4 Lack of choice means that the images available will rarely communicate in a powerful manner. The agency lines up just the right people for the image, and they find just the right setting. If they are selling medical care of some kind, they make sure their doctors' faces inspire trust and confidence. They eliminate any models with shifty eyes or hints or arrogance. They know that soulful images sell more product.
Advertising agencies respect the dynamic relationship between images and words.
They see the value of crisp new images which are crafted thoughtfully to accompany text messages. There is nothing about clip art libraries which prevents anybody from inserting their own photography or line drawings. But the implicit message of these programs is the value of the short cut and the template. It takes a very strong swimmer to resist the current and swim upstream against the flow of clip art and ready made images. Words and images should work together so that each contributes intensely to the ideas being expressed, but this balance between words and images is undermined when the available collection leaves the communicator with a 2-3 cats, dogs, office workers or cathedrals.