A Quick Look at Depositphotos’ Visual Trends for 2019

Pantone comes up with color of the year, Adobe offers a visual forecast, design and photo editing tools publish their own predictions – everyone wants to predict the future. The goal is to help readers and followers get in front of the biggest trends and plan and produce visual content that’s going to be in demand in the year to come.

Photo stock giant Depositphotos analyzes images that are in high demand and researches upcoming trends to compile a list of the most notable ones on the rise and likely to prevail in the very near future. These 9 visual trends will define 2019, says Depositphotos content team. Let’s take a look.

The era of personalization

“Life cycle of a trend is about 3 to 5 years,” says Tatiana Boksha, content curator at Depositphotos. “Typically, trends don’t emerge out of nowhere and don’t change every year. For example, one of the key current trends is authenticity, less staged and more candid lifestyle visuals has been shaping up for quite a while. We’ve seen it around for years, and we project the trend will be still growing next year,” she adds.

As AI-powered digital tools evolve to provide businesses with opportunities to personalize experiences for existing and potential customers, personalization is becoming more widespread than ever. Personalized ads, user-generated content to advertise products, segmented email lists targeted at narrow consumer groups – these are just the tip of an iceberg of personalization, and this focus on raw individual experiences is sure to be reflected in visuals next year.

Creative provocation

Producing a memorable image that, hopefully, goes viral or, at the very least, garners a bit of attention online and gets people talking is what marketing and design teams across the globe are spending long hours at the office for. Coming up with a visual idea that is innovative, provocative and better than your competitors’ has become the name of the game as of late.

Nostalgic flashbacks

The 90s are back. And the 70s. And the 80s. Nostalgic flashbacks to eras past have been flooding the runways, home decor stores and fashionistas’ closets, and now have slowly creeped into the world of visuals – design, photography, and advertising. Neon colors, old camera filters, clean lines and simpler fonts.

Adding layers of interaction

Here at VistaCreate, we’ve been closely watching all the interactive trends manifesting in art installations, VR, the instancy of social media interactions with brands and celebrities. In their trends roster, Depositphotos team suggests brands are going to be moving towards stepping up their game in the interactive content realm – the battle of unique experiences will push brands go further into interactive design. Visual creators will try to provide their audiences with new ways to interact with content to get existing and potential customers to pay attention and remember your product or cause.

First Global Aesthetic

Ever noticed how every coffee shop in every Instagram pic looks the same? Well, you are not alone – the minimalist luxury aesthetic has become a full-blown trend. The refined, clean, sleek interior created with raw materials and featuring simple forms looks so good in pictures, it’s been taking over the social media and prompting more and more cafes and bars to go for the style.

Minimalism gets philosophical

The move toward minimalism has been gaining momentum for years. The problems with the consumerist way of life have been addressed by activists through less consumption, more awareness in their buying and lifestyle decisions. Now minimalism is finding a balance between a boring and restrictive approach and a more meaningful, philosophical interpretation – minimal images tell stories and offer deeper meaning behind their simplicity on the surface.

3D design transition

Two months ago, Facebook rolled out 3D photos – a more immersive visual experience to help users feel in the moment when looking at an image. Depositphotos has seen a surge in experimentation with 3D graphic design within their 70 million file library as well. Graphic designers are trying out the style as it attracts attention, allows to carry out bold creative experiments, and is a great opportunity to master new skills.

Embracing art history

This trend has been on the rise amongst Instagram artists – up-and-coming creators have been looking back to the works of some of the finest artists in human history to offer their take on the classic stories and looks. Masterful use of light and shadow, artistic precision and intricate execution akin the best creations documented by art history have been some of the characteristic traits of the trend.

New wave of environmental awareness

With the public push on companies and political establishments to ensure sustainability, the current global trend towards a more conscientious existence and use of resources is spilling over into photography, art, and design. Images of plastic and pollution are an emotional tool that helps raise awareness. The Paris Climate Agreement might be coming into force in 2020, but the environmentally aware graphics are about to hit it big in 2019.

Final thoughts

As we can see, the trends reflect a mix of looking back to the past (nostalgic flashbacks to past decades and taking notes from art history), but also looking forward thanks to push from things popular on social media and just general artistic desire to experiment and rebel a bit:)
Get inspired to be more rebelious in your designs by our Colors project — you’ll find all kinds of color combos that work.

For the original Depositphotos 2019 visual trends overview go here.