MicrostockGroup Sponsors


Author Topic: Alamy Questions  (Read 50035 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

« on: August 31, 2007, 11:28 »
0
I have just been accepted by Alamy. I do have a few questions:

1. Can someone tell what you can expect to make in the average on alamy in $/month per images.
 (I guess for most of us it is $1-$2 per month /image on microstock.)

2. What is the percentage of images from your portfolio at Alamy you can expect to have a download?

3. Is it wiser to sell an image Royalty Free if you do not sell it anywhere else or to sell is RM or licensed?

I am really curious about Alamy.
I know that the answers might differ a lot, but just to give me an idea.

Thanks!


« Reply #1 on: August 31, 2007, 14:10 »
0
Jan ; I have about 300 pictures at alamy, I started there about 1 year ago and had up to now only non RF pictures that I had exclusively there. I have sold one so far....
Now I will try some RF pictures that are on micro, this might not be wise, but on the other hand I cant shoot exclusive pictures for alamy if those are not selling.
I'll also try different pictures that I try to sell either RF or other licence, but I'm curious to hear about the best strategy. By the way you probably noticed there is a forum there and this question is quite often discussed,
jean

« Reply #2 on: August 31, 2007, 17:33 »
0
hmm.. i can check my graphs later, but I think Alamy has made about the same as dreamstime for me, or somewhere between shutterstock and dreamstime.  I have over a thousand images on alamy mostly rights managed images that i couldn`t put on the micros.  I wouldn`t say it is the best sales avenue but it is allright.   It is nice to see the big sales once in a while, but i wish they would come a little more often.

« Reply #3 on: August 31, 2007, 17:35 »
0
oh and just as a side not

I once sold an extended license at Lucky Oliver (which is basically the same license that alamy gives) that was also in the slide show.  I recieved quite a bit more than I have received for many of my Alamy sales. :)  So it isn`t always pennies on the micro`s / big bills on the macros.

« Reply #4 on: August 31, 2007, 17:38 »
0
Quote
I guess for most of us it is $1-$2 per month /image on microstock

??? excuse me ??  I'm WAAAYYYY over that figure.  And what I've read a lot of guys are.

Actually I did a little research for my article (big update comming, actually I rewrote it completely) and as I hear the $/image/year figure of the alamy guys ... then I'm happy I choose micros instead.

Must get $3 to $5 / image / year ... ... that less than half of what I get.

« Reply #5 on: August 31, 2007, 17:44 »
0
Quote
I guess for most of us it is $1-$2 per month /image on microstock

??? excuse me ??  I'm WAAAYYYY over that figure.  And what I've read a lot of guys are.

Actually I did a little research for my article (big update comming, actually I rewrote it completely) and as I hear the $/image/year figure of the alamy guys ... then I'm happy I choose micros instead.

Must get $3 to $5 / image / year ... ... that less than half of what I get.

did you misread his post or are you making an insane amount off your images?

freezing said $1-$2 / image / month ... that is $12-$24/image/year ... if you are making WAY more than that.. that would mean something like $100/image/year  which is ... well... .. better than lisa gagne.

« Reply #6 on: August 31, 2007, 20:57 »
0
Freezing Pictures,
I would do a little test and try some images as royality free and the others rights managed. I don't know what kind of images you have but if you have a lot of nature images I would try those in royality free, travel I would take common locations such as Italy in royality free and maybe some lesser traveled places in rights managed. I have about 800 images on Alamy and I don't actively work this agency as I do with Corbis and/or Getty, (for obvious reasons). I think Alamy has a lot of potential but they have a few problems that need to be worked out and I think they are very well aware of them. The real key to success at Alamy as it is with any agency is keywording. Keywording is more important than a pretty picture. Alamy has millions of images online and if a buyer can't find yours it doesn't matter how pretty it is. Most photographers on Alamy have no clue as to how to keyword images. When keywording is done incorrectly it turns buyers off and they won't waste their valuable time coming back. Most buyers who purchase from Alamy are professionals from design studios, ad agencies, etc... where as for microstock most are one, two or three person businesses or personal projects that bring users to these sites and of course need of protecting an image from a competitor using the same image is not a worry. When you keyword, think like a buyer not like a photographer. Check out Corbis and Getty and look at some of their keywords. If your selection of royality free and rights managed turn out not so good don't worry about it and learn what works and doesn't work. I never worry about the images I have already created and being marketed by my agencies, I keep looking forward to creating new images and getting those in circulation.  My sales are not the greatest from Alamy but they do bring in on average about $500 to $1000 a month for 800 images not great but not bad. If your work is good, spend time learning how to keyword and you treat photography like a business I think Alamy will pay much better than any Microstock site.

Best of luck
Traveler

« Reply #7 on: August 31, 2007, 22:47 »
0
My sales are not the greatest from Alamy but they do bring in on average about $500 to $1000 a month for 800 images not great but not bad. If your work is good, spend time learning how to keyword and you treat photography like a business I think Alamy will pay much better than any Microstock site.

