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Unconventional Stock Image Sources

This year, I learned that there is a wide world of free stock imagery available beyond Unsplash and Pexels. You see, I’ve been working on designing WordPress themes this year, and all images need to be compatible with the GPL. Unsplash and Pexels both have free and open licenses, but unfortunately, aren’t compatible. Many other free stock photos sites don’t have the highest quality photos, so I’ve had to get creative about where I get the imagery I use in my mockups.

I discovered the solution to my stock imagery problem, ironically, on Unsplash. I started noticing photos from sources like the British Library, Birmingham Museums Trust, and Library of Congress. Who often has archives of public domain imagery? Libraries, museums, and governments. The sites are never a site like Unsplash, but they work well if you have the time and patience to dive through their archives. Plus? You can find some pretty cool photography, art, and illustrations that have a very different vibe than most stock photo resources.

Libraries

There are tons of libraries with license-compatible digital archives, such as the New York Public Library, Library of Congress, The State Library of New South Wales, National Library of Ireland, and many more. Try seeing if a major city with your state has a digital archive. Libraries are great for old photos, advertisements, and illustrations that I’ll use in portfolio site designs.

Museums

Many museums have started digitizing their collections in the past few years, such as the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art, the Met, and the Art Institute of Chicago. As the museums are often digitizing the work themselves, they have the luxury of releasing the images into the public domain. Museums are a fantastic resource for art, and for photos of objects like ceramics and jewelry that work well in e-commerce mockups.

Governments

US Government agencies like NASA tend to release a ton of their own media for public use, and I’ve discovered that space images look great in blog post mockups. Need some COVID photos? The CDC’s got you covered. Need some black & white nature photos? Check out the National Park Service’s “Open Parks Network.” 

Finding high-quality, totally free stock imagery can be a huge hassle. But I’ve found, with some creativity and some patience, there are far more options than I knew!

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Embrace the Political

The tech industry has long held the belief that technology is apolitical. People are flawed, but the machines? They are neutral. They are pure.

This is ridiculous, of course. People make the machines. We write the algorithms that can't recognize dark skin tones. We decide to downplay or ignore harassment on our platforms. There are a plethora of examples in books like Weapons of Math Destruction by Cathy O'Neill, Technically Wrong by Sara Wachter-Boettcher, and The Internet of Garbage by Sarah Jeong. Technology is political because people are political.

What excites me is that finally, our industry is starting to admit that yes, our work is political. Our work has repercussions. And we can use our talents for good — not just to line the pockets of our capitalist technocrat overlords. And maybe, just maybe, we have a civic duty to engage with politics.

After the 2016 election, several volunteer organizations popped up with the goal of connecting technologists with progressive candidates, whose tech acumen lags seriously behind that of Republicans. I spend a lot of my spare time volunteering for two such organizations, Tech for Campaigns and Ragtag. We get to support candidates and non-profits trying to introduce gun safety legislation, protect women's healthcare, act to mitigate climate change, and further many more progressive issues.

These are both huge organizations. TFC boasts over 10,000 volunteers. I've personally collaborated with easily a hundred other technologists on political or non-profit websites, and digital advertising for candidates across the country. There are so many volunteers that I get ridiculously excited when I see someone I recognize working on a project. Tech feels like a super small industry sometimes, so getting to meet so many new folks I wouldn't have otherwise gotten to know? That's gold.

Working with fellow tech folks on these projects gives me so much hope for the future. Everyone I've worked with, regardless of background, job, or experience, has been enthusiastic, kind, and dedicated to making a positive difference. It's such a different vibe from the "I was just doing my job" discourse I see so often on Twitter.

Getting to work with candidates and their staffers is like a whole new world into how grassroots politics works. I've learned a lot just by my small measure of involvement. It's humbling to see how much technology doesn't matter sometimes, especially with local campaigns where knocking on doors and talking to people face-to-face can make the biggest difference. Not our usual "tech is the most powerful industry" narrative, eh?

To me, new technology is always fun and interesting. But seeing so many people volunteer to support progressive causes? That lights a fire in my gut. That makes me want to keep trudging forward, step by step. Together, we can make a difference.

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