Brasilnut

Bad month on here at just $29 net on 12 sales. Full monthly report for all agencies, including a special segment on copyright theft.

14 sales for net $85 Full monthly stock report.

Published on my blog a post on 5 reasons why I've recently upgraded to the DJI Air 3 (from the Air 2s) with some examples from my first flight in Lisbon.

$139 net on 15 downloads. Full monthly stock report for all agencies here.

OK month at Alamy with $89 net from 12 sales. Full monthly stock report for all agencies here.

Back in the day I worked as a paralegal for a civil litigation firm in London and got a taste of how it works. The majority of Alamy's costs will undoubtely be from consulting specialised IP lawyers in Germany. The emails, meetings, negotiations will add up to considerable billable hours....right now probably more than $100,000 only from such costs. Bild probably did ask for crazy amounts and Alamy are fiercely defending the claim while costs keep adding up. Why did Bild single out Alamy when there are similar images at other agencies? I just did a quick search over at the Shutterstock search engine for such images and found 24. I did have some on there duplicated which were part of the claim. https://www.shutterstock.com/search/bild%2c-newstand%2c-newspaper%2c-headline?release=editorial&image_type=photo And 100s over at iStock. https://www.istockphoto.com/en/search/2/image?alloweduse=editorialuseonly&mediatype=photography&phrase=bild%2C newspaper%2C newstand%2C street Perhaps they thought Alamy had deeper pockets than the micros?

$98 net on 12 sales. Full stock earnings report on here including details on being sued via Alamy for two of my editorial images on here.

I've had 2 of my image flagged and will now have some 20odd quid deducted for legal expenses and perhaps more depending on the outcome of the case. FML, i thought editorials (capturing real people and real things) is the way to go from now until the end of the century as opposed to creating commercial images which will soon be all but redudant due to AI, but this frivilous lawsuit just makes me question what is the upside, if any, of doing street photography.

$85 net on 10 pics Full monthly stock earnings report here

Hi, Never too late to start, in fact I started just 3 months ago and talking about stock/microstock/bookcovers/AI to support my blog. I have zero expectations that I'll be able to obtain enough subscribers/view hours to be able to monetize, if it does ever happen I don't think it will earn me much. My gear is quite basic, influencer light, Rode Microphone atop a Panasonic Lumix. I can do better to upgrade but no point as see point below. I'm exporting in HD. Oh and I'm editing with a free version of Da Vinci Resolve. Good luck if you do get started, it's never too late!

Indeed, a sub 250grams will give you less headache when it comes to compliance. In the UK, "If your drone is under 250g then there are some variations to some of the rules. If your drone has a camera then you must register as an operator but you do not have to complete the flyer ID test (although we strongly recommend that you do). If you’re flying a drone or model aircraft that’s lighter than 250g, you can fly closer to people than 50m and you can fly over them, but you must not fly over crowds." https://www.caa.co.uk/drones/rules-and-categories-of-drone-flying/introduction-to-drone-flying-and-the-uk-rules/ I'm based in Portugal where we have the A1/A2/A3 categories with the A1 being the sub 250grams. I could fly a heavier drone under the A2 category (I have the qualification) but the main difference is that I should not fly over people and buildings, whereas under the A1 category it's permitted to do so (just not large crowds). For sure, being able to fly in more places is a factor in my decision-making. I'm glad I did the exams though, learned quite a bit and they were free. If you have the time I would suggest you go for them even if you're flying a smaller done as you may want to upgrade one day to a larger more professional one. Good luck!

The three benefits for me for investing in a heavier drones are: - More battery life - More power to get to places quickly, especially in sport mode or to avoid certain risks (predatory birds for example) - Handles the wind much better I probably should have started with the mini and worked my way up to a heavier drone, not the other way around. I may get quickly frustrated with the mini especially in days it's a little more windy! Also I'll see how a slightly smaller sensor than what I was used to with the Air 2s will behave. Adjustable aperture would be nice and not having to always guess the ND filter for the day. Still waiting for the day a retail drone will be able to produce natural bokeh on some shots, it's only a matter of time. Overall, I'm happy that we're able to get the certain angles that 15 years ago were only possible by hiring an expensive helicopter, all for less than a grand US. Footage is def worth it and then submit to Adobe Stock, Shutterstock, Pond5...the sweet spot is around 10-15 seconds and doesn't need to be fancy moves. I've just checked my results and since I've started in April 2022 I've earned around about $700 from drone footage vs about $2k from stills.

This is what I have in mind and it can all change. My plan is to use the mini 3 pro to fly pretty much anywhere in large cities and to travel around. Less weight/space and as you've mentioned fewer regulations when flying a sub 250gram drone. I'll use the Air 3 for more local travel and where I can obtain authorization for trickier spots. The Air 3 has two cameras, the standard 24mm equivalent (not that interesting for me) and a 70mm optical zoom lens (super interesting for me, especially for book covers). Also can do some cool footage from far away to use as stock. The Mavic 3 pro has the standard 24mm lens and more features like adjustable aperture, etc.

Nothing special at $57 net on 9 sales. Had a nice sale which was unfortunately refunded on the following day. Have started calculating how my overall port is performing and the above corresponds to just 1/3 of a cent per image on average, ouch. Full monthly earnings report here for all agencies

Getting an DJI Air 2s drone (until it crashed but that's for another story) in April 2022 has been a game-changer for me. If I knew how useful it would have been I would have invested back in 2018 but better late than never I suppose. Super happy that Martin got into this game, as he has mentioned it has opened up a world of possibilities. Of course a drone is fun and such a thrill to see all the angles etc. Need to do something crazy like I attempted on NYE (for a big reward) for it to crash, otherwise it's very safe. Thinking of a drone as a business tool, in my case, within less than a year I managed to pay off the initial investment. Nowadays, my drone footage/stills are selling almost everyday and 3 top down images have so far sold for nice prices at Arcangel as book covers. I've also used it for commissioned work in the real estate market as well as shooting some social events, all remunerated of course. For the first time in almost 2 years I'm without a drone but have a mini 3 pro on the way as it's great to travel and fly in more places but I'm really eyeeing the Air 3 with its 70mm lens...heavier drone but more professional results. I've written extensivelly about my drone experiences on my blog, notably the following articles which I'm shamelessly sharing with you: https://brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/?s=drone Alex