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Author Topic: Shutterstock Custom is born  (Read 53495 times)

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« Reply #100 on: September 27, 2017, 01:03 »
0
Signed up a few days ago
Never got a confirmation email but got my first assignment
It was to provide 4 images for the princely sum of $50 - for a very large financial institution

I declined the task, but was curious to see what a typical payout would be

SS has nothing to lose and everything to gain by opening a new revenue stream by doing this
And you can bet that just as there are lineups of contributers joining microstock, just to feel good ' knowing someone is willing to buy my images' mentality, they may make a go of this new initiative

As was pointed out, perhaps in a few short years, they will have ammassed for themselves a diverse library of images that they can use any way they choose

Scary
Time will tell question is will those prepared to accept $50 for four images produce the content a high end financial institute are looking for.....if its something I could shoot for little/no cost maybe. I would have thought the market is likely to be small businesses that in the past couldn't afford custom work.


derek

    This user is banned.
« Reply #101 on: September 27, 2017, 02:02 »
0
Think about it: IF SS has its own photographers creating ports for them, they have to pay them some sort of salary or price per image and take the risk that the images won't make back their investment (though their algorithm would make that unlikely). But if they hook you up with their clients, they're almost guaranteed to make money right off the bat, by taking 70-80% of that small initial fee, and then they own your best, approved images outright and can resell them as often as they want and charge clients whatever they want for them forever. Think how their investors will love that.

Getty have their own stable of photographers have had since 94 so why shouldnt SS?? was complaints about that long before micro. SS is big enough!   we would never know anyway would we?

« Reply #102 on: September 27, 2017, 05:31 »
0
looks interesting.  Have you seen anywhere where they list what the rates are or what a typical commission is?

« Reply #103 on: September 27, 2017, 08:43 »
0
Just got this:

We have an assignment for xxx-yyy-zzz! Are you interested in shooting for this?

Project: xxx, zzz, yyy
Project Summary:

PLEASE NOTE: This project requires you to shoot both photo & video. Please only show interest if you are willing and able to do so. If selected, payout will be updated for this photo assignment and video assignment will be sent out.

Total Rate per Assignment: $680
Photo Assignment: $180 for 12 approved photos
Video Assignment: $500 for 10 approved videos
Deadline: xxx,yy, zzzz

Total Expense Budget: $350
Receipts & Model Fees must be claimed in expenses upon submission for reimbursement.
Model Budget: $50/model (Max. 1 per photographer)
Reimbursement: $300 for xxx admission/expenses/travel

SHOW INTEREST OR DECLINE THE ASSIGNMENT WITHIN 24 HOURS HERE:
[link]

You will be notified if you have been selected for this project within 2 business days.
« Last Edit: September 27, 2017, 09:09 by Zero Talent »

« Reply #104 on: September 27, 2017, 08:57 »
0
Thanks....just wonder are you allowed to share this? $15 a pic is beginning to sound like the going rate for stills. $50 for a model....cheapskates! I think it would only work if you were travelling somewhere nice and could get the shoot done in the 1/2 hr you could get the model for!

« Reply #105 on: September 27, 2017, 09:16 »
0
Thanks....just wonder are you allowed to share this? $15 a pic is beginning to sound like the going rate for stills. $50 for a model....cheapskates! I think it would only work if you were travelling somewhere nice and could get the shoot done in the 1/2 hr you could get the model for!

I am not sharing the assignment details, I can only say that there is a long list of details, requirements (e.g. shoot this, don't shoot that), preferences, photo samples, etc.

Brasilnut

  • Author Brutally Honest Guide to Microstock & Blog

« Reply #106 on: September 27, 2017, 09:19 »
0
Quote
I am not sharing the assignment details, I can only say that there is a long list of details, requirements (e.g. shoot this, don't shoot that), preferences, photo samples, etc.

The money isn't great but if it gives you access to an event (SS gives you a press pass for example) that's a great networking opportunity.

I'm sure some briefs would be a breeze for some on here. 

Shelma1

  • stockcoalition.org
« Reply #107 on: September 27, 2017, 10:12 »
+18
OMG people. Large financial institutions asking for photos for $12.50 that SS will then own the rights to. I wrote commercials for Citibank, JP Morgan Chase, T Rowe Price, and more. The marketing people who work for these institutions make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. The CEOs make BILLIONS. They pay MILLIONS of dollars for commercials. I worked with Elton John for CitibankI can't even guess how many millions he was paid to appear in their spots. And he threw a hissy fit and refused to show up for the second day of a two-day shoot, but you better believe he got every penny of his fee, and the license for use of each of his songs was in the millions.

