Serious question, why are so many brands still using the same tired stock photos?

I just reviewed a new campaign for a tech client and three of their main images were the same generic 'woman laughing at salad' shots I saw on a different site last month. This makes the whole brand feel cheap and forgettable, not premium like they want. Has anyone found a good source for real looking photos that don't break the bank?

3 comments

3 Comments

lucasw821mo agoMost Upvoted

Isn't it just pure laziness? I see this all the time with local business sites, the same handshake photo or people in hard hats pointing at nothing. It makes everything look fake. I'd rather see a slightly blurry photo of a real team member than another stock model pretending to love spreadsheets. For my own small projects, I've had decent luck just searching for "documentary style" photos on some of the free stock sites, you have to dig but the less polished ones are there.

the_faith23d ago

emmawood mentions "building a real visual library" which sounds nice but honestly it's not realistic for smaller brands who don't have a budget for a half day shoot. You CAN get unique looks from stock sites if you search for "authentic" or "behind the scenes" instead of the usual corporate keywords. The REAL trick is to filter by newest uploads so you get photos nobody else has used yet.

emmawood1mo ago

Honestly, it's not just laziness, it's a total lack of vision. Lucas is right about digging for the less polished stuff, but you have to go a step further and actually build a real visual library for your brand. That means taking your own photos on a phone, even if they're simple, or commissioning a local photographer for a half day shoot to get something truly yours. Relying on any stock site, even the good ones, means you'll always look like everyone else who typed the same search words. The goal should be making people feel something real, not just filling a blank space with a person who looks happy.