An image for your cover, such as stock photos

Finding a good image for your cover

The first thing a reader sees when looking at your thesis is the cover. That’s why you want it to look good, appeal to a potential reader and reflect something of the content. At Persoonlijk Proefschrift, we come across a wide variety of covers – from nature photographs taken by the authors themselves to scanned children’s drawings. In every case, there’s a story behind it, and we’ve noticed that PhD candidates like to add a fun or surprising touch to their cover.

In this article, we discuss the ways in which you can find a good image for your cover. For inspiration, you can visit our website to see a number of examples.

What are the requirements for an image to be used on the cover of my thesis?

The most important factor is the quality of the image. This is determined by the resolution, which must be at least 300 dpi. If it is lower than this, you will see this in the final print in the form of pixels.

If you want to use a painting, drawing or something similar, it’s best to scan it; during the scanning process, you can choose the resolution at which you want to scan the image. The average consumer scanner easily achieves this quality. Of course, not every painting will fit in your scanner, so the alternative is to take a photo of it yourself. For all photos, resolution isn’t really an issue; even many mobile phones nowadays easily achieve 300 dpi. What matters is the exposure and the way the photo is taken. Pay attention to the framing and ensure the subject is well lit.

Don’t forget that your cover is twice the size of the front page. It includes a spine and a back cover, which may affect the image you choose.

Stock photos

The options listed above are not always available. Fortunately, there are large databases full of high-quality images that can help you find a suitable one. These are known as stock photos.

What is a stock photo?

A stock photo is a photograph that a photographer sells through a stock agency (image bank). The photo is not exclusive and can be purchased by different people. If you buy a stock photo, you are permitted to use it subject to certain conditions. The conditions depend on the intended use and vary from one image bank to another. For your thesis, you can assume that you are permitted to use all stock photos. The licence terms often change if you wish to use the image for commercial purposes. Of course, always check the terms and conditions before purchasing a photo.

Websites where you can find stock photos

There are a huge number of image banks; below, we highlight three of them, one of which offers free images.

Shutterstock

Shutterstock is the largest stock photo website, with over 131,000,000 royalty-free images. The search function works well and the images are neatly categorised.

Payment

At Shutterstock, private individuals must take out a subscription. This comprises a minimum of 5 images and is valid for a limited period. Even a single image therefore costs €49. At the bottom of the page, you can read about options for purchasing a single image from Shutterstock via us, which works out cheaper for you.

Freepik (premium)

Freepik is similar to Shutterstock but focuses more on icons and other graphic images.

Payment

As the name suggests, many images are free. If an image has a little gold crown on it, it is a premium image. Freepik also operates on a subscription model. Further down this page, you can read how to purchase these images through us. The big advantage of Freepik is that, for a single fee, you can use and combine an unlimited number of images.

Adobe Stock

Just like on Shutterstock, you can search by category here, but also by image type (photos, illustrations or vectors).

Payment

With Adobe Stock, you can take out a subscription or pay using ’credits’. A good-quality photo costs 1 credit, but you must purchase at least 5 credits. A photo therefore costs at least €39, excluding VAT. At the bottom of this page, you can find out how much a photo costs through us.

Unsplash

Searching on Unsplash is a bit trickier, but the atmosphere of the images is really good. On Shutterstock and Fotolia, you’ll find lots of ‘standard’ stock photos with a very commercial feel; on Unsplash, you have to search a bit longer but you’ll come across some unique images.

Payment 

Unsplash is free.

Personal Thesis and stock photos

We have a number of subscriptions to various stock photo websites. If you need a photo and you’re having us take care of the layout, you can order it through us at a competitive price (€25 per image). Would you like to use something from Freepik Premium? For €25, you can use as many images as you like.