Hi Kat, this is a very interesting questions. I think you should ask this to the stock agency he has bought the images from. I would say that you can not resell the images created because you do NOT own a commercial license for the images. I suggest that you buy your own extended (commercial) license for the images you want to re-sell (even if they are edited by the designer). That way you will, at least, have a own license.

Hi David, I recommend that you might want to look for another stock agency in the meanwhile. There are some news around EyeEm that they might get bought by a large stock agency, but this can still take time.

Hello Pratiksha, the source of your royalty-free images is essential to provide a clear answer. Generally, if your course primarily focuses on text and the images are supplemental, you might be able to use them. However, this is based on my understanding and shouldn’t be taken as legal advice.

Dear Stuart,

It’s usually best for the client organization to hold the license for stock photos, as often these licenses only cover use by the license holder. If your client wants to reproduce the magazine or use the images elsewhere, they could face legal problems if they do not hold the license.

However, this isn’t legal advice. Always check the terms and conditions of the specific stock photo agency where you purchase the images, and if required, consult with a legal professional or the agency itself for accurate advice.

Hope this helps!

Best,
Amos Struck

Yes, as far as we understand. All assets and designs created while having the free trial can be used forever.

Sure! To begin as a Shutterstock Contributor, you’ll start by creating an account. Upon successful creation, you’ll be required to submit samples of your work for review. Once approved, you can then upload your all-over print patterns for customers to download.

Payment comes in the form of royalties, which are respective of each time someone downloads your patterns. This rate ranges between 15% and 40% of the sale price. You’ll receive payments monthly through PayPal or other online money transfer methods when your earnings reach a minimum of $35.

Success on this platform is often related to patience, continually uploading quality content, and ensuring your submissions are appropriate for customer needs. Every step related to this process is explained in detail in the article above.

Hi Sagar,

Absolutely, you can use stock photos in your client’s product packaging. However, the type of license required may vary per stock photo agency.

While some agencies allow the use of images for packaging under a standard license, others might necessitate a commercial or extended license for this purpose. So, it’s crucial to carefully review the licensing terms of the specific stock agency you plan to purchase images from.

Additionally, if you’re going to reproduce the image inversely high quantities (generally over 500,000 times), even agencies that allow packaging use under standard licenses may require you to get an extended license.

In general, always make sure to thoroughly check the licensing agreement to avoid any inadvertent violation of usage rights.

I hope this helps clarify things a bit more, and feel free to reach out if you have more questions!

Best,
Amos Struck
Stock Photo Secrets

Sure there are some platforms I can recommend. What feature you ware looking for? The mobile app to upload or the way they keyworded etc.?

This is a bit complicated but it seems like you only edited the image for the client. I would always recommend to have it checked by a lawyer and this is not a legal advice. But it sounds like he could do that with the image edited by you.

Hi Tanya, please be aware, that we can not speak for Shutterstock. But generally speaking, it sounds like you would need an extended license from Shutterstock. That license would then allow you to use graphics on products for resale (like your underwear or lounge). Please also be aware that you can NOT copyright these graphics (even not after editing) as logo. If you purchcase the images and graphics you like with an extended license, you should be allowed to use them for reselling. We highly recommend reaching out to Shutterstock if you need more infos. We are not lawyers nor is this any kind of legal advice. If you are interested in a cheaper extended license option, check out this offer here.

Thus far, I haven’t witnessed anyone successfully downloading their collection from EyeEm.

According to iStock you won’t be charged anything when you cancel within the free trial. Here is a copy from their FAQ: “If you don’t want to continue the subscription, simply go to your account at any time within the first month of your free trial period and click ‘Cancel trial’. You won’t be charged, and any images you downloaded during your trial will be yours to keep.”

This is not easy to answer, and we are not lawyers, and this is not legal advice, nor do we talk for Canva. So please ask them directly. When I checked “5. Permitted uses of all Content on Canva (except Pro music)” in the Canva License, it looks like you can resell the video you created as part of a product. Selling a final product is not the same as “transferring” the license. Also there seems to be limitations to “Pro Music” and also in resolution size. I recommend to ask Canva again about this.

Unfortunately, we don’t know. This offer is only available once per customer.

