MicrostockGroup
Microstock Photography Forum - General => Off Topic => Topic started by: Stopcomplaining on February 05, 2017, 12:45
-
This site use to be a very good place for professionals that truly wanted to educate themselves and others. Even Yuri would visit it occasionally.
Now it is nothing more than a bunch of crybabies! A complete waste of cyberspace!
Here are some of the most common cries-complaints:
1. They ‘REJECTED’ my image. How dare they do that! 99% of the time your image just sucks and you cannot handle the truth.
2. I use to make much more money than now. Yeah, like when there were only few hundred artists but now there are hundreds of thousands of artists that you cannot handle a thing called competition.
3. No matter how hard I try I cannot improve my sells- don’t you realize that just maybe you don’t have the talent required for this business.
4. I don’t like the newer version of the company uploader or interface. Okay, go out and create your own company if you know it all.
5. I don’t like what Company X pays me. Than close your account and stop complaining.
6. I am not getting any sales on Company X. Duh, the ‘Buyers’ don’t like your images.
7. A lot of discussions end up in some insulting political form. My wife is from an Eastern bloc country thus the majority of your businesses not doing well is entirely her people’s fault.
My final advice, if you truly feel it is buyers and companies fault for your poor images not selling than sell your camera and get a day time job instead of complaining on this site!
-
8. This forum sucks! It's not like it used to be!
-
9. People who go annonymous to complain about complaints.
-
9. People who go annonymous to complain about complaints.
Lol.
-
Looks like the person created the account today to "complain".
-
someone should open account "StopReadingOtherPeopleComplains"
-
Is this part of your Festivus celebration? - the airing of grievances?
-
that list shows the op is very short sighted
-
that list shows the op is very short sighted
Is that an observation or a complaint? Just so the op does not take it the wrong way and add it to the list.
-
9. People who go annonymous to complain about complaints.
Oh, the irony.
-
9. People who go annonymous to complain about complaints.
"Touché" :)
-
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Metabitching (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Metabitching)
-
The forum had less complaints before the sites started cutting the amount they pay us. I think it would be a strange world if everyone was happy about that. Go use the Stepford Wives microstock forum if this one is a bit too real.
-
Stepford Wives
shoot
keyword
upload
repeat
not much difference between a microstock photographer and a robot
-
...A lot of discussions end up in some insulting political form. My wife is from an Eastern bloc country thus the majority of your businesses not doing well is entirely her people’s fault...
I think I worked out who this is.
I'm sorry if you've taken offence at some of the comments, but don't you have a country to run?
-
...A lot of discussions end up in some insulting political form. My wife is from an Eastern bloc country thus the majority of your businesses not doing well is entirely her people’s fault...
I think I worked out who this is.
I'm sorry if you've taken offence at some of the comments, but don't you have a country to run?
Do you really think he would go anonymous? :)
-
...A lot of discussions end up in some insulting political form. My wife is from an Eastern bloc country thus the majority of your businesses not doing well is entirely her people’s fault...
I think I worked out who this is.
I'm sorry if you've taken offence at some of the comments, but don't you have a country to run?
Do you really think he would go anonymous? :)
You mean like yourself as well :)
-
...A lot of discussions end up in some insulting political form. My wife is from an Eastern bloc country thus the majority of your businesses not doing well is entirely her people’s fault...
I think I worked out who this is.
I'm sorry if you've taken offence at some of the comments, but don't you have a country to run?
Do you really think he would go anonymous? :)
You mean like yourself as well :)
lol. whats going on here? please stop now.
-
This site use to be a very good place for professionals that truly wanted to educate themselves and others. Even Yuri would visit it occasionally.
Now it is nothing more than a bunch of crybabies! A complete waste of cyberspace!
Here are some of the most common cries-complaints:
1. They ‘REJECTED’ my image. How dare they do that! 99% of the time your image just sucks and you cannot handle the truth.
2. I use to make much more money than now. Yeah, like when there were only few hundred artists but now there are hundreds of thousands of artists that you cannot handle a thing called competition.
3. No matter how hard I try I cannot improve my sells- don’t you realize that just maybe you don’t have the talent required for this business.
4. I don’t like the newer version of the company uploader or interface. Okay, go out and create your own company if you know it all.
5. I don’t like what Company X pays me. Than close your account and stop complaining.
6. I am not getting any sales on Company X. Duh, the ‘Buyers’ don’t like your images.
7. A lot of discussions end up in some insulting political form. My wife is from an Eastern bloc country thus the majority of your businesses not doing well is entirely her people’s fault.
My final advice, if you truly feel it is buyers and companies fault for your poor images not selling than sell your camera and get a day time job instead of complaining on this site!
You forgot to add: It's 2nd of the month already. Why haven't I received payment from SS yet?
-
Actually i agree with the poster. I am not anonymous and i fund it also a pitty that it is only about how bad the business is. The forum used to be full of tips and information. Now the most popular sentence is race to the bottom. I think such things doesnt belong here and also it will not solve anything. I make a choice ...submit and do the best out of it or find other ways to make income from photography.
Anyway i dont think that anything is dying. Agencies are making more revenue than ever. So contributors should also. The thing is only there where years ago 5.000 contributors. Now it is 200.000. Free market. Nobody has a golden ticket to keep all the revenue. Everyone has the right to take his part.
Mirco
-
Actually i agree with the poster. I am not anonymous and i fund it also a pitty that it is only about how bad the business is. The forum used to be full of tips and information. Now the most popular sentence is race to the bottom. I think such things doesnt belong here and also it will not solve anything. I make a choice ...submit and do the best out of it or find other ways to make income from photography.
Anyway i dont think that anything is dying. Agencies are making more revenue than ever. So contributors should also. The thing is only there where years ago 5.000 contributors. Now it is 200.000. Free market. Nobody has a golden ticket to keep all the revenue. Everyone has the right to take his part.
Mirco
I agree. There is legitimate criticism of a few agencies, but it gets drowned out because everyone is complaining about everything all time. Most agencies have't cut our RPD and are still able to grow our income. We need to focus on praising those that treat us well and criticise those that don't, instead of complaining about every little thing all the time.
-
Maybe just maybe if the agencies started treating contributors like people then there would be fewer complaints
People complain when they are treated badly
-
Maybe just maybe if the agencies started treating contributors like people then there would be fewr complaints
People complain when they are treated badly
This is true but there just seems a general theme of catastrophe rather than a focus on the stuff we should be REALLY mad about
-
I still don't see how another thread complaining about the complaining is helping. There used to be another forum I used that was more positive but that's gone now. So what options are there?
-
I sympathize with the OP's comment about complaining.
But even if someone stayed completely positive, was committed to constant learning and improvement, happily accepted changes to processes and payment terms... in other words, did everything right with a happy smile... this gleeful contributor will still watch earnings slide year after year.
That's my only real complaint against microstock. It's a business model that chews up and spits out contributors. The agencies make more and more money (bigger pie), while recruiting more and more contributors (smaller slice for everyone).
Should I just stop complaining and quit microstock? It may come to that. But I think there's value in telling people who are just starting out that you shouldn't count on making a lot of money at this. You may think that with 100 images I'm making 100 bucks a month... that means when I have 1000 images I'll be making 1000 bucks a month. Nope, because while you're striving to get from 100 to 1000 images, your competition ramps up even faster, and you may still be making 100 bucks a month -- or even 50 -- with 1000 images in your port.
It's all a numbers game you just can't win. Even if you stop complaining.
-
I sympathize with the OP's comment about complaining.
But even if someone stayed completely positive, was committed to constant learning and improvement, happily accepted changes to processes and payment terms... in other words, did everything right with a happy smile... this gleeful contributor will still watch earnings slide year after year.
That's my only real complaint against microstock. It's a business model that chews up and spits out contributors. The agencies make more and more money (bigger pie), while recruiting more and more contributors (smaller slice for everyone).
Should I just stop complaining and quit microstock? It may come to that. But I think there's value in telling people who are just starting out that you shouldn't count on making a lot of money at this. You may think that with 100 images I'm making 100 bucks a month... that means when I have 1000 images I'll be making 1000 bucks a month. Nope, because while you're striving to get from 100 to 1000 images, your competition ramps up even faster, and you may still be making 100 bucks a month -- or even 50 -- with 1000 images in your port.
It's all a numbers game you just can't win. Even if you stop complaining.
+100 for this comment! Great insight and valuable...
-
Nice to see you
A. Deleted your fake account
B. Were complaining on the Envato thread about being dropped
Karma stings doesn't it ;D
-
Here a place to discuss things that can't be said in the place you should be able to discuss it. Thread locked!
-
But even if someone stayed completely positive, was committed to constant learning and improvement, happily accepted changes to processes and payment terms... in other words, did everything right with a happy smile... this gleeful contributor will still watch earnings slide year after year.
That's my only real complaint against microstock. It's a business model that chews up and spits out contributors. The agencies make more and more money (bigger pie), while recruiting more and more contributors (smaller slice for everyone).
Should I just stop complaining and quit microstock? It may come to that. But I think there's value in telling people who are just starting out that you shouldn't count on making a lot of money at this. You may think that with 100 images I'm making 100 bucks a month... that means when I have 1000 images I'll be making 1000 bucks a month. Nope, because while you're striving to get from 100 to 1000 images, your competition ramps up even faster, and you may still be making 100 bucks a month -- or even 50 -- with 1000 images in your port.
It's all a numbers game you just can't win. Even if you stop complaining.
All newbies and all "optimists" should print these words, frame them and hang them above their desk or bed.
AFAIR, Stockmarketer used to be an "optimist", too.
BTW, Stockmarketer do you have an exit strategy or a lifeboat? I am trying to build a lifeboat myself, but it is very difficult.
