In this post we’re looking at how (and why) to edit stock photos and mockups so that they align with your brand. As well as covering the basics, there are lots of quick handy tips as we go through it all. Let’s get started!
How To Edit Stock Images To Make Them Feel More You Share on X
But shouldn’t I use unique images for my website?
If you have the time, doing all your own imagery, or hiring a professional to create bespoke photos for your blog or business website is ideal. But if you’re not in that position and find that it’s so time-consuming it’s stopping you publishing posts, or it’s just not your thing, there’s nothing wrong with using stock photos.
A good middle ground is editing stock photos as it’s more time-saving than working from scratch, you get a high end look, it’s still different to the original photo, and it’s in keeping with your look and feel. It can be a win-win!
Having said that, the context is important. If you run a photography blog or business, it’s highly unlikely you’ll be wanting to use stock photos instead of your own. Or you may want to mix and match – for example using your own photos on on a personal blog post or About Me page, but a stock photo for a travel packing guide PDF or list of baking essentials. It’s all about what makes sense and feels right for your situation.
01. Start with a good base image
Picking an image that has the key features you want speeds things up. For example, if you want an image featuring a computer desk setup, having an iMac already on the desk saves time over adding one in, especially if you don’t want to use AI tools.
Tip: If you’re new to editing, try searching for “mockup” and your keyword/s (e.g. “desk mockup”) on stock photo and graphics websites to get something designed to be personalized. It’s a lot easier if you’re planning to add your own screenshot or artwork.
Considering what you want to edit before you pick your final image will save you a lot of time and stress later on! If you’ve done some editing before, you’ll likely have more of a handle on what takes time to edit and what your preferred editing changes are. Don’t be afraid to experiment and practice; image editing is a useful skill to have and can be applied in a range of different contexts as a creator.
Not sure where to get stock images? Download our list of stock photo sites or stock photo packs from the Lyrical Host Customer Resource Library, or grab the exclusive stock photos we add and send to your inbox every month. We also have some available via our Digital Resources page.
It’s also important to look for your brand in the style of the photo rather than the colours. For example, a computer generated art piece will never feel like Lyrical Host, even changed to our exact color palette and tones. However, a flatlay photo featuring flowers and some stationery already starts to feel like our style.
The left image, although pink, doesn’t fit with the Lyrical Host brand. The grey flatlay on the right, despite not being in our brand colors, is more in keeping with our usual style.
Have a look at your existing imagery, especially feature images and banners. Do you have a consistent look and feel there? Is the target audience clear? Do you gravitate to particular tones or image styles? This will give you a starting point to consciously recognize your style. You may want to create private Pinterest board of your existing imagery or inspirational photos so you can get an at-a-glance feel for what you’re aiming for. Don’t be too restrictive on color for this – not everything needs to match or be a palette of exact colors, or it starts to feel samey.
02. Decide on any color changes
Often you may not want to adjust the color at all, but if you have a specific look for your blog or business, or you’re working with multiple images and want them to look like a cohesive set, using tools within your preferred software can give you the look you need pretty quickly.
In some software, like Canva, you can use filters. In Lightroom, you can download presets or create your own. These are sets of adjustments you can blank apply to images so that you don’t have to manually edit them one by one. There are lots of free presets online, or you can buy them very cheaply from Etsy.
In the image above, some examples of what different filters would look like are shown as small thumbnails on the right.
Alternatively, you can use the sliders in the light or color tools in your preferred software to adjust things like the contrast, shadows, whites, blacks, and so on.
Even if you don’t want to necessarily dramatically change the look of the image you’re using, increasing the contrast can help your image stand out and is often best practice for Pinterest and other platforms.
Tip: In lightroom you can save your settings and copy/paste them to multiple images, or save them as your own preset to skip steps in future. Otherwise, you may want to make a note of your preferences or have a file that you keep as your go-to to copy and paste images from or check settings.
03. Define the focus
Sometimes when you’re using a stock image it’s very clear what your eye should be drawn to, for example a sunflower or a face. In other situations you may want to choose what’s important, change the focus, or crop out other elements entirely. You can also rotate your image to place emphasis on something else.
Below, we’ve taken the original image of a hat and hands holding sand (download it from our customer resource library), and cropped and rotated it to create the second image. Cropping it to a square means there are fewer places for your eye to be drawn to, and the hands pointing to the text means your eye follows them there if you didn’t initially look at the text.
04. Editing mockups
Mockup images typically have screens, frames, paper, or other elements within them that you can replace with your own choice of image for instant personalization. Some mockups come with different layers and elements for use in Photoshop, or in Canva you can simply add a frame element over what you want and drop in a picture. We have a set of exclusive Canva mockups you can download from our customer Resource Library if you want to just drop elements in without any hassle.
Most commonly, mockups are used to add a screenshot of your website, and frames to display art, but the only limit is your imagination. For example, you could add a photo of yourself to a frame on a desk, add your logo, create a sale banner or similar.
Before and after editing a mockup. The bottom image has the following edits in Canva: light pink filter added, contrast and shadows increased, screenshot dropped in using a rectangle frame, ribbon graphic added, logo and text added, image cropped to make the text stand out more and look aligned.
05. Adding new elements
If you choose an image with a good amount of blank space, you can add more elements to it. This is something we do frequently for our Resource Library preview images for example, where we add the front cover of the PDF to a flatlay image:
To create the image on the right, we cropped and rotated the image on the left, then pasted in a screenshot of the PDF cover, resized to scale, and added a drop shadow. We also copied and pasted in the plant to fill space as it was completely out of shot from the rotation.
Tip: Look at the existing shadows present in the original image. Once you’ve pasted in your new element, add a dropshadow matching the shadow strength, distance, color, opacity and direction to the elements already in the image to make it look more realistic. Don’t forget to check the scale too; you don’t want your new element to look giant or tiny out of context!
Finally, do a realism check. If you have placed a new element over something else, does it look realistic? You don’t want accidental overlaps (for example, your PDF cover layered partially over the plant) as that wouldn’t happen in real life.
06. Add text
Depending on your image and goals you may be adding text earlier in your process – or not at all – but often it’s best saved until last when you’re happy with everything else. This is because it’s the top layer of what you’re doing and you want to position it in a way that makes sense and doesn’t hide important parts of the image.
Colors can look very different on different screens and devices, so you want to make sure that whatever you’re adding has good contrast. Don’t be afraid to add a colored background to your text, or an outline, so that it’s as visible as possible.
Text can also be useful in covering small parts of your image you don’t want to draw attention to, like a prominent corner of a piece of furniture or an element that doesn’t fit with your look like a random painting on the wall or text in a different language.
If you’re adding text to look like it’s handwritten or printed on a piece of paper or a screen, check it makes sense. For example, with the orientation of the paper on this image, just adding regular horizontal text looks stranger:
On the left, the text is effectively written sideways across a piece of paper, which would be mostly upside down if you turned it around the right way. On the right, the text is sized and written at an angle that makes sense for the orientation of the piece of paper. The latter is achieved by rotating the image 90 degrees before adding text and resizing to fit the space more realistically.
Dropping your logo on a piece of paper, curving text on a plain mug, and other similar tricks can quickly create a personalized feel. It’s best to use something simple and short (rather than important or long overlaid text); this makes it easier to change in future if needed. Additionally, text on an image isn’t great for accessibility, so you don’t want it to be anything vital.
And finally…
Don’t forget to optimize your image if you’re uploading it to your website, and include ALT text for images whenever possible, including on social media. Enjoy your personalized stock photos!
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