Hi Sean, we are not lawyers, nor can we give legal advice, but this sounds like you would need an extended license because the images you are using are the main part of your book (and which generates the money). Therefore I think you need an extended license for the images used. But I recommend always checking back with Shutterstock.

The website has been closed.

I personally think that it is not allowed to use a stock image as a reference and to draw or airbrush this and put it up for reselling. But keep in mind, that we are not Shutterstock nor lawyers and you might want to check with them again. I recommend to find a nice free stock image or an image from a nice photographer and then ask him if you can do this (and maybe pay him from your earnings). Thats a much more personal and better approach. I hope this answer helps somehow.

Hi Ray, unfortunately, I don’t know what “premium package” you have exactly. But if you have the premium package of Adobe Express then all should be good. You can try it by downloading stock photos from the Adobe Stock collection into the application. If this works without extra cost, then you should have the premium plan activated.

Hi Loy, let me try to answer your question and please keep in mind, that we are not lawyers nor is this legal advice. You should always ask your own lawyer about this or contact the stock agency or the agency directly and ask. Generally speaking, it is NOT possible to create a logo from stock images or other stock media and copyright it. Because you or a designer did not create the content themself but rather simply combined photos or images to a new derivate image. That derivate image might be used as design for an ad, flyer or even on your website or social media. But it most certainly can not be used as logo and usually (depending on the country you live in) has not been able to copyright. Does this answer your question? I recommend getting hiring a good designer who can create you a nice looking logo which you can then copyright (make sure he is doing it from “scratch”).

Thank you for your feedback. Much appreciated.

Hi Alan, first of all this is not legal advice and we are also not Shutterstock. But your questions sound like you need to create a product based on images. This is not possible with the standard license that comes with your plan. You usually need an extended license kaa enhanced license at Shutterstock to use the images on products you resell.

Thank you for your interesting question. I always feel that if you sell 500,000 copies, you should have enough money to buy the extended license later. But if you want to be on the safe side, buy it now, and you never need to think about it. That’s obviously only my opinion.

Hi Kirsten, first of all, I want to mention that we are not lawyers, nor can I give you any legal advice on this topic. I can only give my own opinion about it. I would not use any additional images in your Youtube Video since it can be seen as commercial by some license owners or stock agencies. If you have a news channel where you broadcast editorial news, then this would be a different thing. Even without having direct advertisements or ads in your video, it might still be seen as commercial and non-editorial. I hope that helps. When in doubt, simply ask the stock agency you want to buy editorial images from or your lawyer.

Hi Mwafak, unfortunately you can not just take their image with watermark and put in into your website. The image with watermark is for preview purposes only. You should go to Getty Images and buy a license for the image you want to use. Only after buying a proper license you are allowed to use the images according to their license agreement. I hope that helps.

Hi Wenn, we are sorry, but we can not give you a definitive answer to this question. I recommend reaching out to Shutterstock directly. They can certainly give you a definitive answer. We think that you might need an extended or enhanced license, but we can’t tell for sure. Thank you for your understanding.

Hi Patcharin, please use a web browser and not the app to sign-up for this special offer. This is also only working for new customers of Canva. If you already have an existing login it won’t work. Regards Amos

Hi Henk, sure happy to help someone who is thankful for our content. I recommend to first understand how the usage of images works. Royalty-Free images are usually images to be used for advertisement and of course in books or brochures. What you are looking for are not Royalty-Free images, you are looking to get images for editorial content or context i.e. from LIFE magazine. That is not what most stock agencies (especially not the cheaper ones) can deliver. Those images need a special permission either to be used commercially (advertisement) or maybe also for editorial usage (paid or non-paid do not matter here). I recommend to reach out to them directly and ask for permission for non-profit usage. Hope that helps. You could also go ahead and get editorial images from companies like Shutterstock or Getty Images but you must be certain that you use those images in the correct way (and they are not cheap either). Regards Amos

Hi Hannah, even with heavy editing, you are usually not allowed to sell the edited images as your own image in any stock agency. An extended license does not cover this and is usually only made to create products for reselling (not for reselling your own images). I hope that helps.

