Where to find photos or images to use on your website?
Hello and happy Wednesday! It’s hump day, the mid-point of this beautiful summer week.
WELCOME BACK to Day 8 of the Live Video Training Extravaganza, we’re at it again with another week of free live video trainings and I am so excited to continue sharing this content with you!
Quick summary: every day last week, I hosted a free live video training over on my Youtube channel and shared those replays here on the blog. And honestly, it’s been so much fun that I wasn’t ready to stop quite yet… so I decided to continue these live video trainings into this week too! LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL!
So we’re back for more and you can watch even more of these daily lessons as I keep creating content for you!
Today’s video was lots of fun and Ioved sharing all these different resources with you - I’m spilling my secrets and pointing you in the direction of sites and bundles that I actually use myself and recommend to my clients! #insiderinfo I can’t wait for you to watch the replay.
In this video training, I talked about where to find and get images & photos to use on your website.
From free stock images all the way up to custom branded photography shoots, we cover it all.
This video training carries on from yesterday’s topic which was all about what type of content to include on your webs pages so if you haven’t already, be sure to check that one out too.
Alright, that’s enough intro for one video… let’s get to the goods.
Click the live video training replay below to watch now!
Where to find photos and images to use on your website
Click play to watch the video above or on my Youtube channel
Here’s what we talked about in this video:
Websites must always include visual content
Visual content is just a fancy way of saying photos, images, graphics, icons, etc. that you use on your website.
We all know that websites need to have a mix of text AND visual content, but that’s often a problem people have - finding images to use. Many people aren’t sure where to find or get those images, and it often holds them back from launching their website in the first place!
Ugh, what a drag.
I’m sharing some of my favourite resources and recommendations with you here today so that you have zero excuse - there are so many ways to find amazing, high quality images that you can use on your website, no matter your budget! From free to paid options, I’ve got you covered.
Quick note: I have zero affiliation with any of these brands or companies (i.e., no affiliate link or code), these are straight up just sites that I use and like myself :)
Get the right images
One thing I want to mention about images and photos for your website is that depending on the type of visual content you’re looking for, you may or may not be able to use stock photography. For example, you can’t rely on stock photos for product images. Same thing goes with photos of a live event - stock photos won’t work here, you need real photos from your event that a photographer took. You can always use mockups and then customize them to reflect your products, but don’t rely on stock photos here.
Stock photos work super well in many other/most situations but just be smart about when you’re using this resource (I know you will). If stock photos don’t work, then this is a great opportunity to work with a photographer for high-quality images to use on your website, social media channels, marketing materials, etc.
Alright, let’s start things off with a look at free stock photography.
Free stock photography
This is a fantastic place to start and there are so many different stock photography websites that you can turn to! I know that not every starts their website/business with a large budget so stock photos are an excellent way to get visual content without whipping out the credit card.
Check out my guide to the best free photography on the internet for my top recommendations.
One downside to free stock photography, however, is that anyone can use the images so you’ll often see them on different sites, social media platforms, etc. Meaning, the images aren’t unique to you but they are better than nothing when you’re starting out!
Unsplash
Without a doubt, Unsplash is my favourite free stock photography website. No matter what type of image or photo you’re looking for, Unsplash has you covered with high-quality images. You can search by category or keyword and they truly have every type of image imaginable.
They also have great diversity in their photos (i.e., not just a bunch of white people haha) which is ideal for representing different groups of people, communities, cultures and places all around the world!
User Generated Content (UGC)
Great for brands or services that encourage customers/clients to “tag” you on Instagram or use a hashtag. Simply go through all that content to see what kind of images your followers have shared online, and then incorporate that content on your website. These images are already published online and can often be a wonderful way to get extra visual content for your blog posts, web pages, etc.
DISCLAIMER: always ask for permission before using the image!
Paid Stock Photography Packages & bundles
Like I mentioned before, free stock photos are great but since everyone/anyone can use those images, you’ll see them everywhere.
This is where paid stock photography packages and bundles come in - you get access to a whole package of images that reflect your brand identify and style, and best of all, fewer people use them so they seem way more unique.
