Resources for Free Stock Photos, Plus: Wonderful Tutorials on Multimedia Production One o f the things I’ve found most difficult to accomplish during the quarantine is to source good photos to use in my garden/food/ag blog and social media posts (including Instagram and Facebook stories). Before the quarantine, if I needed a photo of a demonstr ation garden or field, I’d head out to the local Cooperative Extension Research and Education Center. But now it’s closed. So I’ve been digging deep into my personal archives and augmenting those with free stock photos. I’m very cautious about intellectua l property rights, including what I use in my blog and social posts, and how. I was thrilled that @Pamela Kan-Rice shared this tutorial on How to Find and Use Media Assets Legally …it’s incredibly valuable. It was developed by UC Berkeley’s “J” School (Graduate School of Journalism) – Advanced Media Institute . Be certain to consult your institution’s policies and procedures about intellectual property use.
I was also happy to find another tutorial that lists resources for free stock photos, including:
Unsplash (one of my favorites);
Pexels;
StockSnap.io (new to me); and
FoodiesFeed , which they describe as “the perfect stock photo site for food bloggers.” (I visited this site immediately, since I blog a lot about food). It’s important t o note that even on free photo websites such as these, that there are images from outlets like Shutterstock that DO require payment; these are usually loaded at the top of the landing page. So if your goal is to find a free image, be sure to double-check on this. You should definitely take a look at the entire tutorial series , which includes some really high-end information on topics relating to multimedia content production, video, podcasting, etc. BTW: They offer terrific courses on podcasting, video production, etc., that are perfect for Cooperative Extension professionals.
Livestreaming Resources
Since the start of Covid- 19, I’ve been involved in more livestream activities. Livestream is ideal for this time in Cooperative Extension, because:
The barriers to entry are low (no cost);
The technologies are generally ones we’re using and the process is fairly easy; and Livestreams can really help boost engagement…and connection is key for our Cooperative Extension work, especially right now. People are hungry for connection This article from Hootsuite Blog (my favorite) has some great information. It provides easy-to-follow steps for: Using Facebook Live; Mastering Instagram Live; Surprising your professional contacts by going live on LinkedIn (LinkedIn is under-utilized by many of us, and it’s a great platform with robust features that supports live video and publishing); How to go live on Twitter; and How to go live on YouTube.
Bonus? Seven tips for successful live streaming.
Bookmark this article. (I did!)
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