Five free tools for great images
Photo by Marko Blažević on Unsplash
We’ve all been there. Written the content. Edited it. Uploaded it.
We think “Ahhh, almost done!”
An hour later we’re about to throw the laptop - nay, the business - out of the window.
It goes something like:
Cannot find photo that works. Find a “That will do” photo. Resize it. Realise that it doesn’t work at that size. Find another image. Realise you need to pay for it. Find another one…
And on it goes.
Fortunately, I’m about to make your life easier - and your images better.
Here are five tools that make the image-creation process smoother and quicker - with the end result of professional looking, gorgeous images that draw in your audience.
You’re welcome.
Imagine a world of two million high quality, beautiful photos that are easily searchable - and free to use, with no strings attached. Oh, and you don’t even need an account to download the photos.
I present to you: Unsplash.
I’ve been using Unsplash week in, week out for years. It really is as good as it appears.
Photo by Rubén García on (you’ve guessed it…) Unsplash
Pexels works in the same way as Unsplash. It isn’t as well known as Unsplash, so it has fewer images - but it still rarely lets you down. The main difference is that if you’re looking for video then Pexels is probably your go-to starting point.
There’s no obligation, but it’s good netiquette - and just generally the right thing to do - to credit the photographer and the site when you use the image, whether your source is Unsplash or Pexels.
Canva is a bit “Well, duh, of course I use Canva!” or “Oh my goodness, how have I got this far in life without Canva by my side?”
If you’re not yet in the Canva club then it works something like this.
It’s a simple to use, user friendly, high quality graphic design tool.
You want a TikTok video, Facebook ad, YouTube thumbnail, infographic, business presentation, LinkedIn banner, Zoom banner… or even a mug?
There’s a template for that (and so much more…). You can also create custom designs, if you so desire.
The ‘basic’ version (it’s really not basic!) is free - and it will meet the needs of 90% of users, with a huge range of templates, fonts, images, filters and more.
Visme isn’t that different to Canva. But if you want to create infographics, flow charts, slides, mind maps or add audio then you may find that Visme is more to your liking.
Like Canva, it has a free basic version, with the option to upgrade.
Fotor does a variety of things for free, including photo editing and Canva-esque design templates.
Where it comes into its own is for creating photo collages - an increasingly useful tool for Facebook et al.
That said, it’s photo editing is also a notch above acreage, considering this is a free tool.
It’s super-simple to use, although the options in the free options are quite limited.
And finally...
The one tool I would have loved to include here would be a really simple tool that resizes images for social media. There are a few out there - but they’re either really basic or a pain to use. Any recommendations?
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