Picture This

Libertipix is an exclusively LGBTQ+ stock image library providing authentic images shot through the lens of the people who know and understand the community the most, LGBTQ+ people themselves. We caught up with Donna and Nicola from Libertipix, the creative team behind this month’s cover shoot

Why is Libertipix unique?

Instead of casting models to play gay or lesbian for example, we use real people who identity as LGBTQ+. Everything is shot by queer photographers and is guaranteed to be a sensitive and authentic portrayal of everyday queer life.

Donna and Nicola

Why is Libertipix needed in industry?

Donna’s background is in advertising, and over the years she found herself searching more and more stock-shot libraries for appropriate images to use in marketing campaigns. While looking through these stock libraries she noticed that there was a distinct lack of authentic LGBTQ+ images. Instead they were oversexualised, straight people cast as gay men and lesbians, images that followed a heteronormative narrative and a lot of rainbow flags. Rather than rant and rave about this lack of authentic representation, we decided we’d be proactive and set up ourselves.

Who is your company aimed at?

Any business that is interested in creating inclusive and diverse marketing collateral, really. Advertising and marketing agencies, LGBTQ+ businesses, design consultancies, brands, small businesses and charities.

What are the wider consequences of underrepresentation in advertising and media?

Everyone wants to be able to recognise themselves, whether it’s what they choose to buy, or the company they’d like to work for. How do you know you want to work for an organisation if you can’t see yourself?

Under and misrepresentation affects how people relate to organisations, brands and products, and it’s also disenfranchising. On a wider psychological level, it makes us feel excluded, that we’re not a valued part of society. Advertising is slowly changing but the inclusion of LGBTQ+ often misses the mark in terms of true representation.

Seventy-two per cent of the LGBTQ+ community think the way they are presented in advertising is tokenistic, according to research commissioned by the Gay Times and Karmarama.

I’m struggling to think of the last time I saw a piece of communication featuring an authentic middle-aged lesbian couple. We can’t be invisible forever.

Libertipix launched just ahead of the first lockdown. How has your business been impacted by lockdowns and Covid-19?

Yes, unfortunately, the first lockdown meant we had to abandon our shoots for that period. And obviously, socially-distanced shoots have been challenging.

What is your dream for Libertipix?

If in five years’ time we have played our role in ‘liberating’ LGBTQ+ people from media misrepresentation, then we will have achieved our dream. We are at the beginning of our journey. Each year we aim to push further and further afield - getting queer photographers onboard from other parts of the world. At the moment, we are operating locally, featuring members of Brighton’s LGBTQ+ community captured by local queer photographers. We are constantly looking to hear from anyone who identifies as LGBTQ+ to feature in our photographs and, of course, photographers so get in touch.

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