This is apparently what the UX profession as a whole has decided is the best, most pretty-looking thing. Interestingly I've not seen studies that show people like it when they go to a web site with intent to find things, but that's secondary to looking pretty.

The pictures don't have to be meaningful or relevant - they just have to be big, and avoid distracting you with silly text that might convey relevant information. To get to anything like that, it's 'good design' to force the user to scroll first. hadn't you heard?

</rant> Sorry. This large picture + no meaningful up-front content + much scrolling trend is so irritating.