Usually, you can NOT re-use those assets or videos in “raw” format in another edit if you don’t own the full rights on them. The agency you ordered to buy them for you are owning the right to use them in the clients work (you are the client here). But they usually do not get the right to give these assets to you (as a client). I always recommend, especially for a multi-national company, to own the correct rights to use the assets even in other new edits or videos company-wide. If your company is very big, you might need a special multi-national license or upgraded user license to be able to use it within that company. All of my answers are only my personal opinion and not any type of legal advice. Always advise with a lawyer as well.

Thank you for your personal comment. Some photographers seem to be still very successful with selling photos. But it certainly is not easy anymore.

We are excited as well. It will also transform parts of the stock industry.

Interesting comment. What do you mean by AI picture of you?

Hi Jodie, we are getting this message quite often, and honestly I can’t fully answer it. Usually, you can not create a “copy” of an image and re-sell it. Some stock agencies might allow this under their extended licenses agreement (which also means higher costs). For Shutterstock I can not answer this question, sorry. I recommend to reach out to them directly and ask them this exact same question. On the other hand I highly recommend to just ask some photographers who are offering free images if you are allowed to paint their image. Why would you want to buy a stock photo which is made for advertisement and paint it? Just curious ;-).

Usually, it is no problem to use an image in a book (also a kid book) as long as the image is only part of the content. You just need to make sure that you 1.) are below the print-run the license includes (usually between 300k and 500k prints). 2.) the image is not the MAIN part of the book i.e. image-book only without any additional content or text. If in doubt also always ask the stock agency.

Hi Bill, thank you for your question. That actually is a bit of an issue with most stock agencies. They either have their extended licenses option or a print-on-demand (API) connection which let you build your own store. This means you can not just use all their images on display and then print-on-demand with your customer with the extended license. The extended license is not meant for that. It is meant to pick the design and then produce products. If you really want to build a print-on-demand store, then simply contact us to get info how to integrate our images into your shop. You then only pay us if a customer picks an image. But you would need to do the integration work on your end. Does this makes more sense? Happy to give you some more infos.

I’m sorry but I don’t understand your question. Maybe you want to explain what you want to archive or what you are worried about. That would help to find the right answer.

Hi Mac, thank you for your question. I honestly wouldn’t put too many thoughts into this. Yes, you can create a screenshot of their license agreement at the time of your download. Or simply create a PDF from it. But honestly what would be the benefits of it compared to the additional work it creates? The stock agency will have a record of your download (and usually also keep it) and can always tell you exactly the license (version) you have got with your download.

What are your concerns or why do you think you should store it additionally? What are you worried about?

Thank you for letting us know. I have tested it myself and the upscaler is still free for up to 3 images. But they have added a small watermark to the upscaled image. I recommend to choose i.e. https://upscaler.stockphotos.com/ instead which do not have any watermark.

Hi Peter, thank you for your question. Unlimited licenses you might never get from any stock agency since they always need to limit their usage. Nevertheless you must know that licensing into Zazzle Pro is not easy. Because you usually need to give Zazzle (or the printing company or fulfilling company) sub-license or even distribution rights. These rights are hard to get and most stock agency do not offer that type of license (not even in their expensive extended license version). As far as I understand, the Canva license do not include a way to use the design in POD (print-on-demand). We will write soon about a new stock agency which will have a special POD-License to be used. So stay tuned here and sorry that I can not give you a very fast and easy answer on this. Also please always check with a lawyer, this is not a legal advice.

As far we know, the account should be available directly after all data is confirmed. Maybe you want to reach out to Canva support again if something wrong with your data.

Hi there, thank you for your question. This all depends on the license of the image and where you have bought the license from. Some stock agencies like Adobe Stock are requesting to license the image again for every client. Here is a quote from their license agreement: “You must purchase additional licenses for the same Work if you intend to use the same Work for the benefit of other clients”. Keep in mind that my comment is not a legal advice – always check with a lawyer and with your stock photo supplier. This also might apply only to some stock agency suppliers. Some other stock agencies might allow the usage of the same licensed image for different clients.

Hi Anne, I recommend getting some free stock photos if you want to just paint them and if you don’t sell them.

Thank You Juan, I agree that we could have made that example more clear. The point here is, that if you have a logo in the photos you make, you either are only able to sell them as editorial (also only limited for some locations and events) or you retouch it and remove it to be able to sell it as royalty free. I think your explanations are very valuable as well, so I keep it here for everyone to read ;-).

