Visual Assets — imagery with art direction

Basic sites drop raw stock photos into rectangles. Premium sites treat imagery as a system: one style, consistent treatment, composed with the type and motion.

1. Define the image direction (write it down first)

One short spec the whole site follows:

Style:     documentary photography, natural light, warm film grade, subtle grain
Subjects:  people's hands at work, materials close-up, spaces with depth
Crops:     4:5 portrait for features, 21:9 for full-bleed breaks, 1:1 for team
Treatment: warm-film + grain 0.05; on dark sections duotone (#14110f / #f1e6d2)
Shapes:    soft radius 4px OR arch tops for hero only — not both everywhere
Never:     smiling-at-camera stock, mixed lighting styles, rounded-2xl + shadow on every image

Derive it from the brand: a law firm ≠ a coffee shop ≠ a creative studio. If the user has real photos, they win over stock — build the direction around them.

2. Source or generate

Priority: user's own photos → custom 3D renders/illustrations → AI-generated set → curated stock (Unsplash/Pexels — check license; credit if required).