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David Butler

How to Find Royalty-Free Photos

In case you didn’t already know, taking and using other people’s photos off the Internet to use for your website is a big no-no…and could get you sued.

Unless you have the express authorization from the owner of the photograph, don’t use that person’s copyrighted work.

Fortunately, royalty-free photos exist, and they are available on various websites. With that said, what the laws say on this subject is complicated.

Fair use and free use are separate concepts. Fair use allows for a legal exception to whatever exclusive rights the owner of the copyrighted photograph holds over his or her work.

Public domain repositories, creative common licenses, and stock photo services are not subject to fair use laws. You must pay for a license for stock photo services. Creative commons licenses, meanwhile, allow you to use an image under certain circumstances. Public domain images are not subject to copyright.


Photo Sites to Use

 

Among the stock photo sites for commercial and non-commercial purposes are Pexels, Unsplash, and Pixabay. With these sites, providing credit to the artist is optional. Make sure to study each site’s licensing page.

Then there’s Flickr. Please understand that not every photo on this site is free to use. You must toggle the license you need in the Any license dropdown to narrow down your search.

 

Points to Remember

 

As you search for free images, you’ll come across the Creative Commons (CC) license that allows you to use an image for free.

You may encounter limitations, however, that require you to credit the original artist.

Also, many people believe that you cannot legally reuse the photos. But Google, through a Google search, can help you narrow down your results based on image usage rights.

Do the following:

 

• Go to Google Images and type in the image for which you are looking.

 

• Select Tools>Usage Rights>Creative Commons licenses

 

• If and before you reuse an image, check the type of CC license it uses.

 

Other Options

 

Another site to find free images is Wikemedia Commons.

Open Wikepedia Commons and enter a search in the top right corner of the screen.

Hit the license dropdown to filer images by restrictions that come with their license. You may choose Use with attribution and same license. Use with attribution, No restrictions, or Other.

Select an image and see which CC license it uses.

There’s also the Library of Congress, which offers free images. This content, though, is in the public domain, has no known copyright, or has been cleared by the copyright owner for public use. This resource is good for historical images of landmarks and notable people.

Other sites to use include the following:

 

• The Smithsonian

 

• The National Gallery of Art

 

• The Art Institute of Chicago

 

• The New York Public Library

 

• Creative Commons’ Openverse

 

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