How would you make stock photography not suck?

[Ryan Freed]

The past year after working with and speaking to many web designers I have noticed a common problem. Agencies and freelancers use a lot of stock photography. However, it is very difficult for them to find the right photo so they have to conduct photo shoots.

I have also been looking through stock photography sites to find images for some websites I was involved in and have had very little success. These two scenarios led me to want to build something better than the current option.


I would love to hear what good and bad experiences you have had with using stock sites to search for photos. All feedback will help create a business that will be a better alternative.

[Overlord]

I have never made some stock photos,but I have some experience in Photoshop.I would add some lightening,or gradients...some filters...everything depends...

[Ryan Freed]

Thank you for the input. Have you ever used stock photos from websites such as Istock, Shutterstock, Fotolio, etc?

I have come across a lot of designers that have as well as myself and was wondering what your good and bad experiences are with it.

[George Dolidze]

Well, I can never seem to find specifically what I'm looking for, so the priority would be to increase the range of photos you have. Might want to shoot some yourself, and put them up

[Overlord]

I don't think that I will need some stock photo for designing a web site,but if I do,I have a friend that's an amateur photographer so he will take care of that for me

[Ryan Freed]

Well, I can never seem to find specifically what I'm looking for, so the priority would be to increase the range of photos you have. Might want to shoot some yourself, and put them up

So, you are saying that by not being able to find what you are looking for, you can't find photos that are specific enough?

[George Dolidze]

So, you are saying that by not being able to find what you are looking for, you can't find photos that are specific enough?

Yes, exactly.

[AlphaMare]

The past year after working with and speaking to many web designers I have noticed a common problem. Agencies and freelancers use a lot of stock photography. However, it is very difficult for them to find the right photo so they have to conduct photo shoots.

I have also been looking through stock photography sites to find images for some websites I was involved in and have had very little success. These two scenarios led me to want to build something better than the current option.

I would love to hear what good and bad experiences you have had with using stock sites to search for photos. All feedback will help create a business that will be a better alternative.

I'd like to see:

• some stock photos with real-looking people on them. All the shiny pretty people using computers and doing other stuff are great for some uses, but it would be nice to have some images of people and settings that folks in the real world can relate to. (e.g. a Mom sitting at a kitchen table with a computer while pots are on the stove behind her...)
• more images with transparent backgrounds - png - so they can be superimposed on a site with some other background interest.

[George Dolidze]

Yeah, forgot to mention the PNGs. Thet seem to be really rare in stock, but are used on websites a lot.

[Ryan Freed]

I'd like to see:

• some stock photos with real-looking people on them. All the shiny pretty people using computers and doing other stuff are great for some uses, but it would be nice to have some images of people and settings that folks in the real world can relate to. (e.g. a Mom sitting at a kitchen table with a computer while pots are on the stove behind her...)
• more images with transparent backgrounds - png - so they can be superimposed on a site with some other background interest.

I definitely agree with your first point. Can you clarify further on the second point.

My understanding is that photography's backgrounds are usually set. Transparent backgrounds are usually applicable for buttons and other icons. The question I am asking is for photography, would you still want this as a PNG file?