Royalty free images are photos that can be used multiple times without you having to pay the photographer any royalties. Photos just like music, books and many other pieces of work are seen in law as a form of property, as an asset. The person who took the photograph holds the distribution rights to that image.

Anyone who uses that image without the photographer's permission is effectively stealing their work. When a photographer sells you that image they are giving you the right to use it.

However, unless it is royalty free you only have the right to use that image once. You cannot use that image on your letterheads, vehicle decals and posters, just in one of those places. If you use it more than once you have to pay royalties to the photographer.

Why Buy Royalty Free Images?

Buying royalty free images makes a lot of sense on many levels. First and foremost, by always buying and using royalty free images you protect yourself from litigation. The last thing you need in the middle of a big product launch is someone tapping you on the shoulder and asking you to pay the image royalties you owe them.

If you are ever tempted to buy an image that is not royalty free stop and think before you do. Ask yourself am I really going to remember in 5-10 years time, when I am frantically searching for an image for my new website, that this image is not royalty free? If you are honest the answer is no, so you run the risk of inadvertently using a non-royalty free image and getting yourself in hot water.

Where to Buy Royalty Free Images

You can buy royalty free images direct from many photographers. However, be careful to get written confirmation that the image you are buying is in genuinely royalty free.

The best place to find and buy royalty free images is on-line. There are plenty of well-established photo directories you can buy from. Before hitting the buy button double check the terms and conditions to make sure that they images you are buying are truly royalty free.

Dreams Time have a huge stock of royalty free imagesfor sale. Their database of over 12.5 million images is fully searchable.