After quite a bit of research, I have found 5 excellent services.
So let’s take a look at each of them!
When I began building my online affiliate business it was often a bit of a struggle to find high-quality images. The question that often came up was, where can I get free images for my website?
Free and sponsored image services
Design and image tools for designers and non-designers
Images are an essential component of quality content. Did you know that content with images has more SEO value and 94% of content that includes images is more likely to get a re-share compared to all-text content?
No matter what your profession is, it is wise to have some photo stock websites bookmarked. Almost everyone who writes content is, at some point, looking for free photo stock websites.
In addition to the above, it is useful to have access to good design tools, where you can effortlessly create great-looking content, even if you are not a designer.
Below are my Fabulous 5 websites where you can get free, high-quality images, and in the case of Crello and Canva – a whole lot more.
A note on Image Size
You will notice my question/answer under the first three services relating to the ability to select an image size. Some of these services don’t allow you to choose the image size, and sometimes, even when you can select a size, it isn’t the one you need.
While writing my website articles using a StudioPress theme, it required an image size of 640 x 426 for the featured image (the image in the preview of the post). Some of my pictures (especially the ones I created) were not the correct size, so they were auto-cropped when displayed. So I needed to find an image resizing tool.
After a bit of searching, I have found a great website that lets you resize images for free. You can use this tool to get the best possible result. See the website mentioned at the bottom of this article.
So let’s take a look at my Fab-5 services.
Note: The sequence below is not in any particular order or based on ratings. I have simply grouped them into two areas. First: Three free image services. Second: Two great design tool services.
1. Pexels
Due to its extensive variety, Pexels is a popular source for images among content writers, Web, and App Designers. The photos are original and high quality, which happens to be ideal for Affiliate Marketers and bloggers, who write a lot of content.
Anyone can upload their own original images too. The website chooses the best one and then, adds it to the searchable collection.
Every day 10 new high-quality images are added to the free stock photo collection. You could browse images by emotions, locations, and themes, and even search for a specific image. It is one of the few websites that offer free space images and these, too, are of excellent quality.
I use Pexels all the time. It is a great money saver.
Can I choose the image size? Yes
Some website themes prefer a specific image size for it to display correctly. If an image is not the specified size, it may be cropped when displayed on your website page.
Pexels lets you choose an image size before downloading.
As shown in the picture above, select the image, choose the size you require, and click ‘Download Photo.’ The image will appear in your downloads folder. If you want more than one size, select another size after the previously selected size has finished downloading.
2. Unsplash
Unsplash is another great source of artistic and high-resolution images from both semi-professional and professional photographers. These images are great for your blogs and digital marketing. Unsplash doesn’t have millions of images, but its quality is one of the best out there.
They have a team of curators that pick 10 photos every 10 days to feature on the front page of their website. You can also subscribe to get 10 of their newest pictures sent to your email every 10 days.
Unsplash has the Creative Commons Zero (CCO) license and all the images submitted and published on the site fall under it. This means you can use Unsplash images for both personal and commercial use. See the website for more details.
Can I choose the image size? No
Unsplash doesn’t let you choose the image size before downloading.
You can click on the Info icon at the bottom right area of the picture to get a pop-up window that shows all the information about the image, including its native dimensions, but the image size is preset. If you need a specific size, you can try the free image resizing tool mentioned at the bottom of this page.
3. Pixabay
Pixabay possesses one of the largest collections of free online images. The site has more than million public domain images and, you can find everything from illustrations and vector graphics to videos. Their selection of landscape photography happens to be one the best out there.
There are more than 420,000 images to choose from, and you should be able to find something for your blog or website. With Pixabay, you don’t have to worry about any image license. You can use any Pixabay image in printed or digital form, whether you are using it for commercial or personal use.
Can I choose the image size? Yes
Pixabay lets you choose from a list of 4 image sizes. As mentioned in the Pexels review, having the ability to choose a picture size can be an important consideration for your website design and can help you avoid auto-cropping.
UNIQUE TO PIXABAY: Once you choose the picture size you require, you can click the ‘view’ icon and preview the picture in “actual size” before you download it – just click the ‘View’ icon. This is quite a handy feature.
