Photography is a powerful tool for communication, thus its use is natural in graphic design. Often, it’s possible to shoot your own photos for the project. In other cases, many designers like to turn to stock photography sites.

So what are your photography options? And how do you get inspired?

1. Take a photo with a different camera format.
I have a friend, Raoul, who is known in my design class for taking neat pictures with his old-school Polaroid camera. Another friend of the studio, Rob D. Photography, just purchased an old fashioned Kodak Brownie and is fitting it to shoot with 35mm film! The experiment is producing some really interesting results.

I recently got a Holga camera which I’ve been playing with. When developing the photos, it’s usually possible to get them on a CD so you can use them on the computer, or scan the film in.

2. The scanner.
Scanning objects instead of taking pictures of them, can yield some interesting perspectives and make cool design compositions. It’s also a great way to get great textures. Of course, you are limited by size and “scan-ability”.

3. Two words: Adobe Photoshop.
Sometimes if technical details such as the photo’s color or contrast isn’t quite right, Photoshop can work some magic. Heck, Photoshop can do a lot to your photos: crop them, saturate colors, etc. However, be careful to not overdo the Photoshop or get crazy with the filters; doing so can make the photos look unnatural and fake.

4. Photography friends!
Designers should make lots of friends, why? You never know what you’ll need… just kidding. But seriously, if you have friends who are photographers, get help and tips from them. I have a couple of friends who are photography majors at my school and I’ve asked them for advice on numerous occasions. Sometimes, partnering up with them is the best way to get the perfect photo.

5. Photography Blogs.
I also like to visit photography blogs to get ideas (or more ideas) on what I can do with the photos I have on hand. My favorite photo blog is Photojojo. They have a variety of creative uses of your photos that just might spark inspiration and ideas for your own photos and/or project. They also have tips on technical photography details like how to make a color photo look close to Ansel-Adams-quality in black-and-white.

Checking out the unique styles of other photographers, can also spark inspiration. The studio regularly visits flickr.com to explore the “interestingness” photos. Inspiration is just a click away!

6. Stock Photography
Unfortunately these tips can’t make up for the fact that there will still be that one photo you need that you just can’t take yourself. And, it’s unlikely that taking a trip to Hawaii for that perfect beach shot is going to be a paid company trip (sorry to burst your bubble). So using stock photography may be your best bet. However there’s quite a bit of fine print when it comes to licensing rights on the stock photography sites. Make sure to be careful to read and understand the fine print when it comes to photo licenses and uses. The last thing you want is to get a cease and desist letter in the mail!

PS: If anybody has any other photography tips they’ve found useful, please feel free to post them!