I recently made the decision to have a featured image for each of my blog entries. The intention was to make things more consistent and easier on the eye. Sometimes, the image to use was immediately obvious and I would get it from my personal photos, at other times, it was not so easy.
Thankfully, my good friend and exceptional designer, Terrance Robb came to the rescue by introducing me to Unsplash. Unsplash is a service that posts ten stock images every ten days. These are high resolution images licensed under Creative Commons Zero, and as such, are completely free to use as you see fit.
Why use Unsplash? Well, when someone puts professional, copyrighted images on the Internet without the permission of the owner, it directly impacts that owner's ability to make money from that work. I like Unsplash because it encourages people to do the right thing with regards to copyright. Rather than resort to stealing copyrighted images with a right-click, Save As…1, Unsplash provides a free source of images for those who cannot afford professional alternatives. Not only that, but the licensing terms are completely unambiguous. There is no hunting for the appropriate attribution information or license information, you know exactly what your getting with these images.
So, next time you need inspiration or want an image for your presentation or blog and don't have the budget to pay for a professional stock (or custom) photo, don't steal; check out Unsplash.
- come on, you know you have done it [↩]