-
All newbies and all "optimists" should print these words, frame them and hang them above their desk or bed.
AFAIR, Stockmarketer used to be an "optimist", too.
BTW, Stockmarketer do you have an exit strategy or a lifeboat? I am trying to build a lifeboat myself, but it is very difficult.
So you're suggesting we shouldn't be optimistic? That's quite pessimistic.
Optimism is a great difference maker between moderate success and greater success. There's a lot been a lot of complaining lately in politics and that subconsciously spreads to every aspect of daily life, even the life of a contributors. That's why I avoid the negativity.
If anyone is still optimistic here, stay optimistic. It'll keep your mind clear and your goals in perspective.
-
So you're suggesting we shouldn't be optimistic? That's quite pessimistic.
Between Optimism and Pessimism there is Realism, and this is where I try to be.
-
All right then - can anyone give any concrete reasons to be 'optimistic' about microstock?
-
All right then - can anyone give any concrete reasons to be 'optimistic' about microstock?
There's a new dashboard at Shutterstock?
-
All right then - can anyone give any concrete reasons to be 'optimistic' about microstock?
There's a new dashboard at Shutterstock?
That's a psychological trick, the three main figures are always rising even though your sales may be declining.
-
All right then - can anyone give any concrete reasons to be 'optimistic' about microstock?
There's a new dashboard at Shutterstock?
That's a psychological trick, the three main figures are always rising even though your sales may be declining.
But the font showing my earnings is now massive... so it feels like my earnings just got bigger. And that's the most important thing.
-
All right then - can anyone give any concrete reasons to be 'optimistic' about microstock?
There's a new dashboard at Shutterstock?
That's a psychological trick, the three main figures are always rising even though your sales may be declining.
But the font showing my earnings is now massive... so it feels like my earnings just got bigger. And that's the most important thing.
So Shutterstock would have you believe.
-
All right then - can anyone give any concrete reasons to be 'optimistic' about microstock?
Can anyone give any concrete reason to be 'optimistic' about startups, the job market, politics, life, work, relationships, the app store, anything?
I can write 10 reason, but why bother? People has already made up their minds. Individuals need to convince themselves, that's the only reliable source of optimism. It's incredibly easy to be pessimistic, but it takes a lot of determination to be an optimist.
I have my many reasons to be optimistic. People need to find theirs.
-
Designed to decieve
Truth is sales keeps plummeting and goodbye EL and SOD and ODD, but yeah, great new stats page...
-
Maybe just maybe if the agencies started treating contributors like people then there would be fewer complaints
People complain when they are treated badly
Smart people do. Some just bury their heads in the sand or complain about the complaining.
FWIW, we all get to express our opinions here, as long as it is done civilly. If you are upset that somebody has a different opinion than you, you are free to debate it, but people who are unhappy about where they see things headed are under no obligation to paint a rosy picture so others feel better.
If your so called optimism is that fragile it may, just MAY, not be grounded in reality.
-
Anyway i dont think that anything is dying. Agencies are making more revenue than ever. So contributors should also.
Wrong. Amazon makes more and more money, but their workers are crying. For example read what do Amazon Logistics drivers say. This Christmas season (November + December) they work from 6:00am to 21:00 with no time to eat, 6 days a week, having 120 to 140 (!) parcels to deliver every day. And if some driver did not deliver some parcels today then Amazon will not pay for the next day and will count it as a "holiday".
If some company earns more it does not mean its workers (or contributors) make more.
-
Agencies are making more revenue than ever. So contributors should also.
Mirco
Well said, that's the ultimate answer to why we are unhappy. Complaining here won't change the reality.
-
It still feels good to let loose about it even though it won't make a difference. I find comfort knowing I'm not the only one upset ... we are in the same boat.
-
I guess, there is not only one boat. Microstocker living in poor countries sit in a different boat. Their boat does not sink.
-
It still feels good to let loose about it even though it won't make a difference. I find comfort knowing I'm not the only one upset ... we are in the same boat.
True but in the end just complaining achieves nothing you have to do something or it becomes whining
-
All right then - can anyone give any concrete reasons to be 'optimistic' about microstock?
It's a market that gives you total freedom to create what you want, whenever you want.
Despite the fact that some agencies make a mess of everything, there's no job in the world that gives you so much freedom.
-
It still feels good to let loose about it even though it won't make a difference. I find comfort knowing I'm not the only one upset ... we are in the same boat.
True but in the end just complaining achieves nothing you have to do something or it becomes whining
Now that's the truth. Complaining is contagious. Once you start complaining, your brain starts to adjust itself to accommodate negative thoughts. The more you do it, the more it accommodates and the next thing you know, you're complaining more and more often and your productivity goes to hell. Then people you interact with starts to complain, influencing you to complain even more.
I have no doubts that the recent political landscape greatly contributed to the increase complaining, either consciously or subconsciously. I'm not so innocent myself. I used to complain a lot and it took quite a bit of work to adjust my own attitude.
-
It still feels good to let loose about it even though it won't make a difference. I find comfort knowing I'm not the only one upset ... we are in the same boat.
True but in the end just complaining achieves nothing you have to do something or it becomes whining
Now that's the truth. Complaining is contagious. Once you start complaining, your brain starts to adjust itself to accommodate negative thoughts. The more you do it, the more it accommodates and the next thing you know, you're complaining more and more often and your productivity goes to hell. Then people you interact with starts to complain, influencing you to complain even more.
I have no doubts that the recent political landscape greatly contributed to the increase complaining, either consciously or subconsciously. I'm not so innocent myself. I used to complain a lot and it took quite a bit of work to adjust my own attitude.
Looking at the world with rose tinted glasses doesn't change the world only your perception of it. Sometimes complaining is the first step to changing things, more often it's not, but you have to test the waters. It's not all negative.
-
It still feels good to let loose about it even though it won't make a difference. I find comfort knowing I'm not the only one upset ... we are in the same boat.
True but in the end just complaining achieves nothing you have to do something or it becomes whining
Now that's the truth. Complaining is contagious. Once you start complaining, your brain starts to adjust itself to accommodate negative thoughts. The more you do it, the more it accommodates and the next thing you know, you're complaining more and more often and your productivity goes to hell. Then people you interact with starts to complain, influencing you to complain even more.
I have no doubts that the recent political landscape greatly contributed to the increase complaining, either consciously or subconsciously. I'm not so innocent myself. I used to complain a lot and it took quite a bit of work to adjust my own attitude.
Looking at the world with rose tinted glasses doesn't change the world only your perception of it. Sometimes complaining is the first step to changing things, more often it's not, but you have to test the waters. It's not all negative.
Agreed FIRST step
-
Looking at the world with rose tinted glasses doesn't change the world only your perception of it. Sometimes complaining is the first step to changing things, more often it's not, but you have to test the waters. It's not all negative.
Complain if you can change something. Don't complain if you can't. If my neighbor is blasting his music at 2am, I would complain to the landlord. If the neighbor is a contributor and he's making 5x as much as me, what's the point of complaining?
It's not really about looking at the world with rose tinted glasses. complaining about falling sales isn't going to stop all the other contributors from uploading new work. The only thing you can do is analyze your portfolio's weaknesses and learn to compete better against an ever growing competitive environment.
-
Looking at the world with rose tinted glasses doesn't change the world only your perception of it. Sometimes complaining is the first step to changing things, more often it's not, but you have to test the waters. It's not all negative.
Complain if you can change something. Don't complain if you can't. If my neighbor is blasting his music at 2am, I would complain to the landlord. If the neighbor is a contributor and he's making 5x as much as me, what's the point of complaining?
It's not really about looking at the world with rose tinted glasses. complaining about falling sales isn't going to stop all the other contributors from uploading new work. The only thing you can do is analyze your portfolio's weaknesses and learn to compete better against an ever growing competitive environment.
You are not getting it, remove the glasses, but then again you don't even follow you own advice.
-
Looking at the world with rose tinted glasses doesn't change the world only your perception of it. Sometimes complaining is the first step to changing things, more often it's not, but you have to test the waters. It's not all negative.
Complain if you can change something. Don't complain if you can't. If my neighbor is blasting his music at 2am, I would complain to the landlord. If the neighbor is a contributor and he's making 5x as much as me, what's the point of complaining?
It's not really about looking at the world with rose tinted glasses. complaining about falling sales isn't going to stop all the other contributors from uploading new work. The only thing you can do is analyze your portfolio's weaknesses and learn to compete better against an ever growing competitive environment.
You are not getting it, remove the glasses, but then again you don't even follow you own advice.
If you want to complain, no one is going to stop you. I'm not here to convince people, only offering a solution. I've interacted with a lot of negative people over the years...they always have a problem for every solution. This is no different.
-
It still feels good to let loose about it even though it won't make a difference. I find comfort knowing I'm not the only one upset ... we are in the same boat.
True but in the end just complaining achieves nothing you have to do something or it becomes whining
Do what, exactly? What are your solutions?
So far there have been boycotts, mass content deletions, negotiations, upload stoppages, etc., both by groups and individuals. But things on many sites just keep getting worse.
Let's assume at least some "whiners" have strong portfolios, original ideas, good niches, top equipment, both lighting and photographic, and a diligent work ethic. Probably even a positive attitude for years before things went to spit. And let's assume these guys are losing money anyway because the market is just too crowded and two of the top 3 sites and a bunch of small ones are constantly thinking of ways to screw us and keep more of our earnings for themselves.
What's your advice to those guys? If you have some great solution to the decline of microstock incomes, let's hear it.
I still make what would be considered a living wage in most Western countries, so I am not going away anytime soon, but since my current income is 1/3 of what it was a few years ago, and dropping by 15-20% annually whether I work my a$$ off or not, I will bltch, moan, whine, and complain whenever I d@mn well feel like it.
