CarlosGandiaga Posted August 11, 2018 Share Posted August 11, 2018 ..but how many images do I need to have "on sale" to realistically expect to see results? I'm currently uploading the bulk of my best shots to QC, as I currently only have about 270 images for sale. Additionally, any tips or techniques on finding keywords? I can usually come up with 25-30 just by remembering what I was thinking when I took the picture, but it gets exponentially harder from there. Any advice would be most humbly appreciated. Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cryptoprocta Posted August 13, 2018 Share Posted August 13, 2018 FWIW I had over 800 files before my first sale was reported. (Reporting can take around three months) - but at that time, Alamy's entire collection was much smaller, so my 800 was a greater proportion of the whole than 800 would be nowadays. Nevertheless, I've read of people having sales with far fewer files than that. It all depends on what customers want and how your images stack up to the opposition. Don't worry at all about increasing keywords. If there are only 5 relevant keywords, there are 5, don't strive for 10 far less 50. I know Alamy have this inexplicable 'discoverability' bar, but in their own official video guide to AIM, their sample pics have only 16 keywords. See screenshot: https://www.dropbox.com/s/int98rsxud1usey/AlamyDiscoverability.jpg?dl=0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Ashmore Posted August 13, 2018 Share Posted August 13, 2018 The general consensus a couple of years ago was that a portfolio of 3000 images would average about 1 or 2 sales a month. But that was a couple of years ago and as the number of images on Alamy have increased significantly, so would the number of images required in your portfolio needed to make regular sales. I have 5000 images and average 3 or 4 sales a month. A lot also depends on what you shoot (e.g. is it a popular subject for buyers, is there lots of competition, do you have a good variety of subjects) and how good your images are to. Some people get a good numbers of sales with less images and some with more. Either way.. don't give up your day job but keep chipping away and keep uploading and if your images/subjects are good enough, eventually some sales will come ! :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay D Posted August 13, 2018 Share Posted August 13, 2018 On 8/11/2018 at 18:22, CarlosGandiaga said: ..but how many images do I need to have "on sale" to realistically expect to see results? I'm currently uploading the bulk of my best shots to QC, as I currently only have about 270 images for sale. Additionally, any tips or techniques on finding keywords? I can usually come up with 25-30 just by remembering what I was thinking when I took the picture, but it gets exponentially harder from there. Any advice would be most humbly appreciated. Cheers! Not a stupid question at all, we’re on roughly the same amount of photos, i usually upload daily although only say 5 a day, it takes lots of time and effort and its hard seeing others selling theres when i’ve not had even a zoom yet but its a long-term game and im determined to keep on trucking, developing and learning until i see that sale drop in... i sometimes use a site that generates words related to your subject. Comes in handy during those blank periods, so use it quite often lol...but dont add words that aren’t directly related to your picture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted August 13, 2018 Share Posted August 13, 2018 Carlos, I would skip terms like 'beautiful' and 'imposing' in your captions. Stick with simple ID words on things that are in the frame. Unfortunately, there is no one, correct answer to your question about when and how many sales you'll get -- too many variables. You have to think of this as a long game. Good luck. Edo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starsphinx Posted August 13, 2018 Share Posted August 13, 2018 1 hour ago, Jay D said: Not a stupid question at all, we’re on roughly the same amount of photos, i usually upload daily although only say 5 a day, it takes lots of time and effort and its hard seeing others selling theres when i’ve not had even a zoom yet but its a long-term game and im determined to keep on trucking, developing and learning until i see that sale drop in... i sometimes use a site that generates words related to your subject. Comes in handy during those blank periods, so use it quite often lol...but dont add words that aren’t directly related to your picture. I am also on about the same numbers - and also not had a zoom yet (and feel so much better reading threads like these) I am taking and uploading what I can while I can - I suffer from fibromyalgia and don't know when it is next going to lay me out, so figure take photos and upload while well and hopefully over time it will develop into a trickle income when I am both active and stuck in bed not able to do anything. My method of keywording is to type the subject into google and see if there is a Wikipedia page on it (sometimes this is after using google to find out what on earth it is in the first place lol) take as much as I can from the wiki page (especially useful for plants and animals because there is usually all the Latin names that are so important) then I go back to Alamy and search it there, find