As highly visual beings, us humans are drawn to the imagery in a website before anything else. This means website photography has to be top notch. It needs to tell the story of the brand. It needs to showcase products or services. It needs to create an emotional connection with consumers. Great website photography can be the difference between someone choosing to invest in your brand, or turning to the competition instead.
In order to ensure your website has a positive, lasting impact on visitors, keeping up with the latest website photography trends is a great place to start. Tailoring the style and content of your imagery to appeal to current trends will enable you to maintain a stylish, relevant website that resonates more strongly with consumers.
To help you, we’ve rounded up five website photography trends to embrace in 2019…
Candid photography
Brand authenticity is key for consumers, especially when they’re looking for a product or service to invest in. You need to create a sense of trust between you and your audience. This will help foster positive brand-consumer relationships, and in turn drive conversions on your website.
One way you can help to demonstrate your authenticity is by including candid photographs on your website. This type of photography style is now favoured over forced portrait photography with its often impossible postures and insincere emotions. Consumers want to relate to the people and scenes pictured on your site. You can make this happen by featuring emotive images that feel natural and genuine.
When it comes to staff headshots for instance, try more relaxed shots that capture your staff with genuine smiles. Not only does this represent your team as friendly and approachable, but it follows the trend for candid photography that’s set to become increasingly popular with consumers this year. For lifestyle shots, capture your models naturally interacting with everyday situations. This will help consumers connect with your products, creating a sense of desire.
Drone shots
The use of drones is transforming the photography industry. These high-flying cameras enable photographers to capture unique aerial viewpoints, with some truly stunning results. For visual brands, high quality drone imagery can give you an edge over your competitors. Not only will you be able to offer a unique view to your audience, but you’re portraying yourself as a creative, adventurous and innovative brand. Impactful drone shots will evoke an emotional connection with potential customers, one that they’re likely to talk about with others. Depending on your brand and its offering, drone photography could be the creative tool you didn’t even know you were missing this year.
The ability of drones to produce innovative and affordable aerial photographs has caused quite the stir in the tourism industry in particular. What better way to show the beauty of a travel destination than by a breathtaking aerial shot? Travel marketers can showcase a unique view of a resort, its amenities and surroundings, creating beautiful visual content for their websites.
In 2019, commercial adoption of drones is set to rise rapidly. Expect to see drones disrupting traditional photography in more and more industries. What do you think – could drone shots work for your website?
It goes without saying that flying a drone comes with great responsibility. Always make sure you are aware of legal regulations before you plan a shoot. It’s suggested that you check with your local air safety authorities for area-specific regulations.
Nostalgia
2019 is predicted to be the year of the comebacks, with the re-emergence of retro cameras and old-school photography styles. In homage to this trend, more and more websites will use old photographs to create new meaning. Photographers and designers will draw on inspiration from the past and combine with modern techniques to create distinctive sites that command attention.
90s inspired websites will be all the rage, with palettes, patterns, fonts and photos that are reminiscent of that iconic decade. Expect to see lots of nostalgic collages used across sites this year, embracing the archetypal styles of the 90s, with a modern twist. This trend will combine the homemade aesthetic of layered magazine cut-and-paste collages with a digital vibe to add a contemporary edge. A statement collage is a great idea for making a strong visual impact on your website’s homepage.
Also part of this nostalgic flashback trend is the comeback of 80s opulence within website photography. Shutterstock have reported a resurgence in image searches for ‘chain print’, ‘leopard print’ and ‘peacock’, suggesting a nod towards the extravagant textures that defined the 80s era.
Creative provocation
The internet is a bustling hive of competition, with thousands of brands battling for the attention of the same consumers. Having a website that stands out from the crowd has never been more important. Increasingly, it’s only the brands who provoke and stimulate with their visual content who are managing to successfully capture the public’s attention.
Brave, bold and daring visuals are set to become more prominent in 2019. By taking a more unconventional approach to photography, brands can give themselves an edge over their competitors. The key to embracing this trend is to feature memorable website photography that inspires conversation and provokes thought. Dramatic images with loud messages are set to become more popular as brands fight to stay relevant.
Environmental awareness
Consumers are demanding increasing transparency from retailers. They want to know where products have come from, how they are made and how the environment is affected in the process. As conscious consumerism continues to rise, shoppers will back brands who are actively supporting environmental causes.
A major visual trend for 2019 will see businesses using their website photography to raise awareness of environmental issues. As a brand, you can use imagery to give visibility to global concerns and help provoke change. You can communicate your brand’s environmental stance too, using website photography to tell your story. As they say, a picture speaks a thousand words. With this in mind, you can harness the power of vivid imagery to really connect with your audience, earn their custom and cultivate trust.
Embrace these trends to create a successful website
Armed with these five website photography trends, you can ensure your brand stands out from the crowd this year. By reflecting cultural and technological trends through your website’s photography, you demonstrate that you are a current, responsive brand that can provide a positive, trusted experience.
Spencer Cobby website photography
We have worked with a vast range of brands to help make their websites shine. With our unique vision and attention to detail, we can transform your site with photography that sells your products, services and your staff. Our extensive knowledge of the industry means we are always aware of the latest trends and technologies and know how to apply these to serve our clients’ needs. From product packshots on a white screen, to outdoor lifestyle shots and staff portraits, we offer a full range of website photography services.
Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about how we can help transform your website. We love to hear from passionate brands looking to improve their online presence through powerful photography!