The reason for us creating an Age-positive image library in 2021 was simple: we noticed that there was a dearth of older people in stock photos. The few photos that did exist were often negative or reaffirmed damaging stereotypes about later life.
For instance, how many articles about older people have you read where the only photo used is of someone’s wrinkled hands? This dehumanising image sustains the stereotype that ageing is predominantly about frailty, decline and dependency - an association that is commonly overestimated. We decided that the representation of older people could be and should be better.
The first of its kind
Our Age-positive image library, . Our vision was a collection of photos that focused on a more nuanced, varied and diverse depiction of older age.
To reflect this, our photos include older workers, intergenerational friendships, community groups, sports, couples in love, travelling, campaigning, people trying new hobbies, and connecting with family. We also made every effort for our image library to be as diverse as possible, in terms of gender, ethnicity, sexuality, disability, income and location.
Another part of our strategy with launching the library was to encourage as many media outlets, charities and marketers to use our photos as possible, so that eventually stereotypical photos of older people will be a thing of the past.
To enable this, it was critical for these photos to be as widely accessible as possible, so not only are they licenced so that any individuals and organisations can use them, they’re also free.