Back to School

As we head back to school this morning and walk into Making a Book Trailer 101 we'll learn about images for our book trailers. Our focus is on Chapter 1-- Choosing images and where to find them. If you haven't done your homework please refer to our previous lesson here.

I spent weeks and weeks searching for the right images for my trailer. It's a daunting task at best. Even though I had a mock book trailer to mimic, being inundated with images left me dizzy and out of focus. I searched many sites and started to keep track of each image's file number for reference. The only problem was I forgot to note the site I found it on-- hence the dizzy confusion. So in a future post (tomorrow) I will give you an easy step by step outline to follow. Hopefully you'll avoid the same mistakes I did.

Sites to check out:

istockphoto has a great collection of images. You could spend years sifting through them, but you only need 10 images at the most. These images are expensive. They use a 'credit' system to buy their images and some of them could cost up to $20 each. They do have cheaper ones to choose from, but you will have to take the time to find them . The images you buy here are royalty free.

fotolia also uses the 'credit' system. You buy a certain number of credits, say 10, and it costs you $10. Not bad. But what about their pictures are they pricey? NOOOOO. All you need is the xsmall images and they are only $1 each! (yes, I LOVE this). They have a vast collection to choose from. The site is easily navigated, and they have a phone number to call if you have any questions. Fotolia is so easy, though, you shouldn't need to call. Just sign up, purchase your credits, and then choose your pictures. The images you buy are royalty free.

freedigitalphotos.net offer free (yes, FREE!) images for instant download. The only requirement is that you post a hyperlink to their site giving them credit for the images. One of the few places I have found where it was actually free and easy. Their selection is small, but definitely worth checking out. The images are royalty free.

photobucket has a huge collection of images, but since they can't be purchased I would avoid this site. The images are for sharing and could belong to anyone, and we must remember copyright laws. We don't want to get sued. The images you use from these sites are NOT royalty free.

personal images are a bad choice, too. Unless you are a professional photographer the quality of the images will show through and your book trailer will have a home made feel to it. Since you want your lovely manuscript shown in the best light avoid using your own pictures.

deviantart has wonderful pictures, but I was not able to find out which ones were for sale by the artist. Or if any were for sale. The site was difficult to navigate and felt more like a social networking site for photographers instead of a place I could buy the images I wanted. Hats off to deviantart because it is an exquisite collection of artists and images. ( you may be able to learn more about them than I did-- so try!) Again, remember copyright laws.

Your homework for this lesson is to familiarize yourself with these sites. Browse the images, bookmark the ones you like and report back here tomorrow with your notes.

I will continue the lesson on how to choose your own images. (This post would be too lengthy if I crammed it all together.)

Class dismissed!