Corporate photos needn’t be dull and cliché

Enough with the corporate photography bashing, here’s how you can improve your picture-taking skills

Ragan columnist Steve Crescenzo likes to blast corporate photography. In one article, he called it an “oxymoron” and urged editors to think long and hard before running pictures.

Readers responded sharply. Some agreed, others bitterly shook their heads and many asked for advice, not criticism. “Why not take some time to talk about what makes a good picture?” One reader asked.

So let’s take some time and see what longtime photo instructor Phil Douglis has to say about corporate photography.

“If you want someone to read a free publication then approximately 80 percent of the content needs to be visual—that means pictures, headlines, captions and the white space surrounding—20 percent text,” Douglas told Ragan.com.