This post was originally called, How to Absolutely Do Anything With Blog Images. However, you can do this for all your images wherever they may be and whatever you choose to use them for. Therefore, How to Do Absolutely Anything With Stock Images is a better title as it is more universal.
Sourcing the Right Stock Images
Firstly, let us look at where you can get images from. There are many ways to get great images. However, certain methods of sourcing images are better with different media. Further down this page, we will also discuss what we can do to make images unique.
Images For Your Blog
It depends on where you use these images as to using the right images. This is because sometimes you want to use original images and sometimes it’s ok to use a free image.
If you are talking about the Featured Image, you will want to use something totally new. To find this image, you should either go to a reputable premium stock image site, or take your own photos.
I always use the former of the two sources just mentioned. This is because the standard of these photos is invariably almost always higher than your own shots – even if using your own shots allow you to be more creative.
Images For Social Media
Although I am not a regular user of TikTok or Instagram, I believe that original shots would work better. The place where you definitely need an original shot is on Pinterest. If you find an image that you think may have been used by many other Pinners in the past, you can do the kinds of things to the image that I show you later on in this post.
A taller (portrait) image should be used for a pin. If you use sites like Canva or RelayThat (I show you both later in this post), you have templates altready made for Pinterest pins.
As for Facebook, you can always use the same images as those in your blog. The same goes for Twitter.
Download Stock Images For Free From the Following Sites…
Here are stock image sources.
Please note the standards of free stock images are in no way as good as the standard of premium stock images.
You can get free stock images from these sites
Do Anything With Stock Images From Google Images
Google Images is perhaps the best way to get stock images. However, you have to be careful that you can get these images for free without breaching copyright laws.
Rather than just being a stock image library, Google Hangouts is like a hub for stock images. You need to ensure that you are doing this legally and that you are able to use the images.
The screenshot below will show you how you can be certain that these images are usable on your blog, in your social media, etc.
In Google Hangouts…
- Search for your subject. In the search above I searched for rock star.
- Click Tools
- Then click Usage
- Now choose Creative Commons if you are searching for an image for a blog or social media post.
Please note that you don’t know how original these are on sites like Pinterest. For Pinterest, you are also much better to use premium images. Please also note that you can’t legally use all creative commons licensed shots for all purposes. You will need to tick Commercial and Other Licenses for commercial use.
Do Anything With Stock Images From Pixabay and Other Stock Image Libraries
Another site for free images is Pixabay. They have something like 1.2 million images and are perhaps, the best of the free stock image libraries.
You will always find better options with bigger libraries.
Here is a list of 17 royalty-free stock image libraries that you can peruse at your leisure.
Premium Alternatives For Stock Image Sources
The place I always go to for my images is Yay Images. I am not sure how many images there are, but it is a good number. These are all free for you to use on your blog and are easy to navigate. You can choose things like amount of space for text, colour and picture size as well as whether it is landscape, portrait, square or panoramic.
Maybe the best-known site for free images is ShutterStock. Some of the free sites have adverts for Shutterstock images. Therefore, they also make money as Shutterstock affiliates.
How to Do Anything With Stock Images
Make the Backgrounds Transparent
This is something I wish I knew years ago. It would have been a very useful thing to be able to do.
We are working with this image…
- Go to https://remove.bg
- Upload your image. This may take a few seconds. However, most of the time this takes little waiting.
- Click Download
- Congratulations! You now have an image that will look like the following…
You can now add this to any background either in Canva or another site like RelayThat.
We are going to use RelayThat for this exercise as I know it better. However, you can get just as good results from Canva.
How to Use This Image in Relay That
Please follow these instructions
- Click the Layouts on the far-left column of the screen.
- Choose any layout that suits your requirements.
- Click Upload and upload the png file that you got from Remove.bg
- Drag the file into the picture
- Make sure that the only assets ticked are the ones you need. Therefore, they will be the only ones displayed on your image.
- Drag the photo around the screen to get the best results.
- Please ignore the text in the boxes above.
- Here is our image now…
Do Anything to Stock Images Including Changing Colours Completely
Now you can also change the colours of the image if you need to. This will make your image more unique…
- Double click on either the guitarist or background image
- Choose a colour scheme on the inside-left column.
- There you go. Here are a few examples of what you can do…
In the latter two images, the lightness in the picture has been made dark and the darkness in the original picture has been made light. This trick is actually also possible with most smartphones now. It is the same effect that was used in Lord of the Rings when Frodo put the ring on.
Now You Know How To Do Anything With Stock Images
Today you have learned how to remove the background, add any image to any background and also you have learned to change the colour schemes on the images.
Please check out our other posts or select another post from the following…
- Benefits of Networking With Other Musicians? 10 Great Reasons
- How to Make Money Selling Presets to Music Producers
- Make Money Selling Stock Music to Creators on Etsy
- Make Money by Selling Music to Fans on Etsy
- Are You Too Old to Be a Music Artist?
Thank you for reading today’s post. If you would also like to make any comments, please let me know below. I do take all comments on board in trying to improve my blog. However, I am happy with it.
