Having spent many years as a photographer and commercial image producer, I understand how important strong, consistent imagery is to your overall branding. Your images touch every corner of your brand, from your website, social media platforms, print collateral and emails.
Whenever possible, I always recommend hiring a professional photographer for a personal branding session, photoshoot at your office or work place or your product photography. But sometimes when you are just starting out, you might not have the budget to explore this avenue or might require some more generic, decorative imagery to fill any gaps.
This is where good quality stock images can assist you to build your visual content. Modern, boutique stock image libraries have come a long way in the last few years, moving from cheesy, over-posed and dated photography to natural, beautiful style images to complement any branding. These modern stock image libraries tend to come in the following formats: memberships, pay per download or free. Whilst the free libraries I list below have some brilliant photography by very talented photographers, it can be hard to find enough imagery to build a consistent look and there is a chance they have been overused in your industry. Joining a membership is well worth the investment to build your visual assets.
Here are some of my favourite stock image libraries;
Stock Image Memberships
Haute Stock – VISIT WEBSITE
Haute Stock is a premium stock photography subscription that offers an elevated experience to women entrepreneurs through carefully curated, beautifully produced, editorial quality images and design assets that will help build their brands and take their businesses to the next level.
Colour Joy – VISIT WEBSITE
Created by photographer, Christina Jones, Color Joy offers unique and diverse stock imagery of women. Color Joy is a lifestyle and business stock photo membership for brands who want to connect with their community through the images they use.
Pay Per Download
Moyo Studio – VISIT WEBSITE
Moyo Studio is a pay per download stock photography library where you can purchase entire, beautifully styled collections of images.
Free Stock Images
Pexels – VISIT WEBSITE
Pexels is my favourite free stock image library due the dynamic display of the their images in order of colour on their home page. It makes it easy to find photos in a certain colour palette as well as a powerful search tool that makes finding photos a breeze.
Unsplash – VISIT WEBSITE
With over 2 million free images contributed by a generous community of both amateur and professional photographers, Unsplash has something to suit all tastes and styles.
