To counteract my frustration with the current political landscape, I’m developing a little video called “Good World” to buoy myself up about the possibilities for a better world if we work together. But, I can’t find inspiring stock photography that show the world I want to live in. Again, discouraged.
Stock photos are weighted toward white people. I’m mainly looking for things like children laughing, playing and helping each other (optimistic images!) and adults of all types working together. You have to specifically search “multicultural” or “diverse” to get photos with a mix of people. And, even then you tend to get ridiculously corny and staged “colleagues” wearing the blandest of professional clothing and a careful representation of skin color, or people in traditional garb in developing countries.
Where are the people of all kinds that we see every day? I live in a small town and I see more variety of people every day than I see in the photos on most stock sites. What about the photos of people exchanging pleasantries? The friends and neighbors? The coworkers? We are not in single-culture boxes! I’m sure there are plenty of people who have pointed this out before, but really, what age do we live in?
I believe that the world’s big problems can be solved by working with people of all kinds. That means cultivating an understanding, curiosity and respect for a variety of cultures. That diversity brings more viewpoints and potential solutions to the problems at hand. There’s data to support this. That’s why I founded Whole Wide World Toys and why I developed World Village Playsets.
I’m looking for photos that inspire those problem-solvers. Images are powerful inspiration. Where are the world-positive photos in stock photography?
After some searching, I did find some excellent resources (shown below). There are two lines in the video where I’m still searching for photos to use as illustration. One talks about “working across cultures” and the other about “all kinds of people”. I haven’t pinpointed all the photos I need just yet, but I think I’ll find what I need in the sites below. I’m also ramping up taking my own photos
Do you use stock photography? Please let me know where you find photos of regular, everyday people of a variety of races, ethnicities, skin colors, heritage, etc. including people doing what they do like work, go to school and care for kids.
Multicultural and Diverse Stock Photography Resources For People Who Live In the Real World
– 10 Great Sites for Multicultural Stock Photo
– Getty Images Lean In Collection
– CreateHER Stock
– ColorStock
This article, 20 Free Stock Photo Sites, is super handy for free photos, but it takes awhile to sort through them to find what you’re looking for. Happy hunting!
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