Perusing this year’s photography trends, there’s nothing to shock or delight: The woman is the hero, the product is the hero, green is the hero, the almighty buck is the hero and … the hero is the hero. It’s about what you’d expect in — yes, I’m going to say it — this economy.
1. Microstock Photography. Driven by a need for affordable, royalty-free stock photography for Web use, many brands are choosing microstock over other royalty-free and rights-managed stock photography agencies. Major stock houses are marketing photos at lower, affordable prices in hopes that designers will become enamored with the quality and move up to more expensive photos. But beware; chances are that direct competitors may be using the same image you just bought for the low, low price of $1.
2. Belief, Spiritual Heroism and Sanctuary. As outlined in this Getty Images report, the testimonial trend in portraiture is shifting to accommodate ideas around “belief,” “spiritual heroism” and “sanctuary.” Consumers are hoping to obtain a sense of control in an age of information overload.
3. Women Subjects. A different Getty Images analysis reveals that 36 percent of all advertising tear sheets picture individual women, compared to only 5 percent that picture individual men. This makes sense; women buy for themselves, their partners and their family. Additionally, women are beginning to revolutionize the image space in advertising, particularly in business imagery as companies start to develop leadership models based around female values.
4. Green. From bugs to trees, lifestyle to industry, “green” will become the default position for clients and advertisers. The trick here is not to make photography choices that are too cliché.
5. Packaging: Show, Don’t Tell. Much packaging sitting on store shelves is loaded with bullet points, copy bursts and lists of features and benefits, all of which ends up confusing the customer. Let simple, eye-catching photography show the consumer what’s in the package and, if possible, the product’s benefits. Designers can achieve this by depicting a solitary, sharply focused product on a white or colored background or by using a shot that evokes a mood or feeling about the product and that illustrates the benefit to the consumer.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images
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