Are you a videographer using YouTube to showcase and promote your work? Are you a YouTuber focused on sharing your creations on this platform? If so, you'll know how valuable it is to use stock footage on YouTube.
YouTube is about captivating viewers, about giving them an entertaining audiovisual experience that engages them with your work, your brand, and your channel. Stock footage is one of the key resources to add visual power to your creations, helping you achieve the necessary impact you need to succeed.
And where to find stock footage that is suitable for use in YouTube videos? It couldn't be simpler: at stock footage agencies. Royalty Free stock videos are high quality, cheap, and legally safe to use on YouTube and other sharing platforms (like Vimeo, for example).
Royalty-Free Stock Footage: The Perfect Complement for YouTube Videos
Royalty Free stock videos are a great resource for every videographer or filmmaker, and this includes using them in content created or adapted to be showcased on Youtube.
Of course, there are other resources, like free stock footage video, that you can grab from the web and use free of charge. But those videos are often under the form of a Creative Commons license, meaning they are, in most cases, copyrighted.
While Creative Commons lets you use the content in different ways and with different requirements (that you must always check!), most of the sites offering free stock footage do not check for copyright status, let alone for model releases in the case of videos that include people.
Royalty Free stock footage eliminates that hazard in a simple, effective, and affordable way. These videos are not free (don't let the name mislead you): you have to pay a one-time fee for the right to use the content. But once you pay for the license, the videos are yours to use forever, in any way you want, within the accepted terms
These terms are very flexible and include use in productions for the web (sometimes even social media), TV, Film, and more. Intended use can be commercial, personal or artistic, and even editorial. Each agency sets its own license agreements, but these features are common to all of them.
The royalty-Free license has very few restrictions, commonly controlling the volume of distribution (for web and TV, they usually limit the use to a certain number of viewers), as well as what is called “sensitive use”: they limit the use of the content in concepts related to adult, illegal or morally questionable activities.
It's always very important to read the license agreement thoughtfully to make sure your intended use is accepted.
The market for stock videos is very wide and varied. You can find stock footage in all kinds of image resolutions, from small Web res clips to HD and even 4K and 4K+ videos. The biggest and most serious agencies have galleries with thousands and even millions of clips covering all topics, styles, and themes imaginable.
Where to Buy Stock Footage: the Cheapest Options
Another great advantage of Royalty Free stock footage is that it's very cheap –letting you save lots of money compared to shooting the clips yourself–, making it a great fit for YouTube videos that often work on a tight budget.
Buying Royalty Free stock footage for YouTube is very easy. Here are a few options for you:
- If you want to explore all the offers and possibilities, just have a look at our Agency list where you'll find comprehensive reviews on lots of different stock footage agencies. Use our comparative tool to filter companies according to your needs!
- If you want to maximize your budget without neglecting quality and variety of content, have a look at The Top 5 Cheapest Stock Footage Agencies!
- If you're a videographer/Youtuber who is constantly pushing new content through their channels, then you'll find the best value for your budget in a stock footage subscription, that lets you get large number of downloads per month for fixed periodic rates, saving you hundreds of dollars. Find The Top 3 Cheapest Stock Footage Subscriptions offers!
- To truly master the art of buying stock footage online, have a thorough read of our Guide to Buy Stock Video like an Expert!
In all cases, don't forget to check our special Offers, where you'll find coupon codes and promo codes that will let you save a lot in your purchases!
Why You Should Definitely Use Stock Footage in your Youtube Videos
There's a lot of powerful reasons why using stock footage in 4K in your video productions makes perfect sense. Here's the main ones:
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- It's easy-to-get B-roll: it provides you with the secondary shots you need, without the hassle and the expense of shooting them yourself or hire someone to do it. The content is there, ready to be licensed and used.
- It boosts up production value: You can add depth, visual richness and engaging power to your custom footage, merging stock clips and using various editing tricks to keep your video interesting and appealing.
- It's high quality: Stock footage is available in various image resolutions, from Web and all the way up to HD and 4K. For this reason is more than suitable for Youtube, where HD 720p format works great.
- It's flexible: Royalty Free license lets you use the licensed content in multiple projects with various purposes, forever, and without ever paying extra royalties. It's an investment that pays off.
- It's cheap: You can buy stock videos for between $10 and $400 depending on image definition, length, production value, agency and buying option. With subscriptions, you can pay less than $10 per video. This makes it the perfect fit for Youtube videos, that often need to reduce costs in order to be successful.
Find out more about Stock Footage and How to Use it to add value to your work.
So there you go. If you want to create compelling, attracting, and goal-achieving YouTube videos, stock footage is a must to be included in your productions.
