Philip Dickson Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 I rarely sell anything on Alamy and would love it if anyone more experienced in these matters could help me look at the following: I have 449 images on sale. - I've built up my images over the years, so subject matter (and probably quality of image and quality of usefulness to buyers) is variable. But is it really so wide of the mark? - Recently I overhauled most of my keywords on every image. Are they now good enough? I suspect not. - Do I need more images to make a difference? - Or just better images? - My CTR has always been low 0.11. (Although last month was 0.54, after finishing keywording changes.) What should I been aiming for and how do I get there? - In spite of being a photographer, having had images on Alamy for years and having microstock on other sites, I still don't have the faintest idea what, if any, of my images should be Rights Managed. Everything recent has simply been put on as RF, as I "thought" that would lead to more likelihood of sales. My username is Philip Dickson (There is a variant username with "Colours" which I have used for some model shots) I'd very much appreciate a critique of my Alamy presentation as all my best efforts, including many hours spent re-keywording recently have yielded no return. Thanks, Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MircoV Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 Philip, You have good images i think looking at your first page. I think quantity is missing. And if you send the same photos also to microstock then you miss also “more exclusivity”. I think one of the reasons why people buy still licenses on a traditional stock site is that the images are much more exclusive then on microstock. On Microstock a photo costs maybe 2 dollars or even less 0,36 cents but with the disadvantage that the buyer has to share the photo with potentially thousands of other buyers. His photo can be found in many other corners. A bought photo on Alamy will have no or far less copies around the globe. That’s why clients still pay more money for a photo. Step one add far more photos in the same quality and make sure that you don’t have the same photos on microstock. The best would be RM since it shows the buyer directly that the image can not be available on microstock. Only my thoughts. For sure there are more reasons. Mirco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariaJ Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 You have good quality images, however perhaps more variety. Also you have several model images, but the models don't seem to be doing much. If you look at the "found Alamy image" thread, you'll see most of the images with people are of people doing something in a particular place. It's important to think about how a client might use your image, e.g., what story could it be used to illustrate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sultanpepa Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 I think this image is typical of why many people, including myself, fail to sell. Looking at EHC5XX you are pitting this against probably thousands of similar and possibly better images. What yours has in it's favour is the exact location and you haven't mentioned it in the keywords. I also see you have words like mountain and mountains in the keywords but there are none in the image. This can only hurt your CTR and ranking as this image won't be what a buyer looking for mountains is expecting. On the whole your keywording needs to be more formal and technical than conversational. I hope I've explained that clearly. Now, forget everything I've just said because I have 3500 images on sale and I've sold nothing so far this month. Maybe you could critic mine? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Addict Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 Check your shots against the competition on the same subject! I dont submit anything that is not a lot better than what is already on alamy. It would be a waste of my time. Or you can see whats there and try different angles, light, etc to do something better than others Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 If you have a good rank it may be worth submitting fairly ordinary images so as to have a dog in the fight. Otherwise (which applies to me) one or two at most where there is a lot of competition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedSnapper Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 your portraits are composed too tight, too obviously 'lit', and have no clear editorial purpose km Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Richmond Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 With less than 18 months experience on Alamy and only 32 sales (+ another 5 not yet reported) I'm hardly the best qualified to critique and give advice, but, for what it's worth, here goes. Firstly, you have too few images for the length of time you've been on Alamy. You also have too many of some subjects. For example, your beer ingredients set isn't sufficiently diverse to justify having 20 shots. You run the risk of dragging down your CTR with too many views compared to zooms. Secondly, although you say you've re-keyworded I think you could still go further. Anything biological needs the Latin name. Star anise is Illicium anisatum and, if my experience is anything to go by, it will be searched for as often on the Latin name as the English. Thirdly, I think you've missed some opportunities. Just to go back to the beer ingredients they're only the start of the process. Where are your photos of the brewing, the bottling, the pouring, the drinking? Better 20 shots to show the entire process than 20 to merely show the ingredients. Hope this is of some use. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jill Morgan Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 From what I glanced at in the people shots you do have that aren't portraits, many times the people are looking at the camera and not at what they are doing. Especially the series of the couple eating the sundae. They should be interacting together not looking at the photographer. And as mentioned, small portfolio covering a few subjects. You certainly need to expand the subject matter. And as mentioned, irrelevant keywords will only bring down your ranking and ctr. Jill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Morrison Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 If you have a good rank it may be worth submitting fairly ordinary images so as to have a dog in the fight. He's unlikely to get "a good rank" in the first place by "submitting ordinary images"... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 If you have a good rank it may be worth submitting fairly ordinary images so as to have a dog in the fight. He's unlikely to get "a good rank" in the first place by "submitting ordinary images"... I said 'fairly ordinary', not 'ordinary', 'have' not 'are trying to acquire' but I stand by the comment. BHZ apart I have good rank for some types of search and my port is nothing to write home about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Morrison Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 If you have a good rank it may be worth submitting fairly ordinary images so as to have a dog in the fight. He's unlikely to get "a good rank" in the first place by "submitting ordinary images"... I said 'fairly ordinary', not 'ordinary', 'have' not 'are trying to acquire' but I stand by the comment. BHZ apart I have good rank for some types of search and my port is nothing to write home about. "Nothing to write home about"? If you don't believe in your credibility as a photographer, will anybody else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 I'm under no illusions about my abilities. Buyers look at the pictures and make their own decisions. But if it helps I've had a look at your first few pages and I'm encouraged, comparatively