Why Professional Photography and Videography Are Failing on Social Media in 2025 (And What Works Instead)
For the last five years or so, professional photography on social media has been a bit of a paradox. It looks beautiful, but it often flops. The reason? It looks too much like an advert.
There is a time and place for professional photography. Out-of-home (OOH) marketing? Essential. Billboards, glossy print campaigns, high-end website visuals? Absolutely. But social media is not a glossy magazine or a perfectly curated showroom.
On social, it is not about looking perfect. It is about entertainment, engagement, and personality. The brands that are winning are not the ones with the most stunning photography. They are the ones daring to be funny, relatable, and experimental.
Why High-Production Content Struggles on Social Media
1. It Looks Like an Advert, and People Scroll Past It
Users are bombarded with ads all day, and anything that looks too polished gets mentally categorised as another brand trying to sell something. Highly produced images might make a brand look premium, but they do not necessarily make people stop scrolling.
What works instead?
Content that feels native to the platform. A quick iPhone video, a lo-fi meme, or a casual behind-the-scenes shot is far more likely to grab attention than a perfectly edited campaign image.
2. Social Media Moves Too Fast for High-Production Content
By the time a professionally shot and edited video is ready to post, social media has already moved on. Trends change in days, sometimes hours. Brands that wait for approvals, edits, and perfection often miss the moment.
What works instead?
Reactive content that keeps pace with social media. Brands need to be able to jump on trends quickly rather than waiting for the perfect execution.
3. The Algorithm Rewards Engagement, Not Aesthetics
Social platforms prioritise content that keeps people watching, commenting, and sharing. Professional photography might look stunning, but it often lacks the hook that sparks conversation.
What works instead?
Content that makes people react. This could be humor, a bold opinion, a relatable moment, or a clever take on a trending topic. The best-performing posts are often the least polished but the most human.
The Social Media Struggle of Luxury Brands
We work with five-star hotels and luxury brands that, understandably, want to maintain a premium image. They prefer professional, perfectly curated shots. And while we completely respect that, we also have open conversations about how this approach often underperforms on social media.
Luxury brands worry that stepping outside their polished aesthetic will dilute their identity. But the truth is, being social-first does not mean being unprofessional. It means understanding how people consume content on social and meeting them there.
For these brands, we often suggest a balanced approach. Keep the high-end photography for websites, press, and OOH campaigns. But for social, mix in more real, engaging, and personality-driven content. That might mean:
A casual iPhone video of the head chef plating a dish, instead of just a perfectly edited food shot
A behind-the-scenes tour with staff talking on camera, rather than only staged hotel room photography
A fun take on a trending meme that ties into the brand’s identity
What Works on Social Media in 2025?
Brands that succeed on social are the ones willing to adapt and experiment. Here is what works now:
Conversational, informal videos that feel like a friend talking, rather than a corporate announcement
Behind-the-scenes and raw content that makes the audience feel like insiders
Humour and cultural relevance, even for luxury brands—yes, even a five-star hotel can have a personality
Fast, reactive content that jumps on trends while they are still relevant
Final Thought
Professional photography and videography are still valuable, but they are not the drivers of social media success. If a brand wants real engagement, it needs to stop treating social like an advertising platform and start treating it like a conversation. The brands that understand this will thrive, the ones that insist on staying inside the polished, curated comfort zone will struggle to connect.