Commercial photographer vs. stock photos — what works best?

The quick answer: stock photos are cheaper. Professional images are better. But the truth is more nuanced than that. There are situations where stock photos are perfectly fine — and situations where they directly damage your credibility. Here's an honest breakdown of when to choose what.

What do stock photos actually cost?

Let's start with what most people compare: the price.

• Shutterstock — individual purchase from approx. 200 kr per image. Subscription: 1,500–3,000 kr per month for 10–25 images.
• Adobe Stock — similar prices. Integrated into Creative Cloud, which is convenient if you already use Adobe.
• Unsplash/Pexels — free, but heavily used. Your competitors are probably using the same images.

The price seems low — and it is, in isolation. But there's a hidden cost: stock photos are generic. They don't show your office, your employees, your products, or your culture. They show an actor in a set, photographed to suit everyone and no one. I've seen companies that used the exact same "happy-team-at-whiteboard" image as their direct competitor. That's not a great start to a customer relationship.

What does a commercial photographer cost?

A half day of professional commercial photography starts from 6,000 kr excl. VAT and gives you 20–30 edited images. A full day costs around 10,000 kr and gives you 50–80 images, depending on the project's complexity.

Let's put that in perspective: one day of photography at 10,000 kr gives you an image library that can be used for an entire year — on your website, LinkedIn, newsletters, presentations, and printed materials. That's 27 kr per day. A Shutterstock subscription at 3,000 kr per month costs 36,000 kr per year — for images that show neither you, your team, nor your premises.

5 situations where stock photos are perfectly fine

We'll say it gladly: stock photos have their place. Here's when they work:

1. Blog posts and article images — an illustrative image for an article doesn't need to show your company. It just needs to support the text.
2. Decorative elements in presentations — background images in PowerPoint where the image isn't the message.
3. Prototypes and wireframes — in an early design phase, stock photos are perfect placeholders.
4. Inspiration boards — for internal brainstorming and mood boards.
5. Generic concept images — "teamwork", "innovation", "sustainability" and other abstract concepts where authenticity isn't crucial.

The rule is simple: if the image doesn't need to represent your company, stock photos are a reasonable solution.

5 situations where you should hire a photographer

Here it's different. In the following situations, stock photos aren't just inadequate — they can actively damage your credibility:

1. Hero images on the website and About page — this is where potential customers, employees, and partners form their first impression. Imagine a candidate visiting your careers page — and recognising the same stock photos from your competitor's website.

2. Employee portraits — for LinkedIn profiles, the website's "Team" section, and press kits. There's no stock photo version of your actual colleagues.

3. Product images — it should be obvious, but it happens more often than you'd think: companies using generic product images instead of photos of their own products. It undermines trust and increases return rates. See also our guide to product photography for e-commerce.

4. Cases and testimonials — an image of the actual customer or the actual project is far more convincing than a generic office photo.

5. Social media with authentic content — LinkedIn and Instagram reward authentic content. A professional photo from a real working day outperforms a polished stock photo every time.

Does it really cost more to use a commercial photographer?

Let's do the maths:

It's not a question of what's cheapest. It's a question of what provides the most value. The 10,000 kr gives you images that only you have — images of your real employees, in your real premises, with your real products.

How to build a professional image library

The best approach is to think in terms of image libraries rather than one-off photo shoots. Plan a full day of photography where you cover everything you need for the next 6–12 months:

• Portraits of key employees
• Work situations and meetings
• Products in context
• Office, common areas, and facilities
• Exterior and possibly drone photography

We've written a full article about how to build a professional image library — with a checklist and planning guide.

It's about credibility

Ultimately, the choice between stock photos and a commercial photographer comes down to one word: credibility. Stock photos tell your visitors that you either didn't have the time, budget, or interest to show who you actually are. Professional images tell them the opposite.

And credibility is hard to put a price on — but easy to lose.