Searching for good stock photos for your marketing materials and presentations is time-consuming. Of course, it’s easy to pick a picture from a free stock photo website and add an image credit to your blog post. But the article How To Avoid A Lawsuit When Using Free Stock Photos, explains some significant image sourcing issues. I encourage you to read the article, but if you don’t have time, here is a synopsis.
Image Sourcing Challenges
Limited Commercial Use: Most free stock photo sites don’t allow commercial use of their images. This includes your business blog, newsletter, and business-related presentations. It’s time-consuming to read licence restrictions and disclaimers. Fortunately, a reliable virtual assistant can help you source images suitable for commercial purposes.
Lack of Permissions, No Verification: Amateur photographers often neglect to obtain appropriate permissions, such as model releases (for people) and property releases (for private property), for any people or private property featured in their photos. Additionally, free stock photo websites typically don’t verify whether photographers have secured the necessary releases. This means you could download and use an image that the photographer should not have put online in the first place. Free stock photo sites expect the end user (that’s you!) to connect with a photographer to ensure the photographer has signed releases.
Trademarked and Intellectual Property: Some photos may incorporate trademarked items and intellectual property. Legally, photographers cannot share images without owning the rights to the elements in them. (In fact, avoiding copyright infringement is why you see pictures of backward-facing books on bookshelves.) I recommend avoiding free photos that include identifiable trademarks or intellectual property.
AI-Generated Images: Images generated by artificial intelligence systems (e.g., ChatGPT) are becoming more popular. However, AI programs create photos and graphics by compiling bits and pieces of images online without checking if they are copyrighted. There are a few other ethical issues with AI-generated artwork you should think about as well. Until the legal and ethical issues are resolved, I suggest using reputable stock photo platforms instead of AI.
Curator Accounts: Some accounts on free photo sites are “curators” rather than photographers, introducing uncertainty about the images’ origin and usage rights. Curators find images (free or not) online and upload them to free photo sites. Then they desperately hope you “buy them a coffee” for what you download. For example, I found the image above on Pixabay, posted by the user “Free-Photos,” a curator account. I found the same photo on pxhere, Wikimedia, and several different Flickr accounts. The original work is from Unsplash. Thus, I downloaded it from Unsplash and credited Dustin Lee.
Save your time and energy and hire a virtual assistant to research and verify the authenticity of accounts, photographers, and images, ensuring they meet legal and ethical standards.
How to Discover Quality Images
Given the challenges of free stock photo sites, investing time in finding trustworthy platforms is essential. For individuals and businesses using photos and graphics, consider exploring reputable sites like Rawpixel, iStockPhoto, Shutterstock, FriendlyStock, and Adobe Stock. These platforms offer extensive libraries of visual content, including photos, graphics, videos, and audio tracks. Prices can be as low as a few dollars each, and members often get monthly freebies! Save time and reduce image sourcing issues by opening an account at one (or more) of these sites.
Contact us if you have inquiries or require more information on obtaining outstanding, cost-effective images. Our boutique virtual assistant services can ensure seamless access to exceptional visual content tailored to your needs.
*Disclaimer: This post does not serve as legal advice. Please consult with your legal advisor for further clarification.