Unlock Free Images for Your Business: A Beginner’s Guide

Did you know that some of the world’s most iconic advertisements use stock images for commercial use? For example, AlamapBBDO, a Brazilian ad agency, used stock photos from Getty Images to create their Endless Possibilities campaign in 2016. The advertising campaign combined photos of random people’s faces to recreate portraits of famous people such as the Dalai Lama and Pope Francis.

Most creative agencies prefer altering stock images in most of their work. This is because it allows them to create campaigns for different companies much faster at affordable costs. Keep reading to find out how to get free images for commercial use in your next project.

Part 1: Download images in loyalty-free sites

Several sites offer free images for commercial use as part of their services. In addition, you do not need to register an account to download the images. The sites typically rely on user contributions and content teams to ensure their databases are fresh and maintain consistent quality. Furthermore, all creative assets they offer fall under the creative commons zero license or a variation of it. Here are some of the sites that offer you images for commercial use for free.

1. Pexels

Pexels.com is a free-to-use provider of high-resolution photos and videos for aspiring creators. The German-based website was started in 2014 by two brothers and has been under the Canva umbrella since 2018.

Currently, the website hosts over 3.2 million images and videos from over 250,000 active contributors. In addition, all the material you find in its library is under the Pexels license, which slightly varies from the creative commons zero license model. Some of the restrictions it enforces include:

You can only use pexels images for commercial use after making alterations to the original image. For example, you can use part of an image to create a collage for your commercial branding.
Furthermore, you cannot use any of the website’s content to promote political ideologies and explicit content, especially if the images contain identifiable subjects.

Pexels is available through the following channels:

Your web browser by typing the URL pexels.com.
The Android and iOS app.
A plugin for other content creation software such as Google Slides and MS Office.
An extension on your Chrome browser.
You can also access the database using the official Canva app.

2. Unsplash

Another website that offers free images for commercial use is Unsplash, a subsidiary of Getty Images since 2021. The website is a favorite among creators boasting over 16 billion photo impressions monthly. In addition, the database consists of over 3.48 million photos from more than 265,000 unique contributors, all under the Unsplash license.

The Unsplash license restricts the sale of its creative assets without incorporating new creative elements, including using them in print media and physical goods such as mugs and caps.

You can access Unsplash from your web browser or request API integration for your application from the site’s owners. In addition, the site also hosts photo walks across different cities, where Unsplash guides show you the best photo locations around the city and the best camera techniques for your work. Some cities to host the event include Boston, Montreal, Tokyo, and Toronto.

3. Freerange

Freerange Stock is an online resource for photos, illustrations, and textures you can download and use for commercial and non-commercial purposes. Since 2007, the site has continued to provide high-quality images to its community of over 800,000 registered users.

Unlike the previous examples, all content on Freerange falls under the website’s Equalicense. It grants you broad commercial rights of its stock images while allowing the contributors to retain control of their copyright, image resale, and distribution. As such, you cannot use the images for bulk distribution or print-on-demand works.

Freerange Stock maintains its steady supply of images for commercial use via the following methods:

It has an in-house team of professional photographers who upload images across the different categories on the website.
Freerange Stock also purchases image rights or directly commissions photos from independent creators.
You can also contribute to the website’s library by voluntarily submitting your work to the platform. Kindly note that you will need a verified account to enable this function.
The website also works directly with photographers through a licensing and distribution model, providing them extra exposure on the site.
Finally, Freerange stock aggregates public domain images from other sources, including similar sites and government institutions. It does so by acknowledging the image owner and sometimes lists the image source when the owner is unknown.

Freerange Stock is accessible through your web browser or as an API integration on your app.

4. Vecteezy

Vecteezy is an extensive online library of free stock images for commercial use. Some of the site’s highlight features include the following:

A best-in-class search engine that incorporates multiple filters to ensure your results are extremely accurate. For example, you can sort images by color, style, number of people, and age of the subjects, something other free stock websites do not provide.
All images, videos, and vector illustrations are free for personal and commercial uses. It does so through a property sign and release model with its extensive network of contributors, which protects users from any legal liabilities.
Finally, it employs a content team that manually reviews each photo submission to ensure consistent quality standards for its offerings.

In addition, you can also purchase design resource bundles by subscribing to its Vecteezy pro for as little as $9 monthly. Some of the resources available include the Ultimate Text Effects Layer Styles Bundle for Photoshop, which costs $39 stand-alone or $4.50 when you subscribe to pro.

Part 2: Buy from stock providers

Another way to get images for commercial use is by buying them from stock providers. Some of the benefits of buying images from stock providers include:

You get a wide selection of unique photos from top-tier photographers. Stock providers always seek collaborations with the industry’s finest to edge out the competition.
You receive exemplary customer service with your purchase. Selecting the right image can be confusing for amateur creators. As such, stock image providers have customer support channels to help you throughout your creative process.
Stock images reduce your delivery times significantly. Buying images from a stock provider eliminates the need to invest in photography equipment and the time you need for post-production. As such, you can deliver projects in a fast and cost-effective way.

Despite the above positive, here are some challenges that buying stock images may present:

Not all stock image providers will have the creative assets you need.
Image overuse is likely since every creator will rush for the most popular contributor.

Below are some of the stock image providers you should consider.

1. iStock

iStockphoto.com is an online database of creative resources, including royalty-free photos, videos, audio, illustrations, and clip art you can use in your creations. The website is a Getty Images subsidiary based in Calgary, Canada. In addition, contributors earn royalties depending on how often users download their content.

