Doulas can find legal, low-cost photos on free sites like Pexels, Unsplash, Pixabay, Nappy, and Canva, buy birth-specific images from a birth stock photo library, or license photos from a birth photographer. AI-made images work too, as long as they never pretend to show a real client or a real birth. Check the license on every image before you use it.

Key Takeaways

• A photo you find on Google, Pinterest, or in training materials is not yours to use. Use images from a site that grants a commercial license, or images you have written permission to use.
• Free stock sites cover lifestyle, parenting, and wellness shots well. Images that show actual labor and birth support usually cost money.
• Photos you take of clients need written, opt-in permission that says where the image will appear, and the client can take that permission back.
• A client buying their birth photography gallery does not give you the right to use those images. You license them from the photographer, with the client’s written OK.
• AI images are fine for backgrounds, objects, and graphics, but never present one as a real client, birth, or testimonial. Under current U.S. Copyright Office guidance, a purely AI-made image can’t be copyrighted.

Let’s talk about photos. Whether you’re making a flyer, building your website, or putting together client guides, you need visuals that look like your work and the families you serve. What most new doulas don’t realize is that not every photo you find online is okay to use.

Can I use any photo I find online?

No. Screenshots from training materials and images saved from Pinterest can get you into real legal trouble. Under U.S. law, copyright protects a photo as soon as it’s taken, so the photographer owns it whether or not there’s a © anywhere on it.

The safe sources are the ones below: sites that grant you a license, photos you have permission to use, and images you make yourself.

What are the best free photo sites for doulas?

These sites offer high-quality photos you can use for free. They aren’t birth-specific, but they’re great for lifestyle, parenting, wellness, and background images.

• Pexels: Great for emotional, moody, or soft-toned images.
• Unsplash: High-res, modern photography that feels natural and unposed.
• Pixabay: Photos, plus illustrations and video clips.
• Burst by Shopify: Free photos aimed at small business owners. Shopify has stopped adding new images, but the existing library is still there to use.
• Nappy: Beautiful images featuring Black people and families. Excellent for inclusive visuals.
• Canva: A large free set of images and video clips inside the design tool you may already use. The paid version adds far more, at a low monthly cost.

Most of these are free for commercial use, but read each site’s license. Pexels’ license, for example, says you can’t show identifiable people in a bad light or suggest they endorse your business.

Where can I find inclusive photos that look like my clients?

Your clients come in every skin tone, body size, age, family structure, and ability, and your photos should too. A few libraries were built for exactly this:

• Nappy: Free images centered on Black people and families.
• CreateHER Stock: A paid membership library of images featuring Black women, with a wellness gallery.
• Disabled And Here: A disability-led stock image series from Affect the Verb featuring disabled Black, Indigenous, and people of color. Check the use terms before you download.

On the big free sites, search for specifics instead of “pregnant woman.” Try “Black family newborn,” “parent in wheelchair with baby,” “same-sex parents newborn,” or “older parents with baby.” You’ll get far better results.

Where can I buy birth and doula photos?

If you’re ready to pay for images that show births, newborn snuggles, or doulas at work, these sources are more targeted:

• Jillian Brand Creative: Birth stock photos made for doulas, midwives, lactation consultants, and educators, with more than 3,000 images of pregnancy, labor support, feeding, postpartum, and newborns. A single image is $15, a 10-image collection you choose is $99, and a monthly membership gives you ongoing access to the full library.
• Stocksy: Higher-end stock photography with strong pregnancy and birth collections, priced per image.
• DepositPhotos on AppSumo: AppSumo sells DepositPhotos credit codes that never expire. One code was $49 when I checked in November 2026, which is far cheaper than paying per image elsewhere.
• Videos for Doula Business: If you want relatable, inclusive videos to use in your content, client education, or classes, these are ready to use and reflect the real families you support.

Can I use photos I take of my own clients?

Yes, but do it legally and ethically. If you take a photo during a birth, a postpartum visit, or even a childbirth class, you need written permission. That means opt-in photo language in your client agreement. Opt in means the client actively says yes, by checking a box or initialing. A box they never checked, or silence, is a no. Never make photos the default and expect clients to opt out.

That permission should include:

• A clear description of how the photo will be used (social media, print, website)
• A choice to say yes, no, or limit where it appears
• A reminder that consent can be taken back at any time

When in doubt, don’t post. When you do share, add a watermark or subtle branding so your original work stays yours.

Can I buy photos from my client’s birth photographer?

