If you find yourself searching free graphics sites like Morgue File, Stock.exchange, or royalty free sites like StockFresh, iStockPhoto, or BigStockPhoto but unable to find the perfect graphic for your blog post, try these sites instead where you can create exactly what you want.
What can you do? Feature the best quote or line from your post on a sticky note or tag, name a street in honor of your post, create a cloud of the main words from your post or set your words on fire!
Wigflip
Wigfip allows you to generate various graphics with your own text on them. You can also create images like the three below. www.wigflip.com
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Wordle
This site lets you create a “cloud” of words from any text or feed you’d like. These two examples are generated from my blog feed and words I’ve used frequently in recent posts. You can choose the colors, fonts and style. www.wordle.net
Flaming Text
Set your text on fire, make it brushed metal, or try one of dozens of other effects. www.flamingtext.com
Cool Text
Cool Text is similar to Flaming Text but also allows you to put your text on buttons like this panic button. www.cooltext.com
Fake Magazine Cover
Put yourself (or any photo you’ve got) on the cover of dozens of different magazines. www.fakemagazinecover.com
Your Turn!
What are your favorite places to find graphics to add to your blog posts? Please share in the comments!
- 54Shares
54
I learned so much is this one blog post….thank you!
Beth recently posted… The ‘Occupy Movement’ is Less Relevant Today
You’re welcome, Beth. Thanks for stopping by and commenting. :)
Michelle Shaeffer recently posted… Make it a Collector’s Edition
i am egoistic
i usually create my graphics on my own.
but i like your links
i am hot on the wordles and the magazine cover
have to try that definitly.
maybe it is also a good idea for bloggers to look for freeware graphic programms
they can help to do better graphics, to reduce photos in size etc.
some say that “the gimp” is a good programm, i don.t know, because i use photoshop.
but those who recommende “the gimp” say that it is compareable to photoshop.
maybe worth a try.
hope you don.t mind.
wrote a blog on how to find free pictures for blogs
http://helz-design.com/2011/09/07/where-do-i-find-photos/
love helen
helen bogun recently posted… Billy – staff of the Month
Thanks for sharing that link, Helen, those are good sites. :) I also like morguefile.com for free photos.
I’ve used Gimp a bit, and it is comparable to Photoshop. If I’m on a computer that doesn’t have Photoshop installed I’ll usually just go to http://www.pixlr.com for quick image edits — it rocks.
Michelle Shaeffer recently posted… Make it a Collector’s Edition
Ah just what I need….have been thinking this morning about where to access stuff…thanks for this
Katrina recently posted… Why do People dump their Pets?
You’re welcome, Katrina. I got inspired to share these when I couldn’t find the perfect image for my last post, so our minds were on the same challenge the morning. :)
Michelle Shaeffer recently posted… How I Found My Blogging Magic–And How You Can Find Yours, Too!
Love the variety of sites and ways to create free cool images for your blog posts (and videos)!
Look forward to playing! Thanks, Michelle.
MaryAnn D’Ambrosio
http://www.LeapWithoutLimits.com
MaryAnn D’Ambrosio recently posted… Ordinary People Experience Extraordinary Success
Have fun, MaryAnn! I got stuck at the magazine generator one making all sorts of magazine covers. It’s a blast.
Michelle Shaeffer recently posted… Make Your Own *Tweet It!* Page
I can only say…
THANK YOU! WOW You are such a good person.
Hi Juracy, muchas gracias. Tenga un día maravilloso. :)
Michelle Shaeffer recently posted… 41 Tips to Tweet for Bloggers
Super cool! Some of the best and most fun tools in a long time. Thanks for sharing!
Tambre Leighn recently posted… Why I Won’t Be Eulogizing Steve Jobs
I went for fun sites to share this time. :)
Michelle Shaeffer recently posted… 7 Steps to Social Media Success
Great tips there Michelle – I’ll be looking forward to trying some of those resources – which would you say is the quickest one to use? ( quick is good for me!)
I mostly use istock, or presentermedia – I went down the paid route – quite low $ though – but I use a lot of them on sales pages etc, not just for blogposts.
I never know whether you can use a photo from somewhere like wikipedia (ie an open source type site) as long as you reference where it’s from – do you know?
thanks
Tanya
Tanya Smith recently posted… Is Indecision Robbing your Business and your Life?
Wigflip and Cool Text are the quickest for me. Wordle I end up playing with forever, and the Magazine cover one is a little tricky to get the photo placed on a cover that fits well.
