\ud83d\udcda Table of contents<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Photo by Henning Borgersen<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/em><\/strong> While there a lot of paid stock photo sites, many webmasters on a budget prefer using free stock photo sites<\/a> instead.<\/p>\n The social world has generated a communal photography sector where picture takers can help their own brands by sharing photos for free. Because of this, the free photo market has exploded into some incredible collections.<\/p>\n But all that work put in by the photographer is without reward without image credits.<\/p>\n Why?<\/p>\n Maybe someone sees that cool photo of the leopard up there and decides to look at the photographer’s portfolio<\/a>. What if they like more of his photos and decide they would like to hire him for paid work?<\/p>\n So ignoring the legal aspect, it’s still just respectful to credit someone’s work.<\/p>\n However, there also is that legal issue<\/a>, and some free stock photo sites actually require that you credit the photographer if you want to use their image (you’ll need to check the license of the site where you find your image<\/em>).<\/p>\n For example, on our own MyStockPhotos site<\/a>, we do not <\/strong>require attribution (AKA an image credit<\/em>),<\/em> but many other free stock photo sites do. Our guide to the best free stock photo sites is a great place to begin<\/a> when seeking out images you can actually use.<\/p>\n Some of the mentions include the following:<\/p>\n Also, here are some free stock sites that I have in my own bookmark bar:<\/p>\n And what are those reasons?<\/p>\n Flickr has more than complicated rules that depend entirely on the Creative Commons license of the photo:<\/p>\n Visual Hunt has a simpler format and provides the links:<\/p>\n Photo on VisualHunt.com<\/a> – modified<\/p><\/div>\n Unsplash asks nicely for image credits but doesn’t require them:<\/p>\n Confusing, right? Now that you know how drastically different the rules can be, it’s time to think about how you’re going to format all of the pictures you put in blog posts. After all, writing a post<\/a> takes long enough as it is. Now you have to know the rules for every free stock photo site?<\/p>\n Here are some tips:<\/p>\n Photo on VisualHunt.com<\/a> – modified<\/em><\/p>\n Here’s an example of the caption approach:<\/p>\n Photo credit: phboehm<\/a> on VisualHunt.com<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n It doesn’t look that different in the caption, but I had to copy and paste some code into the WordPress editor to make it work. The base code was provided by Visual Hunt, but I also added Here’s one of the most important rules to remember about using photos.<\/p>\n People steal.<\/p>\n But if you have a serious blog or online business, that person is not going to be you.<\/p>\n It seems like half of the images on Google are reposted without permission.<\/p>\n Although to a lesser extent, you’ll still find illegal photos on places like Flickr, VisualHunt, and Unsplash. The main problem is that you’ll never really know if the uploader took the photo from the real photographer or if it’s legitimate.<\/p>\n An example that is easier to identify is when trademarks are used.<\/p>\n Go to VisualHunt and type in Nike<\/a>.<\/p>\n There are dozens of apparel pictures with the famous swoosh logo. I would bet anyone that Nike didn’t approve any of those pictures. It’s Nike’s property, so no one can use it without approval.<\/p>\n This is a tough point, since there’s no solution for you.<\/p>\n Simply use common sense and avoid pictures with things like people’s faces (models who may have not given approval,) and trademarks. Let’s say you want to write an eBook for your bird watching blog. You’re a pretty good photographer<\/a> so you can fill up the book with shots. However, you want to make the cover stand out with an image<\/a> from a true professional.<\/p>\n So, you take a look on Flickr and find this stunning bald eagle shot. You look to the bottom and notice it says “Some Rights Reserved”.<\/p>\n Photo: Andy Morffew, Some rights reserved, Just Sitting!<\/a>, flickr<\/a> – modified<\/em><\/p>\n Nice! So that means you can use the photo right?<\/p>\n Not exactly.<\/p>\n Flickr actually requests that credit is given right below the photograph. Links are needed as well. So, unless you plan on putting a credit right on the eBook cover (when was the last time you saw that?) you’re out of luck.<\/p>\n The same can be said for slider images<\/a> on your homepage where it would look silly to have a credit (or maybe there’s no way to credit in your slider).<\/p>\n Unfortunately, sometimes crediting a photographer gets in the way of your own project, so you’re far better off supporting that photographer and paying for the rights–or looking for a different photo.<\/p>\n But in this case–in a blog post–a credit like this is all Mr. Morffew is asking for:<\/p>\n Photo: Andy Morffew, Some rights reserved, Just Sitting!<\/a>, flickr<\/a><\/em> Reach out to the photographer to ask if you can use their photo.<\/p>\n Or even better yet, take your own pictures!<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
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\n\n\t\tWhy is it so important to have image credits on your website?<\/h2>\n
\nThe best places to find photos that might allow for sharing<\/h2>\n
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These free websites are great, but there are crucial reasons we’re showing you all of them<\/h2>\n
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1. All free photo websites have different rules<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\n![\"green](\"https:\/\/mllj2j8xvfl0.i.optimole.com\/cb:c5QE.37290\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/themeisle.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/visual_hunt.png\")
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\n1(a). Tips on following rules and formatting<\/h3>\n
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target=\"_blank\"<\/code> to it so that if someone clicks on the links, they will open in a new tab. Many other stock sites won’t even give you the base code though.<\/p>\n![\"Adding](\"https:\/\/mllj2j8xvfl0.i.optimole.com\/cb:c5QE.37290\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/themeisle.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/Code-caption-provided-by-Visual-Hunt-and-added-to-the-WordPress-editor.webp\")
\n2. Just because the internet says something doesn’t mean it’s true<\/h3>\n
\n3. Sometimes giving attribution doesn’t bode well for your project<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\n![\"We](\"https:\/\/mllj2j8xvfl0.i.optimole.com\/cb:c5QE.37290\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/themeisle.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/47429551611_39c72d2242_z.jpg\")
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\nIf all else fails…<\/h2>\n