Hi Dean, no the standard image license is only usable for “advertisement” for your own company or business. It can not be used to create items for resale or print. You always need to get an additional extended license from Shutterstock for this. You can all about it here: https://www.stockphotosecrets.com/buyers-guide/shutterstock-pricing.html

Hi, whats your question?

Hi, thank you for your question. I general this all depends on the source of the images i.e. where you bought them from. Most stock agencies have different licenses and some of these licenses might! allow the usage of images for non-profit. But most agencies might force you to buy an extended license because in the end you are earning money with the images (on the calendar), even if this is for fundraising. I recommend reaching out to the specific agency and ask them particularly.

Hi Simon, interesting question. Just to keep in mind I’m not a lawyer nor do I speak for any of the stock agencies you might buy from. But I don’t think this is editorial usage. You are using an image or video in a paid course. But maybe I’m wrong and some of the agencies might allow the usage under their license. I highly recommend asking.

Hi Kathy, it all depends on 1.) On the stock agency and the license of this stock agency 2.) On the use of the images within your product. For example if you would create a special course where the images are the main value, means the images are full page with very little text, that might need an extended license for most stock agencies. If the images are only a smaller part of your course and you are adding the value through text or anything else (own videos for example). Then the standard license (which is included in most stock agencies) should be good enough. Always check with the certain stock agency where you wanna buy from. Also regarding your question where to get those images, there are no real special stock agencies for such images. I doubt that you can find enough images in even larger stock agencies like Shutterstock with detailed enough “first responder” topics covered. I recommend to simply hire a photographer and create the images yourself, keep the copyright of them and use them forever in all your material. I hope that helps.

So you got a lot of questions and concerns. Let me try to help you and keep in mind our answers are not legally binding nor can I answer in the name of any stock agency. Also keep in mind some license terms of stock agencies might not include all of what I recommend. Here are my answers:

Can I license these images and use them on the client’s site? With most stock agencies you can use the downloaded images in your account for client work. Usually they require that the client knows that he do not own the license himself and can only used the image in the design you have provided. You can not just download and give him the original image to be used everywhere without question.

How can I prove that these are licensed photos and not just downloaded from Google?
Simply keep the records from the stock agency where and when you have downloaded what image. Some stock agencies also give you a license certificate. Same like if you buy in a shop, keep the bill to proof that you have not shoplifted.

What is the proper way of attribution in the case of paid and licensed stock photos?
Check the license agreement where you downloaded images from. Usually, for commercial work (i.e. ads, flyers, etc.) no contribution is needed. On editorial work i.e. websites, blogs, managzines, books most agencies require some mentioning of the image source. The requirements are different here.

How can I prove that I paid for a stock photo after I cancel my subscription? Simply keep a record of the images downloaded from the stock agency (make a screenshot if you need additional proof).

Can intro images of articles be considered part of the design? What type of articles? You can not just use any article images from any brank and incorporate this into your design.

I also recommend to know answers to all these questions before you start your own design studio. It can get you into trouble later if you don’t do them correct from the start on.

You better double-check some cases in your country and you might find out that some are actually fined thousands of dollars for misuse.

No problem, that’s how usually Royalty-Free Photos.

Hi Scooter, that’s a question which we are getting quite often. Honestly, go into Flickr or any other free photo community. Find a photo you love and then contact the photographer if you are allowed to paint it or paint parts of it. The RF (Royalty-Free) license is not designed for re-painting or painting parts of it. It is made for people to use images in advertisements, social media, and on their websites. You will make more new friends and happy photographers which you can share your work on the free platforms. I hope that helps.

Thank you for your question. This is maybe a better question for our Shutterstock License article. As always I recommend to ask Shutterstock directly and let them explain their license. We are not Shutterstock nor can we speak for them. I recommend checking out their license agreement here:

It explains also how and where you can and can not use your downloaded images for.

I hope that helps.

Regards
Amos

Hi Will, yes there are many more models in the stock photo industry than the one we mention here. Many of them are also sold thousands of times. Happy to add some more if you have them available ;).

You can still shoot your own photos or create your own images.

