Sometimes the free photo sites just don’t have what you need. Or you may want an image that has not been used a thousand other times.
That’s where premium photo sites come in. Starting at $1 an image, they have better selection and quality than a site like sxc.hu.
Premium Sites
These sites have photos starting at $1 a photo. The prices generally go up if you want a higher resolution. But for the web, small is what you want anyway.
- iStockPhoto.com – Best search
- StockXpert.com – Best value sold to iStockPhoto
- VivoZoom – Best Value
- Fotolia.com – Second best selection
- iClipArt.com – This site has clip art drawings instead of photos
- BigStockPhoto.com – Expensive but good plan B.
- ShutterStock.com – Best selection but $10+ per image
Super Premium
The images on these sites start around $50+ a photo. The primary benefit of super premium images is that they are less common. You may even be able to buy exclusive rights to the photo, so that the image is taken down after you buy it. These are the sites your publisher probably uses for book cover images.
- GettyImages.com – Been around for a long time. Be careful not to pay $50 for a decade old photo.
- JupiterImages.com – Premium photos but not all are royalty free. Mare sure to check the rights on the photo you want.
- FotoSearch.com -This site is the bottom feeder of the super premium site. But if it has the photo you’re looking for then it’s a winner.
Did we miss a site? What image site do you use? Leave a comment below.
Interesting writeup and very helpful. Just a note to you to update your work. The stockxpert site was rolled up into istock I think. Or it is going to be. I’d alos love it if you reviewed and added our site, http://www.cutcaster.com to your list. we are a new source of user generated photos and vectors that can be licensed royalty free and we set up our marketplace to be like the Nasdaw stock exchange. Stock Market — > Stock licensing.
Search http://www.cutcaster.com for royalty free photos, stock images, stock illustrations, clipart, vectors and free stock photography for
advertising, publishing or web design. Download and find free stock photos and vectors for secure use in printing brochures, advertising, annual reports and electronic use on websites and
presentations. Download free images at Cutcaster.
I’d also love it if you reviewed and added our site, http://www.zymmetrical.com to your list.
Search http://www.zymmetrical.com for royalty free photos, stock images, stock illustrations, clipart, vectors and free stock photography for
advertising, publishing or web design. Download and find free stock photos and vectors for secure use in printing brochures, advertising, annual reports and electronic use on websites and
presentations.
ShutterStock.com – Best selection but $10+ per image
You wrote that but didnt explain that it is only priced there if you buy a subscription which is a lot more. At Cutcaster you can buy on a pay as you go basis or you can pay with Cutcaster credits which you can buy in bulk. Also you never fixed the stockxxpert link. I guess this blog post isn’t being watched that much.
What is wrong with the StockXpert link?
We do watch this blog. Very closely.
excuse me and i didn’t mean any offense. what i meant was stockxpert was bought by getty in the jupiter deal and is essentially the same as istock or at least owned by the same company. probably makes sense to update that or keep an eye on it to see if it gets shut down or rolled up into istock or another one of gettys’ offerings.
Reflex Stock offer 5 prices points to search, so the user can decide their budget, not the stock website!
Reflex Stock microprice credits are as much as 73% cheaper than other micro stock websites check out http://blog.reflexstock.com/2009/11/reflex-are-76-cheaper-than-istock/
Hi, for even more stock images you are welcome to take a look at my current project:http://www.StockPhotos.it (poject is in english) My aim is to create useful database and catalogue of stock images, vectors and computer graphics. Now it contains tons of free images under various categories. Commercial images are included as well. New images added daily. Check it out! 🙂
jupiter is no longer a standalone company and has been bought by getty. you might want to update that too. thanks
I have used Cutcaster and like it for stock photos. Very easy and very reasonably priced. So far I am pleased with them as a source.
I like http://www.CanStockPhoto.com. It’s easy to use. You can set up an account or buy just a single photo. A small jpg to use on my blog is very inexpensive and is just right to add visual interest.
I appreciate this article is fairly old now, but I thought I’d add a bit more info.
In the stock photography industry, companies like shutterstock and fotolia are part of the microstock segment, with prices of a couple of dollars per image. Premium stock photography refers to the likes of Getty Images and FotoSearch (as mentioned), but also to companies like Image Source (http://www.imagesource.com) where prices range from a few dollars to thousands. You also get some mid-priced collections which are usually owned by premium agencies.
To the average person this probably doesn’t mean much, but for professional photo buyers there is a vast difference between premium stock and microstock.
I’d also love to show you one of the fastest growing stock photo platforms. Have a look at JumpStory.com