Q & A with Amanda – Inspiration Boards

How to creative and properly credit inspiration boards

Q: “I was wondering if I could get some advice from you on Inspiration boards. I get a lot of people asking what my style is like and because I have no photos yet to show them it’s hard to reel them in and to stick with me. I have wanted to do inspiration boards for awhile but not sure how I go about doing them without getting into a whole lot of trouble! What is the best way to get photos for an inspiration board? Is it best to just do a creative commons google search and use the ones labeled for reuse and then credit the photographer? I keep hearing horror stories of people getting into trouble even after they credit the photographer so I’m just a little weary on doing a board. (And stock photos just don’t cut it!)”

Source

A: Inspiration boards are a ton of fun! They’re a great way to show off how you can mix colours, textures and how you can create a colour palette from interesting colours that to the untrained eye might not otherwise go together.

When I’m creating inspiration boards I usually only do so for in office use, and not for online sharing (e.g. I’m creating for my clients and to show them a design board for their event). In that case it can be a lot easier and simpler but if you’re using them online, on your site or Facebook page or posting them in Instagram that is tricky.

I would suggest starting with blog posts and create some really fun inspiration boards that way. There are many different programs you can use for creation but I keep it simple and use Power Point. Unless you have InDesign or another fun program this is a great simple tool to get you started.

Collect all your photos, the links and start creating. Number your photos and below the post make a legend. Go number by number and credit and link back. Then if you want to use the completed inspiration board somewhere else on your site credit back or have it click through to the detailed credited blog post.

If someone comes along and doesn’t want a photo used you, out of courtesy, should take it down. In the 9 years I’ve been event planning and designing I’ve only had two people ask me to take a photo down (and that was when I was new and didn’t credit back properly. Mainly because I didn’t know how to use or create a hyperlink!).

All the best in your inspiration board designing. Be sure to post and show us your creations!

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