Originally posted on: https://www.everypixel.com/color-trends

Everypixel, a stock image search engine, presented Stock Photo Color Trends — powerful insights on what colors in stock photography are the most popular. 

The Everypixel team have analyzed over 5,000 images from 38 stock photo websites that were the most demanded by Everypixel users and collected the most impressive insights to help both photographers and stock photo consumers better navigate what kind of photos resonate with the audience. Keep reading to find out what colors are the most popular in stock photography.

Top Popular Colors

Using the algorithm, we extracted from each picture a set of colors that occupied the largest area in that image and plotted them on a color map as pixels, bearing in mind the volume they occupied and the fact that users clicked some pictures again and again. So, the more clicks an image has, the more weight its colors have. 

Next, we ran an algorithm that clustered the colors on the map by choosing the most weighted average shades of colors. As a result, we got seven colors, which were the most popular among users in 2020, according to the research: 

Popular Cool and Warm Colors

 

To draw these graphs, we used a set of colors extracted from each image (learn more in previous part), then classified each of these shades by the warm or cool color cluster or their proximity to red or blue. After that we plotted the colors on the color map and found five averaged warm and five averaged cool shades:

 

 

 

 

Popular Colors of 7 Stock Photo Themes

 

We have identified seven stock photography themes and sorted out photos according to them: Architecture, Business, Education, Food, Medicine, Nature, Technology and Industrial. 

 

Then, using a set of colors extracted from each image (as we described in ‘Top Popular Colors’ part), we chose the most popular shades in each group, bearing in mind the clicks on the photos: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can learn more at our report — we put together mood boards to illustrate these insights and asked photography experts how external events might have influenced color trends in stock photography.