I'm a self-employed graphic designer and buy stock regularly, here's where I go in order of preference
1. Dreamstime (for photos)
2. iStock (for photos)
3. Vectorstock (for vector illustration)
4. everywhere else!

I'll spend up to 30 minutes and try 1-5 places before I buy, any more than that and it's not a good use of my time. I only buy using credits which I purchase as needed and bill back to my client on the project. I'll spend from ~$10 to the hundreds that rights managed sites charge for the right image, I never search photographer's direct sites.

What I bought in 2014 is in the attached image.

I�m a graphic designer working in print and internet. I�ve been employed in graphic design for 36 years. I�ve worked at companies, had my own company with staff and am now a solo shop. I buy RF photos for ads, brochures and websites. I thought this community would find where I bought photos in 2014 interesting.

I have accounts at most of the online services, I typically use iStock, Dreamstime and Vectorstock, the Corbis purchase was because a client requested a specific image. I do check prices across agencies as an image can sometimes be found on multiple sites at different prices. I seek a balance between finding the right image quickly and price.

I buy credits rather than subscriptions since I then only pay for what I use. The Dreamstime subscription was a 30-day free trial, which I cancelled after the free part.

When I need an image I�m first looking for one that conveys the message for my project. I expect a photo to be in sharp focus, not overly sharpened in Photoshop, if people are in it they need to be model-released and have current dress and hair.

Vector purchases are usually modified from the original for my project, it�s more cost effective to buy an illustration of something and change the parts I need to than draw it myself.

Hope you find this helpful!