-
Do what, exactly? What are your solutions?
So far there have been boycotts, mass content deletions, negotiations, upload stoppages, etc., both by groups and individuals. But things on many sites just keep getting worse.
Let's assume at least some "whiners" have strong portfolios, original ideas, good niches, top equipment, both lighting and photographic, and a diligent work ethic. Probably even a positive attitude for years before things went to spit. And let's assume these guys are losing money anyway because the market is just too crowded and two of the top 3 sites and a bunch of small ones are constantly thinking of ways to screw us and keep more of our earnings for themselves.
What's your advice to those guys? If you have some great solution to the decline of microstock incomes, let's hear it.
I still make what would be considered a living wage in most Western countries, so I am not going away anytime soon, but since my current income is 1/3 of what it was a few years ago, and dropping by 15-20% annually whether I work my a$$ off or not, I will bltch, moan, whine, and complain whenever I d@mn well feel like it.
I'll bite.
Photography is one of the easiest hobbies to get into right now. Everyone and their grandma has a camera with a phone. There are 600 million Instagram users and many of them consider themselves photographers. The stock photography market is one of the most saturated markets in existence and the value of photos are dropping by the day. There is nothing anyone can do about it. Everyone already knows the laws of supply of demand, so it speaks for itself.
So what is the solution? There is no one solution that fits all. There are a number of solutions and whether it works or not depends on the talent and determination of the contributor. So what are possible solutions?
1. Diversity. Photos, vectors and videos. A pure photography portfolio is going the see faster continued decline than a diverse one.
2. Think commercially. Original ideas doesn't mean anything unless it's something the buyers need. I've seen some of my original ideas getting outperformed by non-original ideas by 100-1.
3. Stop going after niches. Pebble watch tried to fill a niche and now it's dead, got destroyed by Apple and Android watches. Niches always get filled in by the big guys sooner or later.
4. Learn some SEO and keywordings. With 100 million images on SS, top-notch keywording is super important if you want your work to be found. An image with good keywording is more resistant to search engine changes. Native English speakers have an advantage over foreign contributors and I rarely see them take advantage of it.
5. Learn to compete with the best of them. Contributors are not entitled to get sales because they uploading some images, just like how college students are not entitled to a job just because they have a degree. Buyers only need a few images and if what you're offering is not up there with best of them, then the buyer will pass your image over. That's just reality.
6. Learn a new trade. Microstock was my 2nd passive income trade, right after developing apps. The App market has gone to **** and Microstock is heaven compared to that madness. Less work and much higher returns. I'm now working on my 3rd passive income stream and it's starting to gain traction.
7. Accept that the market is never going backwards. No nuclear bomb will be going off destroying everything and rebirthing the market. Even if does happen, all the contributors will fill it back up in a matter of weeks. The market will continue to saturate, just like every other industry in existence. This makes point #5 super important.
So go ahead, bltch, moan and complain. It won't solve problems. Meanwhile, some optimistic upstart somewhere is determined to create and upload high valued content and start eating other people's lunches.
-
Is it not possible that some of the complaining is by people that have reached the same point of diminishing returns that you reached in the app market? There are still people making good returns in that market that would see your attitude about it in the same way as you see the attitude of some of the photographers on this forum.
Some "complainers" here had the exact same attutude as you a few years ago when they were only a couple of years in.
-
Is it not possible that some of the complaining is by people that have reached the same point of diminishing returns that you reached in the app market? There are still people making good returns in that market that would see your attitude about it in the same way as you see the attitude of some of the photographers on this forum.
Some "complainers" here had the exact same attutude as you a few years ago when they were only a couple of years in.
The app market has been taken over by large players and there's an occasional breakout hit by an indie developer. Overall, 99% of apps don't make a profit.
I'm just acknowledging the state of the App Store. I don't go to any message board to complain about it. I accepted the reality of it and moved on to other fields.
-
So your inability to make a living in that market was totally independent of your skill level? You couldn't make a decent living making apps not because you couldn't hack it but because of some outside factor? Why weren't you one of those few hit indie developers?
Sounds like you are just making excuses because you couldn't compete.
-
So your inability to make a living in that market was totally independent of your skill level? You couldn't make a decent living making apps not because you couldn't hack it but because of some outside factor? Why weren't you one of those few hit indie developers?
Sounds like you are just making excuses because you couldn't compete.
It depends on what you consider a one hit wonder. I had a couple decent hits that generated over $25,000 in total profit with a budget of less than $1000.
You're right, I can't compete with them anymore. Apps face heavy decline after the first couple months and I don't have millions of dollars to spend on ads. Besides, my time is better spent in microstock, where my earnings can potentially be more than 20x of what I earned in the App Store.
I accept what can possibly happen in Microstock, and I plan to be a happy old fart contributor when the time comes.
-
So your inability to make a living in that market was totally independent of your skill level? You couldn't make a decent living making apps not because you couldn't hack it but because of some outside factor? Why weren't you one of those few hit indie developers?
Sounds like you are just making excuses because you couldn't compete.
This is exactly the point. The list above posted my Minsc is exactly what the relative newbies keep saying to the experienced professionals on this forum. As I said in my postk some of us have been doing those things, but STILL seeing our incomes drop.
The fact is that even if you are doing everything right, you will reach the point of diminishing returns, and when it happens to you, you'll probably be bltching about it, here, or somewhere else, because it sucks.
Easy to say just go and spend a decade building another career. Not so practical for everyone. If you're 25 or 30, sure. But if you're in your 50s there's not a huge job market clamoring to hire you even if you did bother to learn a whole new career.
-
Is it not possible that some of the complaining is by people that have reached the same point of diminishing returns that you reached in the app market? There are still people making good returns in that market that would see your attitude about it in the same way as you see the attitude of some of the photographers on this forum.
Some "complainers" here had the exact same attutude as you a few years ago when they were only a couple of years in.
The app market has been taken over by large players and there's an occasional breakout hit by an indie developer. Overall, 99% of apps don't make a profit.
I'm just acknowledging the state of the App Store. I don't go to any message board to complain about it. I accepted the reality of it and moved on to other fields.
I was in software development for about 20 years. I always thought writing phone apps was a sucker bet - no one can possibly make money at $1 a sale. An application that has real value takes months to develop. If you can do it in 3 days, so can 1,000 other guys. Except for the big blockbuster apps, no one has ever made money in that market.
On the few occasions when I looked for an app for a specific purpose or need, I found mostly buggy, incomplete, unsupported junk - "abandonware".
-
9. People who go annonymous to complain about complaints.
LMAO
all i can tell you is this.
...
if you're here to complain about ppl complaining...
get a better day-job, so you won't even have the time to come in here
to complain about complaints :D :D :D
-
This conversation while starting out as complaining about complaining has had some good insights as well. Just to give you some insight from an 'agency' perspective.
When you look at the original thinking around selling stock, the goal was to have as much content as you possibly could. The more content you had the better because you were guaranteed that a customer would find what they were looking for (sales for everyone).
With quantity, however, comes noise. It becomes clear after you hit a certain number of photos that while customers might be able to find something, the process of finding the right something takes longer and longer. Agencies respond by adjusting search algorithms to try and give customers exactly what they're looking for at the expense of photographers.
Still though, customers get more frustrated because it's harder to find a photo, photographers get more frustrated because their portfolio's revenue per item drops and while agencies might make the sale, their expenses increase as the number of items not selling (and the cost to maintain them) continues to grow exponentially, reducing their profitability.
For a marketplace like Envato, the tension between quantity of items and photographers earning a livable income is one we are wrestling with. We're also wrestling with the issue of customers not finding what they want.
Looked at another way, we have a growing number of photographers going after the same pie which means less for individual photographers. So while the amount of effort to create and maintain a healthy portfolio is the same, the return for that effort has been getting lower and lower as more photographers enter the industry.
So what levers does a marketplace like Envato have to be able to shift the needle so that the photographers we do have are earning a livable income in a way that keeps Envato profitable?
1. Increase the number of buyers
2. Reduce royalty rates
3. Eliminate content that doesn't sell
4. Limit the number of items a photographer can upload
5. Limit the number of photographers on the marketplace
While the first one is obvious, if the rate of new photographers coming to the platform outpaces the rate of new buyers, you have the same situation and in a highly competitive industry like stock photographry, marketshare shift is an expensive activity.
The second one is what some agencies have done, but not Envato. It's not really in our values to lower royalty rates to photographers.
We can eliminate photos that don't sell, but what if those photos are really amazing and the only reason they haven't sold is because they're buried? Does that serve customers and photographers well? We don't think so.
We can limit the number of items a photographer uploads but from a purely competitive perspective, why would we limit content uploading and give competitors the opportunity to showcase great content just because we don't 'have room' for any more photos? What guarantee is there that the photos uploaded will be the best?
That leaves us with limiting the number of photographers on the marketplace. But how do you do that? How do you tell people you've accepted before that they're no longer able to sell with you? How do you pick and choose the photographers with the most potential to have the highest number of selling items?
There's not really an easy way to go about it. But the industry is not what it was five or ten years ago. As has been mentioned here already, the sheer number of stock photographers is exploding.
At Envato, we're committed to helping our community of authors (what we call creators) earn a livable income and for stock photography, that's meant some tough decisions in the last few months.
What we've seen is that customers are becoming more sophisticated and demanding in what they buy and rather than give them a library of photos they have to search long and hard through to find what they want, maybe we should do a bit of that curating for them and present the best we can get.
So, that's what we're trying to do. We've updated our quality guidelines to try and give photographers the information they need to understand what our customers are after (based on the data we have from them).