That's really good Traveler, and I've heard of other people having the same success.  My experience is much different.  I've been with Alamy for eleven months. I have 894 images (admittedly, many are of the same topic - not necessarily similar) and I have an UNCLEARED BALANCE of $16.20.  I plan to upload many more expanding the diversity if my topics, but I think it would be misleading to tell someone they can expect an average of $750/month on 800 images (at least based on my experience).

« Reply #8 on: August 31, 2007, 23:13 »
0
Quote
I guess for most of us it is $1-$2 per month /image on microstock

??? excuse me ??  I'm WAAAYYYY over that figure.  And what I've read a lot of guys are.

Actually I did a little research for my article (big update comming, actually I rewrote it completely) and as I hear the $/image/year figure of the alamy guys ... then I'm happy I choose micros instead.

Must get $3 to $5 / image / year ... ... that less than half of what I get.
Lets do a little math. $5/image/year = about $0.42/image/month . If that's less than half of what you get, that means you're making more than $0.82/image/month. I remember from math class that 0.82/image/month is less than $1-$2/image/month.

I think you misread the month for year.

« Reply #9 on: September 01, 2007, 03:22 »
0
In my experience keywording at Alamy is a bit strange as they have a description box where some folk seem to write assays.

I was recently contemplating whether to upload some photos of St Andrews castle to Alamy or the micros, it gives very few results at the micros but not many sales. When I searched at Alamy for "St Andrews castle fife" i found images of lighthouses and sail boats in Fife which fortunately appeared towards the end of the search but still ahead of genuine results.

One word of warning there is a six month wait to delete an image and once an image is uploaded as RF you can't switch it to RM or vice versa unless you request deletion wait 6 months and upload again. I have heard of one exception of someone switching their entire portfolio from RM - RF but I think it was a rather rare occurance.

Has anyone ever had images rejected?

« Reply #10 on: September 01, 2007, 04:35 »
0
it seems they only reject images where the size specs do not meet their minimum, or the uprezing was poorly done.

« Reply #11 on: September 01, 2007, 06:12 »
0
Thank you all for the information. If it is as Leaf said arround the earnings between Dreamstime and Shutterstock then it definetely is worth my time. And if it is as much as Traveller said, that would be great! However Traveler, if I make the amount /image/month as you do in the average on Alamy , it will still be below my microstock earnings. But I would be interested to see your portfolio, you seem to be one of the more successful from us on Alamy. You can send me also a PM if you do not want share it in public. Anyway, I understand if you want to stay anonym and do not want to show me your portfolio.  I am selling mainly penguins, but probably will have a few editorial images soon.

« Reply #12 on: September 01, 2007, 15:08 »
0
Is it my impression, or don't images in Alamy have watermarks?

Regards,
Adelaide

« Reply #13 on: September 01, 2007, 20:15 »
0
Freezing pictures,

I'm surprised that any one would consider $800 to $1200 a month with roughly 800 images is good money. Alamy is much more of a numbers game than the two bigger agencies.  I don't want to mislead you, what I probably should have said is $800 is typical and a good month is around $1200. I do see on my report for the month of August I have $1750, which is my best month ever. Keep in mind I don't actively work with Alamy it has been almost two years since I uploaded any images. 800 images at Corbis or Getty can easily gain you $5,000 to $7,000 a month maybe more depending on what one has on file. If you want to make bigger dollars at Alamy you probably need to be in the 10000 image number to see significant numbers. If I remember correctly, I believe someone mentioned changing RF to RM or RM to RF at Alamy. I would be very careful at changing anything after you mark these one way or the other. You could find yourself in some big trouble. Live with the label you put on your photos, don't go changing them. You'll lose a lot of credibility with photo buyers and maybe in court. As I mentioned in my first posting, don't dwell on the images you already have in the market place, put your energies into the new images you create. Freezing pictures, I will be happy to share info with you, but I'm off to Montreal, Quebec City and Ottawa for a photo tomorrow. I be gone for two weeks and when I return I'll get back with you and see if we can connect up. I might mention I don't work in the Micro Stock agencies but enjoy listening to what you folks are doing. I like sharing info and hope to help a couple of you folks out when I can

Good Luck to all
Traveler

« Reply #14 on: September 01, 2007, 23:36 »
0
Traveler, clearly you believe there are better returns to be gained at Getty and Corbis.

Are you preapred to devote a little bit of time to tell us more about your experiences at those agencies, and what the best route to take with them might be?

Also, you haven't mentioned Jupiter.  Do they not figure in your work?

Leaf - perhaps we should have a section devoted specifically to the 'old school' agencies?

« Reply #15 on: September 02, 2007, 07:24 »
0
Hatman,

I would be happy tp discuss the matter, but I'm off to the airport this morning for a photo shoot. I'll be back on September 14th. I'll log on when I get back and I'll share my experiences and for those interested my thoughts on the industry as a whole. I am very active in the industry and think I can share some insights that might be of help or at least food for thought.

Take care,

Traveler

« Reply #16 on: September 02, 2007, 11:05 »
0
Back freezing's post and I've heard this before on $1-$2 per image.