speaking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Elliott Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 I think this image is typical of why many people, including myself, fail to sell. Looking at EHC5XX you are pitting this against probably thousands of similar and possibly better images. What yours has in it's favour is the exact location and you haven't mentioned it in the keywords. I also see you have words like mountain and mountains in the keywords but there are none in the image. This can only hurt your CTR and ranking as this image won't be what a buyer looking for mountains is expecting. On the whole your keywording needs to be more formal and technical than conversational. I hope I've explained that clearly. Now, forget everything I've just said because I have 3500 images on sale and I've sold nothing so far this month. Maybe you could critic mine? I would echo what others have said and especially in the falsehood of having 1000s of images will sooner or later generate sales. Dougie. Since you threw it out there. Tighter editing on your part. Better lighting. Don't rush the photos as I noticed in a couple things lopped out of the image like the top of a ship's mast. Night shots I would think more carefully about when you get them. Ideally you should be looking at around up to 30 minutes after sunset otherwise the sky can be become too dark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Morrison Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 But if it helps I've had a look at your first few pages and I'm encouraged, comparatively speaking. Glad to be of service... Erm... that was an insult, wasn't it? I'm not always sure... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 On your shots like the beer ingredients, think copy space. Shoot off center horizontal so there is copy space to one side, if it is vertical, leave room at the top or bottom. Usually the top. And use the words copy space in your keywords. If you do model shots, have them doing something as mentioned before. Applying mascara, drinking a soda, gardening, interacting with someone else. Family groups at a picnic, older couple holding hands as they walk, leave copy space. Don't shoot so tight or crop tight. With people, be sure to use keywords like woman, women, female, females, person, persons, people, senior, seniors, retiree, pensioner, (plurals) African American, give the age, such as 32 years old, 30s, 25-35 years old, I have many images shot before I thought "copy space" and wish I had do-overs. Even now, I often forget to do it. Betty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Elliott Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 But if it helps I've had a look at your first few pages and I'm encouraged, comparatively speaking. Glad to be of service... Erm... that was an insult, wasn't it? I'm not always sure... John. You're slipping on noticing these things. Too much beer from The Golden Rule Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 But if it helps I've had a look at your first few pages and I'm encouraged, comparatively speaking. Glad to be of service... Erm... that was an insult, wasn't it? I'm not always sure... Not at all, but it wasn't supposed to be very easy to tell. Our ports aren't so very different, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sultanpepa Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 I think this image is typical of why many people, including myself, fail to sell. Looking at EHC5XX you are pitting this against probably thousands of similar and possibly better images. What yours has in it's favour is the exact location and you haven't mentioned it in the keywords. I also see you have words like mountain and mountains in the keywords but there are none in the image. This can only hurt your CTR and ranking as this image won't be what a buyer looking for mountains is expecting. On the whole your keywording needs to be more formal and technical than conversational. I hope I've explained that clearly. Now, forget everything I've just said because I have 3500 images on sale and I've sold nothing so far this month. Maybe you could critic mine? I would echo what others have said and especially in the falsehood of having 1000s of images will sooner or later generate sales. Dougie. Since you threw it out there. Tighter editing on your part. Better lighting. Don't rush the photos as I noticed in a couple things lopped out of the image like the top of a ship's mast. Night shots I would think more carefully about when you get them. Ideally you should be looking at around up to 30 minutes after sunset otherwise the sky can be become too dark. Hi Jools, I appreciate you taking the time to look even if I did only throw it out there in jest. Missing the mast was a judgement call rather than a mistake, in an effort to get closer in on detail. However I'll review this practise in future shots. I agree totally about night shots. That's on my improvement list even though the preferred cloudless blue skies are a bit of a rarity here. As an aside, no sooner had I mentioned no sales in the post above when one drops in for a mighty $5.98 gross. Don't you just love Alamy sometimes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Elliott Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 No worries Dougie. And don't worry too much about skies. Yes, they are important but it depends on what it is that you're trying to achieve. When I first started I wanted only skies with nice fluffy clouds. I've learnt it isn't always the best case scenario and to shoot what fits the subject. Of course, I have my own style of how I do something but then that's not always the most saleable thing either Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 I don't feel especially qualified to critique images, but what I'm finding these days is that I have to be much more selective about what I upload to Alamy. With so much competition, an image really does have to have "editorial purpose" (as km mentioned above) or fill a fertile gap in Alamy's humongous collection in order to sell. When one of my images licenses, I now take a careful look at it and ask myself why the buyer might have chosen it and what it might be used it for. Most of what I do for personal satisfaction, I put on a certain POD website. The times they have a changed. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Morrison Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 But if it helps I've had a look at your first few pages and I'm encouraged, comparatively speaking. Glad to be of service... Erm... that was an insult, wasn't it? I'm not always sure... John. You're slipping on noticing these things. Too much beer from The Golden Rule "Too much beer"? No... That's another concept I don't understand... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Dickson Posted June 29, 2015 Author Share Posted June 29, 2015 Thank you to all, that's given me a good idea how to look again at my keywords and how to shoot better for model shots. I admit, I've never done a pre-search on a library to see what's out there already, so I will be doing that in the future too. Let's say I get everything right from now on, and shape up my keywording on existing images, is there anything else wich is actively hurting my ranking - too many of the beer ingredients images, for example? Would I be advised to delete some? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sultanpepa Posted June 29, 2015 Share Posted June 29, 2015 Don't delete anything for now. Just try to add as many fresh, interesting, technically perfect and well keyworded images as you possibly can. Try setting yourself a target of doubling your portfolio by the years end. The sales will come eventually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Dickson Posted June 29, 2015 Author Share Posted June 29, 2015 Thanks again. I'll keep that target in mind! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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