Have you ever been in the scenario where you’ve just written a long-form blog article and couldn’t wait to publish it, but then you realized that you couldn’t because you couldn’t find the perfect free styled stock pictures for it? I’m sure you’ve been there before.
Obviously, you’re aware that downloading a photo from Google may result in you losing a large sum of money if the image is legally protected and the owner sues you for using it without permission.
Why should you use license stock photos?
As a travel blogger, I have to utilize my own photographs for the majority of my blog articles; otherwise, I use Unsplash (frequently), Rawpixel (sometimes), and Pexels (occasionally) to supplement my images (rarely). When it comes to Rawpixel, you may sign up for a free account and get up to five free stock pictures each day by clicking on the image below. In addition, they provide vectors, mock-ups, and many interesting illustrations.
As of right now, I’m utilizing stock photos from Ivory Mix, which is part of a one-year membership that will expire in September 2020. She was my first choice since it includes more than just licensed style stock photos; it also includes the SoMe template, training sessions, seminars, marketing templates, and other resources to ensure that you have your back cover covered with all of that online business/blogging information.
That was one of the finest decisions I’ve made in my blogging career to date, and it was one of the most difficult. It saved me time by eliminating the need to look for the correct images and ensure that I could use them without difficulty. Time is money, as they say.
In addition to making your blog appear unique and stand out from the crowd, using licensed styled stock pictures will help your site to stand out from the competition. Styled stock photos are available for free, but one photo may be used in hundreds of other blogs and content pieces – and that’s not what you want for your blog – to “look like another blog” that your visitors have already seen, is it?
That’s when the demand for licensed stock photos is high. Not only will it assist to make your site appear fresh and new, but it will also help a great deal with Pinterest and Instagram algorithm optimization.
As a result, the minute you click Pay for your licensed stock photos, you will be paying for your time spent browsing the Internet, your ability to use gorgeous photographs legally, and the consistency of your blog’s branding and design. These are tremendous victories!
So, why free styled stock photos?
Now it sounds like I’m trying to sell you some photos subscription or something, and it will make absolutely no sense here. So I bet you’re wondering why I ever bother.
Actually, it’s a win – win for both bloggers and photographers. Let’s say you as a blogger will have some free styled stock photos to use on your blog, and maybe sometimes SoMe, and the photographer/styled stock photos companies will have your email on their list, meaning you can turn into a customer one day (feel free to take me as an example).
Once you enter their websites, you can register your email to receive around 1- – 20 free stock photos as freebies. Some sites will keep sending you free photos every month, some not. However, the one with the biggest resource here is Ivory Mix with a library of OVER 550 free styled stock photos for you to download! That’s simply a steal. I mean!
Since you now get the idea, here is my ultimate list of 10 resources where you can subscribe to get over 600 free styled stock photos for personal use. You will not even need 600 photos to put on your blog for the first year, so that’s a good deal for newbies to start with.
Free Styled Stock Photos for Bloggers
1. Ivory Mix
Following up on my last purchase, I purchased a one-year membership with Ivory Mix for $137/year, which included all types of templates, marketing and blogging ideas, SoMe templates to use on Canva (along with other goodies), seminars, and e-courses, among other things. Every time she posted a new resource on her website, it took me days to download and go through all of her offerings.
It was because Kayla (the owner) made it so simple to utilize her images that I picked Ivory Mix over Haute Stock as my stock photography provider. I’m talking about legally, as in, what you can and cannot do with her photographs, and so on. I like it since not all of us are attorneys or have a thorough understanding of all the legal jargon, and we certainly don’t want to find ourselves in the middle of a court battle along the road.
2. Unsplash
Take use of their library of over 300,000 stunning, high-resolution pictures from more than 50,000 contributors to create whatever you desire. Unsplash may not have the sheer amount of options available on other premium sites, but the photographs are of high quality, and thousands of new images are uploaded every day to the collection. There’s a strong chance that you’ll find something useful on this free stock photography website.
3. Pexels
We couldn’t write about free stock photos without including Pexels, so we’re included them here. Their extensive and well-organized collection of free stock photos is one of the best-curated collections available anywhere on the internet. In addition, they provide free stock videos to its customers! Many bloggers rely on Pexels as their primary picture source.
4. Haute Stock
Haute Stock will give you 21 pictures upon registration, plus four to six additional photos every month.
As far as I’m concerned, their photographs are fantastic. They are really breathtaking. For two reasons, however, I chose not to utilize their services: it is expensive (nearly $300/year) and there are several limits on where and how you may use their photographs, even after purchasing an appropriate licensing agreement. For me, it’s just too hard to deal with all of their legal jargon, so I’ve decided to keep away from it for the time being.
5. Style Stock Society
Style Stock Society offers you 20 photos straight to your inbox + monthly photos.
6. Rawpixel
Rawpixel claims to offer the most diversified collection of stock photos in the business — and it’s possible that this claim is correct. They also have vectors, PSD mockups, and public domain stuff, such as classic Japanese wood panel prints, among other things. Hope for Children receives a portion of the proceeds from their paid option.
7. The Stock Boutique
In particular, I appreciate the photos of The Stock Boutique for their distinct visual qualities, such as a sense of serenity and individuality. I signed up right away and saved their website as a potential option for the next time I needed to purchase a new membership subscription.
8. Stockvault
Stockvault is yet another excellent source of royalty-free stock pictures, wallpapers, and even texture images and vectors. Although the collection is only approximately half the size of Unsplash, it is well-curated, and new images are added on a regular basis. Aside from that, this site offers an excellent search engine and is well-organized for browsing by category.
9. PicJumbo
PicJumbo is a booming free stock picture community with a large variety of stunning free photographs. It was founded by a 24-year-old photographer who was tired of having his photos rejected by major stock sites and decided to start his own.
10. Morguefile
This website is also unique in its own way. The pictures on Unsplash and Gratisography are not selected and are not as professionally made as those on Unsplash and Gratisography. Photographs of strange individuals and ordinary items will appear in your stream, much to how your aunt Sally shared her Google Photos stream with you. If you need a basic free photo of a youngster brushing his teeth, Morguefile is not the place to look. However, if you need a large header image, this is the free stock photography website for you.
Happy downloading!
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