For those of you who don't know, stock photographs are usually fairly general images that can be purchased and used by multiple companies/organizations in many different situations. The idea, for a photographer who creates stock photographs, is to create images that as many companies/organizations as possible will purchase the rights to use on their website or printed media. Stock photography used to be a pretty decent way for photographers to make money, but the market is pretty over-saturated now. I'll admit I did a pretty poor job of describing stock photography, but fortunately, you can search-engine it.

I hate stock photography.

I hate stock photography, and you should avoid it at all costs; especially if you're a small and/or local business. Stock photography is usually used by larger companies/organizations, but I've seen a number of smaller/local businesses use it as well. Besides stock photography being pretty bland usually, it's also almost always incredibly easy to spot. Not only is stock photography easy to identify, but, at least for me, it doesn't make me feel as connected with the company as photographs taken specifically for the company would. Stock photographs don't feature anyone from the actual company or organization that uses them, so when I, or anyone else, goes to that company's/organization's website, I'm seeing someone I'll never have any actual interaction with.

This might be just me, but I like when I go to a website and see photos of the actual employees or owner(s). This way, I not only know what to expect when I actually meet with someone from the company in person, but I feel like an actual connection has already been established. If I talk to someone from a company that uses stock photography over the phone, I have no idea who I'm actually talking to. If I talk to someone from a company that doesn't use stock photography, but has actual photos of the people involved with the company, I can look at their website and know exactly who I'm talking to. Some people might not care, but I feel this little detail can have an effect on my entire experience with the company. 

Look at Noble Choice Chiropractic's website (http://www.mynoblechoice.com/). They not only have photos of their space, but headshots of the doctors as well. If I go to Noble Choice Chiropractic, I know exactly what to expect, and I know who I'll be interacting with. I've seen so many websites that have no photos, and I have no idea who I'd be interacting with. Again, some people might not care, but it's something I like to keep any eye out for.

Stock photographs of products should also be avoided. It's easier to grab a stock photo of a product, but people looking to buy things like when they see actual photos of the product they're going to buy. I hate it when I buy something online and when it arrives, it looks nothing like what I saw online. Another thing I can stand is when I'm on Craigslist and a post has photos, but the photos are clearly pulled from the internet. I usually don't even consider contacting the seller, because there aren't any photos of the actual product; who knows what the thing they're trying to sell actually looks like?

Stock photography might be tempting because of its low cost and its easily obtainable, but it's a trap! Actual photos of you and/or your business can not only give a preview of what someone can expect, but it can also help establish a connection with your client/customer from the second they look you up on the internet. 

www.danpomykalski.com