Wildlife Reference Photos You Can Paint From and Sell

Can I sell a painting made from these photos?

Yes. When you buy a pack, you can use the photos as reference for your own artwork, and that artwork is yours. You can sell the original painting, sell prints of your painting, enter it in an exhibition or use it in a book. The license covers unlimited projects, never expires and is royalty-free, so you pay once and owe nothing more when the painting sells.

Two things are not allowed with any license:

• Reselling the packs or the photos, in whole or in part.
• Sharing a pack bought on an Individual license with a business or storing it on company servers.

Painting from a photo is not the same as printing the photo

The question above is about your painting. A different question is whether you can put the photo itself on a product, for example on a poster, a mug or an advertisement. That depends on the pack's content type, which is shown on every product page:

• Commercial content can be used for nearly any purpose. The exceptions are logos and trademarks, and pornographic, obscene or libellous work.
• Editorial content can be used as reference for your art, but its images cannot be reproduced in advertising, promotion or products for resale.
• Mixed packs keep their editorial-only photos in a separate Editorial folder.

If you only paint from the photos, this difference does not affect you. It matters if you plan to use the photo itself, for example as a background in a printed product.

Why a named photographer matters

A photo from an image search usually has no clear owner. You do not know who took it or whether you may use it. Every Fotoref pack lists the contributor who photographed it, along with the camera and, where known, the location. Contributors upload their own photo sets and earn 80% of every sale. When you paint from a Fotoref pack, you know where the reference came from and that the photographer was paid.

What makes a good painting reference

Wildlife painters need more than a sharp portrait. They need light, texture and a choice of poses.

• Light. Zebras was shot in overcast, daytime and sunset light, across 162 photos.
• Texture. Australian Pelican has extreme close-ups of feathers, feet, beak and head. Tigers includes close-ups and movement sequences at 6000 × 4000.
• Pose choice. Macaque Monkeys has 424 photos of monkeys running, climbing, eating and resting, taken at the Ubud Monkey Forest in Bali. You can choose the pose that suits your composition.
• Wild subjects. Saltwater Crocodiles in Wild has 136 photos of males, females and babies in Queensland. The largest crocodile is about 3 meters long. Kea Alpine Parrot has 86 photos of this endangered parrot at Arthur's Pass in New Zealand, including eye-level close-ups.

For birds, see our bird reference photos. For large animals, see safari animal reference.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sell prints of my painting?

Yes. Prints of your own painting are your artwork, so you can sell them. The content type only matters if you want to print the original photo itself.

Do the photos have to be used only once?

No. Every license covers unlimited projects. You can paint the same animal many times, in different styles, and use one pack for a whole series.

My art competition has rules about reference photos. Is a Fotoref pack allowed?

Competitions set their own rules, so read them carefully. Some require you to use only your own photos. Fotoref's license gives you the right to use the photos as reference for your artwork, and each pack names the photographer, which helps if the organizers ask where your reference came from.

I run a small art business with assistants. Which license do I need?

An Individual license is for one person, such as a freelancer, hobbyist or student. It does not cover a business or association, even one you own, and the files cannot be stored on company servers. If an organisation with an art team of up to 10 people will use the files, choose Small Studio. For larger teams, choose Large Studio.