Hi Tim, I recommend to maybe use a computer to sign-up for the free trial in the meantime or any device without Canva installed. I will also let Canva know about this issue. Thank you for letting us know.

Hi Trenea, I monst cases images bought with a normal royalty-free license do not include the rights to use them in a logo. Most major agencies explicitly decline this usage as logo. I suggest you check it with the agency you bought it from (or check their license agreement). I would not use any RF image for my logo, I rather go to platforms to order a individual one or hire a graphic designer. This is also the case if you don’t copyright the logo (usage of the logo might be the same in most countries). Disclaimer: I’m not a lawyer. Always check with the agency you bought from.

Hi Marie. thank you for your question. You are mentioning that you want to use images from these free stock photo websites. We can not recommend using those files to create a product for resale. Why? Mainly because the rights of anything on the image are not cleared. This means that neither have the people on these images signed any model release which confirms that you can use these images commercially nor have anyone checked for any logos or recognizable other copyrighted items. We can only suggest buying some proper checked and model-released stock photos from a stock agency that does all the due diligence. I can not recommend using images from free stock photo sites for that matter. I hope that helps.

Hi Bradley, thank you for your question. I wonder why you wanna know that? Stock photos are used hundreds, thousands and even more times in many ways. Thats how they are working and thats the reason why they can be so cheap. Maybe you can explain a bit more what you exactly wanna know or what you are worried about. Kind Regards
Amos

Glad our article was helpful.

Hi Hadi, sorry but you are unfortunately wrong. Free stock photo, especially the one you recommended, can not be compared to paid stock photos. They are neither checked for copyright issues i.e. logos, brands, copyrighted material etc, nor do they have a proper model release where the person on the image allow the commercial usage of the image. You, as the user of those images, can get into big trouble using a so called “free stock photo” on your ad or website. Even if the photographer has given the full confirmation that you can use the photo free (which no free stock agencies gonna check as well), then you still have obligations to clear the rights of the content of the image i.e. persons, cars, items, stuff in the background etc. Honestly, safe yourself the hassle, pay like 1 Dollar or less for a checked and premium stock photo and be safe.

Hi Melvin, I agree with your points here. I always recommend asking kindly where the website owner got the photo from. Sometimes it’s their Webdesign company who just put it online and sometimes they have a proper license because they bought a license from a stock agency. In general, I think being nice and to ask before you create a takedown notice is recommended.

You would need an extended license to be allowed to print it on wood and sell this wood. This article about extended licenses explains it in detail.

Hi James, unfortunately, I can not really help you with this matter. This seems to be something you need to figure out with Shutterstock directly. Sorry that I can not be of any help here.

Hi Angus, I’m actually not sure if I have understood your question. You can never claim that you have created an image if you haven’t created it. Stock photos are for advertisement purpose usually. This means that they are more like a “canvas” for your products. With medical treatment it is another story and you might need to get an extended medical (called sensitive) license for this. Maybe you want to clarify your question a bit more. Regards Amos

I recommend checking out their pricing here https://www.stockphotosecrets.com/go/shutterstock-pricing they have even some image packs which are not subscriptions and are affordable.

Hi Amber, it is very normal that they try to bill your card to check it. Some stock agencies do it with $0 others with $1. But your card should really allow it and if not, simply contact your CC company and ask them to enable it. You should then be able to try again. I also recommend to contact Bigstock directly and ask them. I hope that helps.

Hi Daniel, first of all I want to mention that the Bigstock License is not the same as the Shutterstock License. Since you have bought and downloaded from Bigstock, you need to follow their license which you can find here: https://www.bigstockphoto.com/usage.html/ – Regarding your other question of the credit of every image: I would totally do that. That way you are on the safe side and no one can later complain. It also sounds like your children book contains mainly images you downloaded from Bigstock. I highly suggest to reach out to them to make sure that you can use their images as main part of the book. Sometimes you are required to buy an extended license if the images are the main part (creating the main value). Always check with Bigstock if you they are alright with the usage before you print your book. ALl the best.

You are most welcome! Such comments make me very happy because we work hard to give back to the community.

Hi I’m sorry but this is a very old article and I think Flickr might have removed this feature.