We're cleaning up our library. One of the hardest things we've had to do is evaluate portfolios against our updated guidelines and tell people that what was once acceptable doesn't fit where we want to be and asking them to come back with a new sample portfolio that does meet our updated guidelines.
Our goal is to create a stock photography marketplace with really high quality photos our customers love to buy and ensure that our authors are able to earn a livable income.
This wasn't going to be a pitch but now that I am here at the end of my rant, I'll open it up to you. We're not perfect. We get things wrong. We make mistakes and sometimes even make decisions that don't seem to make sense.
But our values are the same. We want photographers in our community earning a livable income. We're not competing to be the biggest agency on the backs of photographers, we're hoping to be a better marketplace for photographers.
We want to support what you're doing, give you the tools and information you need to succeed and walk alongside you as you grow a sustainable business.
If that's the kind of relationship you want, let me know. It's not going to happen overnight and there will be growing pains as we work to get there, but don't doubt our sincerity. For those of you who have ignored or left Envato in the past, take another look. Reach out. We're not going to bite and we'll do our best to honestly and sincerely support you.
Thanks,
James.
P.S.
On the original topic's point of complaining or going negative. That's easy. If you've got a negative thing to say about Envato there are tons of threads and posts and blogs around the web you can feed on. As someone who actively reads and responds here, I will say that when the conversation is constructive, it's incredibly valuable to us and other photographers. You're the experts, we lean on you to tell us what's up, but we're humans too.
The internet is an easy place to go negative without thinking of the consequences. I personally, on this forum, have had my family threatened. I don't think that's representative of this community but civil discourse where different perspectives are acknowledged goes a long way in advancing the cause.
-
Or No.6 you can do what Shutterstock did and tier your collection and buyers, nobody seems to complain to much about that.
-
All right then - can anyone give any concrete reasons to be 'optimistic' about microstock?
There's a new dashboard at Shutterstock?
That's a psychological trick, the three main figures are always rising even though your sales may be declining.
But the font showing my earnings is now massive... so it feels like my earnings just got bigger. And that's the most important thing.
In contrary I see in big as they are getting smaller and smaller
-
If an agency remove content they previously were happy to accept, why would anyone be willing to start over, given what happened before? Once bitten ...
-
Wrong thread, sorry.
-
This conversation while starting out as complaining about complaining has had some good insights as well. Just to give you some insight from an 'agency' perspective.
When you look at the original thinking around selling stock, the goal was to have as much content as you possibly could. The more content you had the better because you were guaranteed that a customer would find what they were looking for (sales for everyone).
With quantity, however, comes noise. It becomes clear after you hit a certain number of photos that while customers might be able to find something, the process of finding the right something takes longer and longer. Agencies respond by adjusting search algorithms to try and give customers exactly what they're looking for at the expense of photographers.
Still though, customers get more frustrated because it's harder to find a photo, photographers get more frustrated because their portfolio's revenue per item drops and while agencies might make the sale, their expenses increase as the number of items not selling (and the cost to maintain them) continues to grow exponentially, reducing their profitability.
For a marketplace like Envato, the tension between quantity of items and photographers earning a livable income is one we are wrestling with. We're also wrestling with the issue of customers not finding what they want.
Looked at another way, we have a growing number of photographers going after the same pie which means less for individual photographers. So while the amount of effort to create and maintain a healthy portfolio is the same, the return for that effort has been getting lower and lower as more photographers enter the industry.
So what levers does a marketplace like Envato have to be able to shift the needle so that the photographers we do have are earning a livable income in a way that keeps Envato profitable?
1. Increase the number of buyers
2. Reduce royalty rates
3. Eliminate content that doesn't sell
4. Limit the number of items a photographer can upload
5. Limit the number of photographers on the marketplace
While the first one is obvious, if the rate of new photographers coming to the platform outpaces the rate of new buyers, you have the same situation and in a highly competitive industry like stock photographry, marketshare shift is an expensive activity.
The second one is what some agencies have done, but not Envato. It's not really in our values to lower royalty rates to photographers.
We can eliminate photos that don't sell, but what if those photos are really amazing and the only reason they haven't sold is because they're buried? Does that serve customers and photographers well? We don't think so.
We can limit the number of items a photographer uploads but from a purely competitive perspective, why would we limit content uploading and give competitors the opportunity to showcase great content just because we don't 'have room' for any more photos? What guarantee is there that the photos uploaded will be the best?
That leaves us with limiting the number of photographers on the marketplace. But how do you do that? How do you tell people you've accepted before that they're no longer able to sell with you? How do you pick and choose the photographers with the most potential to have the highest number of selling items?
There's not really an easy way to go about it. But the industry is not what it was five or ten years ago. As has been mentioned here already, the sheer number of stock photographers is exploding.
At Envato, we're committed to helping our community of authors (what we call creators) earn a livable income and for stock photography, that's meant some tough decisions in the last few months.
What we've seen is that customers are becoming more sophisticated and demanding in what they buy and rather than give them a library of photos they have to search long and hard through to find what they want, maybe we should do a bit of that curating for them and present the best we can get.
So, that's what we're trying to do. We've updated our quality guidelines to try and give photographers the information they need to understand what our customers are after (based on the data we have from them).
We're cleaning up our library. One of the hardest things we've had to do is evaluate portfolios against our updated guidelines and tell people that what was once acceptable doesn't fit where we want to be and asking them to come back with a new sample portfolio that does meet our updated guidelines.
Our goal is to create a stock photography marketplace with really high quality photos our customers love to buy and ensure that our authors are able to earn a livable income.
This wasn't going to be a pitch but now that I am here at the end of my rant, I'll open it up to you. We're not perfect. We get things wrong. We make mistakes and sometimes even make decisions that don't seem to make sense.
But our values are the same. We want photographers in our community earning a livable income. We're not competing to be the biggest agency on the backs of photographers, we're hoping to be a better marketplace for photographers.
We want to support what you're doing, give you the tools and information you need to succeed and walk alongside you as you grow a sustainable business.
If that's the kind of relationship you want, let me know. It's not going to happen overnight and there will be growing pains as we work to get there, but don't doubt our sincerity. For those of you who have ignored or left Envato in the past, take another look. Reach out. We're not going to bite and we'll do our best to honestly and sincerely support you.
Thanks,
James.
P.S.
On the original topic's point of complaining or going negative. That's easy. If you've got a negative thing to say about Envato there are tons of threads and posts and blogs around the web you can feed on. As someone who actively reads and responds here, I will say that when the conversation is constructive, it's incredibly valuable to us and other photographers. You're the experts, we lean on you to tell us what's up, but we're humans too.
The internet is an easy place to go negative without thinking of the consequences. I personally, on this forum, have had my family threatened. I don't think that's representative of this community but civil discourse where different perspectives are acknowledged goes a long way in advancing the cause.
OK my criticism is your inspection process is just awful I'm not saying I'm great but you'e rejected many of my best selling files and accepted stuff that hasn't sold anywhere. In fact I have a quite high RPI on your site but I can see no logic in what you accept or reject.
-
So you're suggesting we shouldn't be optimistic? That's quite pessimistic.
Between Optimism and Pessimism there is Realism, and this is where I try to be.
Noone wants realism. Let me demonstrate. Realistically many people will sink and a lesser number will win. Those who are miserable love company, and that's what internet forums are for. Not everyone is in the same boat.
-
"This wasn't going to be a pitch but now that I am here at the end of my rant, I'll open it up to you. We're not perfect. We get things wrong. We make mistakes and sometimes even make decisions that don't seem to make sense. "
Yes, they don't seem to make much sense - unless you are trying to just piss people off.
That said - the agency that does get search right and treats contributors decently will probably do well. I never messed around with your old search, but this isn't a very good sign for treating contributors decently.
Ultimately we all have to decide if the effort is worth the return - for me I think it still is, but I am a lot less sure of that than I was when I started.
-
This conversation while starting out as complaining about complaining has had some good insights as well. Just to give you some insight from an 'agency' perspective.
When you look at the original thinking around selling stock, the goal was to have as much content as you possibly could. The more content you had the better because you were guaranteed that a customer would find what they were looking for (sales for everyone).
With quantity, however, comes noise. It becomes clear after you hit a certain number of photos that while customers might be able to find something, the process of finding the right something takes longer and longer. Agencies respond by adjusting search algorithms to try and give customers exactly what they're looking for at the expense of photographers.
Still though, customers get more frustrated because it's harder to find a photo, photographers get more frustrated because their portfolio's revenue per item drops and while agencies might make the sale, their expenses increase as the number of items not selling (and the cost to maintain them) continues to grow exponentially, reducing their profitability.
For a marketplace like Envato, the tension between quantity of items and photographers earning a livable income is one we are wrestling with. We're also wrestling with the issue of customers not finding what they want.
Looked at another way, we have a growing number of photographers going after the same pie which means less for individual photographers. So while the amount of effort to create and maintain a healthy portfolio is the same, the return for that effort has been getting lower and lower as more photographers enter the industry.
So what levers does a marketplace like Envato have to be able to shift the needle so that the photographers we do have are earning a livable income in a way that keeps Envato profitable?
1. Increase the number of buyers
2. Reduce royalty rates
3. Eliminate content that doesn't sell
4. Limit the number of items a photographer can upload
5. Limit the number of photographers on the marketplace
While the first one is obvious, if the rate of new photographers coming to the platform outpaces the rate of new buyers, you have the same situation and in a highly competitive industry like stock photographry, marketshare shift is an expensive activity.
The second one is what some agencies have done, but not Envato. It's not really in our values to lower royalty rates to photographers.
We can eliminate photos that don't sell, but what if those photos are really amazing and the only reason they haven't sold is because they're buried? Does that serve customers and photographers well? We don't think so.
