Shutterstock may have discovered a new market for “Made in America” stock photography in the wake of a recent gaffe made by a Jeb Bush super PAC advertisement. The video ad in support of the Republican candidate featured stock video footage of “amber waves of grain” and a construction scene that was later disclosed to have been shot in England and Asia, respectively.
The ad was intended to display Bush’s optimism for America, in contrast to Donald Trump’s often critical remarks that claim the country is headed down the wrong path. In an ironic oversight by the Right to Rise super PAC, that future America just happened to be located overseas.
In anticipation of the early primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire, Shutterstock released a collection of stock photography on Tuesday titled “Safe for IA and NH” featuring iconic images from the country’s Midwest, such as tractors, pies and cornfields. The main selling point, of course, is that the photos are all shot within the U.S.
Shutterstock curator Robyn Lange commented on similar slip-ups by previous campaigns, “It does happen a lot. You know these people are under, you can understand, really tight deadlines.”
As primary season progresses, Shutterstock will offer more collections of embarrassment-proof American photography if they see sufficient interest. Lange speculated that there may one day be state-specific collections.
As of June 2014, Shutterstock’s current offerings now extend beyond photography to include a music library of more than 60,000 audio clips that are searchable by mood. Additionally, the company soon plans to add thousands of 4K and HD quality video as a result of a deal with Red Bull Media House. Featured among the offerings will be a unique “point of view” style of videos filmed through the eyes of athletes, or on location in some of the world’s most remote and extreme environments.
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