One of the hardest parts of designing a website is finding great photos. I usually just try to take them myself, but if I can’t, I have to resort to hours of searching through stock photos to find even one that is beautiful and appropriate.

Here’s a classic example of a bad stock photo. A “businessman” doing a split jump over a field. I guess it’s supposed to convey success. “Buy (our product) and you’ll really get ahead,” is the message. But it’s just fake and absurd. Every element lacks subtlety. He’s super running in a super green field under a super blue sky with one cloud right in the middle. And what’s he doing in a field anyway? It’s all really bloodcurdling.

So don’t underestimate the time and skill it takes to find a good stock photo. This takes years off of web designer’s lives.