Hi Summer, you mentioned that “I would sell in a gallery” this means that you would earn money from the images and therefore it is commercial usage. I don’t think that even the extended license would allow such usage because it is creating a “copy” of the original image. But since we are not Shutterstock we can not tell for sure. So please reach out to them as well and ask this question. Thank you for your interesting question regarding this.

Hi, that sounds like a copyright and license nightmare. 1.) “bought an image as .pdf” – just why? Why not as JPG? 2.) Buying an image without a cleared license or at least a clear written contract will get you into trouble. I would not touch anything like that to use in a commercial matter i.e. printing. Rather go and buy you a proper extended license to print the image and resell it.

It all depends on the website you download the vector file from. But generally speaking, you can NOT use vector images as part of a logo. You would need a confirmation from the creator of the image for this usage. There is some exceptions like our website https://www.freelogovector.com/ which allow the usage. This also applies to Adobe Stock, which is a great service.

Hi Miroslav, I think their prices are reasonable. But I also recommend to check with “cheaper stock footage agencies” if their license is really “Royalty Free”. It usually isn’t, it is a one “project usage”. So I recommend to compare them in detail beforehand.

Hi Steve, I don’t think this is a valid usage according to most licenses I know. Always check with the stock agency you want to buy from.

Hi there, thank you for your question. I don’t think that this can be done with any of the existing licenses. Because you would need to have the copyright over the image (even if it is in watermark). But I recommend to ask the stock agency which you want to buy from about it again.

For that reason, we always suggest buying stock photos from outlets like Shutterstock where you have clear rights given in the license agreement what you can and can’t do with the images. They do allow commercial usage of the images (to a certain extend). We do not suggest using Pexels images because no one is checking those images for any legal issues nor do they have a proper model release of the persons shown on the images. Of course, you could use images from Pexels without any persons on it but there are still some traps you could fall into.

That all depends on the laws of the country and where they have acquired these images. I can not talk for these agencies or stores but some of the work is in public domain and some others are “outside” of the period where it is still copyrighted.

Thank you – I will talk to Dreamstime about this and update this post soon. In the meantime check out our list of other free stock photo trials.

Hi Laurie, have you tried a background remover tool? Here is our list with 18 free and paid background removers! Alternatively, maybe you get someone at http://fiverr.com/ to help you with that.

No in most cases you can not. Some agencies like Alamy might allow it but you always need to ask them directly about that usage. One misconception is, that “Editorial Usage” means all usage with text – that is not the case with most stock agencies. Editorial use is more like a use in a newsworthy editorial publication i.e. a newspaper, a blog about your city etc.. I hope this makes it more clear.

No you would not have the rights to do so, you would need to purchase an “Extended License” or “Enhanced License” (which you can find for our shop here). With that extended license most stock agencies will allow you to create work to be sold as poster or mug or on t-shirts. Just keep in mind that “print on demand” and also some platforms like Amazon Merch are not covered with this extended license.

Hi Ashwin, I think this explains the license very properly: https://stock.adobe.com/license-terms – what needs to be understood is, that Royalty-Free means that you DO NOT NEED to pay again for the image usage after you paid once. With most stock agencies you only pay once (or pay for subscription and download once) and then use the image forever. That is the most non-understood issue I see with many stock photo users. Very few stock agencies have some limitations i.e. you can not download all images from your subscription and never use them and “stock” them on your harddrive. Then after your subscription is expired you are not allowed to use non-used images in a new design. But that is very rare. I hope that helps!

Hi Skelty, I think you might have misunderstood something here. The most stock agencies do ALLOW that you create a design for your client and then give the client the design (called derivate work). But they do NOT allow to give the client just the stock photo (as file). They also do not allow that you buy and re-sell the stock photo for your client. So you must diferenciate between giving the raw image (as file) to your client and creating a “new work” where the image file is a part of it and then give the “new work” design to your client. That should be no problem with most stock agencies.

I think you answered the question yourself. You are want to use editorial images on your COMMERCIAL website to talk about the market. I’m not a lawyer nor can I speak for any other stock agencies and their license agreements, but I would say this is not possible.