What are you thinking, selling your rights away for ten or fifteen dollars? To billionaires whose parents sent them to Harvard and Yale even with bad grades? People with 5,000-square-foot pieds-a-terre (I've shot them in their apartments, with separate entrances for the maid's quarters) overlooking Central Park, plus a mansion in Scarsdale and another in the Hamptons.

They are laughing their behinds off in their private jets on the way to their yachts at the chance to get you to work for pennies per hour. Oringer's peeing himself with joy.

My god.

Brasilnut

  • Author Brutally Honest Guide to Microstock & Blog

« Reply #108 on: September 27, 2017, 10:28 »
0
Agree with the above, Shelma.

On a side note and also a rant, I received the following email today from Snapwire:

Quote
Hi Alexandre,

Hope you've been well! We send 7 photos from some of our best photographers directly to photo buyers every week (buyers sign up for this through our blog: Snapwire Snaps). This email & blog is an incredible way for you to gain exposure as a photographer as it is one of the most powerful sources of photo sales on Snapwire and goes out to thousands of buyers. We want to feature a handful of the best photographers for Snaps, and because of your work, we would love for you to contribute.
We ask the photographers involved to contribute images that they are comfortable having under the creative commons public domain which makes them free to use. If you would like to be involved, please email 7+ high resolution photos back to me (using google drive or dropbox if they don't fit in the email). Include your personal website &/or Instagram.

What's this industry coming to?  :-\


Shelma1

  • stockcoalition.org
« Reply #109 on: September 27, 2017, 10:33 »
+2
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

Brasilnut

  • Author Brutally Honest Guide to Microstock & Blog

« Reply #110 on: September 27, 2017, 10:37 »
+3
Quote
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

Here's my reply:

angelawaye

  • Eat, Sleep, Keyword. Repeat

« Reply #111 on: September 27, 2017, 11:41 »
+2
Shelma you are completely on point. What kind of Photographer would agree to these terms? They are going to get horrible images to show their clients. SS will look like a joke presenting such images.

Shelma1

  • stockcoalition.org
« Reply #112 on: September 27, 2017, 11:57 »
+3
Let them try. Let them understand the stress and time commitment to meet ridiculous, specific client demands only to have their images rejected and receive no pay, or worse to have a few accepted and receive $1/hour for their time only to have Shutterstock pull buyers away from their ports by starting their own Shutterstock port with those images.

If the scheme's successful and the investors are happy, I'll be investing in SS stock. That's the only opportunity to make money with this deal.

« Reply #113 on: September 27, 2017, 12:12 »
0
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

This is nonsense. First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.

Secondly, the assignment I got pays $680 for something that can be done in a day or 8 hours. This means $85/hour. This is not bad at all. In a year, this means $173k. I wonder how many members of this forum make this kind if money in a year?
Obviously the client will not get anything comparable to your Elton John shots, but maybe they don't need anything so fancy.

Having said that, I have rejected their offer for reasons beyond the ideological divide!

Robber barons? C'mon!
« Last Edit: September 27, 2017, 12:16 by Zero Talent »

ShadySue

  • There is a crack in everything
« Reply #114 on: September 27, 2017, 12:20 »
+3
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.
First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.
That was Robber Baron v2 (of whom I'd never heard until I read your post and had to google why you were talking about America!)

« Reply #115 on: September 27, 2017, 12:28 »
0
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

This is nonsense. First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.

Secondly, the assignment I got pays $680 for something that can be done in a day or 8 hours. This means $85/hour. This is not bad at all. In a year, this means $173k. I wonder how many members of this forum make this kind if money in a year?
Obviously the client will not get anything comparable to your Elton John shots, but maybe they don't need anything so fancy.

Having said that, I have rejected their offer for reasons beyond the ideological divide!

Robber barons? C'mon!
I don't know much about video so would your estimate include post processing? If so yes its not great but it sounds not too bad.

« Reply #116 on: September 27, 2017, 12:32 »
0
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.
First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.
That was Robber Baron v2 (of whom I'd never heard until I read your post and had to google why you were talking about America!)

"The metaphor appeared as early as February 9, 1859, when The New York Times used it to characterize the unethical business practices by Cornelius Vanderbilt."


« Reply #117 on: September 27, 2017, 12:59 »
0
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

This is nonsense. First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.

Secondly, the assignment I got pays $680 for something that can be done in a day or 8 hours. This means $85/hour. This is not bad at all. In a year, this means $173k. I wonder how many members of this forum make this kind if money in a year?
Obviously the client will not get anything comparable to your Elton John shots, but maybe they don't need anything so fancy.

Having said that, I have rejected their offer for reasons beyond the ideological divide!