We can limit the number of items a photographer uploads but from a purely competitive perspective, why would we limit content uploading and give competitors the opportunity to showcase great content just because we don't 'have room' for any more photos? What guarantee is there that the photos uploaded will be the best?
That leaves us with limiting the number of photographers on the marketplace. But how do you do that? How do you tell people you've accepted before that they're no longer able to sell with you? How do you pick and choose the photographers with the most potential to have the highest number of selling items?
There's not really an easy way to go about it. But the industry is not what it was five or ten years ago. As has been mentioned here already, the sheer number of stock photographers is exploding.
At Envato, we're committed to helping our community of authors (what we call creators) earn a livable income and for stock photography, that's meant some tough decisions in the last few months.
What we've seen is that customers are becoming more sophisticated and demanding in what they buy and rather than give them a library of photos they have to search long and hard through to find what they want, maybe we should do a bit of that curating for them and present the best we can get.
So, that's what we're trying to do. We've updated our quality guidelines to try and give photographers the information they need to understand what our customers are after (based on the data we have from them).
We're cleaning up our library. One of the hardest things we've had to do is evaluate portfolios against our updated guidelines and tell people that what was once acceptable doesn't fit where we want to be and asking them to come back with a new sample portfolio that does meet our updated guidelines.
Our goal is to create a stock photography marketplace with really high quality photos our customers love to buy and ensure that our authors are able to earn a livable income.
This wasn't going to be a pitch but now that I am here at the end of my rant, I'll open it up to you. We're not perfect. We get things wrong. We make mistakes and sometimes even make decisions that don't seem to make sense.
But our values are the same. We want photographers in our community earning a livable income. We're not competing to be the biggest agency on the backs of photographers, we're hoping to be a better marketplace for photographers.
We want to support what you're doing, give you the tools and information you need to succeed and walk alongside you as you grow a sustainable business.
If that's the kind of relationship you want, let me know. It's not going to happen overnight and there will be growing pains as we work to get there, but don't doubt our sincerity. For those of you who have ignored or left Envato in the past, take another look. Reach out. We're not going to bite and we'll do our best to honestly and sincerely support you.
Thanks,
James.
P.S.
On the original topic's point of complaining or going negative. That's easy. If you've got a negative thing to say about Envato there are tons of threads and posts and blogs around the web you can feed on. As someone who actively reads and responds here, I will say that when the conversation is constructive, it's incredibly valuable to us and other photographers. You're the experts, we lean on you to tell us what's up, but we're humans too.
The internet is an easy place to go negative without thinking of the consequences. I personally, on this forum, have had my family threatened. I don't think that's representative of this community but civil discourse where different perspectives are acknowledged goes a long way in advancing the cause.
Sorry, I'm not buying your reasons for dumping photographers. I've been following these threads and from what I can tell, I am higher ranked and make a lot more money there monthly than the few photographers you've kept. Im not just in the top ranks of Photodune contributors, but on all the other sites I'm on. Which suggests my content is good.
Here's my theory. Many of the contributors you've cut loose are also top sellers. Which mean we make higher royalty %. So while you may not have directly cut royalties, dumping the people earning the highest royalty rates has the same effect. Less money going out per sale. Really cr@ppy way to treat your top sellers, hardest workers, and the ones who built your business.
You're welcome.
-
People have to be more optimist. This forum look like a complain forum, people have to be more possitive. We have to concentrate in find solutions and do things better.
-
So? Find a solution. Nobody's stopping you. Let us know when you've found it.
-
No thank you I will never join again!
-
Have any of you rejects received payout yet? I understand they will pay us what they owe us. It's not much for me but I still want it.
-
Have any of you rejects received payout yet? I understand they will pay us what they owe us. It's not much for me but I still want it.
I assume they will wait till they get round to removing our unworthy efforts mine were still hanging around spoiling the look of their brilliant collection.
-
Have any of you rejects received payout yet? I understand they will pay us what they owe us. It's not much for me but I still want it.
I assume they will wait till they get round to removing our unworthy efforts mine were still hanging around spoiling the look of their brilliant collection.
and getting sales - don't forget these unworthy images still sell every once in a while - they might as well wait for all the sales to happen before they send us the final $...
-
Have any of you rejects received payout yet? I understand they will pay us what they owe us. It's not much for me but I still want it.
I assume they will wait till they get round to removing our unworthy efforts mine were still hanging around spoiling the look of their brilliant collection.
Thanks Pauws. I assumed they would have deleted them straight away, but you're right, mine are also still there. I would have thought it would be very easy to disable and delete our accounts but apparently not...
-
They are having too much fun playing with us "meager" contributors. They will rip that band aid off nice and slow...
I deleted/disabled ALL of my selling files when they started making contributors pay "their share" of taxes.
-
Have any of you rejects received payout yet? I understand they will pay us what they owe us. It's not much for me but I still want it.
I assume they will wait till they get round to removing our unworthy efforts mine were still hanging around spoiling the look of their brilliant collection.
Thanks Pauws. I assumed they would have deleted them straight away, but you're right, mine are also still there. I would have thought it would be very easy to disable and delete our accounts but apparently not...
Yep but they might start losing money from our sales....but wait a minute our efforts aren't good enough to sell. I wouldn't be at all surprised if they forget who they have got rid of.
-
Have any of you rejects received payout yet? I understand they will pay us what they owe us. It's not much for me but I still want it.
I assume they will wait till they get round to removing our unworthy efforts mine were still hanging around spoiling the look of their brilliant collection.
Thanks Pauws. I assumed they would have deleted them straight away, but you're right, mine are also still there. I would have thought it would be very easy to disable and delete our accounts but apparently not...
Yep but they might start losing money from our sales....but wait a minute our efforts aren't good enough to sell. I wouldn't be at all surprised if they forget who they have got rid of.
You might be right :o ;D
Honestly, they won't miss my port at all but I'm sure there are plenty of you that are making good money for them!
-
I'll bite.
Photography is one of the easiest hobbies to get into right now. Everyone and their grandma has a camera with a phone. There are 600 million Instagram users and many of them consider themselves photographers. The stock photography market is one of the most saturated markets in existence and the value of photos are dropping by the day. There is nothing anyone can do about it. Everyone already knows the laws of supply of demand, so it speaks for itself.
So what is the solution? There is no one solution that fits all. There are a number of solutions and whether it works or not depends on the talent and determination of the contributor. So what are possible solutions?
1. Diversity. Photos, vectors and videos. A pure photography portfolio is going the see faster continued decline than a diverse one.
2. Think commercially. Original ideas doesn't mean anything unless it's something the buyers need. I've seen some of my original ideas getting outperformed by non-original ideas by 100-1.
3. Stop going after niches. Pebble watch tried to fill a niche and now it's dead, got destroyed by Apple and Android watches. Niches always get filled in by the big guys sooner or later.
4. Learn some SEO and keywordings. With 100 million images on SS, top-notch keywording is super important if you want your work to be found. An image with good keywording is more resistant to search engine changes. Native English speakers have an advantage over foreign contributors and I rarely see them take advantage of it.
5. Learn to compete with the best of them. Contributors are not entitled to get sales because they uploading some images, just like how college students are not entitled to a job just because they have a degree. Buyers only need a few images and if what you're offering is not up there with best of them, then the buyer will pass your image over. That's just reality.
6. Learn a new trade. Microstock was my 2nd passive income trade, right after developing apps. The App market has gone to **** and Microstock is heaven compared to that madness. Less work and much higher returns. I'm now working on my 3rd passive income stream and it's starting to gain traction.
7. Accept that the market is never going backwards. No nuclear bomb will be going off destroying everything and rebirthing the market. Even if does happen, all the contributors will fill it back up in a matter of weeks. The market will continue to saturate, just like every other industry in existence. This makes point #5 super important.
So go ahead, bltch, moan and complain. It won't solve problems. Meanwhile, some optimistic upstart somewhere is determined to create and upload high valued content and start eating other people's lunches.
I like the list and can agree with pretty much everything but point 3 really bothers me.
Granted some niches are easily to replicate, but i think overall it's better to be a specialist in a few areas of photography than a generalist in many. In my opinion, more than niche it's about identifying trends that will be popular in the near future.
-
I only do video, so what I say doesn't necessarily relate to the photo market.
I have been in this game for less than two years.
Sometimes what looks like complaining from newbies or people relatively new to stock is just trying to understand the rules of the game.
It must be said that a lot of strange things happen here, and in particular there is a huge level of manipulation in sales byagencies.
Understanding how things work is extremely important in order to survive in this game, it is not easy at all and the only way to get any clue is through this forum
-
I'll bite.
Photography is one of the easiest hobbies to get into right now. Everyone and their grandma has a camera with a phone. There are 600 million Instagram users and many of them consider themselves photographers. The stock photography market is one of the most saturated markets in existence and the value of photos are dropping by the day. There is nothing anyone can do about it. Everyone already knows the laws of supply of demand, so it speaks for itself.
So what is the solution? There is no one solution that fits all. There are a number of solutions and whether it works or not depends on the talent and determination of the contributor. So what are possible solutions?
1. Diversity. Photos, vectors and videos. A pure photography portfolio is going the see faster continued decline than a diverse one.
2. Think commercially. Original ideas doesn't mean anything unless it's something the buyers need. I've seen some of my original ideas getting outperformed by non-original ideas by 100-1.
3. Stop going after niches. Pebble watch tried to fill a niche and now it's dead, got destroyed by Apple and Android watches. Niches always get filled in by the big guys sooner or later.
4. Learn some SEO and keywordings. With 100 million images on SS, top-notch keywording is super important if you want your work to be found. An image with good keywording is more resistant to search engine changes. Native English speakers have an advantage over foreign contributors and I rarely see them take advantage of it.
