put it on Instagram or or your own blog. And then, you saw that same picture on a restaurant or bar’s blog (could even be that same place you were at). Wouldn’t you want them to ask your permission? And give you credit?
• Imagine you had paid a photographer to come take pictures of you/your team/your office/your house, and you put it on your website. And then saw that image on someone else’s blog or website?

So, here are the alternatives for finding great pictures for your blog:

Take your own pictures:

For some blog posts, a picture you take yourself can work – for example:

• Your badge from an event
• You and the person who you are blogging about
• A picture of some objects on the table
• A picture are a venue related to you post

Paid for photo libraries:

These usually work on a pay when you use them or pre-pay for credits type model. Each library has different pricing and sometimes you can get deals and vouchers. But assume that images are between £1-£2 per credit, and the amount of credits per image depends on the size and quality. You could buy a batch of credits for $50-$70 and this would last you for most of your blog posts, if you are blogging once a week for your business.

www.shutterstock.com
www.istock.com
www.fotolia.com
www.depositphotos.com
www.dreamstime.com

AI-Generated images:

AI image generators can create stunning visuals from text descriptions – though there is a a lot of “trial and error” as you get used to the different tools and results.

Here are some tools you can try – generally you enter your text prompt, select your preferred style, and let the AI create high-resolution images tailored to your needs. But patience is a virtue!

Krea.ai – this is one of our favourites, and we’ve created some great images around our logo (and client logos) using their powerful logo generator which is called logo Illusions. This tool allows you to transform your logo into visual illusions like the example above with our logo.

DeepAI DeepAI’s AI Image Generator lets you create images from text descriptions using advanced machine learning algorithms. Choose from multiple styles, customise settings, and download or share your creations.

DeepImg  DeepImg offers a free AI image generator that transforms text prompts into high-resolution visuals. With no sign-up required, it’s perfect for designers and social media creators. 

Pixlr image generator Pixlr’s AI Image Generator allows you to create stunning images in seconds by describing what you want to see. Explore various styles and edit your images further with Pixlr Express.

Photoleap – This is the app I used to create the image above, using a picture of me as a starting point. Photoleap is an AI photo editor and generator app that lets you create digital art and photo compositions and it’s one of my favourites.

Free images:

These days, there are so many libraries which have free images – but you sometimes have to look for longer to find good ones! Here are our favourites!

The Stocks: A comprehensive hub for designers, offering a curated collection of royalty-free stock photos, videos, mockups, icons, and fonts from various sources.

Pexels Pexels offers a vast collection of free stock photos and videos shared by talented creators. On this site, all content can be used without attribution.

Unsplash: Beautiful, free images and photos that you can download and use for any project. With contributions from photographers worldwide, it’s a rich source of high-resolution, royalty-free images.

Pixabay: A community of creatives sharing over 5.3 million high-quality stock images, videos, and music. The images on this site are released under the Pixabay License, making it safe to use without asking for permission or giving credit to the artist.

You can also find free images on Flickr, as long as you search for “Creative Commons” licence images only. Flickr hosts millions of photos, including those under Creative Commons licences.

By searching for Creative Commons images, you can find free-to-use photos that require proper attribution. This makes Flickr a valuable resource for finding diverse and high-quality images for your projects.

Instructions:

1. Visit the Flickr Creative Commons page: www.flickr.com/creativecommons/
2. Search for images: Use the search bar to find images. Ensure you select the “Creative Commons” filter to limit your search to images available under Creative Commons licences.
3. Check the licence: Each image will have a specific Creative Commons licence. Make sure to read the licence details to understand how you can use the image and how to provide proper attribution.

Read our blog post about about where to find free images for your blog!