Creating a strong first impression with your web design is a crucial factor in making or breaking a customer relationship. One vital element of this is your choice of imagery. Many businesses don’t have the resources to source their own original imagery. In this case, using stock imagery can be the preferred option. If you go down this route, there are certain factors that need to be carefully considered. Here are some top tips for using stock imagery in your web design.
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Why use stock imagery in your web design?
Using stock imagery in your design can be a good decision, especially if you struggle with or cannot use original images. Here are some of the reasons why many businesses opt to use stock imagery in their web design:
Time-Saving & convenient
One reason why stock images are so popular is because they are readily available. This means you don’t have to spend too much time planning, taking, and editing original photos. This speeds up the design process, especially helpful for tight deadlines or Minimum Viable Products (MVPs).
Cost-effective
Using stock imagery can also be a much more cost-effective option for businesses with a limited budget. Hiring a photographer or creating custom graphics can be expensive. Stock photos offer high-quality visuals at a fraction of the cost, or for free from sites like Unsplash or Pexels.
Professional quality
Nowadays, most stock imagery can also provide you with professional quality images. Stock libraries offer curated, high-res images taken by skilled photographers or designers. Using these in your design can improve your site’s aesthetic and originality.
Wide variety
There’s no end to the variety of images you can get from stock imagery. Whether you need a picture of an animal, a mountain sunset, or a close-up of a handshake, you can usually find one. There’s a stock photo for almost anything you can imagine across various styles and themes.
Great for prototyping & wireframing
One more reason to consider using stock imagery in your web design is that it’s a great choice for prototyping and wireframing. Stock images work well as placeholders or mock content when pitching a concept or building early designs, helping to better visualise what the final design will look like.
What are the top tips for using stock imagery in your web design?
Choosing the right stock imagery for your website is crucial for ensuring relevance, conveying the right message, and improving your brand reputation. If you are looking to choose stock imagery, here are some factors to consider.
Choose relevant images
An important factor when using stock imagery in your design is ensuring the images are relevant to your business and content. Any images you choose should enhance the page and written content, not replace or work against it.
Choosing unrelated images will only confuse users on your site and send the wrong message. The same is true for your brand and brand perception. Your visuals should align with the topic at hand and help reinforce your message.
Consider what your audience expects to see. The right use of stock imagery can help to make your content more engaging, while also adding credibility and context. The most important thing is not to include images just for the sake of filling a blank space.
Check the license
Despite many people believing stock imagery is free to use anywhere, this is not necessarily the case. Depending on the source, you will have to buy a license to use certain stock images on your site. Checking the license first helps you avoid copyright issues on images not licensed for commercial use.
When it comes to checking the license of stock images, there are three main types:
- Free – these are images that you can freely download and use as many times as you like without any necessary attribution requires.
- Royalty-Free – these are typically images for which you can pay a one-time fee which then allows you to use the image multiple times without paying any additional cost (royalty fees). In some cases, you may be required to attribute the creator.
- Rights Managed – this refers to any images that are copyrighted but can allow a user to purchase a copyright license. This allows for a one-time use of the photo as specific to the license.
- Extended License – an extended license for stock imagery allows you to use images across a wide range of uses but without restrictions on budget or print reproductions.
Each image will include specific license details, usually listed directly beneath or alongside the image. Make sure you review this information carefully before deciding. Understanding the license terms will ensure you know exactly how the image can and cannot be used in your web design projects.
Avoid choosing cliché or generic images
Stock images are accessible to everyone, including your competitors. That’s why it’s important to choose your stock images wisely. I’m sure we’ve all seen the same overused images that will only make your website feel generic.
To stand out, do your research and dig deeper than the top search results. A unique and thoughtful selection of visuals helps maintain your brand’s authenticity. This ensures your website stands out from the competition and provides a more unique experience to users.
Edit or modify the images
One of the good things about choosing stock images for your web design is that you don’t have to use them as they are. In most cases, you have permission to edit or change the image to make them feel more original and relevant.
However, it’s important that you first check the terms of a stock image. In some cases, you may not be allowed to modify a stock image or there may be restrictions on how you can modify an image. This is important to avoid any complications later on from the rights holders.
Crop and rescale the images
When adding images to your website, it’s essential to consider how they will be cropped. This is especially important for any images that will be used in headers or prominent spots. Cropping plays a key role in how your photo appears across different devices.
Images often need to be adjusted for various screen sizes. A photo that appears full-size on a desktop might only take up half the space on a mobile device. To ensure a consistent experience for all users, choose images that crop well and retain their visual impact regardless of the screen size.
Think carefully about both cropping and scaling. Some images you download from stock websites may be too large and so will require resizing to maintain visual appeal and functionality. You may also need to crop embedded images to better fit your layout or design.
Resolution is another important factor when choosing stock images. While cropping doesn’t affect resolution as much, scaling images can. You should ideally seek a resolution of 72 dots per inch (dpi). This is standard for web images and ensures they look good on most screens without pixelation.
Always check that your images remain sharp and clear after scaling. Avoid uploading anything that appears blurry or distorted. Keeping the 72 dpi guideline in mind will help you maintain high-quality visuals throughout your site.
SEO optimise your images
Stock images will need optimising for SEO just the same as original images. When you upload images to your website, make sure you properly optimise them for your chosen keywords. This helps people discover your content more easily.
Stock images often come with generic file names tied to the photographer or image source. Before uploading, rename the file to something relevant and keyword-rich that reflects your content. For example, a filename like “web-design-coventry-agency.jpg” is much more useful than “IMG_1234”.
You can also boost SEO by adding keywords in the image’s metadata. Look for options to add alt text, image titles, or captions. This helps search engines better understand the content of images and can help them rank higher in image results.
Mix with original content
Whenever possible, balance stock images with original photography. It humanises your brand and helps to build trust. Use stock for secondary imagery or blog headers, while keeping key visuals (like team photos or product images) authentic.
Stock images can be a powerful tool in web design if used thoughtfully. By choosing high-quality, relevant visuals that align with your brand and messaging, you can enhance your site’s appeal. Following the tips above, you will be able to choose stock images that create a visually striking and cohesive online presence for your business. Not using appealing and engaging imagery is just one of the many web design mistakes to avoid if you want to skyrocket your business.
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