MicrostockGroup

Hi Macrostockers,

I have recently been browsing through Alamy and noticed their steep prices and high paying royalties. Alamy sounds great...but does it really sell?

Why would anyone purchase a photo from Alamy when they can purchase the same photo (RF Non-Exclusive) from microstock agencies such as Shutterstock and Istock?

Kind Regards
-Mr. Confused

Have a good read through the Alamy forum.  A lot of info there on success or otherwise, but in general it is a low turnover site for contributors but with the prospect for very high prices.  Past performance suggested an average of $100 per sale with an average of 10 downloads per1000 images per year, eg. An RPI of $1 per image online, per year, and this is Gross, net shoul be 60% of that. However, this last year contributors are reporting very steeply reduced image pricing.

Worth a read if you are considering submitting.

Also note that you won't even get a payout until you've made $250. 

Trying to understand what Alamy's statistics mean is a topic in itself. So far I've gotten a couple hundred "views" but exactly 1 "zoom", which happened very early.  Weirdly, the number of "views" sometimes rolls backwards, i.e. dips lower.  I suspect these statistics are either erroneous or misleading.

I'm starting to feel dumb for having spent time uploading to Alamy and I've quit doing it.   Maybe it's not a worthwhile place for small time guys I like me.

It depends on your portfolio typical microstock doesn't sell well at all. Also prices aren't that high actually they give huge discounts so sometimes  they sell for 8,- Dollars that should be according to their site in the three-digit range (no novelty use).
Nevertheless it's a great site that should be supported but with a non-microstock portfolio.

It's quite simple.  Buyers will spend whatever they have to for the right photo.  If they find it royalty free on the micros, cool.  They found a bargain.  But they don't always find what they want, so they turn to the traditional agencies.  Or they need a rights managed license instead of a royalty free license.  Or they want an editorial shot instead of a commercial shot.  Lots of reasons for buyers to pay the big bucks.   

Do photo galleries by from Alamy and other Macro/Midstock agencies? Also what does editorial shot and duration (on RM Alamy photos) mean?

Thanks

Views, zooms, and sales statistics are all based on the time period shown right above them. Default covers a month, and you can adjust parameters to show more or less time.

(BTW, I had up to a few dozen mostly-RM photos on Alamy for 8 months-to-a-year before first sale. That motivated me to start uploading more. Now, almost a year after that, I have a few more sales & between 200-300 online. It's a nice outlet for photos in addition to direct client work, and starting around end of last year have been deleting from, rather than adding to, my 2 micro ports.)

And you should only upload your RF micro images as RF on Alamy.  You are doing the right thing.  Putting a RM license at Alamy on a RF image you have on IS, DT, SS, etc. can get you in trouble.

What sells well on Alamy? Is it still the general lifestyle, models and market trends that we see on microstock sites?

Can't work it out at all. Looking at my own (meagre-ish) (RM) sales, there's no pattern that seems to make any sense, at least to me.

No!  it can not get you into trouble, its perfectly legit to put the same images as RF and Micro,  but, shall we say, its not all that ethical, is it?

Thing that can get you into trouble is when you start messing with RM.

Here are my thoughts - for what it's worth.

Upload your generic stuff to the micros.  You know the cliche - woman with headset, the business handshake, general portraiture, etc.  If an image is generic and can be easily reproduced, then upload it as royalty free to the micros or any other RF agency (even to Alamy as RF).

If your image is unique, and it's not likely to be reproduced, then sell it as RM - whether it's Alamy or any other traditional agency.  Unique images have no business being sold as RF stock ANYWHERE.  You are selling yourself short.

I have always had better sales at Alamy than I've had at any of the micros.  Sales may not come as often, but the royalty amount is big enough that it makes up for the volume.  Don't expect money quickly...expect at least 3 months before your first sale and don't consider yourself established for at least a year.  Upload as often as you can.

I'm not sure if it's still the case, but Alamy affiliates used to pick up images on a quarterly basis so if you opt into that scheme, your images won't be distributed to affiliates until quarter end (one of the reasons you shouldn't expect to be established until after a year).

Don't be afraid to apply to other RM agencies.