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Whether we're talking about the dark side of stock photography or images you won’t be able to unsee, the Internet seems obsessed with these tasteless crimes against photography. Such lousy pictures really stand out from the crowd—over-exaggerated emotions, questionable settings, poor editing—the list goes on. Bad stock photos have that rare quality of capturing our attention, and examples of workers failing at their jobs are a source of pure comedy gold.

People all across the internet are laughing at images of librarians poking at computer screens, astronomers in lab coats looking at the sky, or marketing managers taking meetings fully dressed at the beach. Via a viral Twitter hashtag, #BadStockPhotosOfMyJob, users share absurd interpretations of their professions.

Since you can never get enough of such posts, Bored Panda has collected a variety of strange and funny pictures from this hashtag. Scroll down, upvote your favorites and make sure to check out Part 1 of this post!

When it comes to photographers' perception of what people actually do at their jobs, it seems that scientists, teachers, programmers and doctors are the most wronged professionals. Just take a look at how they are depicted in this list: coding in a dark room or using a stethoscope on a tree while wearing a lab coat. And the captions people add for the photos make it even more hilarious.

To tell you a little bit more about it, a stock photo is a generic image that is often used for creative purposes and is usually taken without a specific purpose in mind. And it shows. Looking at some of the stock photos, you can't help but wonder, why are those people so happy pointing at a computer screen or why is that man with an eye-patch playing the abacus like a musical instrument. Pretty specific, right? Well, there is no product without demand.

Stock images are a great way to get high-quality photos for a variety of purposes. You can buy a license for a specific image and use it across many different channels. Most people and brands do this in order to save some money on hiring professionals to create original content. In short, stock bank users get the photos they need and photographers earn some easy money in return.

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Usually, a person who is browsing through a stock photography site already has an idea of what they are looking for. The thing is, people uploading the images need to anticipate the demand before the search actually happens. It seems that this year, the most popular trends are vintage lifestyle photos, cultural diversity, authentic living, and even modern aging.

#3

Bad Stock Photos Of My Job

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El muerto
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

looks like a mechanic, "is good for another 500km. but keep an eye on the oil"

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However, not all photographers follow what's in right now. As we have discussed, some stock pictures have a pretty bad reputation for being corny and fake. Know Your Meme even has a page for stock photo clichés. The first curation of awkward stock images started with the blog called Awkward Stock Photos in 2010. You probably remember the widely known images of women laughing alone with a salad or business people doing yoga. Pictures like these were just so absurd, they quickly went viral.

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Bad Stock Photos Of My Job

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DennyS (denzoren)
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Stock photo for when "You've left the graduation ceremony, after spending 5 years on a PhD, to go look for a reason to live"

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People actually don't dislike stock photos so much as they don't take them seriously. The common appreciation of these pictures is usually based on irony, especially among millennials. It may seem like common sense, but you should not use them for your website or any other channels since "bad stock images aren't friendly and inviting."

#7

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Rowlie
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I used to work in customer service and finger poking the exact location was often necessary

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Laura MG
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This reminds me of the group Improv Everywhere which organizes "Black Tie Beach" events (check them out on You Tube)

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Portraying professionals completely inaccurately and sometimes even inappropriately can seem absolutely pointless. Yet, some people make a living out of it. The Independent spoke to two people who have been involved in stock image photography, Jim Murtagh from New York and Andi Dean from North Carolina.

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Bad Stock Photos Of My Job

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Robert T
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This guy is obviously a bit of a "player", though he also seems to have some square piece substrings. :D

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Jim did stock photos a few years back when he was involved in the comedy scene and thought this would be good for publicity. "I’m not sure exactly how many photos were taken but the whole shoot lasted about an hour and I was paid absolutely no money to do it," he said. "At first, I just had to stand near a window and smile to get some generic ‘nice boy’ shots but then they had me sit at a computer and make several different expressions to go with different headlines they would use me for."

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Even though the photographers were nice, they did not provide any of the clothes or props. "I agreed that the images could be used for any article – I do not have any veto power on what they use it for," he continued. Over the years, his face has been featured on pieces about any man or alt-right troll screaming at women but it’s so over the top that it makes him laugh.

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ƒιѕн
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sometimes it helps to put the other ends into your ears.... this is not one of those times tho.

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The most annoying part is that people who recognize him, constantly send him links to these articles: "I just wanna say: ‘Yeah, it was four years ago, leave me alone. We don’t talk anymore’. And my family is confused; I explained to my aunts and uncles that it is satire so the articles are fake but they still barely get it. They always tell me I should get a lawyer. They don’t understand why I’d do it willingly."

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Felice Coles
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"... and then I go clackety-clack on the manual typewriter with no paper. Librarians love me."

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Zedrapazia
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Not gonna lie, her back will hurt like hell after sitting for more than 10 minutes like that.

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It was quite different for Andi. She was quite an active stock model and was able to earn some money from the shoots. "Each shoot lasted about four to five hours and around 2000-3000 photos were taken. About 400-500 of those made the final cut. But since I’ve done a few, there are still probably over 2500 pictures of me out there for people to download," she said.

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Nikki Sevven
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you actually held a soldering iron like that, you'd be screaming whilst the skin burned and fell from your fingers.

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Peter Kelly
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I see these and wonder if there are so many people have never seen a soldering iron in use. You don't have to use one yourself, but simply not live your entire life with your head in a hole! I've never removed an appendix, or replaced a heart valve, but I think I could hold a scalpel properly!!

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Philly Bob Squires
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And that hard drive... once opened outside of a clean room, it would be toast!

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Deborah B
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As someone who uses a soldering iron, these photos make my fingers hurt.

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Callie Dryer
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

One of these things, just doesn’t belong here. One of these things isn’t quite the same….🤣🤣🤣

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Bobby
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The most impressive part is the solder irons were plugged in. That is dedication to modeling right there :P

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Steve Uberfiend
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I just love the open HDDs sitting there. Like nothing bad ever came of popping open a hard drive outside of a clean room environment.

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Alan Gale
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A man I worked with was welding underneath a car on a ramp. He looked closely at his job, and forgot where the hot welding rod was. Into the accident book as "Burnt Penis!"

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Blue Jade Rare
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Jeans dude seems to be soldering a certain appendage. Why? Did it fall off?

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Vargus Pike
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

At least they have safety glasses on so the smoke from the burning flesh will not get in their eyes.

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Lady Lava
Community Member
2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I actually did this once in school by accident, I mean grabbing the solder iron at the hot iron part... It was burning my skin, and painful as hell! Tough way to learn the lesson, but I'm sure I will never make that mistake again after this. That is, when I will ever use a solder iron, which didn't happen until now.

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"At the beginning of each shoot, I’d sign a waiver stating I’d give up all rights to the photos," she explained. "I can see how this would bother some people, but for whatever reason, it doesn’t bother me. The photos I take are completely wholesome, with many bright colors and cute props. I don’t see how they could be used in an inappropriate way."

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A B C
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"If only we add a little blood, that little critter will come back to life for sure!"

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Bad Stock Photos Of My Job

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El muerto
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

is technic of medical divination...the pills have much hidden knowledge...the doctor thus understand the will of the spirits of medicin...modern science is awesome

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Note: this post originally had 72 images. It’s been shortened to the top 35 images based on user votes.