Stock Photography or not?!?

I'm not totally against stock photography. A lot of assignment and commissioned photographers are, though. I understand why. We are trying to create a five star dining experience, and along comes stock photography with its fast food prices (and in most cases, fast food quality).

But, stock DOES have its place in the photo world, just as McDonalds has its place in the food service industry. And, there are many parallels between fast, cheap photos and fast, cheap food. You buy them both out of convenience... out of necessity... as filler.

When to buy stock images:

1. When you just don't have enough time to hire a photographer to do a shoot. You can usually find an acceptable stock image after an hour or two of searching. To hire a photographer and get an image knocked out would be really hard to do in the same amount of time. Most shoots are set up a couple days to a couple months in advance (depending on how involved/complex they are).

2. When you simply don't have the budget to hire a photographer. To commission a photographer, you'll spend a few hundred dollars to a few thousands dollars to hundreds of thousands of dollars, depending on the image and your licensing needs. To license a stock image, it could be as cheap as a dollar. Many images are under a couple hundred. Sure, stock images can sometimes cost thousands or more, depending on licensing needs, but the average person rarely spends that kind of cash.

3. When the project is low priority, a mock-up or a throw-away piece. Sure, every project should be a work of art, but reality doesn't allow that. Stock images come in handy for designing mock-ups for clients or roughing in a design before the "real" image is shot. Or, for projects that are hidden at the very back of a website... Some projects just aren't important enough for the extra cost and effort.

With that said, every priority should be taken to get original, unique images for your projects. Stock usually looks "stock" and feels bland and average. A custom pic can be shot to your specific needs, and made to fit your message perfectly. If the project is important enough, it deserves a unique image.