Feigning an engaging situation is the world of higher ed stock photography.  Unigo has been posting images portraying fake college life that are available through some very respectable stock photo agencies.   Not long ago mStoner took this on in their blog.  They used stock images to make their point,  but they certainly addressed “stock-think” which translates into visual clichés. (What seems to be a stock image graces their home page,  …hummm.)

Thumbing through “good” stock images has been a time-honored exercise to help come up with ideas, but when the seed of inspiration becomes the goal, nothing memorable will come out of it.  Isn’t the intent of a higher ed photo shoot to illustrate what sets an institution apart from the others?

Perhaps what I’ve picked up on recently is that there is finally some push-back on heavily staged and stock style pictures.   If you’ve gone to the expense of hiring someone who is skilled at bringing out the uniqueness of your institution,  give the process a chance.  Keep an open mind and let the story unfold.