15 Stock Image Ideas That Sell!

If you are shooting images to sell, you will want to think of business images and images of people as some of the best performers. Here are some ideas to inspire your next shoot.

1. Business images Get your models dressed up in business cloths posing with business materials. A set of plans and a hard hat on your model can go along way. Smiling receptionist (don't forget the headset). Groups of people working on a project together can make for powerful images. Don't forget to get your model releases.
2. Concept images Be creative, place office materials in interesting ways, foods in interesting ways, prescription drugs, Credit cards, message in a bottle, penny for you thoughts (saving money), money out the window, Safe and secure, missing link, sky is the limit, bulls eye, in a rut... You get the idea.
3. Clean and simple Creating a library of brightly lit simple images of inanimate objects can provide long term revenues.
4. Emotion Happy, sad, crazy (pulling your hair out), confused, alarmed, bewildered. Find and expressive model and snap away.
5. Ethnic people Again... dress them up, business or business casual. Find well lit business looking or simple white room to work with or get urban. Community style images work well here as well.
6. Images of people holding signs A clean 16x20 board can go a long way with a simple message on it. You can leave some blank too. Designers can easily add their own text.
7. Love and romance Endearing pictures of people holding hands, playful kissing, proposing on a park bench. Creating hearts in unique ways can make fantastic images, while you are at it; don't forget to break a few hearts too ;-).
8. Gyms and working out You want clean brightly lit images of toned but friendly looking models. Middle age and elderly models work well here as well. Think yoga, palates, exercise balls, stretching on mats. People on scales etc...
9. Recycle / friendly planet People holding earth, new growth or people holding globes are proven sellers. Try images with lots of green or wheat fields. Drops of water from a tap... get creative.
10. Animals If you can get the animals walking in a cute way or making cute and interesting expressions you're on the right track. You can always throw in some props to liven things up
11. Posed business items Nicely arranged groups of pencils, push pins, erasers, paper clips and other office supplies can make great images. Glasses or pens on a newspaper can have excellent impact. Again think clean and bright. These images have a multitude of uses.
12. Finances Stocks going up, stocks going down... Find ways to portray the market. Add some volatility and you have images in demand.
13. Families Images of families having fun together are excellent sellers. Kids holding hands, dad and his boy playing catch in the field. A mom having a heart felt hug with her kids. Happy family images have many uses for companies and brands.
14. Team Sports You think it has been shot to death but actually... it hasn't. Good team images (with model releases) are in demand. Make a deal with a local team and get some shots for your portfolio.
15. Shopping Getting shots of people in the mall or in stores can be really great sellers. You need to remember to get a property release as well as model releases here. Offer to provide the store with a bank of images in exchange for letting you use the space and signing off on the required releases. A little quaint shop is all you need.