Understand some of the most common terms you might come across during your image search. We’ve created this handy overview of some of the key industry jargon to help you get to grips with stock photography terms and quickly become an image-buying pro!
Permissions to use an image
- Releases – these are documents that are signed by third parties to give their permission for an image to be used for commercial purposes. Not all images need a release, but those that contain recognisable models or property will more than likely need a release.
There are 2 types of release:
- Model release – this is needed if an image contains identifiable people. The person or people in the image will need to sign the release to give their permission.
- Property release – this is needed if an image contains recognisable buildings, brands or trademarks
We’ve got a great infographic and help page to guide you on whether you need a release for your image use.
- Copyright – the term used to describe the person or company that owns the rights to the image or video clip.
Image usage
This quite simply covers how you’re going to use the image. There are 2 common types of usage:
- Editorial use – when images or video clips are used to illustrate an article, educational text, story or critique
- Commercial use – when images or video clips are used to promote something, sell a product or raise money for a cause
Licensing an image
When you buy a stock image, you’re actually buying an image license that allows you to use the image, rather than the image itself. There are 2 types of license you can buy:
- Rights managed (RM) license – RM licenses cover exactly how, when, where and for how long you’re going to use an image. You pay for exactly how you’re going to use the image.
- Royalty-free (RF) license – with an RF license, you pay a one-off price based on the size of the image you need for your project. You can then use the image as many times as you like, for as long as you like – so it’s perfect if you want to use an image across multiple projects!
We’ve created this handy blog post to help you choose the right image license for you
Image file sizes
- Resolution –Â refers to the number of pixels in an image. Resolution is sometimes identified by the width and height of the image as well as the total number of pixels in the image.
For example: an image that is 2048 pixels wide and 1536 pixels high (2048 x 1536) contains 3,145,728 pixels (or 3.1 megapixels).
- Dots per inch (DPI) – the resolution of printed media is measured by the number of dots that will be included in every inch that’s printed. The more dots, the higher the quality.
- Pixels per inch (PPI) – the resolution of a digital image is measured by the amount of pixels that will be included in every inch. The more pixels, the higher the quality.
Depending on how you’re going to use the image, the recommended DPI and PPI will vary:
- Online or website usage – 72ppi
- Personal photo print – 300 dpi
- Magazines and books – 300 dpi
- Billboard advertising – 150 dpi
4. Dimensions – this is a term used to describe how big the image will be when it’s printed. Images can be measured in pixels (px), centimetres (cm), millimetres (mm) and inches (in). Some      examples of dimensions include:
– 800 px x 1000 px
– 8 in x 10 in
– 500cm x 300 cm
Find out more on our file size help page
- Interpolation – this is an industry term used to describe the process of resizing an image. You can downsize or upsize an image, but when you’re upsizing an image you need to be careful not to exceed the image’s capabilities. If you upsize an image beyond what it’s capable of, you’ll start to notice defects and a reduction in the quality of the image. For more info on resizing images, check out this blog.
Common image file types
- Compressed JPEG – this is an industry-wide format for transferring hi-res files. It squashes down the file so it’s easier and quicker to download or transfer – you still have the full hi-res file, it just appears a smaller size! Once you open up the image in your photo-editing software, the image will be restored to its maximum file size!
We’ve got a quick tutorial vlog that talks you through  and the download process – check it out over on our .
- TIF files – a TIF is an image file format used for storing pictures without losing any of the information embedded within the file. When you save an image as a TIF, it will be saved at its maximum file size.
If there’s a tricky term you’ve come across, let us know in the comments and we’ll add it to the blog!