Can someone please clarify for me - if I have same image on 6 sites, is that 1 image or 6 images? 

My #'s vary hugely from site to site and unless they are exactly the same I wouldn't know how to calculate.

« Reply #17 on: September 03, 2007, 02:07 »
0
Traveller, it is good money for a student, and if I get that amount, I will do better $/month/image than on some microstock sites, (not all), and it would definetely be worth my time. Your are a professional, photography for me is currently a part-time work. I never have done any photography courses and thats how it is with most microstock photographers, keep that in mind. . So $/image/month on Alamy would be a nice increase. Why should you be surprised? A post before you said Alamy would pay much better than any microstock site. Which is not the case for me, if I would earn as much as you per image, by the way.
However, what can I say, I know nothing about the traditional agencies compared to you, so here I am to listen, what you have to say :) Well I will wait until you are back :) Looking forward to it. All the best for your shooting!

Pixart, you can calculate it this way: E.g. you have 100 images at IS and $200 earnings this month at IS. So you calculate 200/100  ($/number of images). That equals $2 per month/image at IS. You do that for every agency. And than add the average $/month/image from every agency together. Thats the total amount you will earn $/month/image. Lee did it in this way at www.microstockdiaries.com. Go back to his thread about the earnings of August. It is quite interesting.

« Reply #18 on: September 03, 2007, 02:51 »
0
Heh ... using that method puts me at 2+ $/image/month. This is not a very meaningful number, though. If I multiple $2 by the size of my portfolio I do not get a number that mirrors my income.

« Reply #19 on: September 03, 2007, 03:23 »
0
If you devide in my example $200 by 100 images, you will get $2 and if you multiply it again with the size of your portfolio at IS you should get exact the income that $200 you started with.

If you mean that for several sites, than you cannot really use that, because you probably do not have exact the same amount of images at each stock agency. I agree.

But I really do like that method for comparing agencies.
It also gives feedback how am I doing in gerneral compared to others or this general assumed $1-$2 average. Should I improve or not. In your case I think you are above the average. Maybe the average is even lower than $1-$2. I should start a poll..
This method is also great to look if you yourself have improved by just calculating the average for your last 50 images and then compare that to the rest of your portfolio and so on. Its not perfect of course at SS for example..

« Reply #20 on: October 30, 2007, 05:34 »
0
Wow I got my 1 sale! With 6 images online, within two month!! Maybe I really should focus more on Alamy!
And a nice sale!

I think my commission is $189 from a Gross sale $347..., its a bit confusing..

« Reply #21 on: October 30, 2007, 10:01 »
0
That's great!  Is it enough to cash out over there (30 days too isn't it?) What are you sending them, Freezing?  Do you have any penguins left for the macros?

« Reply #22 on: October 30, 2007, 10:16 »
0
I sent them a CD with my initial 10 images about 2 years ago and all were accepted and until they got FTP recently I had completely forgot about them. When I got the email that ftp had been turned on for my account, I see that I had a sale for a profit for me of around $125. Now comes the hard part, uploading more so I can actually hit the $250 minimum payout...

jsnover

« Reply #23 on: October 30, 2007, 22:59 »
0
I got my first Alamy sale this month (I started uploading in August) - $220 of which I get $143.

Although I can't cash that out until the payment clears and I reach $250, the way I look at it, it's as if I'd added another micro to my list and $143 a month would be pretty good for a new micro. I also haven't really filled out my portfolio there (it's 80 images or so).

It's definitely encouraging, although we'll have to see after a year or so.

« Reply #24 on: October 31, 2007, 03:56 »
0
Yes apparently you need 250 for cashout, so it is not enough yet. But quite encouraging. I just send them a couple more yesterday. No I do not have much left. For Alamy I check my files more carefully and rework my penguin designs. They look a bit different though not much but are better quality. I guess thats the way I will go with Alamy. Yesterday I spend one hour to improve and modify an upsampled popular penguin file. Hope it was worth the time. I also will try normal stock images.
In future I will also try to do new designs of my old files and so get more images. Like I can create more variations of the Global Warming theme. Good to hear jsnover, maybe Alamy indeed can be like an income of another major microstock agency. I also believe we newcomers have definitely a chance now, because of Alamy's own disambiguation. I think hundreds of thousands if not millions of images might get lost, because authors do not care or do not have the time to change their file information. I am sorry for them but all together I think it will help to let the buyer finds what he wants.


 

Related Topics

  Subject / Started by Replies Last post
13 Replies
6361 Views
Last post January 18, 2007, 16:37
by roman
18 Replies
9962 Views
Last post May 28, 2008, 18:13
by Snufkin
1 Replies
3491 Views
Last post September 10, 2008, 10:07
by Pixart
5 Replies
7915 Views
Last post July 19, 2011, 19:36
by bizair
31 Replies
30039 Views
Last post April 09, 2018, 14:55
by Painter

Sponsors

Mega Bundle of 5,900+ Professional Lightroom Presets

Microstock Poll Results

Sponsors