Robber barons? C'mon!
I don't know much about video so would your estimate include post processing? If so yes its not great but it sounds not too bad.

Hmm, you are right, I din't include processing. I only estimated 8 hours for travel and shooting. We probably have to add half a day of processing to it.
« Last Edit: September 27, 2017, 13:05 by Zero Talent »

Shelma1

  • stockcoalition.org
« Reply #118 on: September 27, 2017, 13:22 »
+4
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

This is nonsense. First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.

Secondly, the assignment I got pays $680 for something that can be done in a day or 8 hours. This means $85/hour. This is not bad at all. In a year, this means $173k. I wonder how many members of this forum make this kind if money in a year?
Obviously the client will not get anything comparable to your Elton John shots, but maybe they don't need anything so fancy.

Having said that, I have rejected their offer for reasons beyond the ideological divide!

Robber barons? C'mon!

How many photographers are working on that $680 assignment? How many will get paid anything? They're giving you $15/photo (IF they approve any of them), $50/video (same thing), and that gives Shutterstock your copyright for all of them. Which they can then upload to SS to compete with you.

What if you worked those 8 hours and they approved one photo? That's less than $2/hour.

Your math reminds me of me thinking I was going to retire on my SS earnings a few years ago. Multiplying my earnings by my number of illustrations and imagining how much more I'd earn every year as I uploaded more. I'd be making a six-figure income by now drawing little cartoons at home. Then SS used my images to promote my niches on FB, so everyone under the sun flooded with site with similar images and killed my sales overnight.

Yeah, that was awesome.

derek

    This user is banned.
« Reply #119 on: September 27, 2017, 13:51 »
+3
Shelma you are completely on point. What kind of Photographer would agree to these terms? They are going to get horrible images to show their clients. SS will look like a joke presenting such images.

Not surprised Angela!  they have lost loads of HCV portfolios thanks to whatever caused the hickups that cut people in half earnings just over night and this way they are trying to get back that sort of content.

Of course might work for some? and if some wants to join fine but this is a far, far cry from what its supposed to sound like and the money is lousy.

« Reply #120 on: September 27, 2017, 13:56 »
0
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

This is nonsense. First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.

Secondly, the assignment I got pays $680 for something that can be done in a day or 8 hours. This means $85/hour. This is not bad at all. In a year, this means $173k. I wonder how many members of this forum make this kind if money in a year?
Obviously the client will not get anything comparable to your Elton John shots, but maybe they don't need anything so fancy.

Having said that, I have rejected their offer for reasons beyond the ideological divide!

Robber barons? C'mon!

How many photographers are working on that $680 assignment? How many will get paid anything? They're giving you $15/photo (IF they approve any of them), $50/video (same thing), and that gives Shutterstock your copyright for all of them. Which they can then upload to SS to compete with you.

What if you worked those 8 hours and they approved one photo? That's less than $2/hour.

Your math reminds me of me thinking I was going to retire on my SS earnings a few years ago. Multiplying my earnings by my number of illustrations and imagining how much more I'd earn every year as I uploaded more. I'd be making a six-figure income by now drawing little cartoons at home. Then SS used my images to promote my niches on FB, so everyone under the sun flooded with site with similar images and killed my sales overnight.

Yeah, that was awesome.

Let me remind you that I rejected the offer.
These potential $680 + expenses are not tempting enough for me.

But I can imagine others having no problems with it. Some people I know are ready to shoot a whole wedding for similar amounts.

Shelma1

  • stockcoalition.org
« Reply #121 on: September 27, 2017, 15:02 »
+2
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

This is nonsense. First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.

Secondly, the assignment I got pays $680 for something that can be done in a day or 8 hours. This means $85/hour. This is not bad at all. In a year, this means $173k. I wonder how many members of this forum make this kind if money in a year?
Obviously the client will not get anything comparable to your Elton John shots, but maybe they don't need anything so fancy.

Having said that, I have rejected their offer for reasons beyond the ideological divide!

Robber barons? C'mon!

How many photographers are working on that $680 assignment? How many will get paid anything? They're giving you $15/photo (IF they approve any of them), $50/video (same thing), and that gives Shutterstock your copyright for all of them. Which they can then upload to SS to compete with you.

What if you worked those 8 hours and they approved one photo? That's less than $2/hour.

Your math reminds me of me thinking I was going to retire on my SS earnings a few years ago. Multiplying my earnings by my number of illustrations and imagining how much more I'd earn every year as I uploaded more. I'd be making a six-figure income by now drawing little cartoons at home. Then SS used my images to promote my niches on FB, so everyone under the sun flooded with site with similar images and killed my sales overnight.

Yeah, that was awesome.

