World-Shaker

Overused Stock Photos that Need to Go Away

• Anything with ClipArt
• A multicultural handshake
• On that note, anything involving a handshake
• Anything with robots that look like the ones from iRobot
• A diverse group of students sitting outside around a computer, and they’re ALL smiling
• An attractive person wearing a headset
• Someone drawing (backwards!) on a floating, transparent whiteboard whose text is only easily read by the viewer
• People doing a coordinated jump into the air
• Anything involving a computer mouse that still has a wire. I think it’s been a good half decade since I used a mouse with a cable attached to it.
• Obviously posed and polished people staring at the camera and smiling disingenuously
• Anything that involves a stylized globe (which for whatever reason is always centered on North America)
• Anything involving a lightbulb to indicate an idea has been born
• A puzzle with a missing piece

That’s what I’ve got so far. I’ve enabled photo replies. What are some of your nominations?

My Favorite Higher Ed Photo Cliches →

It’s funny because colleges do this in an effort to seem overly great. Please click through for them all. It’s worth it.

As promised last week, here’s a guided tour through some of my favorite higher ed stock photography cliches. If I happen to be editing your photo gallery for launch, these are the babies that are going to go.

1. People studying in obviously forced groups (especially if they’re huddled around a single book or laptop, especially-especially if they’re also outside).

Oh, Melissa, your Internet is so much nicer than ours!

2. Anyone looking exasperated.

Math is haaaaard!

3. Photos in which obvious effort has been made to be ethnically diverse. (Bonus points if it’s a series of photos that feature the same student of color in different situations!)

Sorry, you can’t be our friend. We already have an Asian.