Stock Photography Guide
Have you ever spent hours looking for the perfect photo for a project that won't break your budget? There are now several low-cost royalty free stock photography web sites that allow you to purchase photos individually or through a subscription. Below we've outlined a few of our favorite stock photography web sites.
Arguably the fastest growing stock photography web site, Istockphoto.com, boasts a large user base and over three-quarters of a million photos all for sale for as low as $1/each. IStock has a variety of types of user submitted photos, illustrations, and videos.
Pros:
2,850,000+ images
$1-20 for photos
$10-50 for video
Artistic and creative designs, illustrations, and videos are available
Cons:
Photographers are only paid 20-45% for photos purchased
Quality stock photography using a simple subscription. Their collection includes quality religious photos (which are very helpful for churches). Great customer service.
Pros:
Hi-res photos for $3 (non-profit pricing)
# of Photos Unknown
Contains quality religious images as well
Cons:
Weak search capabilities
One of the newest stock photography websites around, Stockxpert.com, is quickly gaining popularity with its claim that users can purchase high-resolution photos for only $1.
Pros:
$1-10 for photos
$10-50 for video
180,000+ Photos and Photo Objects
International focus
Cons:
Limited number of users and photos
Dreamstime boasts the lowest price for high quality stock photos and their claim rings true. Although they are still growing, they offer photographers high profits off photo sales and purchasers big discounts on volume purchases.
Pros:
2,600,000+ photos
$0.83 for high resolution photos (w/credits)
$.30 for high resolution photos (w/1 year subscription)
Sell your stock images and get 50-80% from each sale you make.
Cons:
Web site can occassionally be slow responding
Photos.com is one of the largest subscription based stock photography collections around. Users can purchase an unlimited number of professional high resolution photos (250/day) during their subscription. Although the price for a one month subscription is somewhat steep at $139.95, their one year subscription is only $599.95.
Pros:
Download unlimited photos with subscription (250 photos/day)
Professional quality stock photos
Cons:
Month subscription is $139.95
The largest collection of images on the internet, Clipart.com has a variety ranging from clipart and photos to fonts and sounds. Their large selection and low subscription price make it very appealing. The main drawback is that most of their images are low resolution.
Pros:
6,000,000+ images available
3 months subscription only $59.95
Cons:
Most images are low-resolution
Having about twice as many isolated photos as Istockphoto.com, PhotoObjects.net allows you to find an image and then drop it into another photo without any work. All of their photo objects are cutout and ready to use. Subscriptions start at $99.95 for one month.
Pros:
Download unlimited photos with subscription (250 photos/day)
Search by color
Cons:
Only 100,000+ photo objects
1 month subscription $99.95
Fotolia is one of the best deals for stock photos. They are adding more photos everyday and you can purchase them for as low as $1/each.
Pros:
800,000+ photos
$1 - $3 for high resolution photos
Sell your stock images and get at least 33-50% from each sale you make.
Cons:
Quality of images varies
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