OneWay Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 This could be why many of us are drawing blanks and low prices... https://medium.com/p/62ae4bcbe01b Sigh! Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyMelbourne Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 They might supply the nails but there is no need to hammer them in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Dave, those look to me like websites that supply free photos for bloggers and social media users who wouldn't pay to use photos anyway. Personally, I think that microstock is the real culprit. Microstock agencies have been flooded with editorial images that shouldn't have been placed there in the first place IMO. Unfortunately, it's a bit late to undo the damage now. I used to do a lot of freelance writing (mainly travel-related), and the same thing happened in that world. When the digital revolution came along, writers started giving away their work for nothing or almost nothing (out of desperation, hunger for exposure, God knows what else), and the existing freelance writing business model basically collapsed. Stock photography has been somewhat more resilient because it had a stronger and better defined business model to begin with. I would go on, but it's too depressing and it has all been said before... I really should start going to bed earlier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Elliott Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 I think that at the end of the day quality in the top sites will always be sought out by those that want it. Decent prices are still being paid and we do here of them even here on Alamy. Remember the old saying..."you pay for what you get!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Problem is there are a lot of monkeys out there (with cameras), and people with peanuts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladikirn Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Problem is there are a lot of monkeys out there (with cameras), and people with peanuts Short said, but well said. No competition should be underestimated! When stock took off the seasoned pros laughed at it. But, the drought in assignments started setting in very soon. Then RF was invented.... Then micros was invented.... and we all laughed about crappy content and quality.... Then "free" come along..... you can admit or not, but there are some great shots there. Next......?... just wait and see. As for now we have to share peanuts with monkeys Next......? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 But in all industries it is very easy to be "busy fools" by buying turnover. That is what is happening in stock, it works for the agency because they are not incurring the up-front cost of producing the content. With automation and scale gross margin is probably high (higher than for contributors at least) even though sales values are low - pile it high and sell it cheap, cash is all for large agencies. I no longer really see the difference between large mass market agencies and microstock - there are only subtle differences in their business models and their prices are much the same. I suspect some small agencies, if they resist giving work away and following the market to the bottom, will survive in their niches (including the premium market) for some time yet. Look at many industries, estate agents, publishing spring to mind - they consolidated in boom times and struggled when the market got tough. At first they bought out the small guys, but as the big boys struggled (and laid people off) the small players moved back in. I am not suggesting boom times for stock will ever return, I am pretty certain they will not, but as in most fields there will be niche, specialists and commercially astute photographers who will make it work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig Yates Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Problem is there are a lot of monkjeys out there (with cameras), and people with peanuts Thats why I only get peanuts then! Regards Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladikirn Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Problem is there are a lot of monkjeys out there (with cameras), and people with peanuts Thats why I only get peanuts then! Regards Craig Yes! And worse is-you have to share them with rest of us But I did not get much of them this month. Rather some shells Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirco Vacca Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 I am really afraid that it will go (or is) like this: Traditional stock is going lower with prices to compete with microstock agencies. In the meantime quality of microstock is very high. Just take one site and see it yourself . Every day this agencies are getting more and more buyers. One has allready 7 million buyers. That is crazy. How much i love Alamy.... i am afraid that more and more buyers are jumping over..... images you can get for 3 dollars instead of 75. Photographers will see more potential in microstock since they have millons of buyers and one image can be sold hundreds of times. I wish we will have many more years in Alamy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abiyoyo Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Traditional stock is going lower with prices to compete with microstock agencies. In the meantime quality of microstock is very high. Just take one site and see it yourself . Every day this agencies are getting more and more buyers. One has allready 7 million buyers. That is crazy. ...and one day the traditional stock will be converted in microstock agencies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
losdemas Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Those sites are just more little guys trying to edge into selling images in a different way. They offer their free images (anyhow, what use frankly are random images - 1 per day - to a publisher?) in order to get folk to sign up to buy more services and 'packs' (e.g.). Almost certainly they are hoping that the model will be popular esp. with bloggers (doubtless already is), and that the big boys will come along, take a look at their subscription list and buy them out. I really don't see this as a genuine threat - too many other things to worry about ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Those sites are just more little guys trying to edge into selling images in a different way. They offer their free images (anyhow, what use frankly are random images - 1 per day - to a publisher?) in order to get folk to sign up to buy more services and 'packs' (e.g.). Almost certainly they are hoping that the model will be popular esp. with bloggers (doubtless already is), and that the big boys will come along, take a look at their subscription list and buy them out. I really don't see this as a genuine threat - too many other things to worry about ! I agree, random-image sites like these that cater to blogs, etc. aren't a real threat. Fortunately, I'm not drawing a blank this month. In fact, it's one of my best Alamy months ever (much to my surprise). However, when I look at my photos that are leasing, they tend to be ones that have very little (none in some cases) competition on Alamy, which I would interpret to be both good and bad news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Addict Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 Most shots on those free sites are just simply poor, didn't see many good ones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Brook Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 I think that at the end of the day quality in the top sites will always be sought out by those that want it. Decent prices are still being paid and we do here of them even here on Alamy. Remember the old saying..."you pay for what you get!" Too right. Take a look at this set: http://www.corbisimages.com/Search#pr=gallery+stock&p=1 Note in restrictions it states: "Not available for licensing for less than $250.00 (US dollars)" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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