What are stock photos? How are they different from normal photos?

Question: What are stock photos!? How are they different from normal photos!?

Please explain in simple terms!. I am not much of a geek!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

Legally you cannot use a photo you find on the web with out the photographer's permission!.

Stock photography websites contain thousands of existing photographs that can be licensed for specific uses!. A customer who uses stock photography instead of hiring a photographer can save time, effort and money!. Typically publishers can either purchase exclusive rights to a single image or they can purchase a subscription of sorts!. The subscriptions allow publishers to download a limited number of photos over a specified period of time!.

Stock photo websites allow webmasters, marketers and publishers to locate pictures for their marketing and promotional materials without the hassle of organizing a photo shoot!. With copyright laws businesses must be very careful in using unlicensed photos!.

There are also risks to using "free" photographs!. Many of the free websites contain collaborative works from multiple photographers and artists!. While the websites attempt to monitor the images in their collections in violation of copyright laws, there are no guarantees!. If you opt to use photographs or images from a free portal, it is important to keep this in mind!.

Here is where you can find some inexpensive stock photo directories:

http://www!.small-business-software!.net/s!.!.!.

GoodluckWww@QuestionHome@Com

Say you own a clinic and need to create a brochure!. Rather than taking the photos yourself, you need photos of happy family and doctors / nurses--you'd buy them from company that sells photos that are licensed to be used!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Stock photos are bulk rate licensed photos!. In other words a company will buy and hold the rights to many different photos from numerous photographers and then sell the use of one or more photos to another party who wants to license them for a particular project such as a flyer or web banner!.Www@QuestionHome@Com