Sizing for sales

[Addict]

Question - can you get good sales from images that are 3000x2000 px at 17 MB? Does size matter that much above the minimum of 17 mb? How many buyers really need a 50 mb file? Do they think they do when they really dont? Do they often just end up reducing the file perhaps even lower than 17 mb?

[spacecadet]

Plenty of my RF images have been downloaded at sizes down to 450px, only one of them at full size. I can only recall a few searches which had [FS] as a parameter. I downsize to 4000 long side anyway nowadays due to QC paranoia.

[Chuck Nacke]

The image of mine that Alamy licenses the most often, running at nearly once or more a month for the last two years, is less than 3,000 by.

It was shot with the old Kodak / Nikon DCS 620 at 1600ISO

[Betty LaRue]

I try to do it this way. If it is an ordinary stock shot, such as someone doing yard work, I'll downsize it to 3800-4000. Sometimes less, if I feel it needs sharpening up. These will most likely be downloaded in a small size anyway.

Other images, ones I can visualize somebody printing larger, I leave at native size. For instance, a beautiful sunset over a beach, maybe printed on a poster or billboard.

And yes, I'm aware billboards have been printed from 4-6mb files. I feel a buyer would be more comfortable with a larger size if available. Anyway, I would, but I suffer from insecurity sometimes.

[John Mitchell]

For sure, most usages are small, but I think it's still important to keep file sizes as big as possible, just in case. Downsizing can be a very useful tool, though. I look at each image individually and downsize only if I think it's really necessary and if it makes a noticeable difference. I usually experiment with various sizes, keeping the largest one that works. Native size is still best, though.