I use StockFresh for the majority of my photos.
My two cents is that if I can’t find permission to use a photo (like a creative commons license or other noted permission on the page), then I don’t use it. Some images, even with attribution, can’t be used legally if that permission wasn’t granted. Many seem to take the wild west approach and just use whatever they find online, but I figure it’s better to be on the safe side. :)
Michelle Shaeffer recently posted… How I Found My Blogging Magic–And How You Can Find Yours, Too!
finding images is a TOUGH one for me! thanks for all the awesome suggestions!
Tonja Davis recently posted… More Free Resources – Free Workouts!
You’re welcome, Tonja. Hopefully that’ll be a little less tough now. :)
Michelle Shaeffer recently posted… Party in Your Business!
Very nice share Michelle! Thanks a lot! I’ve bookmarked them all, I’m sure I’m gonna need them as some point when creating a post and even a logo.
Cristian Balau recently posted… Why Won’t My Stress Go Away?
Loved your links. Great resources for new bloggers like me. I’ve really enjoyed the blogging challenge!!
Great resources , I love wordle too, Wigflip looks great and the Flaming text i hadn’t seen them
Suzie Cheel recently posted… Self-Love Prescription #1
Some really FUN stuff here! Thanks for sharing your resources Michelle. :)
Bonnie recently posted… Stress Wisdom
Awesome graphics tips. I often spend as much time on photoshop tweaking and changing photos to fit my posts as I do writing them. I am not a great graphics person and these look incredibly simple (well I hope they are as simple as they look).
Sarah Harris recently posted… Link Building Strategies – It’s Just Like High School
[…] really love this journey. Thanks to Michelle Shaeffer for the great article on cool […]
I recommend Creative Commons Search at http://search.creativecommons.org/
This allows you to search for photos and other images you can use for commercial purposes and/or edit and amend. You can search a range of sites, including Flickr, Wikipedia, Google Images, and Open Clip Art Gallery. I use this service a lot to find images for my blog posts.
Nick Daws recently posted… Three New Flash Fiction Contests
Oooo… NICE! Looking forward to exploring all the links…. ideas are popping into my head as I’m typing these words…. so very cool!
Thanks, Magnificent Michelle!
Very very cool stuff Michelle – you are always up on the latest and greatest for which I am very grateful! Thank you for keeping me well informed about what’s out there!
Suerae Stein recently posted… Word Usage 101
Thanks so much! (using the auto motivator on today’s post!)
Lori Ferguson recently posted… But wait… there’s more!
This is great Michelle. I can now get some cool graphics on my blog.
Thanks and have a great day
David
David Verney recently posted… How to Get Readers of Your Blog to Return Again and Again
[…] time finding good images for my posts (and for my client posts) Michelle Schaffer shares some great ideas for creating your own images for your posts. I made one for the picture that goes with this […]
I can always count on you to share something that I’ve been looking for! LOL I’ve been looking for some good “word” graphics and Wordle is just what I needed!!! Thanks, Michelle! You rock … as usual ;)
Kimberly ~ Gypsy recently posted… Have you Googled yourself lately?
Great sites! I have seen a couple before but I love them.
Sometimes getting just the picture takes me HOURS… I waste more time searching for an image then I do writing! LOL – not very productive!
You always deliver good stuff, Michelle!
Be Well.
Paul.
Paul B. Taubman, II recently posted… Help, My WordPress Site Has Been Hacked! Pt 3.
You are like the energizer bunny….going and going and going…with more GREAT information! This is awesome and thanks Michelle!
Rhonda Neely recently posted… Please Tell Me What Marriage Is Supposed to be Like
Thanks Michelle for this post this will really help with images that you can post on your site, it was getting harder and harder to find great images that express your blog post but you just lighten the load on that Great Post!!!
Anthony Johnson recently posted… How to get traffic from facebook to your Business
I was just thinking about how I need to add more graphics to my blog, but was not sure where to get the ones that I would want to use. Thanks so much for these ideas because now I can make my own!! Super helpful.
Just tried Wigflip for one of my recent blog posts and it works great. Such a time saver! Thanks Michelle!
eosgrafx recently posted… Create better presentations with 3 tips
I really love that WigFlip and the magazine cover! Thanks for sharing – great resources.
Alicia recently posted… How to make a crochet necklace – technique
Thank you for recommending Stockfresh. Glad you like the site! :)
Peter / Stockfresh recently posted… One Million Images