I engage in a constant search for great free photos to use as featured images for my blog posts. I used to love sxc.hu but the site etiquette for “free” photos strongly encourages you do what the photographers want and link back or acknowledge where you have used the image. No problem if you are looking for an occasional image to use but when the process of the search is at least a daily one all the extra “steps” in acknowledging photography can add time that I just don't have to the search process. This is similar to certain Creative Commons licenses. Remember when cc meant carbon copy? But I digress. I have not found a great way to search for Creative Commons licensed photography.
But there is morguefile.com
Everything image on Morgue File is free to use. Read the fine print even here, but basically other than use in a standalone fashion, you are free to use the photos on the site without attribution. For folks who are not making money from their blog, this can be a goddess-send. If you are creating a professional site, you probably want to invest in great photographs to enhance your great site, but when money is a real concern and limiting constraint, Morgue File is your enabling constraint.
The photos on the site are not all second rate. Some are not professional quality. But some are great quality and are used to entice you into viewing that photographer's site or professional work for sale on other sites and purchase some of those images. I found these images on Morgue File when I was looking for fall images.
Of course you can always just take your own pics too!
Posted with Blogsy
Thank you! This is a great site. I’ve been using it for years. The photo quality can be striking!
Bookmarked and will be using . Thanks for the tip!
Shelly and Liesl, Your two comments illustrate one ove the most significant aspects of community and why so many of us blog. The sharing of information builds community. Women know community. And we don’t all know the same things. It is easy to forget that. At least it is for me. I have a tendency to think that everyone knows what I know. And that isn’t true. And it is nice to know that others also appreciate and use the same sources that I do. Thanks, for the comments ladies! It helps me know I am on track.
Wow…lovely photos and yes bad name… Yes, I remember the use of Morgue back in the early newspaper days for storage etc.
Me too, that’s the name I learned to use. Where does the time go?
Thank you so much! I’ve been looking for a site like this.
Azara, You are most welcome!