Options
Selling stock photos
joshhuntnm
Registered Users Posts: 1,924 Major grins
Anyone had any luck selling stock photos? What did you learn? is there a helpful thread on this? Any good books?
0
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
Josh, I've sold a few stock travel photos, but the returns are very low these days. From communicating with other stock shooters, it seems that pay is plummeting. A lot of time needs to be spent preparing images and keywording to stock companies' requirements, a very small percentage of one's images are sold, and the pay for each sold image is often shockingly low. You may make more money from selling a single print to a private individual to hang on their wall than in selling the rights to use your image to a publication or corporation via a stock photo company. I think the main problem in the stock photography business, from the photographer's perspective, is that the stock photo company can sell at low prices per-photo, but still make a profit based on selling a large volume of images. Each photographer who contributes to the stock photo company's supply, however, does not get the large volume benefit, only the small per-photo return drawback.
A few stock shooters do end up selling some photos at high prices, but all are vulnerable to the risk of our images selling for far less than we'd consent to if we had the ability to turn down any given sale.
Control of my images to the limited extent I can negotiate their use was the exact reason why within days of being accepted for stock agencies contribution I also removed my accounts. I learned the entire control of what the photo can be used for is strictly for the benefit of the stock agency. Control of who I sell to and when I sell the photos for my benefit as the photographer was a greater goal in my mind than the actual selling of stock photos.
Just something to note.
What was unhelpful? All the information the OP wants can be found there with a little work. Helpful sites, good books, people who have had luck, etc. If he can't take the step to do a little research, it's unlikely they'll do very well at stock.
In addition to Google, you can go back one page here and type selling stock photos in the "search this forum" drop down. There has been much discussion on the subject in past and you'll find many threads that way.
No need for a new thread on the subject.
.
Moderator of: Location, Location, Location , Mind Your Own Business & Other Cool Shots