Resources: Free Stock Images

From the earliest days of KeynotePro, we've been committed to curating and promoting low-cost, indie Stock Imagery and Photography on the demo layouts throughout the site.

The stock photography landscape has been in a state of constant evolution throughout our studio’s entire lifespan. In the early 00’s, we used iStockPhoto.com almost exclusively, as it provided one of the first inexpensive, professional alternatives to the bigger, more established stock agencies that ruled the market at the time. And by 2006, the market had come full-cycle again, with the young disruptor iStock having being acquired by one of the largest, most-established names in the old-guard Stock industry.

Independent photographers and artists increasingly turned to new upstarts to extend their presence and buck the corporate nature of these larger agencies – and thanks to the evolving ethos of web culture, tended toward Free offerings to differentiate themselves from those older, corporate heavyweights and increase exposure.

These days, there is a plethora of well-established Free Stock Photo libraries on the web whose offerings meet or frequently exceed the quality associated with those large, classical agencies. Some of them – Unsplash, for instance – have themselves since been acquired as the cycle continues ever onward, though the Free nature of these web-era startups remain.

License terms vary by site, but are generally in the realm of the Creative Commons Zero (CC0) License, in spirit if not literally, meaning you’re generally free to use the imagery for personal or commercial projects in any capacity you desire, excluding resale. While many of these sites do not require attribution on the shots you use, bear in mind that many of the artists contributing to these communities are doing so for the exposure & the hope of expanding their career in photography, illustration and video. Many of these artists include Donate links to PayPal or Patreon accounts - if you have the means and appreciate their work, we highly recommend contributing to the artists who make these images available and, in turn, make these services viable.

Unsplash (Getty Images)

Unsplash.com has become one of our favorite Free Image resources over the years, thanks in part to the large selection of images, categories, and styles offered - along with a curation process that assures the quality and standards of every image being hosted. Thousands of new and established photographers have contributed to the Unsplash library - including great space & aeronautics submissions from NASA and SpaceX - and even Apple themselves have begun to use Unsplash photos in some of their marketing material.

Joshua Earle - Matterhorn, Zermatt, Switzerland - 2015. Via Unsplash.com

Pexels (Canva)

Pexels.com is notable for not only offering a large catalog of free, high-quality stock photos – but also video selections as well. The library contains hundres of thousands of photos curated from their community, and thanks to the expanded video-based offerings, includes a good selection of video-inspired abstract photos and textures you won't find elsewhere.

Pok Rie - Aerial View of Umbrella on Seashore - 2019. Via Pexels.com

Pixabay (Canva)

Pixabay.com, like their now-sister site Pexels, offers both high-quality stock photography and video, as well as vector illustration, royalty-free music, even sound effects. Photos are available in multiple sizes, making it easy to grab the right image for your particular needs. The site features a very wide selection with minimal curation, making it closer to the early iStockPhoto than some of these other sites, albeit a bit more all-in-one given the inclusion of vectors and sounds.

Ichigo121212 - Museum of Modern Art - 2014. Via Pixabay.com

Kaboompics

Kaboompics.com is unique among these sites in that nearly every photo on the site is part of a larger "photoshoot" group, meaning you can generally find alternate angles, orientations, or thematic flourishes related to any of the photos you find – making quick work of building image mosaics around a narrative theme. Curated categories make this a great source for Lifestyle, Interior Decorating, and Beauty & Fashion shots.

The woman drinks coffee and works at her desk (photoshoot) - 2020. Via Kaboompics.com

Burst (Shopify)

Burst is provided by the team at Shopify, and is targeted at entrepreneurs and startups looking to stretch every dollar. The bulk of the Burst library was shot by Shopify's in-house team, and is largely focused around the various startup niches that have trended during their startup. While they don't offer quite as large a selection as some of the other sites, their shots offer consistent quality across a range of subject matters and trending topics.

Brodie Vissers - Rooftopper Looking Down - 2015. Via Burst (Shopify.com)

StockSnap

StockSnap.io offers a large selection, growing by hundreds of images a day. The site includes a robust search interface, making it one of the easiest of these sites to find an image in a specific category or style, all of which can be sorted by trends/total downloads/crowd favorite selections. All of the images are offered under the CC0 License.

Startup Stock Photos - Untitled - 2016. Via StockSnap.io

NegativeSpace

NegativeSpace.co offers a broad selection of images, but is especially notable for it's selection of object shots & mockup-esqe UX process shots. If you're a developer looking for generalized industry shots to accent your slides, this might be your best bet. All of the images are offered under the CC0 License.

Alex Knight - Closeup Vintage Lightbulb Idea. Via NegativeSpace.co