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42 minutes ago, Cee Dee Dickinson said:

On a serious note. No zooms could be  telling us  the products  on sale are not desirable.

Charlie,

Hi. I know you're relatively new to the Forum and feeling your way around, but you seem to be making lot of troll like comments on various threads inviting arguments - and you have had several arguments this week. Lockdown is frustrating, but it may be more worthwhile increasing your porfolio size than picking fights.  I don't see the benefit of going on a Forum and telling everyone their photos may be undesirable. That could only be possible if everyone has identikit portfolios - if you look at people's portfolios you'll see they are actually very varied.

 

Zooms are one measure of success, but the acid test is whether people are making sales or not. Mine do not seem to have been affected much over the last year. Other people are having various different experiences with sales.

 

Best wishes,

Stephen

 

 

 

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15 minutes ago, Bryan said:

Zooms down from past glories but I have known worse. CTR very good by my indifferent standards, and with a reasonable proportion of exclusive zooms, BUT, more importantly, sales dreadful, one PU to date this month. 

 

As John Mo said, swings and roundabouts.

 

Plenty of Alamy images continue to be used in The Times, I'm not seeing a noticeable decline.

 

However, I can't help thinking that the swings are swinging higher, and the roundabouts are spinning faster. Things seem a lot more unstable than they used to be in the zooms, CTR, and sales departments. With a raging global pandemic, economic woes, political turmoil, etc., I guess all this shouldn't come as a big surprise.

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Zooms have been sporadic for a long time now and that's hardly surprising considering my views have dropped to about a third of what they were a few years ago. I'd add that my sales have dropped too probably due to the increased number of images on Alamy uploaded by other agencies which I just can't compete with. So far this year I have no sales but know of one or two that haven't been reported yet. However it's not a good start and with a fairly ordinary portfolio I can't see things improving. Last year was bad, I don't expect any improvement this year. Zooms used to be a source of hope but that's gone now.

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57 minutes ago, Steve F said:

Charlie,

Hi. I know you're relatively new to the Forum and feeling your way around, but you seem to be making lot of troll like comments on various threads inviting arguments - and you have had several arguments this week. Lockdown is frustrating, but it may be more worthwhile increasing your porfolio size than picking fights.  I don't see the benefit of going on a Forum and telling everyone their photos may be undesirable. That could only be possible if everyone has identikit portfolios - if you look at people's portfolios you'll see they are actually very varied.

 

Zooms are one measure of success, but the acid test is whether people are making sales or not. Mine do not seem to have been affected much over the last year. Other people are having various different experiences with sales.

 

Best wishes,

Stephen

 

 

 

Steve,  i am not responsible for other people inadequacies. 

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One of my pseuds is well above average at the moment at 41 but 20 of them are of the same location so I think that's just a blip.  No sales from them yet but one of the others has resulted in a sale.  If it wasn't for the 20 it would be about average.

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10 hours ago, Cee Dee Dickinson said:

Steve,  i am not responsible for other people inadequacies. 

Well Charlie, "inadequacies?"  You have not "Added much to the conversation."

 

If I could see any image of yours worth my time or anyone else's, my opinion of your lack of experience, skill with a camera

or your lack of knowledge doing post might be different.  

 

Concerning the original post. my zooms and licenses are holding up, which I am thankful for

during our current situation.

 

Chuck (still the original one)

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23 minutes ago, Ed Rooney said:

Chuck, I'm wondering if most of your zooms are on your Live News submissions? 

 

And I was considering telling a story to agree with your post elsewhere (can't find it) saying PJs should never carry a weapon. 

Morning Edo, tel the story. We're all sitting comfortably.

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Edo, about live news zooms... A picture clicked on from the live news page can't register as a zoom in measures because there isn't a search term for it to key on to. When a news picture meanders it's way into the editorial stock pot that's a different story. Stay safe!

 

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Thanks so much, James. I was getting very frustrated.

 

"WOW,  While my GITZO mono, it was a GITZO tripod but that is a long story, has traveled around the world with me.  "I DO NOT RECOMMEND VIOLENCE WHILE WORKING AS A PHOTOJOURNALIST."  If you are fighting with someone, you can not make pictures.  I've been attacked a few times, gas, batons, guns and one time with an RPG and all that matters is the pictures you make and the "ACCURATE" captions that you put with the pictures.  If you need to defend yourself, then a monopod can be a good defense.

 

The funny thing to me after covering demonstrations for 40 years is that it is often the people that you agree with, personally, that attack you?  Just in 2020 I've covered a number of "Pro-Trump" demonstrations and the Pro-Trump people, who I disagree with 100% have always been very nice to me?

 

FYI I do not cover demonstrations "For the Money."  I cover demonstrations because they illustrate something or a movement that I feel illustrates something happening in our world.  Been that way since 1978 and I will continue to be that way until I can not pickup a camera.

 

IMPORTANT: In my opinion, journalists do not carry weapons, NEVER.  

 

Chuck"

 

When I first arrived in Vietnam, I was coming from Rome, Italy, where I had a press card. I did not have a TV in Rome, so I did not really know what I was about to get into.  In Saigon, I bought a 9mm Browning Hi-Power on the black market.

