Diversity Survey- Alamy input

[meanderingemu]

Just found this Alamy post on a public board on the survey.  Since i don't remember similar info posted here, i thought this might be of interest to some who were interested in it.

 

[Nodvandigtid]

Never got an email - any idea when it was sent out?

[meanderingemu]

4 minutes ago, Nodvandigtid said:

Never got an email - any idea when it was sent out?

 

November 8th.  mine was in the "promotions" tab of Gmail, so check your filters for spam or other. 

[Cryptoprocta]

It's a real pity the buyers aren't more concerned with ethical deallings when it comes to contributor pay.

Edited November 20, 2021 by Cryptoprocta

[sb photos]

1 hour ago, Cryptoprocta said:

It's a real pity the buyers aren't more concerned with ethical deallings when it comes to contributor pay.

After seeing the Independent article my ethics tells me to never again buy an Independent to read on the London bound train.

[Sultanpepa]

1 hour ago, Cryptoprocta said:

It's a real pity the buyers aren't more concerned with ethical deallings when it comes to contributor pay.

 

One demographic they may be interested in is the one where photographers are trying are trying to scratch out some earnings from stock but the greedy stock industry are making it impossible for them to do so. Photographers from all walks of life, ethnic groups, colour, creed, religions and of all sexual orientation are being affected. Go tell the buyers that. 

Still angry.

[geogphotos]

There certainly seem to be lots of disconnect in Alamy-land. All the bright positive tweets and then this agonising over how do we tick more boxes on the diversity score sheet? Why-oh- -why don't more people from different backgrounds want to join us when everything is so trendy and cool? 

 

It is almost as they they are busy swallowing their own propaganda and just can't accept the reality as experienced - and expressed -  by their contributors

[John Mitchell]

"We add over 100,000 new images every day, sourced from photographers and photo agencies in 173 countries."

 

My guess is that we/they are a fairly diverse lot. 👽🤠👹🧜‍♀️

 

 

[Sharon]

Who did the survey go out to?  I didn`t receive an email.

[Brian Yarvin]

3 hours ago, John Mitchell said:

"We add over 100,000 new images every day, sourced from photographers and photo agencies in 173 countries."

 

My guess is that we/they are a fairly diverse lot. 👽🤠👹🧜‍♀️

 

 

 

John: I've been to a fair number of stock photography conferences and workshops and can assure you that this is absolutely NOT the case. Many specialties in professional photography are quite diverse, just not stock. 

 

And "where do they get all those white people from?" is a common bit of ridicule I here from buyers - or more likely - former buyers who've given up on stock.

 

Let's face it, the only real way to solve the diversity problem is to get sales up to a level that allows photographers in the USA and the UK to be able to hire some of the great diverse models that are already working in those markets.

[John Mitchell]

25 minutes ago, Sharon said:

Who did the survey go out to?  I didn`t receive an email.

 

That's a good question. I seemed to get mine when everyone else did. It's not unusual for some people not to get Alamy emails, for reasons unknown.

 

It looks as if you might be located somewhere in Metro Vancouver, perhaps in the Valley. Hope the flooding isn't too bad where you are.

 

 

Edited November 21, 2021 by John Mitchell

[John Mitchell]

3 minutes ago, Brian Yarvin said:

 

John: I've been to a fair number of stock photography conferences and workshops and can assure you that this is absolutely NOT the case. Many specialties in professional photography are quite diverse, just not stock. 

 

And "where do they get all those white people from?" is a common bit of ridicule I here from buyers - or more likely - former buyers who've given up on stock.

 

Let's face it, the only real way to solve the diversity problem is to get sales up to a level that allows photographers in the USA and the UK to be able to hire some of the great diverse models that are already working in those markets.

 

Perhaps that's the case in the US. However, there are plenty of Alamy contributors based Asia, Africa, and many other places where white is not the predominate skin colour. Also, "diverse" can have a lot of different meanings, not just multi-racial.

[Brian Yarvin]

Being in Asia or Africa makes more difficult to create lifestyle images that American and British editors and art buyers can relate to. There is a generally accepted working definition of "diversity" in mass media and it's clear that the Alamy sales team wants to work in that market. Let's not stand in their way.

