John Gaffen Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Are there any Alamy contributors out there, who don't currently own an iPhone, but are seriously considering buying one, so they can participate in stockimo? I have thought about this long and hard over the weekend. I have even done quite a lot of research into iPhone camera capabilities and specifications in the various models. If I can do this economically, which would mean buying a second hand iPhone, which is not the latest model, Say an iPhone 4S. It may be worth a try? I don't currently own a small, carry around, camera approved by Alamy QC, so, an iPhone could fit that bill for me. I don't mean I will sell my professional level Canon Digital SLR's any time soon, but It does make some sort of sense to have a smaller, lighter alternative, from which Alamy will accept images into their collection. I spent a lot of time looking at iPhone images both on Alamy and elsewhere on the internet. In the right hands, they do seem to be capable of producing acceptable images. Some are even quite artistic and creative. iPhones are not known to be very robust, so this does bother me a bit! I suppose one can get a reasonable case to protect them though! I would be interested in other contributor’s thoughts on the above! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I upgraded, not sure that's the right word for getting an iphone, so as to take phone pics for another fairly established phone collection. Whilst they are apparently making sales, and they are a very commercial outfit, I'm not convinced that spending money will actually bring a serious return. Jury is still out there - I did upload one image to stockimo whilst playing around with snapseed. I think I've hit the level of my personal interest in iphoneography....messing around with snaps whilst having a cup of tea in Norwich's forum....rating no doubt going through the floor as I write.. My iphone 4S is protected by a case, leather type and it's been dropped a number of times and been ok. I would rate the iphone as seriously more robust that my old HTC Desire (IIRC the model) which was dropped about 6" onto a wooden floor and gave up the ghost. However, you can actually use an iphone for making calls...so all might not be lost Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mihai Popa Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I think buying a new iPhone is a big investment. Wait for the first sales on Stockimo to kick in and see if it's worth getting one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Morrison Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I'd planned to get an iPhone anyway (have iMac and iPad Mini already, so it'll be handy to share cloud-based data, contacts, schedule, documents, etc). I'm looking forward to shooting pix for Alamy with it. My 'proper' photography is rather formal (mostly with tripod), so I hope to 'free myself up' a bit, with a more spontaneous kind of picture-taking... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulstw Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I bought an iMac last year and from using that all the time felt that having an iPhone to make use of iCloud was a good idea. I toyed with the idea of getting one, but coming from being such an Android Fanboy and using nothing but HTC phones since Android came out, I swallowed my pride and accepted my fate on Saturday. Walked into the Apple store, and bought an iPhone 5S. So far I've loved every min of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gervais Montacute Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Yes but only because I found my old Nokia has a dead battery and buying a replacement seems pointless. As a user of Macs for what seems like centuries I will have to get another mobile phone but will probably wait for the iPhone 6. Will I take 'photos' with it? No idea. Probably not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
losdemas Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 ^^John, I'm in exactly the same boat as you (Canon DSLR; no carry-around; been considering the pros and cons re: mobile submissions/used iPhone 4S). I spent a good while researching on eBay this weekend, and there are some good deals to be had, (after all, what donkey wants anything as old-hat as an iPhone4S? !) I am lucky to have a very good monthly deal on my un-smartphone, (gained following in-depth discussion with my provider regarding their, um, 'inadequacies') and so might have been able to justify purchasing an iPhone to go with the contract, on the presumption of some kind of return which would pay it back before I had to upgrade again. Having discovered that the iPhone utilises a different type of SIM card, however, I am not prepared to shell out for a new monthly contract on the off-chance that I may get some odd pennies from pictures taken with it. I have yet to see regular sales, or future prospects on Alamy that justify any further investment in anything, to be honest. If the sales volume, the prices, the reporting, the clearance times and the payments were improved, then I might change my mind, but I can't see it, somehow. For those that have the spare cash, or already have an iPhone, or currently have sales here or elsewhere that justify the investment - crack on, and I really do wish you the best of luck . Personally, I'm in agreement with what Mihai has just said, above. EDIT: ("what Mihai has just said"): though this may be a misunderstanding as I see from another post that he is already submitting photos to Stockimo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 iPhones are not known to be very robust, so this does bother me a bit! I suppose one can get a reasonable case to protect them though! I would be interested in other contributor’s thoughts