Where to Find Fantastic Free Pictures for Your Blog

Finding Free Pictures for Your Blog

Some bloggers wonder why there is even a question about where to find free pictures for blogs.

Thins is, images add so much to a blog post, a picture really does say a thousand words – and it can bring in traffic too.

Pictures can break text to make posts more readable, grab attention from ‘passing traffic’, and give an opportunity to add both humor and color to a page. Heck, you can even influence the emotional state of your reader and develop rapport if you want to get really smart about it!

There’s numerous paid stock image, photo and graphics sites, but if you’re a blogger like me, running your blog on a relatively modest budget, the question is where to find suitable pictures for free (we don’t want to pay for them!)

This list will help you find the perfect images for your blog posts – and you won’t have to pay a penny/cent/rupee/shell/button/whatever.

Just make sure you take heed of licenses – credit and link where necessary, and of course – optimize your images right to make the most of their presence on your page…

Free Picture Sources for Bloggers

All of these are great resources – Try them out and see which ones work best for you. On each site there’s a search box where you can enter keywords which describe the kind of image you’re looking for, and will return a number of results. Find the download button, sign up if necessary (most of these don’t require it) and off you go!

1. Stock Xchng – Well categorised free images, all they ask is that you leave a comment for the creator of the picture to tell them how you’ve used it

2. Flickr Creative Commons – Vast repository of user uploaded photos. Check each photo license. Some require attribution, some don’t allow adaption of the image, Some are not allowed to be used in any commercial context.

3. Free Foto – Large collection of exclusive images, all require a link back with attribution. These images cannot be used in a commercial context, nor altered in any way. (So if you’re making money from your blog, you’d need to pay to use pictured from Free Foto)

4. Morgue File – Another excellent catalogue of creative images. All are licensed for remixing, use in commercial work and use without attribution to the original creator. The only requirement here is that you don’t claim ownership.

5. Wikimedia Commons – Another vast collection of well categorized images, particularly useful for scientific and historical images. Like Flickr, you’ll need to check the license on each picture.

Having trouble finding out what you’re looking for amongst the millions upon millions of images on the sites listed above?

Try using the free stock image search engine everystockphoto. It collects results from the sites above and more besides and if you can’t find a picture for your latest blog post in there, why not get creative and make one yourself!

What Makes a Perfect Blog Post Image?

It’s worth taking a little time to think about what a picture will add to your blog post. Here are a few thoughts on what to consider when you’re adding images to your blog.

• Steer clear of controversial graphics (sex, death, religion etc) – unless your niche is somehow connected to those topics. Even then, consider your readership and whether you may be putting off people who might otherwise enjoy your blog.
• Bold Images will serve you well if you’re promoting your blog post on Social Media platforms such as Facebook, or in blogging communities such as Blokube or BlogEngage.
• Bear in mind the color scheme of your blog – some colors simply clash and aren’t easy on your reader’s eye. You may even have a theme going on with your images from post to post, keeping a continuity of style helps build a professional feel and define your blog’s ‘character’.
• Make sure your picture is relevant to the Blog Topic. Sometimes if nothing seems obvious as an image to fit your post, you’ll need to think a little deeper. Use imagery from an analogy you’ve made, or a reference within the post. Symbolic images, or pictures of people acting out events or emotions described can work well too.
• It’s a personal thing, but think about how the image shape will fit within your blog post. Some bloggers like to embed pictures amongst the text of their posts. I like to have a bold image at the top of each post. Whatever your choice, edit the image size and file size before uploading – read my post on optimizing image size for a tutorial on exactly how to do it.
• Harder to quantify but what energy does the image carry? Does it feel depressing and boring, or uplifting and exciting? What emotions are you trying to evoke within your reader? Will your image help build connection and warmth by making them laugh, smile or feel something? Depending on your niche, this approach can add real value and impact to a post.

Have a look through some of the pictures I’ve used on my other blog posts. See if you can pick up on why I’ve chosen those particular images. Some are obvious, others less so.

When you’re reading other blogs, notice which kinds of images work, which add value to the page, which attract your eye, and why.

After you’ve shared this post with your social networks, leave a comment below.

What else would you like to know about using pictures in your blog posts?

What kind of images ‘do it for you’ on yours, and other blogs?

Where to Find Fantastic Free Pictures for Your Blog © 2012 Blogger’s Alchemy