16 Sites to Find Free and Cheap Stock Photos

Stock photography is available all over the Internet. As a creative design company, we are continually looking for stock images to add interest to our web designs. Oftentimes, the trick is finding fresh photos so that they don't appear "stocky" or common while keeping the cost low for our clients. Below are a few sources we use often and others we have found for you to reference. If you know of others, please leave us a comment and we'll add it to the list.

A Sample Free Image from Free Range

Free Images For most of these sites, you just need to register, search and download the images you like for free.

1. StockVault
2. Free Range
3. Stock.xchng
4. Free Pixels
5. Public Domain Photos
6. ImageBase

A few more sites to add to this list from Allan Burch Illustration:

1. http://publicdomainclip-art.blogspot.com/
2. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page [many are public domain]
3. http://www.fontplay.com/freephotos/
4. http://www.rastervector.com/resources/free/free.html
5. http://www.freefoto.com/index.jsp

Low Cost Stock Photos, Graphics, Video

1. iStockPhoto
2. Fotolia
3. Shutter Stock
4. Jupiter Images
5. PunchStock

One great feature many of these sites offer is the option to request a photo. Photographers belong to the sites and will often shoot something you need. The cost is the same as the other low-cost photos, although you may need to wait to see your results. IstockPhoto has this option and we have used it in the past to obtain the "right" photo.

Another great source for high quality and professional photos is Getty Images or Corbis. These options are not as inexpensive at the options listed above, but they often have the particular photo you have in mind or the added professionalism that is needed for a project. Oftentimes, the photo collection selected for a project is a combination from the sites above. I recommend to look at the inexpensive or free options first, and then look to the higher end photos or hire a photographer to get exactly what you need.

Professional illustration is another option if you are looking for something unique and original. Our recommendation for creative illustration is Allan Burch. Check out his fantastic collection on his web site and a sample of his work at DoorFly.com.

TBH Creative often assists clients with photo search. A photo is truly worth a thousand words and it is great to have so many resources at our fingertips. If you need help with your creative project, please contact us today. We offer high quality web design and are located in Indianapolis, Indiana.