2. Alamy.com

Alamy.com is a British-owned stock image provider with contributions from photographers and agencies in 173 countries. It compensates its contributors by offering higher than average payouts every time users download their creations. Some popular brands to use Alamy’s services include M&C Saatchi, Microsoft, and The Economist.

Part 3: Shot a Photo by yourself or create one with editing tools

Alternatively, you can get images for commercial use by shooting them yourself or creating them with editing tools such as Figma and Wondershare’s Filmstock. Here are some benefits of using this method:

You get exactly what you want, provided you have the required skills and equipment. Sometimes, getting the right image for your commercial purpose can be challenging. As such, shooting an original photo may be the only option.
You have full ownership of the image.

Unlike obtaining images from stock photography websites, you are free to use the image in whatever capacity you please without any restrictions. For example, sites such as Unsplash do not allow you to use their images in political statements, a restriction you can bypass when using your own creations.

However, you should also consider the following factors when using this method.

It requires a substantial investment

Getting high-quality images for commercial purposes requires specialist equipment. For example, the Panasonic LUMIX GH6 camera, which has 4K resolution capability, costs $2,197 on Amazon. This makes it extremely expensive for amateur creators.

There is a steep learning curve

Becoming a professional photographer takes time and effort. Unless you are creating as a hobby, it will be a while before you can start generating income from your creations.

Part 4: FAQs

1. Do you need a contributor account to get images for commercial use?

Not necessarily. Stock image sites like pexels.com allow you to download images from their website without creating an account. You will only need one if you want to showcase your work on the platform.

2. Can you use your smartphone to get images for commercial use?

Yes. Most stock image providers have device-specific apps that allow you to access their databases from your mobile device. For example, UnsplashPhotoPicker allows you access to the Unsplash library from your Android device.

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The Ultimate Video Flip Tutorial: Quick and Easy Methods

How to Flip Video Quickly and Easily

Ollie Mattison

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

It’s very common that you filmed some amazing portrait or landscape videos but in the wrong direction. This is an error made by many people because not everyone will always think about orientation when filming. Is there an easy way to flip/rotate videos so that you can watch them without turning your head sideways?

What you need is just an ease to use video editor like Wondershare Filmora to flip/rotate your video clips easily and quickly. This application offers a remarkably easy way to flip videos clockwise or anticlockwise, horizontal or vertical. What’s more, this flip software also offers a broad range of video editing features, effects and intro/credits.

In the following, I’ll describe how to flip a video in Windows using this video flip program. If you’re a Mac user, just adopt Wondershare Filmora X for Mac (Latest Filmora version X for Mac) to achieve the same.

First, please download Filmora X for free as per your operating system, and then follow the steps below.

1. Import Your Original Video Clips

After launching Filmora X, click “New Project” to begin. Click “Import” to browse your file folder on computer or drag the video clips directly into the media library.

When you import all of them, click the thumbnails showing in the left pane to preview in the right screen window.

Note that this video editor supports an array of video & audio formats, such as MOV, MP4, AVI, WMV, DV, avchd (MTS, M2TS). And still image files like JPG, BMP, JPEG, PNG. TIFF are all fully compatible.

And then drag your video files from media library to the video Timeline.

Learn the complete list of supported files formats of Filmora X.

2. Flip the Whole Video

Then double click the video in the timeline to access the editing panel. In the window that appears, switch to Video tab and you will find Transform option located on the top.

Click on the Transform to expand the four options including Rotate, Flip, Scale and Position. To get the effect you need, you can adjust the Rotate and Flip settings and check the real-time effect in the previewing window. Though only four buttons available, you can create more options by using them together.

Rotate: rotate video at any angle by entering the angle value or moving the Rotate slide: rotate 90° clockwise & anti-clockwise, rotate at 180°, rotate 270°, and more
Flip: Flip video horizontally, i.e. flip video left to right; flip video vertically that is fliping video upside down
You can combine Rotate and Flip feature to flip video vertically and rotate 90°clockwise or flip video vertically and rotate 90°counterclockwise.

Besides, you can also change the video position and the video scale. This is the step of flips the whole part of the video.

3. Flip Only a Part of the Video

Sometimes, you may just need to flip parts of your video file, e.g. only 1 minute instead of the whole video. In this case, you need to split your video into separate files , and then repeat step 2 to flip them individually.

To do it, just move the playhead to the position you want to split, and click the “Scissors” icon in the menu bar.

Learn more about how to split videos

4 Export Flipped Video

When you’re satisfied with the result, click “Export” in the middle right to save the flipped video. In the pop-up output window that appears, select your wanted format or configured preset for your portable player directly to watch on the go.

You may also want to upload your creation to YouTube or burn to DVD disc for better preservation, just go for it. Finally, click Export to let this video flip program perform the rest.

With the latest Filmora X video editor, you can do more than just flipping video files. For example, you can apply special effects, add background music, create picture-in-picture effect, and more. Try it now!

Check Best Program to Flip Video

Conclusion

If you are someone that can’t be bothered to learn a new video editor or someone that doesn’t want to fuss around and just want to get things done, Filmora is designed for you. Known for its lowest learning curve and low price, Filmora can help you to get the job done easily. Try it out with the buttons below to see if it matches your appetite.

Ollie Mattison

Ollie Mattison is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Ollie Mattison