Hi Kaley, this is not easy to answer because we are NOT Canva. Please reach out to Canva to clarify it. As far as I can see it looks like you could only use the exported design as is. Please do take this with a grain of salt because I can not speak for Canva. Thank you

Hi there, it sounds like you would use those images to advertise for your ophthalmologist service. You would need to buy images with royalty-free licensing rights. I do not recommend to use any images with visible people from free websites. They are NOT safe to use. Images are so cheap these days, simply buy them and use them accordingly.

Hi Alisa, yes there are many misuses of images and image credits out there. I recommend checking your local law about the usage of such images. But if you want to purchase celebrity stock photos, reach out to Getty Images and ask them for their rates. They should be able to get you a good price depending on the usage (i.e. on your blog only).

Hi Mary, good question. I can not speak for all stock agencies and their licenses, but most certainly not. I recommend checking with the stock agency you download from directly. In most cases (like with our stock agency) it is only allowed to use it in the same company (which you are clearly not because you are two different freelancers). I hope that helps.

Hi Kevin, exactly! This way no one can say later that you have misused an editorial image in a commercial way. Just use normal commercial licenses images. But make sure to use copyright captions nevertheless.

Hi Victor, there are really no good lifetime subscriptions for stock photos out there. I recommend to get a cheap stock photo subscription either for unlimited (usually smaller databases) or a cheap yearly one like our 99club for 200 downloads. Usually lifetime deals for unlimited downloads are either bad or very limited.

Hi Tim, that is a bit complicated. It’s not clear to me what you are going to sell exactly? Please be aware that I’m not a lawyer nor can I give legal advice. I always recommend to check this with the stock agency you want to buy from. But if you are using an image and creating a individual design for a customer then this is usually a “derivate” and you can sell your design as a service. If you are using a “template” and sell this to many customers (even if it is only 20%) then this usually requires an extended license. But always ask the stock agency before you buy. I hope that helps.

You need to buy an extended license for the graphics/images you want to print on the shirt to sell via your Shopify store. Make sure to produce the tshirts first and then start selling them. I hope that helps.

Hi Niko, your question is not really clear to me. If you create a design based on a stock photo, you can usually give this design to the customer to be used in a limited way. Some stock agencies do allow to use the same stock photo again in another design, some don’t. Always check the stock agency license agreement. As far as I understand your question, you do not own a copyright on the new graphic. That you should check with a lawyer though.

Hi Amy, I can only answer this for my own stock agency. Yes your client would be able to print it if you supply a final design and not just the “raw” stock photo to him. Of course the licesee agreement of the stock agency where you bought the photo applies here i.e. 500.000 print run (copies) for most stock agencies. Otherwise you would need an extended license. I hope that helps. Always check with the agency you have bought from.

Hi Bjarni, thanks for your question and we are happy that our post did help you. Shutterstock do not have any subscriptions for videos, you can see their video pricing here. They have some nice new packages for 4k Video as well. Unfortunately there is no free trial for the videos. I hope that helps.

Thank You Jon, much appreciated.

Hi Dana, we do not buy any historic images but maybe you want to reach out to IMS Vintage Photos and check if they are interested in buying them.

Hi Dee, thank you for your comment. Please let me know which stock illustration agencies are you talking about? Some of them require a copyright attribution and usually you can “buy out” this to have it removed. Also make sure that you double check if you use it correctly i.e. editorial usage or commercial usage. Let me know anymore questions.

Hi Firts, thank you for your comment. We created this list particularly to list services where you can sell your prints and a digital version of your photos to customers. Flickr do not allow this nor do 500px (they do license though).

Hi Tamara, thank you for your comment you got some very nice photos there. I think you have a good chance that they sell. All the best with your new ventures.

Hi Margaret, I’m sorry but your question is not really clear to me. Do you want to buy 1900 photos or do you have some?

Hi Steven, most stock agencies like ours will actually let you use the standard license if the images are used as a secondary item in the book. You just need to make sure to be below the maximum print-run of 300,000 or 500,000. On the other hand if this is, for example, a book with only graphics to let kids color them, then you would need to a buy a extended license. This is because the main part of the book are the images. I hope that answer helps a bit.

Hi Joe, thank you for your question. You might want to start with free images or with photos you can find online first. You can ask these photographers if they allow you to draw their photo and sell it. You might find some inspiration in our free stock photo list here: https://www.stockphotosecrets.com/best-free-stock-photo-sites

You need to see editorial photos more like photos for news or actual things happening in your town, area or industry. Thats why most blogs use royalty-free stock photos instead of editorial photos because they can 1.) Edit them if needed 2.) Have less limitations how and where to use them 3.) less issues afterwards. Hope that helps.

