photogeoff Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dustydingo Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Pick an agency, any agency, someone here will be contributing to it . . . but before you go too far with such a discussion: http://discussion.alamy.com/index.php?/topic/2170-threads-that-promote-highlight-direct-competitors-to-alamy/ dd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Yeah, I made that mistake in discussion that brought about the wrath of the powers that be. DUH on my part. I hate it when I screw up so badly that I can actually feel jackass ears growing on the side of my head. :0 Betty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks Adding more descriptive details -- Who? What? Where? When? -- to your captions might improve sales IMO. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bhandol Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks Adding more descriptive details -- Who? What? Where? When? -- to your captions might improve sales IMO. Good luck. +1 image C3E516 is "Betty Boop" and your image is definatley one of the best ones of her on Alamy, but you don't mention Betty Boop in your heading or in your keywords, so a buyer desperate for a great image of Betty won't find yours. Parm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dov makabaw Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 Had a quick look through your images which are really great. There are, however, an awful lot of similars. Looking at the keywords I noticed that you often do not say what event or where it is held or what it was in aid of. This will inevitably make it more difficult for clients to find your images. IMO your time may be spent more productively refining your offering before you consider looking for other outlets. dov Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks The first thing you need to realise is that you need to fit what you shoot to any agency that you join. You will get odd sales at micros but fundamentally you need to be shooting material which is wanted by clients. 160 images of swans...... 181 at Race for Life or k/w 'race' and lots of clouds. Sorry if it seems harsh but you won't sell images which have little or no demand by clients at any agency. Look at what is sold, go down to WH Smiths and browse a copy of Good Housekeeping and you'll see in stock sales a good cross section (in rough proportion) of what's used in UK editorial stock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DHill Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 One more thing to be careful about is that if the same image is available on more than one site, buyers could simply choose the cheapest. Will the buyer check more than one site? In many cases, yes. Textbook publishers tend to employ a single picture researcher for each book, and if you check a few textbooks in a book shop, you'll find that Alamy and two or three of the microstocks are major suppliers. Of those, I know which agency I'd prefer my images to have been sold through! I mention textbook publishing because it's in industry I know something about through working in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Brook Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 I sent you a pm Geoff with a list. You weren't asking for a portfolio review, so I haven't even looked at your work.(did someone speak of swans?). I have no idea how realistic it would be for you to apply to any traditional or high end stock agency, but I have heard of people applying to some several times and not getting one reply. I read a post on another forum recently by someone with experience on the other side claiming that some of the best known agencies are deluged with applications. What I would recommend is to apply to somewhere small and relatively easy to get into so that you end up with an editor you can communicate with. That almost certainly means specialising in something, and it won't be swans. But you will be talking to someone who is in daily contact with clients. You won't make a lot of money, but very few get into the best places without going through this process. Or else being an established assignment photographer. Secondly I would recommend using some of the freely available services provided by some of the more dedicated members of this forum to help push your work along here. Do you look at the images found section? What about the monthly challenge? Dare you put your portfolio up for review? If you can't make it at Alamy you aren't going to make it anywhere else, even on the micros. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedSnapper Posted October 10, 2014 Share Posted October 10, 2014 Clouds.... clouds are a very valid subject...but you need to be a lot more specific than "White clouds in a blue sky" cumulus? nimbus? stratus? what sort.... the subject is , potentially, strong; your captions and keywords are weak km Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giphotostock Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks ...fundamentally you need to be shooting material which is wanted by clients... Fairly obvious, isn't it? That should be a sticky here. GI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Elliott Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 To add to the mix. You are selling images on a website that says they have 51.03 million images. Divide your images into that and you'll see that you have a very small slice of the images here. There is a problem though with the large amount of work that Alamy holds. The vast majority of it has not been edited by a picture editor. There is an awful lot of dredge on Alamy that picture buyers have to wade through to get what they want. Would you want to go through this lot when as a picture buyer you could go to an agency where the work has been edited for commercial saleability. I rarely make sales here but have very good sales on other sites that are not mentionable here due to policy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Brook Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks ...fundamentally you need to be shooting material which is wanted by clients... Fairly obvious, isn't it? That should be a sticky here. GI Why doesn't somebody start a thread called 'What do clients want?' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jill Morgan Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks ...fundamentally you need to be shooting material which is wanted by clients... Fairly obvious, isn't it? That should be a sticky here. GI Why doesn't somebody start a thread called 'What do clients want?' Because nobody really knows. That's why Alamy doesn't edit its collection. Jill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks ...fundamentally you need to be shooting material which is wanted by clients... Fairly obvious, isn't it? That should be a sticky here. GI Why doesn't somebody start a thread called 'What do clients want?' Because nobody really knows. That's why Alamy doesn't edit its collection. Jill With all due respect Jill, that is simply not the case. Sure there will always be the 'left field' shot used but it's quite clear enough so that many agencies spend a good deal of money on finding out what clients are after. My point in the thread was if you go and actually look at what clients are using, you can make pretty educated guesses on the areas they want and the amount of imagery they want in those areas. I mentioned swans, sure clients will use some images of swans but I can assure you that woman, business, family will be massively more productive keywords to have than ...bird, swan. Alamy themselves do mention areas they want more work. What they don't do is put resources into that, in a meaningful way, unlike the larger commercial agencies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiskerke Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks ...fundamentally you need to be shooting material which is wanted by clients... Fairly obvious, isn't it? That should be a sticky here. GI Why doesn't somebody start a thread called 'What do clients want?' We have one each month ;-) Maybe it only shows what some clients want. An indirect way to find out is by looking at the work of contributors that sell well. Regulars on the forum will be able to identify a couple. The monthly images found threads will bring up many more that are not otherwise mentioned here. Click on the name of the photographer on a zoom page (or Comp Page); go to the last page containing his or her first images, and work your way back to the latest work. Most contributors that are doing well have understood by now what works or not. So the later work will reflect what they have learned along the way. Not everything will sell of course. However it also is not a lottery. People will stop submitting hopeless subjects and stop submitting subjects shot in an unwanted style. Occasionally you will encounter someone that has obviously hit the jackpot, and from that moment on only shoots his or her iPhone or iPad displaying Facebook and Twitter. Or only shoots cute cats. For now my advice would be: go shoot cats on iPhones. Double the odds: shoot the cat with an iPhone; submit the iPhone image to Stockimo; then shoot that and submit to Alamy. wim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jill Morgan Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Also, the more Alamy edits for content, the smaller our cut of the pie as the more expensive it is too run the agency. I just think the biggest issue with dreck is not so much the shots are bad, but way way way too many similars are uploaded by some photogs. I don't see why as that can just kill your CTR. I was guilty of some of that earlier, but have learned to pck the best and leave the rest on the disc. Jill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedSnapper Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 The tools are there for you...even the most cursory glance at Alamy Measures each day, plus a scan over the found images threads and maybe a visit to your loca library to browse the week's magazine and papers will give anyone a basic understanding of what the stock phtography industry is about and what a lot of clients are looking forits how i started km Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Brook Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 I make lists. One for indoors (table-top/studio) and one for outdoors. The indoor list includes a lot of ideas. The outdoor list mainly consists of subjects for textbooks, but sometimes tied to ideas. I gave up on outdoors secondary editorial (fees rubbish). The camera then stays in the bag until I have done a certain amount of research. That starts with Google Images but includes Alamy and several other major suppliers. Unless I think can achieve a result that is different (even in some small way - via lighting or composition), or the textbook subject has not already been covered much, or covered very well, then the camera stays in the bag. The result is that instead of averaging £1-£2 net p.a. (per image), for new work I am now averaging that plus several more £s. However, apropos the OP's question, I have a couple of good agents that can sell it. The rest of the time I concentrate on personal work (no lists) which seems to have a very different sales trajectory. Much less frequent