This entry is all about FREE STUFF. Who doesn’t love free stuff? As a just-starting-out graphic designer, I don’t have a lot of surplus income to throw around on things like stock graphics, vector graphics, fonts, textures, Photoshop brushes, and so forth. In fact I have none at all. So I make extensive use of the generosity of the internet. Here are a couple of Etsy banners I’ve designed recently using free graphics:
Using:
Victorian vine-leaf background
Ophelia, by Arthur Hughes
Free clip art banner (with some creative masking)
And Adine-Kirnberg Script font
Using:
Pulp fiction book cover sampled from the very cool ‘Judge A Book By Its Cover’
Grunge Photoshop brushes from Brusheezy
SF Comic Script
Custom Banner for Sunshine Buttercup Vintage Jewelry Components
Using:
Edwardian fashion plate
Swirly floral Photoshop brushes from Brusheezy
‘Public domain’ images are images whose copyright has expired, and which are therefore free to use for any purpose, including commercial. As far as I can tell, in the U.S., once an artist has been dead for fifty years, their work passes into the public domain (if anyone out there knows otherwise, please drop me a comment). I’m not sure what the rules are here in the UK, but most of my sales right now are in the States, so I’m going by their rules. Hopefully I won’t get my ass sued by misinterpreting copyright law.
Here’s a list of the sources I use most for public domain or just plain FREE images and graphics:
Liam’s Pictures From Old Books: this nice bloke has made high-resolution scans of his own collection of old books, and has published them on the internet. Someday I’d like to buy Liam a beer.
The University of Washington’s Fashion Plate Collection: an amazing collection of antique fashion plates, from the turn of the nineteenth century to the Edwardian era. In fact, the whole U of W collection is worth a look.
Open Library of Clip Art: a growing collection of free clip art. Comes in amazingly handy. Although (not that I’m complaining about a free service) it would be easier to navigate if you could browse by thumbnails.
The Morgue File: undoubtedly the public domain resource with the coolest name. Free stock photos.
Creative Commons: the spirit behind it all. A huge volunteer-run project to share images, video, music; you name it. Want to get involved? Add your own stuff!
Brusheezy: free Photoshop brushes. Some really good stuff.
And the official guide to public domain sources, thanks to the collective efforts of the internet: the Wikipedia list of public domain resources. (Most of the stuff on the list above came from here.)
I really love the ‘share and share alike’ spirit that the internet has made possible. I use free stuff from the internet nearly every day, and make my living from it (well…almost a living). I think it’s important to give back, so any graphics I put online (unless they’re for private clients), or any photos I upload to Flickr, I post as Creative Commons works – meaning anyone out there is free to use my work to build upon, even for commercial purposes. Honestly, I’d be quite flattered to know that someone had used my work to create something cool. As long as it’s not outright copying, I think artistic ‘sampling’ is a good thing. Hey, look at the Beastie Boys and Led Zeppelin.