Works fast and fine here. Maybe it uses a lot of ressources in your browser – go check it out with another browser maybe.

I have tested it and it works without any issue!

In general users should know that they can not use a single image without either permission (written or verbal) or with a proper license. No need to know if this is a stock photo or not. Stock photos are just easier to use – comparable to a ready to eat food item where a normal photo would need the permission of the photographer etc.. It would take much longer to get it. So it’s more like “fast food” to “farmers market” where you negotiate a license deal per photo with every different photographer. Hope that helps!

It’s hard to say since I don’t know all the exact details but I recommend to only use royalty-free stock photos for this usage. It do not sound like an editorial usage which is usually only allowed in blogs, magazines, books etc.

Hi Barbara, that only works when its hosted on your own server. It do not work in Facebook or any other platform.

Nothing ;-).

You are welcome – Hello to HCMC!

Hello Kathy,

thanks for your kind words – glad you like them. I think the soccer shots where completely made in a studio and then re-assembled in Photoshop. Not sure though ;-).

Hi Jim,

thanks for your thoughts on this, very much appreciated.

Sorry but not really relevant, just mentioned it because the old CEO was male ;-). We love female CEOs!

Hi Arletta, thank you very much for your comment. I think they should have some kind of exclusivity but i don’t know about the details. Maybe someone from 500px can answer that.

Only the time can tell – i think a lot of bloggers will still use bought stockfotos due the SEO purposes.

Thanks for your comment Brian. We really love how Shutterstock treat their contributors as well.

Hello Bernie,

thanks for your question. Usually a editorial image can be used on a magazine cover, if digital or printed. It can not be used in a commercial way i.e. to create a advertisement etc.

I hope that helps.
Best,
Amos

Yep 😉

Sorry to hear that David, but it happens quite often. Thats the reason why we have written this article.

Hello Marco, thanks for your question. I actually do not recommend to offer subscription for a niche stock agency like yours. Vintage and archive stock photos are quite special and most of the people might only want to use them for one or two purposes. From the 7 recommended stock photo subscription i do like the Fotolia and the Ingimage ones. Fotolia has a rollover from one month into another while IngImage has a good value for the money you pay.

Me too. The problem is not to implement the features, the problem is to get all these data into the existing millions of images. Maybe you can do that ;-).

Thanks for your comment Roger. We recommend that all stock photographer follow our tips.

All of the agencies supply images for commercial usage. I don’t know where you referring at, sorry.

Thanks for your comment – i will forward it to the programer.

You are absolutely right, we should include depositphotos within this subscription comparison. Every plan or offer fits another need of and niche of customers. What is a practical and reasonable plan for you?

Hi Duke, thanks for your comment. As you are the only commenter, will send you a free licence for the Microstockr App via E-Mail now! Have fun with it!

Amos

You might did not read their plans correct – Download 25 images every day!! for $249 which is not $20 per image its 25 Images a day multiplicated with 30 days which makes it 750 Images for $249 ($0,332 per Image).

Congratulation Yuni, you have won 100 free credits from 123rf. Please get in touch with me with your 123rf username. Thanks for participating – Amos.

Congratulation Joel, you have won 100 free credits from 123rf. Please get in touch with me with your 123rf username. Thanks for participating – Amos.

What should i explain? There are several usages for Lightboxes, we only explain one.

Thanks Anita for your great ressources. It also worth to look into our free photo and free vector category.

Hi Charotte, thank you for your question. This is hard to answer without seeing the actual usage of the image. Editorial images usually can used i.e. in blogs, online-magazines or newspapers. If the website has i.e. a company blog and they use the image within a blogpost, it might be OK.

Sure you can. Do you have any more questions? Send us a message through the contact form.

Thank you for your comment! You are right that it’s not that easy to compare the image prices. We just want to give a short overview for regular stock photo buyers. We might do another article which will compare the “Pay-as-you-go” prices for non-regular stock photo buyers. You are welcome to supply your comparison for it.

Thank you for your recommendation Bjorgvin!