Copyright free images for website?
Discussion
Wikipedia won't have suitable pictures. She's running a business related to the beauty industry, so we need pictures of models, spa treatments, waterfalls etc etc. I also think that the creative commons license would preclude commercial use. Thanks for the idea, but as Roy Walker would say, "It's good, but it's not the one."
good luck in your search but why not pay for the photographs if you want decent images with models etc you're unlikely to find free ones - pay a local photographer for those inc spa treatments. The waterfall ones etc you might find more luck finding but suspect it hard to find ones of models for free
why is it everyone thinks a photograph should be for free?
why is it everyone thinks a photograph should be for free?
stigmundfreud said:
good luck in your search but why not pay for the photographs if you want decent images with models etc you're unlikely to find free ones - pay a local photographer for those inc spa treatments. The waterfall ones etc you might find more luck finding but suspect it hard to find ones of models for free
why is it everyone thinks a photograph should be for free?
Come on!!! That's hardly a fair interpretation of my comments! At least I have the decency to try to find free images, rather than stealing them. Some images ARE free. Some free images are GOOD.why is it everyone thinks a photograph should be for free?
Sorry if I'm not communicated the scale of this business, but it's small. Not worth getting a Photographer to take pics for me. I said I'm happy to buy stock photos, but wanted to check out the free options first. I don't think that's a wholly unreasonable approach, so I take offence at your final comment.
Whilst I have some sympathy with the pros and the erosion of their business by the web and the proliferation of digital cameras these days, I've just had a browse on Alamy. This extremely average image is priced at £765 for a three year licence for web use. £765!!!!! For only three years. That's absolutely ridiculous. When people see pricing like that it's no wonder they might consider pillaging images from other sites.
ETA - I recognise that the OP is NOT considering pillaging!
ETA - I recognise that the OP is NOT considering pillaging!
Edited by horacethefrog on Sunday 13th September 17:11
I can see both sides of the issue. (hang on, that's bizarrre, there was suddenly a link to Alamy in my status bar!)
Yes, all things being equal, free is better than paid for. I would rather have a free meal in a restaurant than pay for it.
But above all things, the main issue is - what will you get? If you have to make do with whatever you can get for free, then it may not be what you actually want, or is most suitable for the business. And this IS a business, not a school project. Businesses are allowed to have start-up costs, and promotional material can be one of them. Whatever you spend on them is offsettable against tax. When I started my own business years ago, I paid a graphic designer, a composer and a solicitor. I might have been able to get these things for free, but I preferred to commission them myself and so get exactly what I wanted.
Well, you could get a professional tog in to work to your brief for a few hundred pounds a day. But if neither of you is prepared to spend money, then perhaps a constructive compromise might be to contact various spas/beauty parlours etc, and ask them if you can use their photos in return for a link/credit. Hopefully this is helpful.
Yes, all things being equal, free is better than paid for. I would rather have a free meal in a restaurant than pay for it.
But above all things, the main issue is - what will you get? If you have to make do with whatever you can get for free, then it may not be what you actually want, or is most suitable for the business. And this IS a business, not a school project. Businesses are allowed to have start-up costs, and promotional material can be one of them. Whatever you spend on them is offsettable against tax. When I started my own business years ago, I paid a graphic designer, a composer and a solicitor. I might have been able to get these things for free, but I preferred to commission them myself and so get exactly what I wanted.
Well, you could get a professional tog in to work to your brief for a few hundred pounds a day. But if neither of you is prepared to spend money, then perhaps a constructive compromise might be to contact various spas/beauty parlours etc, and ask them if you can use their photos in return for a link/credit. Hopefully this is helpful.
http://www.dreamstime.com/what-image1131774
http://www.istockphoto.com/index.php
Amongst others, you'll find what you want quite cheaply probably, many of the pictures are just a few $$. If you're publishing on the net you'll only need a low resolution version.
http://www.istockphoto.com/index.php
Amongst others, you'll find what you want quite cheaply probably, many of the pictures are just a few $$. If you're publishing on the net you'll only need a low resolution version.
begs the question of if you are using images that has nothing to do with your business it isn't going to show your business. But someone elses.
I always find it funny when people use images that don't represent their business. You can often spot it a mile off and leave you questioning if you really want to do business with them.
A couple of years ago I was organising a tour of the West Coast of Scotland and two hotels in the same town had purchased the same images from a stock library to refresh their website.
When I rang each of them up I asked if the images in their website was a true representation of their hotel. They said yes. I then asked if they were connected to the other hotel. Their answer was no. Then asked why the pictures were the same on both websites and wanted to know which hotel the picture represented. Turned out that both hotels were using stock images and the pictures of the Lounge, food, bedrooms ect had no barring to ether hotel.
So I choose anther hotel...
Makes you think what damage you can do by lying on your website...
I always find it funny when people use images that don't represent their business. You can often spot it a mile off and leave you questioning if you really want to do business with them.
A couple of years ago I was organising a tour of the West Coast of Scotland and two hotels in the same town had purchased the same images from a stock library to refresh their website.
When I rang each of them up I asked if the images in their website was a true representation of their hotel. They said yes. I then asked if they were connected to the other hotel. Their answer was no. Then asked why the pictures were the same on both websites and wanted to know which hotel the picture represented. Turned out that both hotels were using stock images and the pictures of the Lounge, food, bedrooms ect had no barring to ether hotel.
