Finding photographs to use can be difficult for web writers so we are going to take a look at putting images in our ebooks and articles today. Some ebook topics will need more images than others. When I wrote the ebook about creating interest in a winter landscape, it made sense to use some photographs that would illustrate the specific design ideas I discussed.
Some common photography and stock websites offer free or inexpensive photo options for writers. This is great news for bloggers, elearners, webmasters and the like. Once you have a convenient and reliable source, you can find great images in no time. Images are such a vital part of web articles that is nice to finally find the right sites. I’ll list a couple here but please be sure to check with the individual users regarding the rights of their photos.
Best Sites For Free Photographs
- Flickr Creative Commons – Beautiful photography contributed by many different users.
- Stock Xchang – Users can load photographs with no restrictions, limited restrictions or high restrictions so be sure to look at each picture carefully.
- Wikimedia Commons – According to the website, Wikimedia Commons is “a media file repository making available public domain and freely-licensed educational media content (images, sound and video clips) to all”.
Unique Sources for Niche Topic Photographs
Sometimes your topic may be one that makes it difficult for you to find a specific photograph. Are you wondering “Where will I get a picture for this article?” or threatening to rip your hair out if you can’t find that perfect shot? Consider looking at a less obvious option for your pictures and go directly to the source. There are so many forums with hobbyists enjoying various topics so it shouldn’t be too hard to find one dedicated to your ebook’s topic.
For example, I often write about gardening topics. Sometimes photography stock sites won’t have the specific cultivars and named hybrids I mention in my articles. However, a popular gardening community website, Dave’s Garden, allows users to upload their garden photographs directly into plant profile galleries. Many of the pictures, though taken by amateurs, are very beautiful shots and work perfectly for the article I’m working on.
By approaching these users directly, and asking for their permission to place their photos in my articles, I am getting a specific photo I need. Plus I am able to get a photo that isn’t being used by other websites on a regular basis!
Take the Photo Yourself
Of course, the other option is to take the picture yourself. In fact, I almost always take my camera with me now because you never know when a photo op will present itself. Part of the benefit of having your article series brainstormed ahead of time, and an ebook table of contents created, is that you know in advance what type of pictures you’ll need.
If I know that I am working on edible landscaping articles, I can take some vegetable garden pictures even if they don’t work for the article I’m on immediately. In another month, or two, when I’m to that point in my writing, that perfect image is sitting right in my computer just waiting for me to use it.
Thanks for the ideas here, Angela. I’m working on updating an eBook and writing another and was thinking about pictures just this morning. This couldn’t be more timely!
Thank you Angela: Very good ideas. I am a want-a-be-writer, so I search for all information. Thanks for some very good pointers and direction. More ideas on writing can be found at: Add value to social networking at determined2.com where members can more effectively work on lifestyle and resolutions
I wanted to throw out there (if I could) that when you use Flickr creative Common to be sure to do an advanced search and check the “for commercial use” box, as not all creative commons licensing is created equal. I learned that the hard way. *grin*
I’m so excited to see everyone’s books!
Chris
The same applies to Sxc.hu as well – always do a double check before using images to make sure the original copyright owner is ok with it.
I’ve been loving some of the pics on morguefile, and the people are so pleased to see them used when you send them the link.