Adding visual interest in the form of images is a widely-used method for attracting readers to blog articles. If you’re holding back from spicing up your blog for fear of cost or (gasp) copyright infringement, here’s some advice to get you informed and comfortable with posting images

Daily Blog Tips Guest Post Guidelines

              I get many emails from people who want to know if I accept guest posts on Daily Blog Tips, and if that is the case, what are the guidelines. I figured that it would be easier to write the guidelines in a post and just refer every one here.

              So the answer to the first question is: Yes, I do accept guest posts. Currently I publish two guest posts per week, usually on Mondays and Wednesdays. Below you will find all the details about the process.
What kind of content do you accept?

                Anything that is useful for my readers is good content for a guest post here. It can be related to blogging, Internet marketing in general, and it can also be derived from your own personal experiences. There is no minimum length for your post, but usually the guest posts have over 400 words.

General Guidelines

Your post must be original and must have never been published before on the Internet
You agree to not publish the post anywhere else (i.e., in your own blog or as a guest post in other blogs)
You can include one link in the byline, which will be displayed at the bottom of the post
Formatting Guidelines
Please format your guest post as an HTML document, so that I can copy and paste it into the WordPress HTML editor.
Use H2 or H4 tags for sub-headings.
Make sure to include the author byline at the bottom, with the link to your website already formatted (do not spam keywords there, though).
Submission Guidelines

I check and respond to all guest post submissions twice a month, so it might take up to two weeks before I get back to you. This doesn’t mean I have rejected your post though, and even in case of rejection you should get an answer from me, explaining the reason.

Get to Know the Terminology

Unless explicitly noted, any image you find on the internet could be copyrighted, which means you could be held liable for copyright infringement. Are you up for taking that chance? Those of us who prefer to stay legal will typically be looking for images with some form of a Creative Commons license. This license is less restrictive than the traditional “all rights reserved” copyright (to varying degrees).
Where to Find Free, Quality Images

Some of the best places to find free stock images:

1. Everystockphoto

This site describes itself as a “license-specific photo search engine.” It searches many of the popular free stock photo sources and allows you restrict results based on a variety of parameters, including account requirement, shape, resolution, and license.

2. Flickr’s Creative Commons Search

This social image-sharing site has gained a reputation for harboring high-quality free photos. Search through the Creative Commons section or use the advanced search feature to specify a search within the Creative Commons-licensed content, plus you can identify whether you’re looking for content that can be edited or used commercially.

3. Stock.xchng

As discussed earlier, there are plenty of images on this site with more lax licensing that doesn’t require attribution. However, you’ve got to watch out for the much higher quality, payment-requiring iStockphoto thumbnails that get posted alongside the free stock.xchng results.

4. 123rf

If you’re just looking for something small, stock photography site 123rf offers many of its small-sized (think 400px at the longest side) images for free. Just search their free images section, found under the Stock Photography header on the home page (or by clicking their link above).

5. Google Creative Commons Image Search

Of course, if there’s a searching need, Google has a tool for it. Within their existing image search, Google added a usage rights parameter to their advanced image search. Here, you can specify whether the image should carry a license that allows reuse, commercial use, and/or modification.

One Final Thought

Now that you’re equipped to find images legally and without charge, here’s one last consideration: why not try creating your own images? Original photography and graphics can add value to your blog and make it appear more personal. While stock photos are a great option, especially in a pinch, don’t rule out the idea of adding non-canned images to your next post. Challenge yourself to come up with your own pictures depicting your product, service, or company; and guess what? It’s license-free!