The stock-versus-custom question comes up on nearly every project, and the honest answer depends entirely on what the footage needs to prove. Get this decision wrong in either direction and you either overspend or under-deliver.
When stock footage is the right call
- Generic establishing shots — a city skyline, a coffee cup, hands typing — where no viewer needs to recognise the specific subject.
- Tight budgets where the alternative is no supporting footage at all.
- Fast-turnaround content where a custom shoot's lead time doesn't fit the deadline.
When custom production earns its cost
Anything showing the actual product, actual team, actual space or actual customers needs to be real — stock footage of "a similar office" or "a similar product" undermines the exact trust a brand is trying to build. Hero content — the film on your homepage, your primary ad — deserves custom production because it's carrying the most weight.
The blended approach most brands actually use
Custom footage for anything brand-specific, stock or licensed footage to fill supporting b-roll gaps without paying custom-production rates for a shot of generic rainfall or traffic. The skill is knowing which shots in an edit are actually doing brand work and which are just visual texture.
A quality note on stock
Cheap, overused stock footage is often more recognisable to viewers than brands realise — certain clips have appeared in hundreds of ads. Paying for less common, higher-quality stock is usually worth the difference for anything running at scale.