[Libs-Or] Images Subscriptions for Libraries?

[Engelfried, Steven]

I posted about Image Subscription Services a couple weeks ago and got several helpful responses.  Thanks to Matthew Baiocchi, Kyle Napoli, John Schoppert, and Sigrid Sharif for suggestions and advice.  Here's a compilation of responses in case anyone else is interested:


   Have you tried Creative Commons search? https://search.creativecommons.org/    You'll still to verify copyright license levels but it's a good place to start.

   Might you be able to get away with using the royalty free stuff provided by Library of Congress, British Library, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Smithsonian, and Pixabay?

   Lots of overlap between these two, but they are very current in terms of style:
Unsplash - https://unsplash.com/
Pexels - https://www.pexels.com/

   This site is much more variable in terms of quality (but has just gone through a major site upgrade):
Morgue File - https://morguefile.com/

   And this site is a little cumbersome but let's you search in several additional sites (not all have the same licensing):
The Stocks - http://thestocks.im/

   Of the many paid stock sites, I've had better luck with Shutterstock lately than others because it seems to be a decent balance of price and quality. I used to love iStockphoto, but the prices went up considerably last year or the year before.

   I use Shutterstock a lot; they have high quality images and they are not that expensive (I tend to reuse them). Make sure to download the largest version so that it can be adapted to higher resolution jobs, or resized down for the web.

   Searching creative commons and clicking on flickr is a great way to find quality images, although, as noted, you do need to look into attribution. You used to be able to sort by the number of downloads, which was a great way to separate the wheat from the chaff.

   Also, consider using art from vectorstock.com (especially if you have the software to manipulate it). You can get high quality vector art for $1 a download. I use it all the time.

Steven Engelfried, Library Services Manager
Wilsonville Public Library
8200 SW Wilsonville Road
Wilsonville, OR  97070
503-570-1592
engelfried at wilsonvillelibrary.org<mailto:engelfried at wilsonvillelibrary.org>


From: Engelfried, Steven
Sent: Tuesday, May 17, 2016 12:14 PM
To: libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us
Subject: Images Subscriptions for Libraries?

We're planning to get an "images subscription" for our library.  Something where we can get a bunch of images and use them for library stuff without violating copyright laws.  iStock Photo, Shutter Stock and Photo Pin are a few we've started looking at.

We're wondering if other libraries have any recommendations?  We're looking for reasonably priced, good variety, and good library-related images.   Any suggestions?

Steven Engelfried, Library Services Manager
Wilsonville Public Library
8200 SW Wilsonville Road
Wilsonville, OR  97070
503-570-1592
engelfried at wilsonvillelibrary.org<mailto:engelfried at wilsonvillelibrary.org>

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