Traditional "rights-protected" images are "rented" for a specific purpose at a specific price. They are sold by the hundreds of stock photo agencies around the world, many of whom have been in business for decades.

Royalty-free images are purchased outright and can be used any way you want. Until recently these have been sold by relative newcomers to the photo industry who are operating under the assumption that there are better ways for designers to interface with the photographic community than the traditional way.

Seems pretty simple, right? Many people think there is only one difference between rights protected stock and "royalty free": Price. (Indeed, certain royalty-free purveyors would like you to believe that.)

But there's much more to it-- and knowing the "story behind the story" is crucial.

So let's take a deeper look at each of the six fundamental differences between traditional, rights-protected imagery and royalty-free:

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