Often, yes, and it’s one of the best ways to get real photos of you at work. If a client hired a birth photographer and you appear in the photos, follow these steps:

• Get the client’s written permission for the image to be shared. That’s non-negotiable.
• Ask the photographer whether they’re open to licensing specific images of you for your business.
• Expect to pay for that use. Even if the client bought the full gallery, that doesn’t give you the right to use the images for your business.

Some photographers also sell model-released stock photos. These may not show you, but they’re real, birth-focused, and cleared for marketing.

And a gentle reminder: don’t ask photographers to send you photos for free. Like doulas, birth photographers deserve to be paid for their work, and respecting that keeps relationships in the birth community strong.

Can doulas use AI-generated images?

Yes, with limits. I’ve tried a few tools: ChatGPT, Canva, and Claude Design. I mainly use them as a starting point, then build a social media template and tweak it from there.

There are real benefits when you use them ethically. An AI image is not a real client, so you don’t need anyone’s permission or a photo release. You can also make exactly the scene you need, like a cozy room with a birth ball and soft lighting, in your brand colors.

Where AI images work well:

• Backgrounds and textures for quote graphics, class flyers, and blog headers
• Objects and settings: a packed birth bag, a postpartum tea tray, a rocking chair by a window
• A first draft of a layout that you turn into a reusable social media template
• Illustrations that clearly read as illustrations

Where I draw the line:

• Never pass an AI image off as a real client, a real birth, or a testimonial photo. A made-up “client” next to a real review misleads the families you want to trust you.
• Skip realistic AI images of labor, medical care, or feeding. These tools still get hands, bodies, babies, and medical equipment wrong, and parents and nurses notice.
• Don’t make images that look like a real person, including another doula, a public figure, or a past client.
• Label it when it could pass for a photo. Meta asks people to label AI-made content they post on Facebook and Instagram and may add its own “AI info” label. A short “image created with AI” in your caption keeps your trust intact.

Who owns an AI image? The tools themselves let you use what you make commercially. Canva says you own what you create with its AI image tool, though you may not have exclusive rights. Copyright is a different question. In its January 2025 report on AI and copyrightability, the U.S. Copyright Office said prompts alone don’t make you the author, so a purely AI-made image can’t be copyrighted. Someone else can use a near-identical image and you can’t stop them. The text, layout, and edits you add on top can still be yours.

If you want a tool that leans toward commercial safety, Adobe says its Firefly image generator is trained on licensed and public-domain content.

What should I know about copyright before I post?

Even if an image is easy to grab, using it without permission can violate U.S. copyright law. If you’re unfamiliar with how it works, take a few minutes with Copyright.gov’s plain-language overview. It’s worth the read.

Keep a simple record of where each image came from and its license, like a note in the file name or a spreadsheet. If anyone ever asks, you can answer in a minute.

Frequently Asked Questions

My client said yes to photos out loud. Is that enough?
Get it in writing before you post. A yes in the happy blur after a birth is easy to forget or regret, and written consent shows exactly what they agreed to and where. If they change their mind later, take the photo down.

Do I need to credit free stock photos?
Pexels and Unsplash don’t require credit, though photographers appreciate it. Other libraries and Creative Commons images can require a credit line, so check each license before you post.

A client posted a birth photo and tagged me. Can I share it on my business page?
A tag isn’t permission. Ask the client in writing whether you can share it and where, and ask who took the photo, because a hired photographer may own it even though the client posted it.

Can I edit a stock photo, like adding text or changing the colors?
Usually yes, since most free and paid licenses allow edits. Check the license for limits on using a photo in a logo or selling the image itself, such as on a printed product.

Should I tell people when an image is AI-made?
Yes, whenever it could be mistaken for a real photo. A short note in the caption or alt text keeps families’ trust, and on Facebook and Instagram, Meta may label it for you anyway.

What’s the most affordable way to get real photos of me at a birth?
Start with clients who already hired a birth photographer. Get the client’s written OK, then ask the photographer about licensing a few images of you.

You deserve great visuals and legal peace of mind

Your business deserves professional visuals, and you don’t need to cut corners to get them. With a few solid sources, clear client permission, and some smart habits (like watermarking and reading the fine print), you can create beautiful, ethical content that reflects your work and values.

If you are setting up your practice, my doula business setup guide walks through every step in order, from your business name to your first-year budget.

And if you want help putting these images to work in your marketing, come hang out in the Doula Mentoring Collective. Bring your graphics and questions to Doula Office Hours, the weekly live Q&A inside the membership.

Photo © Kayla Gray