 We live in an age when almost everything can be found online. This is even more true of the resources needed for commercial art. You pay for the item – unless it’s free – click order, download, and magically there it is on your computer screen! You’re ready to design!
Following is a list of various websites which we go to often to find fonts, photographs, and illustrations that we use in designing projects to be printed. If you google any of these categories you will find hundreds more! But these are sites that we have used and found to be good, reliable sources, so we can recommend them without hesitation.
FONTS:
Computers come with lots of fonts already installed. Just because it’s installed on your computer does not mean that it’s a good font or appropriate for your project. Be choosy. The first five sites listed below offer high-quality fonts designed by professionals for use in commercial printing and graphic design. You can expect to spend anywhere from $5 for a single font up to $20-100 or more for an entire font family.
http://www.fontmarketplace.com
http://new.myfonts.com
http://www.philsfonts.com
http://www.veer.com
http://www.fonts.com
Most sites offer a “Font Preview” tool which enables you to type in your wording and see it in different fonts. You can then download a low-res image to place on your layout to decide if you really like it before purchasing the font. Very helpful!
There are many sites on the internet that offer “FREE” fonts. Please read the terms of usage for free fonts; some restrict usage to only personal use while others do not restrict usage at all. A couple of good sites that we recommend are:
www.dafont.com
www.abstractfonts.com
If you see a great font that you’d like to use but have no idea what it is, here’s a link to a great tool to help you find out the name of the font and possibly where to download/purchase it:
http://new.myfonts.com/WhatTheFont
PHOTOGRAPHS, ILLUSTRATIONS & CLIP-ART:
Whenever our kids need a photo for a school project, they just “Google” it. Hundreds of images pop up, they download one and print it out. You can’t do that for images that you intend to print commercially. Most of the free photos, illustrations and clip-art (including what’s installed on your computer) are not high enough resolution to be printed commercially. You’re probably going to have to pay for the images you will use. The good news: High-resolution, quality images can be acquired for reasonable prices. On some of the sites we’ve listed you will find “Royalty Free” images and “Rights Managed” images. Royalty Free images allow you to use the image in whatever capacity you wish and for as long as you wish, and are usually less expensive. Rights Managed images are priced depending on the usage and for a limited amount of time and tend to be more expensive.
Before you purchase any image, please read the Cover Guidelines. You must use images (photo, illustration or clip-art) that are at least 300 dpi.
www.istockphoto.com (all Royalty Free)
(high-resolution images $5-$20)
www.dreamstime.com
(high-resolution images as little as $3)
www.mediabakery.com
(high-resolution images from $5-$150+)
www.veer.com
(high-resolution images vary)
www.gettyimages.com
(high-resolutions images vary)
DIGITAL SCRAPBOOKING:
This is a field that is exploding in popularity, and there are a lot of talented designers contributing to these sites. Digital scrapbooking sites sell inexpensive digital papers, frames, embellishments, fonts and Photoshop™ brushes that are designed for scrapbooking but are also very useful for graphic design.
If you will be selling your cookbook, read the Terms of Usage carefully, and expect to pay a little more for the “Commercial License” products you will need to purchase. Even if you’re purchasing a “Commercial License” product, or if the product claims to be “Scrap for Hire,” read the Terms of Usage carefully. If you have questions, email the company directly before purchasing products. Most commercial license products are still under $20, so they are very reasonably priced. There are many sites out there, following are several sites that we have used and would recommend:
www.theshabbyshoppe.com
www.scrapgirls.com
www.scrapbook-elements.com
www.sweetshoppedesigns.com
Need help? Contact one of our Cookbook Specialists at 1-800-227-7282 or email us at info@cookbookpublishers.com.
How’s this for a design resource? For a limited time, you can design your own Damask cover! Download the Design Your Damask order form for more information.
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