Let me remind you that I rejected the offer.
These potential $680 + expenses are not tempting enough for me.

But I can imagine others having no problems with it. Some people I know are ready to shoot a whole wedding for similar amounts.

So you're just going to pretend that the scheme is guaranteed to pay you $85/hour for a shoot, instead of admitting the actuality that a large corporation is getting 50 photographers to work on 50 8-hour shoots plus a half day of processing and will most likely be paying a handful of them a few bucks each. And then Shutterstock will be competing against them with their own work and using their algorithm to push clients to those shots.

Whatevs. If it works, I'm investing in SSTK.

« Reply #122 on: September 27, 2017, 15:05 »
0

Let me remind you that I rejected the offer.
These potential $680 + expenses are not tempting enough for me.

But I can imagine others having no problems with it. Some people I know are ready to shoot a whole wedding for similar amounts.

but the only way to get the big money assignments is to collect points on the lesser assignments to increase your Shutterstock Custom Score.

« Reply #123 on: September 27, 2017, 15:16 »
0
We're back to the days of the robber barons. Prepare to line up for your cheese ration.

This is nonsense. First of all, even during the so called "robber baron" era, people flocked by millions to America, sacrificing everything they had at home, only to work for those "robber barons". Obviously their life under the "robber baron's" boot was better than what they left home.

Secondly, the assignment I got pays $680 for something that can be done in a day or 8 hours. This means $85/hour. This is not bad at all. In a year, this means $173k. I wonder how many members of this forum make this kind if money in a year?
Obviously the client will not get anything comparable to your Elton John shots, but maybe they don't need anything so fancy.

Having said that, I have rejected their offer for reasons beyond the ideological divide!

Robber barons? C'mon!

How many photographers are working on that $680 assignment? How many will get paid anything? They're giving you $15/photo (IF they approve any of them), $50/video (same thing), and that gives Shutterstock your copyright for all of them. Which they can then upload to SS to compete with you.

What if you worked those 8 hours and they approved one photo? That's less than $2/hour.

Your math reminds me of me thinking I was going to retire on my SS earnings a few years ago. Multiplying my earnings by my number of illustrations and imagining how much more I'd earn every year as I uploaded more. I'd be making a six-figure income by now drawing little cartoons at home. Then SS used my images to promote my niches on FB, so everyone under the sun flooded with site with similar images and killed my sales overnight.

Yeah, that was awesome.

Let me remind you that I rejected the offer.
These potential $680 + expenses are not tempting enough for me.

But I can imagine others having no problems with it. Some people I know are ready to shoot a whole wedding for similar amounts.

So you're just going to pretend that the scheme is guaranteed to pay you $85/hour for a shoot, instead of admitting the actuality that a large corporation is getting 50 photographers to work on 50 8-hour shoots plus a half day of processing and will most likely be paying a handful of them a few bucks each. And then Shutterstock will be competing against them with their own work and using their algorithm to push clients to those shots.

Whatevs. If it works, I'm investing in SSTK.

I'm not pretending anything. I just believe it is rather safe to assume that there are not too many photographers ready to travel and shoot in that area, if any.
So counting on the full amount could make sense. But I repeat: not even this full advertised amount is sufficient to make me move my ass, let alone if, after the first assignment, I would find-out that I wasted my time.

It is definitely not about your "robber barons" myth. We have the choice to say no!

If all photographers from my area will do the same, they will quickly learn that what they are ready to pay is below the market price. Subsequently, they will adjust their rates accordingly, until their offer will make me, and the others like me, move our asses.
If somebody else is already free-willingly accepting this assignment, it means they got it right. It means this is the market price for that type of work.
As simple as that.


« Last Edit: September 27, 2017, 15:44 by Zero Talent »

« Reply #124 on: September 27, 2017, 15:37 »
0

I'm not pretending anything. I just believe it is rather safe to assume that there are not too many photographers ready to travel and shoot in that area, if any.
So counting on the full amount could make sense. But I repeat: not even this full advertised amount is sufficient to make me move my ass, let alone if, after the first assignment, I would find-out that I wasted my time.

It is definitely not about your "robber barons" myth. We have the choice to say no!

If all photographers from my area will do the same, they will quickly learn that what they are ready to pay is below the market price. Subsequently, they will adjust their rates accordingly, until their offer will make me, and the others like me, move our asses.
If somebody else is already free-willingly accepting this assignment, it means they got it right. It means this is the market price for that type of work.
As simple as that.

You need to get with the program and rack up your points quick, these people now have the Enterprise Team behind them and will grow exponentially and pretty soon they will have $40,000 commissions for the favoured few.  It's not about $680 at this time it's all about points, get off your arse before you get left behind.


 

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