sales but responsible for my biggest ever fees. And again, apropos the OP's ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giphotostock Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 The tools are there for you...even the most cursory glance at Alamy Measures each day, plus a scan over the found images threads and maybe a visit to your loca library to browse the week's magazine and papers will give anyone a basic understanding of what the stock phtography industry is about and what a lot of clients are looking for its how i started km Agree. Look for what is being used, make a list, prioritize and shoot that. One caveat. Say, you decide to focus on editorial (as opposed to commercial, where agencies do spend a lot of money and time to figure out what subjects AND styles clients want - see Geoff post). If you go to a library or a bookstore and look through general-interest publications, it can be overwhelming, you might not be able to see a pattern and conclude that "everything and anything sells" - exactly the wrong conclusion for your purposes of trying to figure out what you need to be shooting. Instead, look at a narrower-interest selection, preferably the one you have a special interest in. Is there a "Good Plumber" magazine? manufacturers supplying tools to plumbers? How about looking through textbooks on geology, if you like rocks? etc etc. If you do that excersize, you'll have a pretty good idea of what is being used by clients. Shoot that. GI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Reply to "Why doesn't somebody start a thread called 'What do clients want?'" If I had to guess I'd say Ebola. iPhone 6, Apple Smartwatch, … anything trending... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Brook Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Hi just to ask you what other sites are some off you selling your photos on. Fotolia, Shutterstock, Dreamstime, 500px ect. I have sold 2 images so far this year for $133.00. @ we are into month 10. So i was wondering what other stock sites to try? Any suggestions. Thanks ...fundamentally you need to be shooting material which is wanted by clients... Fairly obvious, isn't it? That should be a sticky here. GI Why doesn't somebody start a thread called 'What do clients want?' Because nobody really knows. That's why Alamy doesn't edit its collection. Jill With all due respect Jill, that is simply not the case. Sure there will always be the 'left field' shot used but it's quite clear enough so that many agencies spend a good deal of money on finding out what clients are after. My point in the thread was if you go and actually look at what clients are using, you can make pretty educated guesses on the areas they want and the amount of imagery they want in those areas. I mentioned swans, sure clients will use some images of swans but I can assure you that woman, business, family will be massively more productive keywords to have than ...bird, swan. Alamy themselves do mention areas they want more work. What they don't do is put resources into that, in a meaningful way, unlike the larger commercial agencies. There are some requests (I'm not talking about Alamy) that are so specialised, specific, or need to convey a particular emotion, that nobody can second-guess them. I know because they are posted on to me. A typical example will be a fiction book jacket for a novel where the buyer needs something that relates to a central theme of the story and conveys a particular emotion (most emotions don't have convenient names). Art directors too are often looking for equally hard-to-find and unpredictable imagery. One of the reasons for commissioning is that nobody in the stock world was able to predict that need. This is also the kind of imagery which earns the highest fees. However, the great bulk of stock sales are boringly predictable, and priced accordingly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Todd Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 We're not allowed to mention competitors but I followed a tip from a poster on here a while back and have just made a nice 4 figure $ net sale for a commercial use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Brook Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 We're not allowed to mention competitors but I followed a tip from a poster on here a while back and have just made a nice 4 figure $ net sale for a commercial use. The ruling is specifically about threads, and to prevent buyers hearing about competitors. I do, from time-to-time, have this conversation privately, and I would hope others do to. In the current climate it is hard to see what can be as important as info about how and where to sell your work. Subbing where you can might have worked once, not any longer. Unless you just like to see your work in print and you give your returns to charity (you could donate them to cancer research ). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christian58 Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Alex! I believe that!. I did not follow up any but an agency contacted me and asked if I could place just 100 shots with them that did not feature in any other agency, almost as exclusive and yet not. I thought oh no, not another one. I get this happen quite often. Anyway it struck me I really did not have anything to lose, so why not, as a test I thought. That was back in April, 6 months back. So far they have sold shots for, 8700 dollars. I say thats pretty good going.needles to say I have given them more shots. btw, this is not your typical agency model. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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