on the above! Mine has hit the ground unprotected several times and it is still functionally fully intact. I curse my stupidity every time it has happened but the case I have adds too much bulk to fit neatly in my pocket so I go on with it unprotected. Last time it fell from chest height onto concrete and I thought that might be the end but it was ok. So unless I got a particularly unusual iPhone, I have to say they are not flimsy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 If I can do this economically, which would mean buying a second hand iPhone, which is not the latest model, Say an iPhone 4S. It may be worth a try? I don't currently own a small, carry around, camera approved by Alamy QC, so, an iPhone could fit that bill for me. I don't mean I will sell my professional level Canon Digital SLR's any time soon, but It does make some sort of sense to have a smaller, lighter alternative, from which Alamy will accept images into their collection. I spent a lot of time looking at iPhone images both on Alamy and elsewhere on the internet. In the right hands, they do seem to be capable of producing acceptable images. Some are even quite artistic and creative. I have a 4S and I prefer it to my son's 5 as it is smaller (shorter) and fits more neatly in my pocket. On the second point, it seems to me that an iPhone is not really a substitute for a small camera given the present Alamy structure. There is no guarantee that they will accept images submitted through Stockimo - so you might have technically reasonable pictures which get rejected because they consider the subject matter unsuitable. They appear to be looking for specific types of images. And on the other hand you can't submit these images through the normal QC process as the iPhone is not on the approved list (as far as I know anyway). I was thinking along the same lines until this became apparent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan_Andison Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 If you were planning to buy an iPhone anyway, then ok, but if you are only buying an iPhone to submit images here then I would wait to see what the returns are like. For instance, how much would you have to earn before seeing profit on your investment. Exchange rate $1= £0.61. iphone 4s approx £250 (new) - $409 - Earnings required from mobile sales to cover cost. At 50% comm rate - $820 iphone 5s approx £450 (new) - $737 - Earnings required from mobile sales to cover cost. At 50% comm rate - $1474 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Like my iMac but prefer Andriod phone to iPhone. Allan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Todd Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I have yet to see regular sales, or future prospects on Alamy that justify any further investment in anything, to be honest. If the sales volume, the prices, the reporting, the clearance times and the payments were improved, then I might change my mind, but I can't see it, somehow. +1 I sync my macbook pro with my Android and Google contacts/calendars seemlessly. I simply prefer the Android phones and iPhones don't have the ability to take an sd card to increase storage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 ... I have yet to see regular sales, or future prospects on Alamy that justify any further investment in anything, to be honest. If the sales volume, the prices, the reporting, the clearance times and the payments were improved, then I might change my mind, but I can't see it, somehow. ... My view exactly and anyway I went for a Samsung Galaxy S4 (Android) only a few months ago so no new phone on the horizon for several years (I used my last one for 5). Any spare cash will go towards a Fuji X-T1 for my broader photographic purposes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Gaffen Posted February 24, 2014 Author Share Posted February 24, 2014 Thanks for you comments so far Guys, I've read them all with interest. Perhaps it is better to wait and see how sales are looking, before making any investment in an iPhone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynn Palmer Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I would love to participate in Stockimo and seriously considered an iPhone over the weekend. But my current Samsung Galaxy Android phone with an 8mp camera is still in great condition. Later this year I may upgrade but so far I favor the about to be released Samsung Galaxy S5. It looks to offer superior features (including a 16mp camera) and will probably be cheaper. As Duncan pointed out, it will take robust sales to warrant purchase of the iPhone solely on the basis of Stockimo image sales. Since I won't be upgrading my phone for a few more months I will have to sit on the sidelines for now. Hopefully Alamy will get around to releasing an Android app sooner rather than later. After all, Android devices already have greater market share than iOS in every country but Japan and are increasing in popularity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dustydingo Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 No. I am however waiting for someone to produce an iPhone camera without the phone bits . . . although knowing the pricing strategies of mega-corporations in the modern worlde, it'll probably cost more than the actual iPhone. (don't need, so therefore don't have, a mobile phone, and sure as heck ain't buying one to make an extra $1.99 per month). dd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mihai Popa Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 ^^John, I'm in exactly the same boat as you (Canon DSLR; no carry-around; been considering the pros and cons re: mobile submissions/used iPhone 4S). I spent a good while researching on eBay this weekend, and there are some good deals