Adobe announced a whole slew of updates lately, and one of the biggest announcements was a service called Adobe Stock. Stock is (as you may have guessed from the name) a stock photo option that didn’t exist before, and might just lure you to Adobe’s site if you are searching for Stock photos. Here’s how it all works.

Using Adobe STOCK

Using Adobe’s new Stock is simpler than most other stock sites. To select a Stock image, all you have to do is choose that image, which really isn’t unique. What’s different is that the image is placed in Adobe’s app library. So, you don’t have to download the image and then import them to Adobe’s app (or elsewhere). This will save a lot of time and space for those people that are constantly downloading photos.

You can also edit any photos that you see in Stock. Adobe has made it possible to edit all images in low resolution, so that you can see what an image will look like with your edits before you purchase it. After you purchase an image, Adobe will automatically apply all of the edits that you made previously. Since this is Adobe, the Stock option is not a free one, but it may just stack up well to all the other paid stock services regardless.

Paying for Stock

Adobe has set up a few different payment options if you want to use Stock. You can purchase one single image for $9.99. Or, you can choose one of two payment plans. The first includes 10 images per month for $49. The other option is to choose 750 images per month for $199. Which plan is better for you really depends on how many photos you choose and use from stock sites per month, but if you do use more than three photos per month, the one-time $9.99 fee isn’t worth it.

If you happen to be a Creative Cloud subscriber, you can also choose a third Stock option. For $29 per month, you can get the 10 downloads per month deal. But, you do have to subscribe to Creative Cloud first, and that means paying an extra fee. So which plan is the best one for you? If you already use Creative Cloud, choosing the $29 per month plan is a no-brainer.

But if you use another stock service, it might be worth checking out what Adobe has to offer through low resolution editing options before buying into a plan. If you don’t use your images this year (but you pay for a package), they will roll over into next year, so that’s something to keep in mind as well.

A Good Move for Adobe

Moving into stock territory is a good idea for Adobe. The company reports that 85% of the people that purchase stock images already use Adobe apps, so the segway into offering up stock photo options is a logical step for the company.

It also helps that most people dabbling with images either professionally or personally know the Adobe name. So if you’re looking for another stock photo site that might be a good deal depending on how often you download stock images, check out Adobe’s new STOCK option.