5. Learn to compete with the best of them. Contributors are not entitled to get sales because they uploading some images, just like how college students are not entitled to a job just because they have a degree. Buyers only need a few images and if what you're offering is not up there with best of them, then the buyer will pass your image over. That's just reality.
6. Learn a new trade. Microstock was my 2nd passive income trade, right after developing apps. The App market has gone to **** and Microstock is heaven compared to that madness. Less work and much higher returns. I'm now working on my 3rd passive income stream and it's starting to gain traction.
7. Accept that the market is never going backwards. No nuclear bomb will be going off destroying everything and rebirthing the market. Even if does happen, all the contributors will fill it back up in a matter of weeks. The market will continue to saturate, just like every other industry in existence. This makes point #5 super important.
So go ahead, bltch, moan and complain. It won't solve problems. Meanwhile, some optimistic upstart somewhere is determined to create and upload high valued content and start eating other people's lunches.
I like the list and can agree with pretty much everything but point 3 really bothers me.
Granted some niches are easily to replicate, but i think overall it's better to be a specialist in a few areas of photography than a generalist in many. In my opinion, more than niche it's about identifying trends that will be popular in the near future.
To me a niche is a small specialist area that the big boys don't find economic to compete in as the volume isn't there insects maybe? something like "pebble" was an innovation....if you find something new milk it for all its worth but yes sooner or later others will follow. The only thing I would add is if you want it to be your main income source treat it as a business not a hobby or artistic pursuit.
-
I like the list and can agree with pretty much everything but point 3 really bothers me.
Granted some niches are easily to replicate, but i think overall it's better to be a specialist in a few areas of photography than a generalist in many. In my opinion, more than niche it's about identifying trends that will be popular in the near future.
You're right. I should amend that and say don't go exclusively or spend the majority of your time on niches. I would encourage spending some time on niches. It usually have a nice burst of sales in the beginning. The danger is of course having all your earnings dry up once everyone else start filling that niche.
Being first to market, if you can find a market that is fresh is important. The problem is that it's not sustainable in the long run. That's why diversification is needed in every portfolio.
-
People have to be more optimist. This forum look like a complain forum, people have to be more possitive. We have to concentrate in find solutions and do things better.
Sorry, but why do you get to decide how "people have to" feel?
I was more positive when there was a correlation between my efforts and my rewards. To be optimistic when there is absolutely no empirical evidence for optimism is delisional.
-
People have to be more optimist. This forum look like a complain forum, people have to be more possitive. We have to concentrate in find solutions and do things better.
Sorry, but why do you get to decide how "people have to" feel?
I was more positive when there was a correlation between my efforts and my rewards. To be optimistic when there is absolutely no empirical evidence for optimism is delisional.
In the end though you have to do something either carry on and make the best of it or do something that makes you happy. If you are convinced its that bad time to move on for your sanity.
-
He is complaining about complainers!!
I like it!!
Is like "Complainception"
-
People have to be more optimist. This forum look like a complain forum, people have to be more possitive. We have to concentrate in find solutions and do things better.
Sorry, but why do you get to decide how "people have to" feel?
I was more positive when there was a correlation between my efforts and my rewards. To be optimistic when there is absolutely no empirical evidence for optimism is delisional.
In the end though you have to do something either carry on and make the best of it or do something that makes you happy. If you are convinced its that bad time to move on for your sanity.
Eventually I expect that will happen. But as I said earlier in the thread, in spite of all the income loss, I managed to build a large, high quality enough portfolio to keep bringing in some royalties for another few years. At least as much as I would make in a real world job, with my skill set.
So no, I'm not going to drag my 50+ year old, sciatica plagued body out to learn a new trade that won't pay what I'm making now. I'm gonna wring every drop of passive income I can out of micro, and I'm gonna be mad every time some greedy agency takes another chunk of my retirement income away to line their pockets.
If you can't understand the logic in that, you are free to disagree, but you're not gonna shut me up. I have as much right to complain about unfair practices as anyone else. And in case you didn't notice, the people who are upset about falling incomes seem to outnumber the blissful ones by a pretty high margin. It did NOT used to be that way. When there was nothing to complain about, nobody had to run around telling people to stop complaining.
PS. My sanity is in good shape. Insanity would be to see your livlihood going down the toilet and NOT have a problem with that!
-
A little something for the delicate souls who can't handle complaining. Don't worry. EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!!!!!!!
https://youtu.be/3DWB7CBdvXU
-
A little something for the delicate souls who can't handle complaining. Don't worry. EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!!!!!!!
https://youtu.be/3DWB7CBdvXU
Classic choon!
-
People have to be more optimist. This forum look like a complain forum, people have to be more possitive. We have to concentrate in find solutions and do things better.
Sorry, but why do you get to decide how "people have to" feel?
I was more positive when there was a correlation between my efforts and my rewards. To be optimistic when there is absolutely no empirical evidence for optimism is delisional.
In the end though you have to do something either carry on and make the best of it or do something that makes you happy. If you are convinced its that bad time to move on for your sanity.
Eventually I expect that will happen. But as I said earlier in the thread, in spite of all the income loss, I managed to build a large, high quality enough portfolio to keep bringing in some royalties for another few years. At least as much as I would make in a real world job, with my skill set.
So no, I'm not going to drag my 50+ year old, sciatica plagued body out to learn a new trade that won't pay what I'm making now. I'm gonna wring every drop of passive income I can out of micro, and I'm gonna be mad every time some greedy agency takes another chunk of my retirement income away to line their pockets.
If you can't understand the logic in that, you are free to disagree, but you're not gonna shut me up. I have as much right to complain about unfair practices as anyone else. And in case you didn't notice, the people who are upset about falling incomes seem to outnumber the blissful ones by a pretty high margin. It did NOT used to be that way. When there was nothing to complain about, nobody had to run around telling people to stop complaining.
PS. My sanity is in good shape. Insanity would be to see your livelihood going down the toilet and NOT have a problem with that!
OK thats fine it remains a good alternative for you ...for me "going down the toilet" means almost no income e.g a stagecoach wheel maker. I have no problem with complaints about unfair practice of course we should complain about them . Its the unfocused "we are all DOOMED" rants that don't seem very productive.
-
Eventually I expect that will happen. But as I said earlier in the thread, in spite of all the income loss, I managed to build a large, high quality enough portfolio to keep bringing in some royalties for another few years. At least as much as I would make in a real world job, with my skill set.
So no, I'm not going to drag my 50+ year old, sciatica plagued body out to learn a new trade that won't pay what I'm making now. I'm gonna wring every drop of passive income I can out of micro, and I'm gonna be mad every time some greedy agency takes another chunk of my retirement income away to line their pockets.
If you can't understand the logic in that, you are free to disagree, but you're not gonna shut me up. I have as much right to complain about unfair practices as anyone else. And in case you didn't notice, the people who are upset about falling incomes seem to outnumber the blissful ones by a pretty high margin. It did NOT used to be that way. When there was nothing to complain about, nobody had to run around telling people to stop complaining.
PS. My sanity is in good shape. Insanity would be to see your livlihood going down the toilet and NOT have a problem with that!
Obviously, this is partially directed at me. If you look at my points, and read it in context, you'll see that I didn't ask you learn a new trade. I was suggesting learning other ways to generate passive income. If you think veterans have it hard, the newbies have it even harder. They have compete against 100 million images, whereas the veterans have many images that are well-established in the search results. You can call me inexperienced all you like, but I didn't break into SS's top tier and FT's weekly top 100 in less than 2 years if I didn't know what I was doing. I had to learn things faster than the veterans and I had to work harder.
You already know how to generate passive income with Microstock, so that experience can translate to a number of other fields that can serve as complimentary income. That's all I suggest. You don't need years, just months. I learned to make apps in 2 months with no programming experience. I went into microstock with no experience other than as a buyer of stock images. I know some people here are younger, and while you have some valid excuses, some don't. They waste plenty of time talking about Trump when they could put that time to better use.
I'm no spring chicken myself. In Silicon Valley, I'm considered over the hill, and yet I force myself to learn new things constantly otherwise I'll get left behind. My optimistic attitude isn't some delusion, it's a necessity. Believe me when I tell you this, microstockers have it much easier than app developers. They spend 2 months on something only to give it away for FREE to serve ads, and many people don't download random free apps anymore. Other than Getty, whom I've always said was predatory company, the other agencies treat people relatively fairly. Maybe things aren't what they were 10 years ago, but nothing ever is. The market is saturated and there are over 150,000 contributors. That's the world we live in.
-
Eventually I expect that will happen. But as I said earlier in the thread, in spite of all the income loss, I managed to build a large, high quality enough portfolio to keep bringing in some royalties for another few years. At least as much as I would make in a real world job, with my skill set.
So no, I'm not going to drag my 50+ year old, sciatica plagued body out to learn a new trade that won't pay what I'm making now. I'm gonna wring every drop of passive income I can out of micro, and I'm gonna be mad every time some greedy agency takes another chunk of my retirement income away to line their pockets.
If you can't understand the logic in that, you are free to disagree, but you're not gonna shut me up. I have as much right to complain about unfair practices as anyone else. And in case you didn't notice, the people who are upset about falling incomes seem to outnumber the blissful ones by a pretty high margin. It did NOT used to be that way. When there was nothing to complain about, nobody had to run around telling people to stop complaining.
PS. My sanity is in good shape. Insanity would be to see your livlihood going down the toilet and NOT have a problem with that!
