Make deeper connections with authentic stock photos

Reach and engage your audience with Getty Images' diverse collection of authentic stock photos and images. Browse millions of royalty‑free images, available in a variety of formats and styles, including exclusive visuals you won't find anywhere else.
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Artificial Intelligence

 
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Background

 
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Business

 
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Stock photo essentials

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Abstract

 
What are stock photos?
A stock photo is an image that can be licensed for creative use. Stock photos feature a wide variety of subjects including scenery, everyday objects, people, food and beverages, fashion— the list goes on and on. Stock photo companies host a massive marketplace of creative content and sell imagery in the form of photos, illustrations, and videos that can be purchased for use in commercial, editorial, and personal projects.

When purchasing stock photos through a stock photo company, users pay a fee to buy the legal rights and use the selected stock images or videos. The fee pays both the artist that originally took the photo or video footage, and the website or agency that manages the sales of photos to customers.
Why do people use stock images?
Using stock photos for your next project comes with many benefits.
  • Saving time
  • Saving money
  • Ability to edit a stock photo to fit your specific project needs
With a stock photo website, users can quickly search a large database of photos and videos using keyword filters to find the imagery that best fits the needs of the project. In addition to saving time, stock photos provide a cost‑efficient way to gather creative assets for instant download.

For companies and brands that do not have the means or budget to hire a professional photographer for a custom photoshoot, stock photography provides an alternate solution for sourcing high‑quality photos.

Stock photos can be used for marketing and advertising, personal projects, commercial and for‑profit projects, and on blogs and websites. The wide variety of uses and instant turnaround time make stock photography a common choice for independent graphic designers and businesses alike. Simply download the selected image in seconds, and you are ready to go! 
What’s the difference between a stock image and a regular photo?
The difference between a stock image and a regular photo is that stock images are specifically licensed for commercial and editorial use by anyone who wants to use them. By comparison, a regular photo and its usage rights are owned solely by the photographer or creator of the image. With a regular photo, you would be required to contact the owner and buy the rights to the image before it can legally be used.

Many designers and brands choose to use stock photos from stock content marketplaces because of the systems that are already in place to ensure proper licensing and permissions for every image in their stock library.

Other benefits of using a stock image over a regular photo include:
  • The ability to edit the photo to suit your brand needs without needing additional permission from the photographer or creator.
  • Stock images are reviewed for technical quality standards regarding exposure, colors, image noise, and composition before being listed in the image library.
By using content from a legitimate stock photo company, you ensure you will be using the image legally, and that the download will be the best quality.
Learn more about the images on this page and see photographer credits.