I was wondering want stock photo companies everyone uses for their e-learning products? Are some better than others? What type of license agreements should I watch for? For example, we want to use a specific photo, or background in one of our courses that will be viewed Nationally. What type of agreements allows this?
Any help, advice or direction is greatly appreciated.
I always just use the "standard" iStock agreement.
I know they are expensive, (3 years ago you could get so much for 2-3 credits, now all seem to be a minimum of 5...), but having trawled through their Licence Agreement so many times, this seems to be the one for me.
I find istockphoto to be the best in terms of photo quality and price. Shutterstock.com is a cheaper way to go (you can get a month subscription and basically download all the photos you'll need for approximately $250), though the quality and selection aren't as good as istockphoto's, in my opinion.
If a client wants to use shutterstock, I'll bid the project slightly higher, because it's going to take me longer to find suitable photos. Fotolia.com is also supposed to be pretty good.
With all stock images you need to check the type of license that you need. If you are looking to re-sell you course you will need a different license (normally full) and this is usually a lot more expensive than the basic cost.
You should also check the worldwide distribution and also the media type depending on your project requirements.
BigStockPhoto is basically Shutterstock content that's pay as you go/credit based. Good when you need high resolution images because their smallest resolution is generally larger than the other sites so even if you need to go up one level from the base, it's only around $2 per image. (depending on the number of credits you purchase)
I agree that Istock quality has always been good, (and one of the only places to buy stock video clips that are reasonably priced) but recently the quality gap between them and the other sites is shrinking. (IMHO)
i am running on a custom subscription on Shutterstock, purchased 200 medium for $800. Standard license, this is in house elearning only. So far I have found the images I need pretty easily.
11 Replies
Hi Nadine.
I always just use the "standard" iStock agreement.
I know they are expensive, (3 years ago you could get so much for 2-3 credits, now all seem to be a minimum of 5...), but having trawled through their Licence Agreement so many times, this seems to be the one for me.
Bruce
Thanks Bruce
I do find them very expensive...
Nadine:
I find istockphoto to be the best in terms of photo quality and price. Shutterstock.com is a cheaper way to go (you can get a month subscription and basically download all the photos you'll need for approximately $250), though the quality and selection aren't as good as istockphoto's, in my opinion.
If a client wants to use shutterstock, I'll bid the project slightly higher, because it's going to take me longer to find suitable photos. Fotolia.com is also supposed to be pretty good.
With all stock images you need to check the type of license that you need. If you are looking to re-sell you course you will need a different license (normally full) and this is usually a lot more expensive than the basic cost.
You should also check the worldwide distribution and also the media type depending on your project requirements.
Hope this helps,
I would be interested to see whether sites that resell eLearning, (and there seem to be a few springing up..), ever check this.
I wonder who would be liable for infringements?
Bruce
In equal measure, I use istockphoto.com and dreamstime.com
John.a.
istockphoto user here too.
Nicest of the search engines and IMHO that's worth the slightly elevated cost when you consider the time savings.
Also, we use the credits vs subscription as it allows us to budget better.... and we all know how fun that can be in the corporate world!
Bob
The Fotolia Pay-As-You-Go plans are great for working within budgets as well.
BigStockPhoto is basically Shutterstock content that's pay as you go/credit based. Good when you need high resolution images because their smallest resolution is generally larger than the other sites so even if you need to go up one level from the base, it's only around $2 per image. (depending on the number of credits you purchase)
I agree that Istock quality has always been good, (and one of the only places to buy stock video clips that are reasonably priced) but recently the quality gap between them and the other sites is shrinking. (IMHO)
Todd
i am running on a custom subscription on Shutterstock, purchased 200 medium for $800. Standard license, this is in house elearning only. So far I have found the images I need pretty easily.
Thanks all
This discussion is closed. You can start a new discussion or contact Articulate Support.