Need Advice (Please) :)

[HoneyFlower]

Hi, I hope someone here can help me out as I am really stuck

I need some advice on what images a graphic/web designer can legally use without worrying about copyright issues later on down the line. I've heard of 'stock photography' but I'm not sure if that's the right path as no one I have spoken to knows anything about it.

I'd really like the advice of people (like yourselves) who deal with these issues all the time and have more expertise in this area than I do.

Any advice on what to do in this regards would really help.

I'd like to know what kind of services you yourselves use when it comes to designing your client's websites, as while taking photographs manually is an option, I'm pretty sure at least half of graphic/web designers use some sort of (stock photography?) service.

Again, I need help and appreciate any feedback,

Thanks for listening :icon_tongue_smilie:

[sthomas]

Hi,

When you purchase any stock photography you need to check the images are royalty-free (however, read the terms and conditions of any image you purchase as the term 'royalty-free' might change slightly from site to site).

The best commercial sites if you have a limited budget are istockphoto.com and shutterstock.com - however, there are also lots of free image sites online (but again check the image rights and uses).

You can also purchase royalty-free images from sites such as Gettyimages.com but their images will be much more expensive. You can also buy rights-managed images (some of which are available with exclusive rights), howeverm this is reflected in the cost of the image purchase.

Whenever I supply an estimate for the build of a website, I also give the client an indication of how much the stock photography will cost - I will never use copyright images that a client has sourced from Google.

[Boss Hog]

I will never use copyright images that a client has sourced from Google.

Agreed ^^ :icon_thumbup:


...also check out this thread Where to find royalty free photos?

[HoneyFlower]

Thank you for your posts guys I really appreciate the help you 2 have given me.

I am a little confused by something though: how do I know which image I pick is ok to use for any purposes?

Sorry, english isn't my first language though I'm a pretty fast learner and have lived here for nearly 7 years now.

Also, can you explain the comment about Google Images, I didn't understand

Thanks :)

[Ian Bonner]

Also, can you explain the comment about Google Images, I didn't understand

What sthomas is saying is that if a client downloads an image from Google you don't know if the picture has any restrictions attached to it, so you could use the picture and find yourself in trouble because it has a copyright and the owner of the picture doesn't want it used.

[HoneyFlower]

What sthomas is saying is that if a client downloads an image from Google you don't know if the picture has any restrictions attached to it, so you could use the picture and find yourself in trouble because it has a copyright and the owner of the picture doesn't want it used.

Thanks

[dedwardp]

Sticking to a similar theme here, can I ask how much designers tend to roughly charge clients per photo purchased?

I always remember a local printer telling me that they charge a £10 fee for getting images, but I can't work that one out as most of the time it seems to cost more than that just to pick up one image...

[bigdave]

If I have to buy a specific image from a stock site, I'll pass the charge (well the cost of the credits) onto the client. So far Ive not used the same stock image twice so haven't thought about how many applications an image license has or how/if I'd charge the client but if I were to charge for re-use, I guess it would only be fair to pass that fee onto the photographer/creator.

[Toppers]

We give the client the option of buying the stock image themselves or not.

Our usual practice is that we would include a stock image in the clients quote and source the image/s ourselves.

However, should a client have lots and lots of stock photos they wish to purchase we would usually charge the time taken to retrieve them, especially if they are across various sites.

Toppers Print on Demand - Stevenage based Digital Print, Litho and Design
Digital | Litho | Large Format | Graphic Design | Signage & Display