[Sharon]

2 hours ago, John Mitchell said:

 

That's a good question. I seemed to get mine when everyone else did. It's not unusual for some people not to get Alamy emails, for reasons unknown.

 

It looks as if you might be located somewhere in Metro Vancouver, perhaps in the Valley. Hope the flooding isn't too bad where you are.

 

 

Maybe as my subject matter isn`t predominately people, I was passed over for the survey... actually I don`t like doing surveys anyway.

 

John, we`re high and dry where we are... thanks for thinking of me.  Just horrible what has happened in our province. Now they say possible flooding along the Northwest coast in the coming weeks.

[Radim]

1 hour ago, Brian Yarvin said:

Being in Asia or Africa makes more difficult to create lifestyle images that American and British editors and art buyers can relate to. There is a generally accepted working definition of "diversity" in mass media and it's clear that the Alamy sales team wants to work in that market. Let's not stand in their way.

I don't think there is anyone who would get in the way of the team

[sb photos]

10 hours ago, Sharon said:

Who did the survey go out to?  I didn`t receive an email.

I received and completed it.

[wilkopix]

10 hours ago, Brian Yarvin said:

Let's face it, the only real way to solve the diversity problem is to get sales up to a level that allows photographers in the USA and the UK to be able to hire some of the great diverse models that are already working in those markets.

I think you have hit the nail on the head. No longer can I afford to hire in models for stock shoots. As you rightly say there are some brilliant diverse models available but are way out of the price range for stock shoots. The drop in commission and the ever decreasing sales prices are the main reason for not being able to shoot these images for Alamy. Kind of a chicken and egg situation.

[Brian Yarvin]

Rob, this is how stock photography has devolved from being the place where you could find the most creative work from the best talent - and that includes actors and models - to what we have today. What amazes me the most is that the buyers are still there and spending money - just not on stock. 

 

 

[wilkopix]

2 hours ago, Brian Yarvin said:

Rob, this is how stock photography has devolved from being the place where you could find the most creative work from the best talent - and that includes actors and models - to what we have today. What amazes me the most is that the buyers are still there and spending money - just not on stock. 

Totally agree. I have seen some good, well produced stock shoots with great models but are shot in countries where the costs to produce are far lower than the UK and the US (or much of Europe for that matter). Then distributed across almost all agencies. Sort of stack it high, sell it cheap mentality.

As you rightly say, the highly creative stock shoots with the best talent are few and far between now .. and it shows ....

[CarloBo]

14 hours ago, Brian Yarvin said:

Let's face it, the only real way to solve the diversity problem is to get sales up to a level that allows photographers in the USA and the UK to be able to hire some of the great diverse models that are already working in those markets.

Except that there's a world outside USA and UK,  some are even rich countries lol

[John Mitchell]

11 hours ago, Sharon said:

Maybe as my subject matter isn`t predominately people, I was passed over for the survey... actually I don`t like doing surveys anyway.

 

John, we`re high and dry where we are... thanks for thinking of me.  Just horrible what has happened in our province. Now they say possible flooding along the Northwest coast in the coming weeks.

 

I imagine that it's just a glitch in the system. Fortunately, we're high and dry as well. I hadn't realized just how bad the situation is in much of the province until I started watching the recent media coverage. As you say, more rain is apparently on the way... 😧

[Brian Yarvin]

12 minutes ago, CarloBo said:

Except that there's a world outside USA and UK,  some are even rich countries lol

 

Carlo, I named the US and the UK as shorthand for the creative commercial stock photographers who did their best work in New York and London. 

 

During this time, there was plenty of stock photography being sold all over the world - it's just that most of it was being produced by a handful of people in those two cities. At the same time, cities like Milan, Paris, and Tokyo had energetic and exciting photography worlds too, but they weren't producing the volume and quality of stock photography that New York and London were.

 

On a personal note, I almost wound up moving to Milan in the late eighties (I'll save that long story for another time) and carefully looked into the possibility of shooting lifestyle and still life stock there; to the locals, it was a really strange and risky idea.