Every good youth minister has occasional need for the fresh stock photo, desktop wallpaper image, or worship background. And since clip art went out of style with parachute pants the need for quality images for newsletters, promos, and the like is never ending. Here are my recommendations for finding the best (cheap or free) images available on the web:

iStockphoto: The hands-down leader in high-quality, low-cost imagery. Hundreds of thousands of images are available for between $1 and $5 per image. You can quickly open an accoun, buy some credits, and use them when you need them for image purchases. I use iStockphoto endlessly for youth ministry publications as well as professional products. You’ll see a ton of iStockphoto imagery running around on my design page.

Stock.Xchng: When you need cheap, there’s no better price than free, and that’s what Stock.Xchng boasts. Although the collection is more limited than iStockphoto, the quality is excellent. This is one of the best kept secrets on the web. I’ve been using them for years to grab worship backgrounds in no time flat.

InterfaceLIFT: Tired of cheesy computer wallpaper? Then check out InterfaceLIFT which sports an abundant collection of amazing photos. They’re free, and this is a great resource for Powerpoint backgrounds, nature images, and more. (Props to pomomusings for this one.)