5 Video Clip Sources

A video should move. Lights, camera, action! Whether you're making a video for fun or for business, action--movement--should be part of it.

Nothing makes a book trailer or a video move better than video clips.

If you're using a website like Animoto and similar sites, they usually have a Video Clip library for registered users. Too often though, the clips just don't fit with the message you're creating in your video. That's when you need to find another source for video clips.

There are many royalty-free video clip websites, but make sure you read the License the site offers. You want the license for "personal and commercial use" or at least "personal and small commercial use" so read their Terms of Service and License. Many sites--especially those that offer free or low-cost video clips--restrict the license to personal.

Here are 5 Video Clip Sources, some of my favorite go-to resources that make their clips available for personal and commercial use.

VideoBlocks

VideoBlocks is one of the least expensive sources for video clips. They have over 21 million video clips. In the last 24 hours, more than 36,000 video clips were uploaded. Whoa! Now that's a lot of video footage. Not only can you download video clips, you can also download audio tracks if you have an account there. I've done both.

The easiest way, once you register for an account, is to sign up for email notices. You'll get 1 or 2 emails every 24 hour period with a list of the video clips that have been uploaded. Scroll down the list. If a title is something you think you might want now or in the future, click on it, go to the website to preview it. Either add it to a Project Bin or download it right then. They have a pretty good browser to help you find video by keyword search too.

When you first go to the website, a popup will give you a special free 7 day offer so you can try it before you buy it. If you want to go ahead and subscribe, it's $99.00 for the entire year.

Pond5 Stock Footage

This video clips site has an excellent search engine where you can use keywords like LOVE to search for clips. You can filter your search results by price. Since they don't offer an unlimited download plan like VideoBlocks, filtering by price is great. Their video clips range from FREE to hundreds of dollars. If you like a la carte purchasing, this is a good source.

Pond5 offers Video, Photo, Illustrations, Music, Sound Effects, After Effects, and 3D. Their FAQ explains all. Sign up for a free account and for their emails because they offer a free video to each week. Just select it and add it to your cart. Checkout is for -0- dollars.

iStockPhoto

In addition to Photos, Illustrations, and Music, iStockPhoto also offers video. Their subscription plans are priced for professionals. For most users, payment by credit packs is probably preferred. Their credit packs start at $20.00 US. Set up a free account and sign up for their email notices because they offer free files each week--photo, illustration, audio, and often, video.

MotionElements Stock Footage

This website's name says it all--Motion. That's what they offer in many different forms. Prices range from low to high. Their credit pack starts at $50.00 US for 50 credits. But, they too offer free video clips each week, and they're really good. So get that free account and sign up for their emails.

VidsPlay

Free! Really, the stock video clips here are free to download and use for personal or commercial. They just have limited inventory compared to other sites. To download from VidsPlay, right click on the Download link.

Takeaway Truth

Motion makes a video more compelling which makes it more viewable.