 

On my first operation, a crusty sergeant with the 25th-Infantry platoon I was with sat down next to me and explained that if I were to be captured or spotted carrying that handgun, the VC would assume I was CIA. Also, in a firefight, a handgun would be useless against assault weapons. I left the 9 in my hotel when I went on my second Op. It was stollen a week later. Sergeants with combat experience were guys to listen to. Lieutenants fresh out of West Point were to be ignored. 

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Just now, Ed Rooney said:

 

December 13th, the day I broke my arm. 

 

 

it helps to have anchor references.  to me the last 7 months since i parked myself in Ottawa are all clumped, even more since mid November where is started some anxiety issues- which has forced me on the sidelines more or less.

 

see your accident i thought was months ago,,,,  how is your arm doing?

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Zooms holding up reasonably well with 25 so far this month.  A bit down on average but not disastrously so.  

 

Did a quick check on my zoom numbers and zoom/sales ratio for the last two years and, despite the pandemic, there is very little difference between the figures with no great drop off showing up:

 

Year    Zooms    Sales    Ratio Zooms to sales
2019    987         365         2.70
2020    963         362         2.66

 

It could be that specialist portfolios are better insulated against swings in demand - or I could just be lucky,
 

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7 hours ago, Ed Rooney said:

Chuck, I'm wondering if most of your zooms are on your Live News submissions? 

 

And I was considering telling a story to agree with your post elsewhere (can't find it) saying PJs should never carry a weapon. 

Morning Edo (early evening I believe for you?)

 

The original post you refer to was in a whole different context, but yes I firmly believe that anyone working as a "journalist" should

never carry a weapon.  To put this in context, most of the PJ work that I did during what I would consider major conflicts was in central

Asia and was before small portable gas or tasers (stun guns) were available to the general public, which I would never carry.  I also do

not consider anyone wearing a military uniform to be media or independent press (just my own opinion).  For the record when I

attempted to join the U.S. military in the middle1970's they said "Thanks, but no thanks,"  In other words I have never worn any countries

military uniform, unless you consider a bush jacket and khaki pants a uniform?  

 

I will say that I did consider going down to Washington D.C. but did not.  I think what happened in D.C. was and will be considered to be 

an important event in the history of the United States and it was well covered by senior photojournalists who know the capital well and who

to the best of my knowledge would never carry a weapon while working as a journalist.

 

In answer to another part of your question above,  I have had very few licenses by Alamy directly from Live News, but most of what I have

uploaded to Live News has been licensed by Alamy for publication.  I also am not interested in trying to compete with the wire services, 

who shoot and upload quickly, I am more interested in trying to make and upload images that will be licensed for decades.

This has been a very strange year, hopefully 2021 will be less "strange"

 

In response to the original thread I would also like to add,  I had a very good conversation with the person who recruited me to Alamy

and is still with Alamy in the UK and I do feel that Alamy is doing to best it can for Alamy and the people who contribute to Alamy during

a very difficult period in the business.  I do not know for sure, but it appears that Alamy has had some problems on the IT side and the

Alamy web site has been slow to update and reporting has been slow at times?

 

Hope I have replied to you (Edo) and those who have also responded.  I apologize if this or my previous posts have steered this original

thread off course. 

 

Chuck (still the original one)

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27 minutes ago, Chuck Nacke said:

I apologize if this or my previous posts have steered this original

thread off course. 

 

As an old Usenet veteran, I've seen the best way to derail a troll or mission poster is to start an independent conversation with which they have nothing to contribute.   Friend of mine talked about doing "fluff attacks," where you started talking about fluffy girl stuff, but I haven't seen any Alamy women engaging in these threads, just one rolling her eyes metaphorically.

 

Coverage of the Capitol events was brilliant.   That had to be the most photographed and videographed and posted to social media insurrection in history so far. 

 

 

 

 

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Ok if we're going to take a slight diversion, inspired by MizBrowns "fluff attack"  let me take you to "Mornington Crescent".

 

This is a game played as a round in the UK radio show "I'm sorry I have'nt a clue". It's a nonsense game but played with great solemnity and dignity. Each player takes it in turns to describe a point on a ficticious route around London referencing arcane rules and variations.  I've read sevaral variations of its origin but my favourite was two gag writers were drinking in a pub and a chap invited himself to their table to tell them some rubbish old jokes. When this chap popped to the loo they invented this game to exclude him when he came back.

Have a listen, but I'll state the caveat that it's very British, a lot of the humour is the way things are said rather than the content.

 

Anyway apologies for the diversion, must zoom.

 

 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mornington_Crescent_(game)

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7 hours ago, Ed Rooney said:

Sergeants with combat experience were guys to listen to. Lieutenants fresh out of West Point were to be ignored. 

 

A Chemo Nurse once told me not to listen to the Medical Fellows. Cancer survivors had told me if I had questions the best person to ask was a Chemo Nurse. I guess they are the ones with combat experience in fighting cancer. They are also angels.

 

Paulette

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