Stock and AI-Generated Photography Resources
Externally-sourced visuals – like stock photography, news-wire images and AI-generated illustrations – offer newsrooms a quick and cost-effective way to enhance their work. Newsrooms might use them on websites and social media, in print and newsletters and through other audience engagement efforts. The fee for an image will vary depending on the license, which dictates how the image can be used, including limitations like ‘online only’ or ‘editorial only.’.
Creative Commons (Free) Stock Photography
Even if an image is free, its use is still typically governed by a license. The most common – and secure – free stock photography licenses are Creative Commons, which have stipulations about attribution and use.
Images with Creative Commons licenses can be found on the following sites:
-
Creative Commons
A tool that searches a variety of sites, including Google Images and Wikimedia Commons
-
Google Advanced Image searches
Search the web for creative works with Creative Commons usage rights, or licensing
-
Flickr Creative Commons
One of the largest repositories of openly licensed works online, with over 500 million Creative Commons works
-
Pixabay
A community of creatives that shares copyright-free images and videos under the Pixabay License
-
Unsplash
Popular source for free high-quality images, including many photographs with public domain licenses, which can be used freely without permission.
-
Wikimedia Commons
A free, searchable database from Wikipedia with over 25 million Creative Commons images
Paid Stock Photography Sources
These stock photography sites cater to different needs, ranging from low-cost content to high-end, editorial-quality imagery. Most of the platforms offer subscriptions, but many also allow users to purchase images for one-time use. Depending on your project, you can choose a platform that best fits your creative vision, budget and usage requirements.
-
Shutterstock
One of the largest and most well-known stock photography sites, offering flexible subscription and on-demand pricing models
-
Adobe Stock
A premium stock photo service integrated with Adobe Creative Cloud, offering a range of high-quality images, vectors, and templates.
-
iStock by Getty Images
Editorial and creative content, subscription options and high-end imagery owned by Getty Images.
-
Depositphotos
A cost-effective stock photo site with millions of high-quality images available under flexible subscription and credit-based plans.
-
Dreamstime
A diverse range of content, from creative to editorial, with flexible subscription and credit options.
-
Stocksy
Exclusive, creative content, photographer-owned cooperative with premium pricing.
-
Alamy
A subscription-based service offering unlimited downloads of stock photos and other media, all under one plan.
News Wire Sources
How your newsroom engages with externally-sourced photojournalism will depend on its budget and subscriptions to news wire photo agencies, which are more trustworthy, particularly when ensuring that images are not AI-generated. News wire agencies follow ethical standards and are the most reliable option for licensing authentic and accurate photojournalism.
-
Reuters
Known for fast turnaround and global reach, with coverage of both major and niche events, and offering editorial photos under strict licensing terms.
-
Getty Image News
Extensive archive, exclusive content, and partnerships with leading photojournalists worldwide. Provides licensing options for print, digital and broadcast media.
-
Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Offers real-time news photos from a global network of photographers, as well as access to AFP’s extensive photo archives.
-
Bloomberg Photo
Specializes in business and finance photojournalism, with a focus on global economics, markets, and political leadership.
-
Associated Press
A vast collection of photos from around the world, frequently updated with breaking news imagery, available for licensing to publishers and media organizations.
-
Alamy News
While Alamy is known for its general stock photography, it also has a robust newswire photojournalism section, covering breaking news and major events worldwide.
AI-Generated Photos and Videos
The use of AI-generated images in journalism presents a complex ethical landscape with several key considerations, which we have outlined in the previous section. We recommend newsrooms be selective with how they deploy AI-generated images, reserving their use for marketing or illustrations only.
John Smock, the Director of Photojournalism at CUNY Graduate School of Journalism, created Visual Archives and Graphic Resources, which lists free resources for photos, videos, graphics, AI and audio needs. Smock also created a guide to help journalists identify visual AI fakes.
For creating AI images, the resource recommends:
-
Midjourney
An AI program renowned for creating highly detailed and artistic images, often surpassing the quality of other AI image generators.
-
Dall-E 2
Developed by OpenAI, DALL-E 2 excels at creating diverse and imaginative images, from realistic to abstract.
-
Firefly
Adobe's AI image generation tool is designed for professional creatives, and it integrates seamlessly with Adobe's Creative Cloud suite.
-
Shutterstock
This popular stock photo platform also offers AI-generated images created using AI algorithms trained on a massive dataset of images, allowing users to find unique and high-quality visuals.
-
TopazLabs
While primarily known for its image editing software, Topaz Labs also offers AI-powered tools for image enhancement and restoration. These tools can significantly improve the quality of low-resolution or damaged images.
-
Synthesia
An AI video generation platform that allows users to create professional-quality videos with realistic-looking avatars speaking scripts in various languages and tones.
