Still life has a long history within the visual arts, and scene creators are its most recent incarnation for the digital world. Born out of brand design presentations, where the new logo is positioned across several media to visualize the actual “look&feel” of the new branding, scene creators, a.k.a. scene mockups, are now one of the fastest growing graphic design tools, not only as pre-packaged PSD files available to download, but also as stand alone apps. In the era when content-marketing and visual marketing are the buzzwords scene creators get a lot of work done with a few clicks, which can save a lot of time and $$.
Here are some of my favorites:
Creative Design Bundle by UIFest:
Pros: 12 original scenes to satisfy 12 different moods: from hyper-modern to classic vintage. Free!
Cons: elements are fixed, you cannot change the scene composition but only add your own graphics/elements.
PROS: One of the most extensive and popular mockup creators, compose the scene anyway you want with +120 elements, 29 screen elements, interchangeable colors and frames. Price: $ 35, which is an excellent deal considering how many hours of work (and accessories to purchase) this can save!
If instead of the front view with desk, you prefer the top view then this bundle is for you. Boasting and ever growing number of items (1,500 at time of writing and updates announcing 300 new items coming soon) and some of them in HD/hi-res, Scene Creator is a precious creative resource, well worth the investment of $49 of its price.
If large bundles paralyze your creative process with their endless possibilities, specific scenes (baby, feminine, designer, wood/natural, modern tech..) and single items are available for purchase on Custom Scene to put together your unique vision. The quality of the images is excellent and there are some original freebies to test their products. Prices: $19-28 for most scenes, from $1 for the single elements.
There is no need to download humongous files with this online scene creator, put together your own scene choosing each element: desk, wall, art, lamps, tech… accessorize! However, not all elements work well graphically (i.e.: stay away from colored tables and plants), therefore the scene might look fake to the professional eye. Free (png only)
Life is messy and full of variables, scene creators help to keep it tidy in your images.