Stock vs. Custom Photos: Crafting Your Brand's Visual Narrative
When it comes to branding, the choice between stock and custom photos can shape the visual narrative of your brand. Let's unravel the pros, cons, and how to find the perfect balance.
Stock photos look a lot different these days. It used to be that stock photography had a certain look about it. Overly polished, incredibly cheesy, and very limited, until a few years ago, I wouldn’t have even entertained the idea of using stock photos to represent a brand.
But times have changed, and the reality today is that in order to run an online business (or one that has any sort of digital presence), you need a significant amount of visual content. Your website, newsletters, Instagram, Pinterest, portfolio sites to showcase your work… the list goes on. And unless you have a significant budget, it’s just not always realistic to invest in custom brand photos in order to fuel the content machines.
Enter: Curated stock photography.
The photos you choose to use as a brand are just as important as any other element of your brand, working with your other elements, like your logo, type selections, and colour palette, to build your visual narrative.
Photos communicate your brand style, they help tell your brand story, and they evoke emotion and make you feel something — which are all essential pieces to your brand experience and help you connect with your community and ideal audience.
I can’t tell you how many times we work with a client on a brand design project, only to get to the point where it’s time to incorporate photo (such as the design of a website, or as part of a social media strategy), and either imagery hasn’t even been considered yet (ie. there is none), the options are… lacking (to put it kindly), or unaligned with the new brand and visual strategy we’ve built.
So then what?
Generally, we have two main options here: To create a suite of custom brand photos, or to curate a library of brand-aligned stock photo options.
Regardless, we need to start with a visual directive to ensure that the photos are aligned with the overall brand and include details such as mood, content themes, editing style, colour palette, and props (to name a few).
Once we’ve done that, I strongly believe that in an ideal world, there’s room (and reasons) to include both custom and stock photography for your brand. I don’t think it’s necessarily an either/or situation, though I strongly believe that it’s important to have at least some of your own, custom brand photos, and then you can round out your content with stock photos that fill in any gaps and help you build a more robust visual library.
Stock photos vs. Custom brand photos
Stock Photos:
Pros:
Budget-friendly: Cost-effective for businesses, especially startups.
Diverse Options: Access to a wide variety of models, styles, and scenarios.
Quick Availability: Ready-to-use for immediate needs.
Flexibility: Supports pivots and new business needs.
Global Relevance: Can cater to a global audience with diverse imagery.
Cons:
Generic Feel: Can lack a unique touch or personal connection.
Overused Imagery: Risk of using photos that competitors might also use.
Licensing Restrictions: Potential limitations on usage based on licenses.
Consistency Challenges: Harder to maintain a consistent brand image.
Relevance Issues: Might not always align with current events or cultural shifts.
Custom Brand Photos:
Pros:
Unique & Authentic: Tailored to represent the brand's identity and values.
Emotional Connection: Allows for deeper resonance with the audience.
Full Control: Complete control over style, content, and usage rights.
Cultural Sensitivity: Can be tailored for specific markets or audiences.
Timeless Value: Long-lasting assets that can be repurposed across platforms.
Cons:
Higher Costs: Requires a more significant investment.
Time-Intensive: Requires planning, shooting, and post-production.
Limited Variety: Might not offer as much diversity as stock photos.
Resource Dependency: Need for skilled photographers and possibly a team.
Frequency Limitation: Can't be updated as frequently as stock photos.
Tips to Finding a Balance:
Test and Iterate:
Consider A/B testing different images (both stock and custom) on your website or social media to see which ones resonate more with your audience. This can provide valuable insights into what your audience prefers.
Storytelling through Imagery:
Think of your brand photos as a visual story. Whether you're using stock or custom images, ensure they collectively tell a cohesive and compelling brand story, and look for images that evoke feelings and capture a mood you want your brand to emulate, not just a literal interpretation of “what you do” or what you offer.
Quality over Quantity:
It's better to have a few high-quality, brand-aligned images than a plethora of mismatched ones. Focus on quality and alignment with your brand's values and message, and set aside the time to spend searching for the right images.
Diversify Your Sources:
Don't rely solely on one stock photo website. Explore various platforms to find images that might be less commonly used and more aligned with your brand's aesthetic.
Bring in the Experts:
Hire experts to help you with your overall brand strategy and building out a visual directive, or even to curate stock photo collections for you (we do all of that!). Someone who’s immersed in the branding world will also have valuable insights and be able to determine what will resonate best.
Educate Your Team:
Ensure that everyone involved in content creation, from marketers to designers, understands the brand's visual strategy. This ensures consistency and alignment across all platforms and touchpoints.
Key Considerations:
Authenticity and Brand Perception:
How do stock photos and custom brand photos influence the perceived authenticity of a brand? Custom photos often provide a unique and genuine representation of a brand, while stock photos, if not chosen carefully, can come off as generic.
Cost vs. Value:
While stock photos might be more cost-effective in the short term, what is the long-term value of investing in custom brand photos? Custom photos can offer exclusivity and a tailored fit to your brand's narrative, potentially leading to higher engagement and trust from your audience.
Consistency in Branding:
How can you ensure consistency in your visual narrative when mixing stock photos with custom brand photos? It's essential to have a clear brand guideline that dictates the style, tone, and mood of the photos to be used.
In the digital age, the visual narrative of a brand plays a pivotal role in its connection with the audience. The choice between stock photos and custom brand photos isn't black and white; each has its merits and challenges. While stock photos offer cost-effectiveness and variety, they may sometimes lack the unique touch that custom photos bring. Custom photos, on the other hand, provide authenticity and a tailored representation of the brand, albeit at a higher investment. The key lies in striking a balance—integrating both types of photos to craft a compelling and consistent brand story. By understanding the nuances of each, brands can harness the power of imagery to resonate deeply with their audience, fostering trust, engagement, and lasting impact.
Inspired?
Looking for help with your own visual strategy, creating brand-aligned photography or sourcing a curated a collection of stock photos? We’d love to help!
And stay tuned for next week’s post and a breakdown of our favourite stock photography sources, as well as an example of how we build out a custom visual strategy using both custom and stock photo options.