Stock photography packages & bundles are my favorite mid-range way to find images to use on your website and are an affordable option that packs a lot of punch. They’re a way to invest in high-quality images for your website, without a full-blown photoshoot.
I recommend that you search for stock photography packages & bundles that reflect your brand, brand identity, mood, look & feel, etc. Whether you’re looking for something sleek & modern, traditional & corporate, outdoorsy & natural, or feminine & girly, there’s a stock photography package & bundle for you.
You also have access to many related images that you can use across your site, social media, marketing materials, etc. - perfect for continuity and consistency.
Here are some of my favorite options:
Creative Market
Creative Market has loads of paid stock photography packages across all sorts of different topics, themes, subjects, etc. From business to interior design to holidays to food & drinks, you’ll find unique images to suit your needs.
Etsy
Etsy is another place I recommend people go for style stock photo packages or bundles. i was a little late to the game and didn’t realize that Etsy had so many wonderful options until fairly recently, but I’ve been very impressed by the variety and quality of the packages & bundles. So many great options here!
Jana Bishop
Jana Bishop sells gorgeous stock photography packages on her website and I’ve pointed several of my clients there in the past. She has beautifully styled bundles bundles for interiors, florals, desk & office spaces, and much more. Highly, highly recommend - her images are gorgeous, very high quality and you get lots of different photo options in each bundle. Extra bonus is that you won’t see these same images plastered all over the internet either! Major bang for your buck here.
Social Squares
Social Squares is another paid stock photography website that I have used & happily recommend. It’s a bit different, however, because Social Squares is a membership site so you pay for each month then get access to all the images at once. Enormous value for money here and a wide variety of high quality images across just about every topic or keyword.
Custom branded photography
You hire a photographer to take photos (and even video content) for your website. This works for personal brands, services, products (digital or physical), events, everything!
Hands down, custom branded photography is one of the best investments you can make in your business and website. There’s major ROI here and you will always be thrilled to have these high-quality images because they’re exactly what you need to up-level.
Photos convey your brand identity, offerings, and help attract your ideal clients.
Another advantage of working with a professional photographer is that they can help you plan out all the visual content that you need for your website and make sure that you have the appropriate photos for each page/product/offering/etc. They’ll often help you go over all the pages on your website and come up with ideas of photos to use, whether that’s as a header image or an image used directly in the page or blog post content itself.
Huge value here in custom branded photography, and the art direction and experience a photographer brings to the table.
If you want custom branded photography but still have a lower budget, you could always do a services exchange or work with a new photographer who’s starting out and looking to build their portfolio (in exchange for feedback and a testimonial!).
Image Guidelines & Best Practices for SEO
Download your free copy of my Image & SEO guide above!
FREE RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE VIDEO TRAINING:
DAILY VIDEOS FOR THE LIVE VIDEO TRAINING EXTRAVAGANZA
As I mentioned, this video is for Wednesday, Day 8 and we’re continuing with another week of my Live Video Training Extravaganza! I’m PUMPED to be sharing so much free content, knowledge, information, strategies and tech tips with you for another week :)
I’ll be going live every day over on my Youtube channel again all week, sharing a free video training all about Squarespace, SEO, web design & development, online business, and a whole lot more.
We’re going to be talking about how you can grow your website, connect with your ideal audience online, attract dream clients and customers, and improve the look/feel/functionality of your website. Ready to up-level? PERFECT because my friend, you are in the right place and I’m sharing all my “secrets” to get you there.
I have a few topics in mind but I’d LOVE to hear from you! If there’s anything you want me to talk about, any questions you want answered, any strategies you want me to debunk or explain, please let me know by leaving me a comment below. I’m open to suggestions because I want to make sure that these video trainings are super valuable and exactly what you’re dying to learn from me. So don’t be shy, consider this your invitation to pick my brain! I’ll be doing another Q&A video on Friday.
See you back here tomorrow or over on my Youtube channel every day this week for even more of the Live Video Training Extravaganza! Thrilled that you’re here xoxo