4. Crello – is Now Vista Create
With the next two services – Crello and Canva, you will notice that I often reference both. This is because they are very similar to each other. The interfaces look almost identical. In fact, these two tools are so similar that they are often referred to as TWINS. The differences are minor, and both are considered great Design Tools for designers and non-designers.
Both Crello and Canva are more design and graphics-oriented than Pexels, Unsplash, and Pixabay.
Both have free and sponsored images, and project file manager capabilities. Canva does, however, restrict users to only two folders for their designs if they are using the free version, whereas Crello does not.
Crello does not yet have a collaboration feature, whereas Canva does. So with Crello, you will be working on your own. You could use something like Skype to share your screen if necessary, but direct input can only occur from one user at a time. If you need collaboration capability … you need Canva.
5. Canva
I have used Canva a great deal for both free and paid images. I find it a beneficial tool, and even the paid images are not expensive at $1.00 each. I’ve had occasions where I needed to buy an image or two, but I always check the other free image services listed above first. Quite often, an acceptable image will be on one of my Fab-5 sites. So far, my use of Canva has only involved sourcing high-resolution images and logos. However, it does have a fantastic range of design-related features.
The free Canva version is suitable for most individuals, whereas the paid Canva plans are available for small businesses, and bloggers. You can work and collaborate with Canva for Teams if you will be working together on projects and collaboration is necessary. Plans are Canva Pro, Canva for Teams, Canva for Education, and Canva for Nonprofits. You can see my other article on Canva
Video: Canva for Beginners!
This is a great video that will be helpful to learn the basics.
Key Features of Canva
There offer free features as well as a huge library of templates that are free and paid. Normally you will be able to identify the free from the pro as they are clearly marked.
Social Media: You can use the free plan and create stunning designs for your social media postings.
Presentations: You can use the free presentations and tailor them to your needs.
Video: You can use the assets that are free to create videos for your social media accounts.
Print Designs: You can print your designs.
Photo Editing: You can edit your photos, apply filters and explore the possibilities with this free option.
Whiteboards: are a fantastic idea to brainstorm on your own or with a team – it helps get those amazing projects into a reality.
How much do Canva Costs?
Canva does provide a free plan, but also paid options: Canva Pro is $119.99 Yearly, and Canva for Teams is $149 Yearly.
Check out my Canva Easy Graphic Design article.
Free Image Resizing tool
Adobe Resize Tool
Adobe’s Resize Tool is a powerful and versatile tool for quickly resizing images. With the help of this tool, users can easily change the size and aspect ratio of any image without compromising its quality. The tool is designed to be user-friendly, with easy-to-use sliders that allow users to adjust their images as needed. In addition, it provides fast results – just a few clicks, and you’re done – as well as options for cropping, adjusting resolution, scaling, and more.
The Adobe Resize Tool also allows users to apply various effects like blurring or sharpening to enhance an image’s quality while maintaining its original proportions.
Here are some of the great benefits of using this tool
- You resize images for print, web, and social media
- All the sizes for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest
- Resize the images to the perfect banner size
Editing Options
- Apply filters
- Removing backgrounds
- Adding Gifts/Animation
Amazing options for your needs, including free templates to start with for your projects.
Other features include
- Image editing
- Content create tools
- Add filters
- Text
- shapes
Adobe Express is a great generous free tool that you can utilize without having to pay to start using it. You can sign up for free – no credit card is required.
Let’s recap
You no longer need to wonder how to get free images for your website.
My Fab-5 free Design and Image services have helped me a great deal with my content and website design. They each have their pros and cons and can be grouped into two types.
The first group is Free Image services (that also include sponsored photos). These include Pexels, Pixabay, and Unsplash.
The second group is the Graphic Design Tool services. This group includes Vista Create and Canva, with Canva being the best one for business collaboration. These two services include free and sponsored images but also have great design tools.
Wikimedia has some great information on imaging licensing and lists stock image websites under the general collections section.
I hope this information has helped you out and will save you some time and money by using these services.
Ana