images similarish to mine and check out their keywords. If there are ones I think appropriate I have not used I add them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiskerke Posted August 13, 2018 Share Posted August 13, 2018 1 hour ago, Ed Rooney said: Carlos, I would skip terms like 'beautiful' and 'imposing' in your captions. Stick with simple ID words on things that are in the frame. Unfortunately, there is no one, correct answer to your question about when and how many sales you'll get -- too many variables. You have to think of this as a long game. Good luck. Edo Ed, I agree however a lot of clients didn't get the memo: 18 pages of %beautiful% in AoA for the rolling year. Beautiful parsnips I understand. But what is: bee hive Transylvaniarigami AND BEAUTIFUL Ah here's one for you: eating beautiful pasta It must be an Instagram thing. #beautiful - 505,980,236 posts. wim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 Wim, half the rental ads i see for apartments in Spain describe them as "magnificent." I thought The Donald had claimed the use of empty superlatives as his own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colblimp Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 4 hours ago, Ed Rooney said: Wim, half the rental ads i see for apartments in Spain describe them as "magnificent." I thought The Donald had claimed the use of empty superlatives as his own. When I see the word 'magnificent' I think of my girlfriend's chest area... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stokie Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 5 hours ago, Colblimp said: When I see the word 'magnificent' I think of my girlfriend's chest area... I say, steady on old chap! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobD Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 5 hours ago, Colblimp said: When I see the word 'magnificent' I think of my girlfriend's chest area... That would be the magnificent chest of draws of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 1 minute ago, BobD said: That would be the magnificent chest of draws of course. Draws! Now we are going down in the world. Allan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colblimp Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 2 minutes ago, BobD said: That would be the magnificent chest of draws of course. No, none of my chests of drawers are magnificent! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobD Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 7 minutes ago, Allan Bell said: Draws! Now we are going down in the world. Allan oops, good job I'm not keywording Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 Context, gentlemen -- context! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MircoV Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 18 minutes ago, Ed Rooney said: Context, gentlemen -- context! I always knew that Ed Rooney was a glass of bear.... i just never dared to ask..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 Sometimes in the morning before coffee I can act like a bear . . . but perhaps you meant beer, Mirco? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisC Posted August 27, 2018 Share Posted August 27, 2018 On 8/11/2018 at 17:22, CarlosGandiaga said: ..but how many images do I need to have "on sale" to realistically expect to see results? I'm currently uploading the bulk of my best shots to QC, as I currently only have about 270 images for sale. Additionally, any tips or techniques on finding keywords? I can usually come up with 25-30 just by remembering what I was thinking when I took the picture, but it gets exponentially harder from there. Any advice would be most humbly appreciated. Cheers! I'm no expert, but for me, I had about 270 images added in my first full year, I'm not sure about zooms as I didn't really keep a record, but I had no sales. It took me three years to have 700 images, by that time I had 5 sales. I did read a year or so ago on the forum that over 2,000 images would give you a couple of sales per month, the first year U went over 2,000 that year I had one per month, but it was later in the year that I had 2,000 images. That was the end of 2016, since then I've only added just under 600 images, but since March 2017 I have had on average a couple of sales per month & apart from may this year at least one per month. It does seem to be a long haul thing and there are easier ways of making money, especially when you factor in editing & keywording, but some people seem to do quite well with large portfolios, yet others don't. As for keywording, as you are just starting, take the advice on here and you may get there faster than some others and faster than me, as mine especially the early ones are't great, as I didn't know what I was doing, I thought keywording was like tagging, which it isn't, then it all changed with AIM, so I need to re-do many, but it's all time consuming. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MircoV Posted August 28, 2018 Share Posted August 28, 2018 21 hours ago, Ed Rooney said: Sometimes in the morning before coffee I can act like a bear . . . but perhaps you meant beer, Mirco? I indeed mean this yellow wonderful drink. But good that my comment opened some secrets of you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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