Obviously, this is partially directed at me. If you look at my points, and read it in context, you'll see that I didn't ask you learn a new trade. I was suggesting learning other ways to generate passive income. If you think veterans have it hard, the newbies have it even harder. They have compete against 100 million images, whereas the veterans have many images that are well-established in the search results. You can call me inexperienced all you like, but I didn't break into SS's top tier and FT's weekly top 100 in less than 2 years if I didn't know what I was doing. I had to learn things faster than the veterans and I had to work harder.
You already know how to generate passive income with Microstock, so that experience can translate to a number of other fields that can serve as complimentary income. That's all I suggest. You don't need years, just months. I learned to make apps in 2 months with no programming experience. I went into microstock with no experience other than as a buyer of stock images. I know some people here are younger, and while you have some valid excuses, some don't. They waste plenty of time talking about Trump when they could put that time to better use.
I'm no spring chicken myself. In Silicon Valley, I'm considered over the hill, and yet I force myself to learn new things constantly otherwise I'll get left behind. My optimistic attitude isn't some delusion, it's a necessity. Believe me when I tell you this, microstockers have it much easier than app developers. They spend 2 months on something only to give it away for FREE to serve ads, and many people don't download random free apps anymore. Other than Getty, whom I've always said was predatory company, the other agencies treat people relatively fairly. Maybe things aren't what they were 10 years ago, but nothing ever is. The market is saturated and there are over 150,000 contributors. That's the world we live in.
Actually it wasn't directed at you. Although I have already done most of the bullet points in your post, it was at least constructive and maybe helpful to some who are just now hitting the wall and maybe looking to slow their losses for a few more years.
I don't dispute for a minute that newbies to microstock have it harder. Most likely they will never earn a living at this, much less the six figure incomes some of us made in the good years. OTOH, they also presumably are supporting themselves and their families doing something else. They didn't quit their day jobs, invest in outfitting studios, incorporation, business insurance, compiling props, paying pro models, paid locations, etc and spend 40-60 hours a week building a professional stock photo business.
If this had only ever been a couple hundred bucks a month for gear to feed a hobby I'd be perfectly content. But most of us who are really upset about the loss of income have been either completely or partly supporting ourselves with our microstock incomes for the better part of a decade. When your pocket money is threatened, then you can afford to be philosophical. When your LIVLIHOOD is threatened you are justified in being scared, and when it is threatened for no other reason than to put a few more billions in some hedge fund or Wall Street trading prick's pockets, you are justified in being PISSED.
-
When your LIVLIHOOD is threatened you are justified in being scared, and when it is threatened for no other reason than to put a few more billions in some hedge fund or Wall Street trading prick's pockets, you are justified in being PISSED.
It is understandable, but why here? It's an obscure specialized message board, and yet the most popular thread is about some politicians. As if policy makers attend and take notes. Same with the market. We cannot give away anything but likes. Likes just do not cut it for me, so I am looking for solutions. Solutions aren't discussed on this forum, which is also understandable.
-
I loved this "Stop Complaining" thread when I saw it a couple days ago. Now I check back and it's on page four with what looks like a whole lot of complaining, haha. Awesome! Keep up the good work!
-
When your LIVLIHOOD is threatened you are justified in being scared, and when it is threatened for no other reason than to put a few more billions in some hedge fund or Wall Street trading prick's pockets, you are justified in being PISSED.
It is understandable, but why here? It's an obscure specialized message board, and yet the most popular thread is about some politicians. As if policy makers attend and take notes. Same with the market. We cannot give away anything but likes. Likes just do not cut it for me, so I am looking for solutions. Solutions aren't discussed on this forum, which is also understandable.
Why not here? This is the leading discussion forum for the industry. Most if not all the agencies monitor it to gauge contributor outlooks, and sometimes respond to contributors concerns. And if you'd been here a few years back you'd have seen a lot of successful solutions did start right here on MSG.
Now that the sites have gotten so big they don't care what contributors think, the solutions are fewer and not very effective. But complaining, stopping uploading, and/or quitting sites is more likely to lead to solutions than posting "please may I have another" every time we get kicked. You happy campers who are content to eat as much merde as the agencies dish out are the reason they get away with treating contributors so badly.
-
Eventually I expect that will happen. But as I said earlier in the thread, in spite of all the income loss, I managed to build a large, high quality enough portfolio to keep bringing in some royalties for another few years. At least as much as I would make in a real world job, with my skill set.
So no, I'm not going to drag my 50+ year old, sciatica plagued body out to learn a new trade that won't pay what I'm making now. I'm gonna wring every drop of passive income I can out of micro, and I'm gonna be mad every time some greedy agency takes another chunk of my retirement income away to line their pockets.
If you can't understand the logic in that, you are free to disagree, but you're not gonna shut me up. I have as much right to complain about unfair practices as anyone else. And in case you didn't notice, the people who are upset about falling incomes seem to outnumber the blissful ones by a pretty high margin. It did NOT used to be that way. When there was nothing to complain about, nobody had to run around telling people to stop complaining.
PS. My sanity is in good shape. Insanity would be to see your livlihood going down the toilet and NOT have a problem with that!
Obviously, this is partially directed at me. If you look at my points, and read it in context, you'll see that I didn't ask you learn a new trade. I was suggesting learning other ways to generate passive income. If you think veterans have it hard, the newbies have it even harder. They have compete against 100 million images, whereas the veterans have many images that are well-established in the search results. You can call me inexperienced all you like, but I didn't break into SS's top tier and FT's weekly top 100 in less than 2 years if I didn't know what I was doing. I had to learn things faster than the veterans and I had to work harder.
You already know how to generate passive income with Microstock, so that experience can translate to a number of other fields that can serve as complimentary income. That's all I suggest. You don't need years, just months. I learned to make apps in 2 months with no programming experience. I went into microstock with no experience other than as a buyer of stock images. I know some people here are younger, and while you have some valid excuses, some don't. They waste plenty of time talking about Trump when they could put that time to better use.
I'm no spring chicken myself. In Silicon Valley, I'm considered over the hill, and yet I force myself to learn new things constantly otherwise I'll get left behind. My optimistic attitude isn't some delusion, it's a necessity. Believe me when I tell you this, microstockers have it much easier than app developers. They spend 2 months on something only to give it away for FREE to serve ads, and many people don't download random free apps anymore. Other than Getty, whom I've always said was predatory company, the other agencies treat people relatively fairly. Maybe things aren't what they were 10 years ago, but nothing ever is. The market is saturated and there are over 150,000 contributors. That's the world we live in.
In a way he is right. Time will come when one has to move on. Impossible to expand in micro since its just too much of everything contributors and pictures. Living is getting more expensive by the day with sales not increasing. The business seems to have stagnated somehow.
-
You happy campers who are content to eat as much merde as the agencies dish out are the reason they get away with treating contributors so badly.
I thought the agencies were the reason your livelihood is threatened. Now it's me? :) That's kinda sad. You should pay more attention to your neighbor's cat, it might be plotting something. 8)
-
I HATE THIS THREAD!!
-
Not to mention but who is Yuri? I am not a stock photographer so just curious who is he? :o
-
Yuri Arcurs is the self proclaimed King of microstock and has one of the largest stock factories in the industry.
Google him, you´ll find him.
-
You happy campers who are content to eat as much merde as the agencies dish out are the reason they get away with treating contributors so badly.
I thought the agencies were the reason your livelihood is threatened. Now it's me? :) That's kinda sad. You should pay more attention to your neighbor's cat, it might be plotting something. 8)
Yeah, it is sad. But no inconsistency there. Many agencies ARE treating contributors badly and they get away with it because of the many contributors who are willing to happily accept it. I didn't single you out, but if you recognized yourself in my comment thats on you.
Oh, and I care for my neighbor's cat when they go away on vacation or for work, so I think the cat and I are on pretty good terms. ;D
-
3. No matter how hard I try I cannot improve my sells- don’t you realize that just maybe you don’t have the talent required for this business.
Here's a complaint of mine - people who use the verb "sell" as if it was a noun. The correct wording would be: "I cannot improve my sales."
-
3. No matter how hard I try I cannot improve my sells- don’t you realize that just maybe you don’t have the talent required for this business.
Here's a complaint of mine - people who use the verb "sell" as if it was a noun. The correct wording would be: "I cannot improve my sales."
A lot of contributors here don't have English as their first language cut them some slack ;-).
-
A lot of contributors here don't have English as their first language cut them some slack ;-).
Very true. Will do. Though I have noticed on some other microstock forums that some native English users make the same "mistake" (just an observation.)
-
A lot of contributors here don't have English as their first language cut them some slack ;-).
Very true. Will do. Though I have noticed on some other microstock forms that some native English users make the same "mistake" (just an observation.)
Very probably...the quality of English on Facebook from English speakers is often appalling. I tend to let it pass unless they are saying how clever they are ;-).
-
We aren't all english experts. It was a subject I hated in school, I'm sure that's the same for a lot of photographers. If you want to correct peoples english, go to a forum where they want that. I see no need for it here at all. Maybe we should all do a geography test and see who's bad at that :)
-
A lot of contributors here don't have English as their first language cut them some slack ;-).
Very true. Will do. Though I have noticed on some other microstock forums that some native English users make the same "mistake" (just an observation.)
How do you know they are native English speakers?
Just because someone lives in England doesn't mean they're 'native English speakers'.
-
How do you know they are native English speakers?
Just an assumption of mine based on their country of residency and their overall level of written English. Their grammar and spelling were pretty much perfect except for their habit of referring to "sells" rather than "sales." Of course my assumptions may be wrong. They may well be non-native English speakers who have migrated to an English speaking country.
Just because someone lives in England doesn't mean they're 'native English speakers'.
I wasn't referring specifically to people living in England. I was referring to individuals living in a number of so-called 'inner circle' countries.
