Where to find copyright-free images
The sites on which to be able find copyright-free images, or freely usable under certain conditions, there are so many: below you will list the ones that, in my opinion, are the best.
How to find copyright-free images on Google
One of the most provided sites from which to download images for free use is Google Images: the platform, in fact, allows you to quickly find public domain content, distributed under a Creative Commons license or commercial. To be able to download copyright-free images, simply set the available filters correctly.
So, first of all, connect to the Google Images web page and use the search bar located in the center of the screen, to search for the content of your interest; arrived at the results page, press the button Instrumentsat the top and use the drop-down menu Rights of use to filter the images according to your needs: in this case, you must choose to view only the images distributed below Creative Commons licenses.
After this step too, wait for the search results page to update, showing you only the images distributed with the chosen license. To view the details of an image, click on the box showing its preview; to find out more about the type of license with which it is distributed, click on the item License details.
Finally, you can download the selected photo in two different ways: by selecting the link located immediately under the heading Download this image on, located in the details pane, or by visiting the membership website and, after identifying the photo, by right clicking (from PC) or long tap (from smartphone and tablet) on it and choosing the option to save the image as give the purpose menu.
How to find copyright-free images on Pexels
Another website I recommend you visit is Pexels, which allows you to reuse all the contents in your gallery, completely free of charge and without the obligation to attribute the source.
After connecting to the main page of Pexels, use the search bar placed in the center to carry out a search based on the keywords of your interest; arrived at the results page, if you wish, you can apply further filters and define theorientation of the image, the colore main and the size maximum using the buttons at the top (if you don't see them, press the button filters, at the bottom of the page).
Once you have found the photo you like best, press the button Download placed in correspondence with its preview (the down arrow) to download it at original size. If, on the other hand, you prefer to customize the width and length of the photo, or view the details, press on preview pane of the same; to download the photo, press the downward angular arrow situata accanto to the pulsating Free download, choose the size that you prefer among those proposed in the menu that appears and click on the button Free download, to download it.
How to find copyright-free images on Flickr
In addition to being one of the most famous sites in the world dedicated to amateurs, Flickr hosts a huge amount of images that can be used for both personal and commercial purposes, even without limitations (depending on the settings chosen by the photographer). To be sure you are not infringing any copyrights, simply set the search filters correctly.
In practice, all you have to do is connect to the main page of the platform and, through the bar located at the top (if you don't see it, press the symbol of magnifying glass located at the top right), carry out a search based on the content of your interest.
Now, click on the item Any license which resides at the top and choose the type of license that best suits your needs: All those related to Creative Commons, to search for photos that can be used for personal use only; Commercial use permitted, to identify images that can also be used for commercial purposes; Changes allowed, to search for photos that can be freely modified and reused for personal use (with or without attribution of source); Commercial use and modifications permitted, to locate editable and reusable images for commercial purposes; or No known copyright restrictions, to view completely unlicensed photos.
Once you have identified the image you are interested in, click on the box dedicated topreview of the same, to view its details. To download it, press the symbol of down arrow located just below the photo, bottom right.
Note: In some cases, you may find yourself unable to download the photo, as the owner of the photo may have voluntarily disabled the download option. In this case, you can take advantage of the sharing / embedding options on the website, with consequent attribution of the source: you can reach these by pressing the curved arrow, located at the bottom.
How to find copyright-free images on Pixabay
Pixabay is another great portal on which it is possible find copyright-free images which can be freely downloaded and reused for both personal and commercial purposes. To access it, connected to this website, type the theme of the image of your interest in the search bar located at the top, make sure the adjacent drop-down menu is set to Images and by Submit, to start the search.
Once on the results page, if you think it's appropriate to apply a further skimming, you can use the drop-down menus Images, Orientation, Category, Size e Color to define the type of content (photo, vector or illustration), its orientation (horizontal or vertical), the category, the maximum size and the dominant color.
Once you have identified the photo of your interest (which must be listed under the heading X free images of [search key]), click on the box depicting yours preview, to view the details; details on any license present are listed under the heading Pixabay License. To download the content, press the button Free download, choose the size more congenial to you and, finally, press the button Download.
Other sites to find copyright-free photos
How do you say? Have you searched far and wide the portals that I have suggested so far but you could not find what you were looking for? Don't despair: there are many others sites to find copyright-free photos, also provided: below I will list some of them.
- OpenPhoto - it is a website that, in a completely similar way to the solutions I have shown you so far, allows you to download copyright-free images, which can be freely reused for personal and commercial purposes.
- FreeStock - it is another excellent resource dedicated to graphic contents, on which it is possible to find, in addition to copyrighted images, also photos and illustrations distributed under the Creative Commons Zero license (therefore reusable for both commercial and personal purposes).
- Unsplash - another excellent portal dedicated to downloading images of the most disparate categories, boasts a catalog full of content that can be used freely.
- Shopify Burst - the Burst section of the Shopify ecommerce platform contains an archive of images that can be used free of charge for commercial purposes, therefore suitable for websites, blogs and other platforms, including public ones.
