Where to Source Free Images for Your Blog

Here are some tools to help you to get graphical

In the online world, where there is plenty of noise and text, a picture can engage readers of your blog. It can break up large slabs of text. While some of us may be new to blogging, others may have been doing it for some time. Yet some people still use lots of text and don’t include eye-catching or relevant images in their blog posts.

Read on for where to source free images for your blog, plus some nifty tools you can use to create your own social media graphics. After all, to stand out we need something that catches the eye.

Sourcing free stock images

There are lots of stock images out there that are simply amazing. And unless you’re pretty good at photography, I’d use stock photos. Whilst there are heaps of sites out there, be sure to check the copyright requirements. Also, copyright may change on a site, or even within a site. Some sites require attribution, some don’t. And some images may be free on a site and others may not. Always check first.

Here’s a few

• startupstockphotos
• istock photo
• stocksnap.io
• good free photos
• pixabay

For a more detailed list of where you can get images for your blog, visit Heather Smith’s blog article.

Image editing / creation tools

Canva

Canva is a tool you can use on your web browser. There’s also an iPad app you can use too.

There are lots of options here to use existing templates and use the images provided to create your own graphic. This tool allows you to directly share via social media (at the correct social media image size). You can also download your design as a .jpg and upload to a blog post. You may need to Smush the image though to reduce file size.

Pablo

Pablo, by Buffer is another web browser image editing tool I like. It has a nice interface and lets you upload your own pictures, add text and output the size for Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram. You can save your creation as a .png

Social Image Resizer Tool

This tool, by Internet Marketing Ninjas works via a web browser. It lets you upload a photo or image, then resize it. What’s nice about this is that you can use a custom size too.

Word Dream

Word Dream is a great app for your mobile device and available from the app store. Create neat graphics with text. Then save the image to publish on your blog or via social media.

There are lots of backgrounds to choose from with the option to pay to unlock extra styles and features. You do need to crop your image in the right dimensions though for different social media.

Remember, there are heaps of online tools and places to source free images or create your own.

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