-
How do you know they are native English speakers?
Just an assumption of mine based on their country of residency and their overall level of written English. Their grammar and spelling were pretty much perfect except for their habit of referring to "sells" rather than "sales." Of course my assumptions may be wrong. They may well be non-native English speakers who have migrated to an English speaking country.
Just because someone lives in England doesn't mean they're 'native English speakers'.
I wasn't referring specifically to people living in England. I was referring to individuals living in a number of so-called 'inner circle' countries.
I've never heard the term 'inner circle' countries. But my reference to England specifically was to imply the assumption you admitted you'd made above.
My typos are so bad, I can't throw stones; but some phrases still really get to me like 'I could care less' when they mean, "I couldn't care less" as discussed on here a while back. I can't remember who kindly pointed me to this clip on that subject:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om7O0MFkmpw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om7O0MFkmpw)
-
I've never heard the term 'inner circle' countries.
It's a means of categorisation developed by the linguist Braj Kachru in dividing the globe into convenient sectors according to the degree of English usage. For example the 'inner circle countries' are countries where the dominant (or first) language is English - eg Australia, New Zealand, US, Canada, England. The 'outer circle countries' are nations in which many were English colonies and so English plays a major role in some aspects of peoples lives (government use, educational use) - eg Singapore, the Philippines, South Africa, India, Pakistan. The 'expanding circle countries' are ones where English is regarded as a foreign language - eg Japan, Korea, Russia, China, most of Europe.
I can't remember who kindlyh pointed me to this clip on that subject:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om7O0MFkmpw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om7O0MFkmpw)
That was quite amusing. Good educational value too.
-
How do you know they are native English speakers?
Just an assumption of mine based on their country of residency and their overall level of written English. Their grammar and spelling were pretty much perfect except for their habit of referring to "sells" rather than "sales." Of course my assumptions may be wrong. They may well be non-native English speakers who have migrated to an English speaking country.
Just because someone lives in England doesn't mean they're 'native English speakers'.
I wasn't referring specifically to people living in England. I was referring to individuals living in a number of so-called 'inner circle' countries.
I've never heard the term 'inner circle' countries. But my reference to England specifically was to infer the assumption you admitted you'd made above.
My typos are so bad, I can't throw stones; but some phrases still really get to me like 'I could care less' when they mean, "I couldn't care less" as discussed on here a while back. I can't remember who kindlyh pointed me to this clip on that subject:
[url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om7O0MFkmpw[/url] ([url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om7O0MFkmpw[/url])
I think that might of been me but it also highlights how pompous some people can get over language. I could just as easily pointed this link out instead http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/03/18/why_i_could_care_less_is_not_as_irrational_or_ungrammatical_as_you_might.html (http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/03/18/why_i_could_care_less_is_not_as_irrational_or_ungrammatical_as_you_might.html)
-
I've never heard the term 'inner circle' countries.
It's a means of categorisation developed by the linguist Braj Kachru in dividing the globe into convenient sectors according to the degree of English usage. For example the 'inner circle countries' are countries where the dominant (or first) language is English - eg Australia, New Zealand, US, Canada, England. The 'outer circle countries' are nations in which many were English colonies and so English plays a major role in some aspects of peoples lives (government use, educational use) - eg Singapore, the Philippines, South Africa, India, Pakistan. The 'expanding circle countries' are ones where English is regarded as a foreign language - eg Japan, Korea, Russia, China, most of Europe.
If you were born and raised in Canada, English is not necessarily your mother tongue. You could very well not speak it at all, because Canada is an officially bilingual country, the second official language being French.
By the way, English is not my native language, I only started learning it at about 30 yo. Is it obvious? I would not confuse "sell" with "sale", but I do make silly mistakes, and I am often made "good natured" fun of by people who think being fluent in a second language is easy. Those are typically people who do not have an experience of speaking a foreign language with natives. It is, of course, understandable, people only understand well what they experience first hand.
-
If you were born and raised in Canada, English is not necessarily your mother tongue. You could very well not speak it at all, because Canada is an officially bilingual country, the second official language being French.
Good point. I visited Canada a number of years ago. I remember travelling on a train there from BC to Alberta and an onboard announcement being made in both French and English. Plus I thought it was interesting how a lot of products being sold in shops had both French and English text.
By the way, English is not my native language, I only started learning it at about 30 yo. Is it obvious?
Not obvious at all. Sounds like you have a degree of competency in the language.
Those are typically people who do not have an experience of speaking a foreign language with natives. It is, of course, understandable, people only understand well what they experience first hand.
I'm learning Korean at the moment. Occasionally, I practise my Korean with the staff of Korean snack shops and restaurants when ordering food. Sometimes they understand me but other times they don't - likely due to my pronunciation.
-
I'm learning Korean at the moment. Occasionally, I practise my Korean with the staff of Korean snack shops and restaurants when ordering food. Sometimes they understand me but other times they don't - likely due to my pronunciation.
I am sure there is also the element of surprise to it. If you don't look Korean, not expected to speak Korean, you are not likely to be understood. They will probably wonder what what you said means in English :)
-
We aren't all english experts. It was a subject I hated in school, I'm sure that's the same for a lot of photographers.
No, it was my favorite subject at school! As a matter of fact, in one year, I was the best at my school. English was probably the only good thing that I learned at that stupid school. But I didn't grow up in an English-speaking country nor am I a native speaker.
I don't mind people making mistakes, but one thing does irritate me: when native speakers don't understand the difference and confuse "you're" with "your" and "there" with "they're" or "their". People who have learned English as a foreign language usually don't make such mistakes.
-
We aren't all english experts. It was a subject I hated in school, I'm sure that's the same for a lot of photographers.
No, it was my favorite subject at school! As a matter of fact, in one year, I was the best at my school. English was probably the only good thing that I learned at that stupid school. But I didn't grow up in an English-speaking country nor am I a native speaker.
I don't mind people making mistakes, but one thing does irritate me: when native speakers don't understand the difference and confuse "you're" with "your" and "there" with "they're" or "their". People who have learned English as a foreign language usually don't make such mistakes.
Your write. Its a loosing battle trying to correct there spelling.
-
9. People who go annonymous to complain about complaints.
Lol.
ROFL :'(
-
By the way, English is not my native language, I only started learning it at about 30 yo. Is it obvious?
Depends if you're currently 31 yo or 91 yo! 😉
-
I've never heard the term 'inner circle' countries.
It's a means of categorisation developed by the linguist Braj Kachru in dividing the globe into convenient sectors according to the degree of English usage. For example the 'inner circle countries' are countries where the dominant (or first) language is English - eg Australia, New Zealand, US, Canada, England. The 'outer circle countries' are nations in which many were English colonies and so English plays a major role in some aspects of peoples lives (government use, educational use) - eg Singapore, the Philippines, South Africa, India, Pakistan. The 'expanding circle countries' are ones where English is regarded as a foreign language - eg Japan, Korea, Russia, China, most of Europe.
I can't remember who kindlyh pointed me to this clip on that subject:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om7O0MFkmpw (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om7O0MFkmpw)
That was quite amusing. Good educational value to.
I wouldn't normally correct anyone on a forum but too meaning also has a double 'o'. Sorry, just couldn't help myself 😂😂😂
-
By the way, English is not my native language, I only started learning it at about 30 yo. Is it obvious?
Depends if you're currently 31 yo or 91 yo! 😉
Haha, not 91 yet, but not a spring chicken either. ;)
-
I wouldn't normally correct anyone on a forum but too meaning also has a double 'o'. Sorry, just couldn't help myself 😂😂😂
Well spotted! Yes, I am well aware of that 'double o' rule (a silly unintentional typo on my part.) Just goes to show we all make mistakes.
-
I think that might of been me but it also highlights how pompous some people can get over language. I could just as easily pointed this link out instead [url]http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/03/18/why_i_could_care_less_is_not_as_irrational_or_ungrammatical_as_you_might.html[/url] ([url]http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/03/18/why_i_could_care_less_is_not_as_irrational_or_ungrammatical_as_you_might.html[/url])
I see that one all of the time. It should be "I think that might HAVE been me". ;D
Remember, even native English speakers might not have ( or might not of) excelled in English.
One thing I do when typing on my computer, in posts, is to not bother with apostrophes. Especially on my ipad. So don't is frequently dont. I know better, just too lazy to type it, especially if i have to go to another keyboard screen.
-
I think that might of been me but it also highlights how pompous some people can get over language. I could just as easily pointed this link out instead [url]http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/03/18/why_i_could_care_less_is_not_as_irrational_or_ungrammatical_as_you_might.html[/url] ([url]http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/03/18/why_i_could_care_less_is_not_as_irrational_or_ungrammatical_as_you_might.html[/url])
I see that one all of the time. It should be "I think that might HAVE been me". ;D
Remember, even native English speakers might not have ( or might not of) excelled in English.
One thing I do when typing on my computer, in posts, is to not bother with apostrophes. Especially on my ipad. So don't is frequently dont. I know better, just too lazy to type it, especially if i have to go to another keyboard screen.
Like I said before, I don't care. I like not being good at english, even if I try really hard to remember all the pathetic rules, my brain doesn't retain them and I'm really pleased about that because there are much more important things in life. I also failed religious education in school and I'm not bothered about that either :)
-
Like I said before, I don't care. I like not being good at english, even if I try really hard to remember all the pathetic rules, my brain doesn't retain them and I'm really pleased about that because there are much more important things in life. I also failed religious education in school and I'm not bothered about that either :)
That's OK if you don't care...maybe someone trying to better their language skills does. :)
"I also failed religious education in school and I'm not bothered about that either". I am with you on that one, though we didn't even have religious education in school. (Separation of church and state)