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Getty Images Make Their Stock Free

one small seed — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 08:37:47 +0000

Just like record companies had to admit that selling CDs the conventional way is no longer viable, Getty Images — the world’s largest stock photo service — has now made a bulk of its images available to embed for free if they’re used for ‘non-commercial purposes’. As long as a footer with the credits is displayed underneath (it does this automatically), blogs with low budgets will now have legal access to a vast amount of stock imagery to integrate into posts. All you do is find the picture you want on gettyimages.com, click on the embed icon and copy the code into your WordPress blogpost — just what we did below.

Screenshot

The principle is to turn what’s infringing use with good intentions, turning that into something that’s valid licensed use with some benefits going back to the photographer, and that starts really with attribution and a link back.

– Craig Peters, a business development exec at Getty Images

Niky Roehreke: the hands of an illustrator

one small seed — Tue, 29 May 2012 13:04:21 +0000

Niky Roehreke is a German/Japanese illustrator born to a German father and a Japanese mother: she has quite a rich heritage from these two dissimilar cultural backgrounds. Born and having lived her whole life in a small German community in Tokyo, she decided to break a way and travel abroad after her graduation. Niky moved to London in 2005 to study graphic design at Central Saint Martins, after which she went to do an internship in New York, where she is now based.

image: trendland.com

Travelling between Tokyo and New York, Niky draws, doodles, paints and makes collages. Her illustrations are colourful and unique as she uses a variety of mixed media including print, illustration and photography. In an interview with Dazed Digital she comments:

I was never really good at expressing myself through words and always looked for other ways. When I was younger I used to dance ballet, I was so fascinated by the fact that a dancer can say so much solely through body movement. But I had to quit ballet at the age of 17 and started to dream about becoming a costume and fashion designer. Then during college I thought I’ll be a graphic designer or a filmmaker but after graduation I finally I realised that there are too many rules and regulations for me in fashion, graphic design or film that, at the end of the day just a piece of paper and pen gave me the feeling of freedom and most excitement due to infinite possibilities.

image: trendland.com

Niky has a special affinity to hands as she believes that they are still one of the most honest ways in which people can communicate and express themselves in this technology-based society. Through using your hands to create something you are partaking in something special, enjoyable and timeless. Go have a look at her work and the video below – perhaps it might inspire you to go use your hands and create something.

words: Bianca Budricks

sources: nikyniky.com, trendland.com, dazeddigital.com, vimeo.com

images: trendland.com

Sandra Dieckmann and her illustrated animals

one small seed — Thu, 24 May 2012 13:33:47 +0000

Sandra Dieckmann is 29-year-old German illustrator currently working and living in East London since 2002. Dieckmann moved to London after the passing of her mother and pursued a few odd jobs before deciding to study fashion design, graphic design and illustration.

image : chezbeeperbebe.blogspot.com

image : sandradieckmann.blogspot.com

Dieckmann had no intention of living in London but through a series of events has now settled and has a quaint studio/ apartment. In a recent interview with Etsy Blog she says ‘The circumstances of my life have put me in a place that I love and that I call home. Here in East London, UK, I work from my home studio as a freelance illustrator. With my cat, Little Crumb, and my friends around me, I have built myself a colourful nest filled with animal faces, books and things that inspire me. It’s a good life.’

image : lostateminor.com

Dieckmann’s main source of musing is nature, wildlife and friends… ‘My work revolves around nature, wildlife, dreams, longing and observations, and is inspired by all that touches me personally – time and space, nature, friends, conversations, music and learning.’ Her illustrations of animals and wildlife are very unique and created in an almost storybook-like manner. We are bombarded with so much art that is inspired or pertaining to our society and the issues surrounding this; it’s an endless dialogue between the art and viewer. Sandra’s work takes the edge off and one can just merely look and ponder about the simple things in life.

image : wolfeyebrows.wordpress.com

On that note something inspirational from Sandra Dieckmann:

Life Is What You Make It! It’s easy, in a way, to realize that you only have one shot at happiness – meaning this one life – and believe that being happy means creating your life in the best way that you can. It’s the best form of motivation. Bad things will happen, but they don’t happen to tear you down and make you stop – on the contrary. There are positives and learning to be drawn from anything. Reality only exists in your own mind, and in a way everything just depends on your perspective. Change your mind and change your heart.(Etsy Blog)

Words : Bianca Budricks

Sources: Etsy Blog, sandradieckmann.com, lostateminor.com

images: chezbeeperbebe.com , sandradieckmann.blogspot.com, wolfeyebrows.wordpress.com