Blog Tipz

I am guessing you don’t have time to browse through the hundreds of sites out there where you can find free photos for your website. For this reason, I’ve collected some of my personal favorite sites to find graphics and photos for your blog. In some cases, there are restrictions as to where you can use the images, although most only require you to attribute the original photographer/artist.

Adding images to your blog can be a great way to add some value to your content, other than actually writing “thousands” of words to describe what you are trying to express.

I encourage you to share other sources with the community within the comments area, and leave your thoughts on the photo sites I’ve shared below. Again, this isn’t a complete round-up, but more of a focused look at the best sites out there.

Flickr

Flickr has one of the largest collections of free photos, and with Creative Commons Licensing search, it is rather easy to find the images you can use on your blog or website. The focus of Flickr is more around photos than clipart and other files, but many of the photos on this blog were found originally on Flickr.

Stock Xchng

This site allows anyone to submit their own photos or browse through “more than 350,000 quality stock photos by more than 30,000 photographers.” You’ll surely find some images for your blog at this site.

iStockPhoto

There are millions of safe, royalty-free photographs, vector illustrations, video footage, audio tracks, and Flash files on iStockPhotos, so you certainly aren’t limited to any one type of medium. The site is ideal for when you need specific images, but don’t really want to search for images that need attribution.

morgueFile

Similar to Flickr, this site makes it easy to link to and share photos, using a license summary beneath each image. From what I’ve seen through some basic searches, there are more images with a “no attribution required” license than Flickr. However, it is still nice to give credit to the designer for using their photography on your site(s).

Fotolia

Quite similar to iStockPhoto, which was listed above, this site allows you to purchase stock photos at a low cost. All images are royalty free, meaning you can use the images without limits on time, copies, or geographical location. Again, it is great for people who need a specific image, but don’t have the time to search for a Creative Commons (or similarly licensed) photo.

Conclusion

What sites above have you used to find images for your blog? Share your favorite sites below, in the comments area.