MicrostockGroup

Again, don't worry about the watermarks. They're perfectly fine.

I suggest to post the images or at least the links to the full resolution images directly here on the forum.

You will receive less responses, when forum members have to click through galleries in order to reach the final full resolution file to evaluate.

Also, despite clicking on the zoom tool the images are still small. It's pretty much impossible to get valuable feedback if the quality of the images cannot be entirely checked.

The more information you provide, the better the feedback will be.

You might receive feedback on the commercial value, choice of subjects and composition though.

Try to post three to five of your best shots in full resolution. That will be a good start.

No, you don't have to send them to me. I think it's best if several people can look at the images here on the forum.

You can create an account with photobucket.com or something similar, there you can upload your full resolution files with the watermark.
Once uploaded, you just post the links here in this thread so everyone can check out the images.

Off to bed now.

To the original poster: I can't see how these images could be used in commercial or editorial contexts. Maybe the hot air balloon has some potential, but the rest are just snapshot of random things and views. The competition is very hard these days, I think you should first concentrate on photography and AFTER that start selling stock. And start to look at images in magazines and advertisements and try to get into the mindset of the image buyer: which kind of images are used for which purposes.

Flowers (at istock at least) have to be pretty * perfect to be accepted and won't cut it for an application image and generally won't sell anyway. This one doesn't look perfect (unimaginative composition, just centred,  doesn' t look sharp even at the tiny size you have posted)

In that sense it's just like any other job.


I wouldn't try to send them flowers, especially not in the first test submission. Stock sites are already filled with images of flowers. Flower shots should be really spectacular to get accepted.

Well, she didn't ask for critiques.

You must face the fact that stock photo industry including micro has become a highly professional and competitive battlefield, you must strive to become a pro. If you only want to shoot what you like and get wows, you will be disappointed. I don't mean to discourage you, but your purple flower will not get accepted due to poor lighting, composition, lack of sharp focus and poor subject.

Not fashion. But "Lifestyle".

People http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&safesearch=1&searchterm=people (Sort by "Most Popular")

Objects
http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&safesearch=1&searchterm=object (Sort by "Most Popular")

This is what your flower image would need to compete with (1,370,298 search results: http://www.shutterstock.com/cat.mhtml?lang=en&search_source=search_form&version=llv1&anyorall=all&safesearch=1&searchterm=flower (Sort by "Most Popular")

It's not a good thing to try copy existing images, but it's always a good thing to see what the competition is so you can make your images better and/or different.

Shooting ideas: Shoot something you know lot about, something you are specialist at. Shoot some location that isn't accessible for the general public. Follow the news and trends to see what images could be needed for illustrating different topics. Have a notebook and a pencil and write/draw ideas for images. The idea is half the work IMHO, the shooting part is just mechanics

Roses do sell. Here is an example of a purple rose:

http://www.istockphoto.com/stock-photo-2651158-purple-rose.php?st=da7371e

But that is an artistically composed, well lit rose! Not just an available light rose plonked in the middle of the image.

If you want to see my port, clicking on the little istock symbol at the bottom of each of my posts should take you there. I'm an istock exclusive hobbyist who doesn't actively contribute (and haven't done for over twelve months). My port earns me enough to keep me in photoshop and illustrator updates and pay for camera gear from time to time to make it a self sufficient hobby. Nothing more (and that's mainly as I have a couple of decent sellers that were uploaded and caught attention 4-5 years ago and still sell regularly).

While I'm not a professional I do have a very high acceptance rate - I'm good at the technical side but not really interested in providing what the microstock industry wants to sell which is why I've never bothered to go the next step and really try to increase my effort.

Not exactly high art and took precisely two minutes to set up and take on a two foot tall kiddy chalk board after a buyer request. And earned around $600 between the vertical and horizontal format since then. I doubt either would be accepted now, although they still sell.  They filled a niche, when there was literally none of that stuff on istock and now there are hundreds if not thousands of the same thing. I just got there first. 

The landscape with the hot air ballon is the only one with a real commercial value IMO.

Stock is not about what you like, but what the customers need and will pay money for. How is a car dealer going to advertise with these images? Or a bakery? Or an insurance company?

You can collect ads in newspapers to see what commercial images look like.

Because stock is very competitive you need very good equipment and professional skill set to make money. If there is a photography school near you, I suggest you take as many classes as you can in studio lighting, portrait, photoshop. Ideally enroll in a program for commercial photographers.

Also if you know photographers volunteer to assist in as many shootings as you can. Weddings are good to practise professional lighting under very difficult conditions. In the beginning you will only be allowed to hold the reflector, but maybe they let you take some additional shots.

The skills you learn while assisting will help you when you set up your own shootings.

The biggest difference between stock and photography as a hobby is that a stock image is preplanned and intentionally composed. You don't walk around with a camera and just shot what you see.

It starts with researching what images are already available in a subject you are interested in. Then you have to find a niche or a series of images that you think is missing in that field. You can make drawings of an image series, to get a first idea about useful image composition.

Then you scout the location, decide on the best time of day to shoot. Maybe take test shoots to check the light. You think about how much artifial light you want to bring to the set, reflecters, light formers, speed lights or strobes...You have to find the models, decide on the clothes and style they should were, how to do the make up. What props will you need? Chairs, table, Food, books, computer?

And then what is the best way to arrange all that?

What aperture do you need? Which lens? Maybe a lens baby or special filter? How many assistants to help you with the shoot?

Then you shoot.

Then you pack it all up, thank the models, put the furniture back, go home.

Next day: download images to your computer. Identify usable files for a series. Postprocess for a few days or two days...and then...keywording, uploading and any on site descriptions, lightboxing, image links...

And so on.

Commercial photography is very hard work.

Even if you don't shoot lifestyle and just want to do landscapes or food, or flowers, there is a lot to thtink about, to prepare, to organize, to learn.

I love doing it, it is fun. But it isn't for everyone.

So good luck with your journey :-)

Thanks Cobait and Madelaide! I am hoping to break even and shoot 50/50, half of what I like and the other half on what is going to sell.

Cobalt I think I'm going to need a lot more experience and skill to start producing high quality photos like my hot air balloon shot. I have a couple of beachside locations around me which I want to shoot, except I shall follow your guide and use a tripod.

Thanks to all the helpers