to be had, (after all, what donkey wants anything as old-hat as an iPhone4S? !) I am lucky to have a very good monthly deal on my un-smartphone, (gained following in-depth discussion with my provider regarding their, um, 'inadequacies') and so might have been able to justify purchasing an iPhone to go with the contract, on the presumption of some kind of return which would pay it back before I had to upgrade again. Having discovered that the iPhone utilises a different type of SIM card, however, I am not prepared to shell out for a new monthly contract on the off-chance that I may get some odd pennies from pictures taken with it. I have yet to see regular sales, or future prospects on Alamy that justify any further investment in anything, to be honest. If the sales volume, the prices, the reporting, the clearance times and the payments were improved, then I might change my mind, but I can't see it, somehow. For those that have the spare cash, or already have an iPhone, or currently have sales here or elsewhere that justify the investment - crack on, and I really do wish you the best of luck . Personally, I'm in agreement with what Mihai has just said, above. EDIT: ("what Mihai has just said"): though this may be a misunderstanding as I see from another post that he is already submitting photos to Stockimo I have an iPhone 4S since 2012 so I have enough images to upload on Stockimo. I can't loose money, just time. I managed to get 10 images online, but no activity on customers side. Processing and uploading takes more time than usual. I will keep you informed of my progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
losdemas Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I have an iPhone 4S since 2012 so I have enough images to upload on Stockimo. I can't loose money, just time. I managed to get 10 images online, but no activity on customers side. Processing and uploading takes more time than usual. I will keep you informed of my progress. Thanks for the clarification, Mihai. I look forward with interest to see how this latest Alamy venture moves forward. Best of luck to you ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I had an iPhone until October, when I traded it in for an Android LG phone. I have some of the images from the iPhone on my computer, so I do wonder if I could somehow upload them. It seems Stockimo wants the images to be uploaded directly from the iPhone, is this correct? If so I am out of luck on those. I would not go back to iPhone because the images from my LG G3 are far superior to the iPhone 4S. I went Android strictly on the basis of image quality, plus the larger screen to view them. Here's hoping Alamy gets with offering a platform for Android soon. Betty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulstw Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I had an iPhone until October, when I traded it in for an Android LG phone. I have some of the images from the iPhone on my computer, so I do wonder if I could somehow upload them. It seems Stockimo wants the images to be uploaded directly from the iPhone, is this correct? If so I am out of luck on those. I would not go back to iPhone because the images from my LG G3 are far superior to the iPhone 4S. I went Android strictly on the basis of image quality, plus the larger screen to view them. Here's hoping Alamy gets with offering a platform for Android soon. Betty Aye Betty the app seems to be a totally separate entity to your normal image library. They don't appear in My Images, so only reside in the Home screen of the app. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Robinson Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 No Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Just ordered a 5s. Reasons: 1. if anything like early alamy (early 2000's), maximum benefits (read "earnings") come at the beginning of a hype, not when the crowd recognizes there is a hype. If the Stockimo approach takes off, it will benefit the early adopters first (and most). 2. It regenerates my interest in stock (standard route is getting less attractive....has served me well, but these days, returns per blood, sweat, and tears are falling). 3. Opens new opportunities (carry-everywhere, shoot spontaneous, or less accessible stuff often missed unless I happen to have my rangefinder in my back pocket...unlikely). 4. Something new. Won't reject it unless I have proven to myself, despite intensive attempts to make it work, that it cannot be made to work. Innocent until proven guilty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I have an iPhone . . . sort of. It's an older model, and then I took it into AT&T and changed the SIM card and changed my monthly support deal. Yes, I turned my smart phone into a basic dumb phone. It can still take pictures, but I wonder if it would work with Stockimo? In fact I wonder if I could download the Stockimo app onto this tricked-up iPhone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 iPhones are not known to be very robust, so this does bother me a bit! I suppose one can get a reasonable case to protect them though! See Lifejacket (scroll down the page) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 I have an iPhone . . . sort of. It's an older model, and then I took it into AT&T and changed the SIM card and changed my monthly support deal. Yes, I turned my smart phone into a basic dumb phone. It can still take pictures, but I wonder if it would work with Stockimo? In fact I wonder if I could download the Stockimo app onto this tricked-up iPhone? The app works on iPhone 4s or later. I think it needs iOS 6 or later and that won't work on phones older than the 4s (came out in 2011 I think) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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