So I choose anther hotel...
Makes you think what damage you can do by lying on your website...
I understand what you're getting at but it's not relevant for two reasons:
1. In a hotel part of what's being sold is the building and it's decor. With my partner's business it's quite different to include stock photos of a girl being massaged, or a waterfall etc. We won't be purporting to feature actual customers on the website.
2. It's got nothing to do with this thread. This thread is asking for advice on sourcing free or low cost stock photos, not a bl**dy critique of our decision to use these type of images.
Of course you're entitled to your opinions on this and any subject, but this thread is not the right place to express them unless they are opinions on where I can get the images I'm after.
1. In a hotel part of what's being sold is the building and it's decor. With my partner's business it's quite different to include stock photos of a girl being massaged, or a waterfall etc. We won't be purporting to feature actual customers on the website.
2. It's got nothing to do with this thread. This thread is asking for advice on sourcing free or low cost stock photos, not a bl**dy critique of our decision to use these type of images.
Of course you're entitled to your opinions on this and any subject, but this thread is not the right place to express them unless they are opinions on where I can get the images I'm after.
Edited by mrmr96 on Sunday 13th September 21:41
That's fine, carry on. Generally speaking you can either do something properly, or you can do it cheaply. Which one you choose says something about how much you value the business and how seriously you take it. It seems that you could, if you wished, put something in the kitty and do it properly, but have chosen not to. (That's me speaking not as a tog but as someone who's run his own business for 18 years and helped market many others)
However, we all look forward to our free beauty treatment when you're ready
(Please take this as a post that combines realism and experience with just a dash of humour. Whatever you do, I hope it works out)
However, we all look forward to our free beauty treatment when you're ready
(Please take this as a post that combines realism and experience with just a dash of humour. Whatever you do, I hope it works out)
Simpo Two said:
That's fine, carry on. Generally speaking you can either do something properly, or you can do it cheaply. Which one you choose says something about how much you value the business and how seriously you take it. It seems that you could, if you wished, put something in the kitty and do it properly, but have chosen not to. (That's me speaking not as a tog but as someone who's run his own business for 18 years and helped market many others)
However, we all look forward to our free beauty treatment when you're ready
(Please take this as a post that combines realism and experience with just a dash of humour. Whatever you do, I hope it works out)
Thanks. I've had a look around some of the free offerings which have been posted, as well as a couple I've found on google. I've also had a look at some of the paid ones.However, we all look forward to our free beauty treatment when you're ready
(Please take this as a post that combines realism and experience with just a dash of humour. Whatever you do, I hope it works out)
At present it seems that you're right (as I suspect you are) that the paid ones have a LOT more choice. I think the point made earlier in the thread about whether you use something 'nearly right' or use something 'spot on' is a valid one.
The best selection at reasonable prices seems to be istockphoto where suitable sized images can be had for between £1 and £12 each. I can't get my head around those other sites where images cost over £600.
Can anyone explain to me why some are under £10 for decent images (istockphoto seems as good as the expensive ones, in the limited time I've used it.) and some are over £600 for what I would consider to be comparable photos. Why the big difference? Is there a subtlety in the licensing I'm missing?
mrmr96 said:
Can anyone explain to me why some are under £10 for decent images (istockphoto seems as good as the expensive ones, in the limited time I've used it.) and some are over £600 for what I would consider to be comparable photos. Why the big difference? Is there a subtlety in the licensing I'm missing?
I think it's beacuse iStockphoto has lots of amateur and hobbyist photographers who send their pictures to practise and make a bit of money on the side. I agree the "pro" agencies can be ridiculously expensive, probably easier to use for publishers such as papers and magazines where speed and convenience are more important than cost.Istock has straightforward licensing as I remember, they also have a higher proportion of also-ran images so it takes longer to find what you want. I haven't used it for a long time, but found the download counters quite useful in choosing images that had,'t been used over and over again.
Simpo Two said:
That's fine, carry on. Generally speaking you can either do something properly, or you can do it cheaply. Which one you choose says something about how much you value the business and how seriously you take it. It seems that you could, if you wished, put something in the kitty and do it properly, but have chosen not to. (That's me speaking not as a tog but as someone who's run his own business for 18 years and helped market many others)
However, we all look forward to our free beauty treatment when you're ready
(Please take this as a post that combines realism and experience with just a dash of humour. Whatever you do, I hope it works out)
Sorry to hujack the thread but, are the images on the PHEA site free issue to all PH members?However, we all look forward to our free beauty treatment when you're ready
(Please take this as a post that combines realism and experience with just a dash of humour. Whatever you do, I hope it works out)
Quick silver said:
Simpo Two said:
That's fine, carry on. Generally speaking you can either do something properly, or you can do it cheaply. Which one you choose says something about how much you value the business and how seriously you take it. It seems that you could, if you wished, put something in the kitty and do it properly, but have chosen not to. (That's me speaking not as a tog but as someone who's run his own business for 18 years and helped market many others)
However, we all look forward to our free beauty treatment when you're ready
(Please take this as a post that combines realism and experience with just a dash of humour. Whatever you do, I hope it works out)
Sorry to hujack the thread but, are the images on the PHEA site free issue to all PH members?However, we all look forward to our free beauty treatment when you're ready
(Please take this as a post that combines realism and experience with just a dash of humour. Whatever you do, I hope it works out)
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