# Where can I buy pictures to use in adverts? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 22, 2005, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796 "2005-03-22T23:34:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2005, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796/1 "2005-03-22T23:34:00Z")
I need to do a nice little glossy advert for some consulting that I do. I want to add a nice picture of a computer on a desktop. My pictures just aren’t professional enough to suit me. I believe that there must be a company that does nothing but take pictures for others to re-use (at a price.) Does anyone know of a place that sells stock pictures for re-use? ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2005, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796/2 "2005-03-22T23:47:20Z")
Do a Google search, clicking on Images at the top first, for keywords related to the things you want in the picture (e.g., computer, desk, in this case; I’m making the response broader than your specific need). There are several services who produce imagery and ensure their HTML meta tags include the appropriate keywords; run the search and weed out extraneous hits, and you’ll arrive at one of them quite quickly. They’re equipped to sell any size image you need online rapidly. One I recall goes by the name of Photostock, and generally comes up any time I do an image search; there are several others. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796/3 "2005-03-23T00:41:21Z")
Another one is called The Stock Market: [http://www.stockmarketphoto.com/](http://www.stockmarketphoto.com/) ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796/4 "2005-03-23T00:43:13Z")
Getty images is a very popular one. [http://creative.gettyimages.com/source/home/home.aspx](http://creative.gettyimages.com/source/home/home.aspx) ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796/5 "2005-03-23T00:43:38Z")
We often use Getty Images and Corbis in our ads and mock-ups. They have pretty good search engines, too. ---
**Author:** ![Quarky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/ba8739/32.png) [@Quarky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quarky)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796/6 "2005-03-23T01:57:54Z")
Try [iStockPhoto](http://istockphoto.com). It’s very inexpensive and the quality is excellent. > [@Khadaji](#): > > I need to do a nice little glossy advert for some consulting that I do. I want to add a nice picture of a computer on a desktop. My pictures just aren’t professional enough to suit me. I believe that there must be a company that does nothing but take pictures for others to re-use (at a price.) Does anyone know of a place that sells stock pictures for re-use? ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796/7 "2005-03-23T20:52:22Z")
If you do a Google search for “stock photos,” you’ll find a bunch of places. Some of them will do custom work. You can also talk to a photographer near where you live and have him/her shoot something custom for you. Then you own all rights to the picture _and_ you can support a local business. Be careful how you answer questions! I licensed some photography for an ad a while back, and they asked where I’d be running it. I said it was a “national magazine,” and they gave me a quote that I thought was very high. When I explained it was a trade association publication with a circulation of only 20,000, they dropped the rate dramatically. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2005, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-pictures-to-use-in-adverts/295796/8 "2005-03-24T00:14:59Z")
Thanks guys. There are some great sites there.