Author Topic: how do you measure your success ? (Read 7101 times)

hali · « **on:** January 03, 2009, 17:38 »

TWO QUESTIONS HERE...
1) If you were to be objective about your involvement in microstock,
what barometer would you use to be considered a success, or something worthwhile.
for example:
a) dollars earned / number of images
b) time spent / dollars earned

2) at what point would you tell yourself it's time to call it a day, and say "bye bye microstock, time for a vacation!"

shank_ali · « **Reply #1 on:** January 03, 2009, 17:56 »

The objective is to capture/create an image that will sell.We all have sales so why . would anyone wish to pack it all in .I have had a really enjoyable xmas holiday and spend many hours shooting/editing and uploading..had a blast.

Graffoto · « **Reply #2 on:** January 03, 2009, 18:35 »

I will call it a success when I can comfortably transition out of my day job and shoot for a living.
I don't mean relying on microstock alone, but a combination of Micro/Macro and assignment work.

Anything short of that, just makes it a hobby that pays for itself

lisafx · « **Reply #3 on:** January 03, 2009, 18:48 »

For me I felt successful when my micro earnings matched my earnings from my last PT job. Everything after that has felt like an added blessing.

Now I consider a month successful if it equals or betters the previous month. So in that sense I am pretty bummed about November and December, but hope January will at least see some growth.

I don't see myself saying bye-bye to micro any time in the near future. I am working at close to maximum capacity for a one person show, and if I see the law of diminishing returns kicking in too painfully I might look for other venues after awhile.

I took several weeks off shooting and uploading - I was hoping to feel refreshed and ready to go back to working, but to be honest I am still feeling burned out. I have a shoot coming up and just can't manage to get excited or inspired. I guess it is time to shake things up with some new concepts and/or locations...

One thing I know is that I really enjoy the lifestyle a second income has given us and would not enjoy having to live off my husband's salary again...

Elenathewise · « **Reply #4 on:** January 03, 2009, 19:29 »

I felt successful when I was able to leave my corporate job and do this full-time, which was about a year ago. I feel successful when I get good acceptance rate on a batch or when I add a very good seller to my portfolio. I expected my returns to grow better than they turned out to be in 2008, but there was still growth, so it can be called a successful year. I have done absolutely NOTHING over the holidays, didn't even take my camera out - it's the first couple of weeks in 3 years that I have allowed myself to take time off. I was feeling pretty burned out too! I do feel much better now and hope to increase my downloads per image ratio - that would be a measure of success for me at this point.

ljooc · « **Reply #5 on:** January 03, 2009, 19:50 »

For me, if I can just earn back the money I have spent on my camera gears over the last 2 years, I would consider that the first milestone. It is like a mouse that just keeps running away (the urge to buy more gears you know what I mean

I am so far from being successful (from a ROI point of view) at this thing that I decided I should treat this as a hobby for now just so that I am not so hard on myself that it takes the fun out of it for me

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #6 on:** January 03, 2009, 20:09 »

Funny how we "full timers" seem to be burnt out and taking a break

. Yes, it's an ongoing, continuous battle, against the world!

hali · « **Reply #7 on:** January 03, 2009, 20:30 »

What a team of awesome responders.
I expected a more $ and cents response, but from all your prolific responses I see it's not that black and white (no pun intended).
It's definitely eye-opening, and wonderful to know you still took the time to come give me your insight . Burnt out perharps , but I don't hear any complainers among you . You 're all showing me a very positive perspective. Encouraging , if anything.
Cheers.

RacePhoto · « **Reply #8 on:** January 03, 2009, 21:41 »

Quote from: hali on January 03, 2009, 20:30

What a team of awesome responders.
I expected a more $ and cents response, but from all your prolific responses I see it's not that black and white (no pun intended).
It's definitely eye-opening, and wonderful to know you still took the time to come give me your insight . Burnt out perharps , but I don't hear any complainers among you . You 're all showing me a very positive perspective. Encouraging , if anything.
Cheers.

Money in the bank. There is no other measure.

I can get $25 for a photo that goes out on AP and is in thousands of newspapers. That won't buy me diet coke and snacks for a week! I don't see that as success.

If one sets a goal of 1000 photos up on Micro and does it. That's success. If someone sets a goal of one payout a month from the big two sites, and makes it, that's success. Just because my goals are different that someone else, it doesn't mean that any of us are less of a success for attaining our individual goals.

I'd like to double my portfolio on a few sites, but I'd have to stop deleting more images than I'm uploading to move that project along?

PaulieWalnuts · « **Reply #9 on:** January 03, 2009, 21:52 »

Good question Hali.

Overall I measure it by income. When I get to a point where I can make enough to match my day job income that's the ultimate measure of success.

There are other small milestones that I track to see if I'm making progress toward that goal or spinning my wheels. Like average earings per porfolio image per month, earnings diversification, acceptance rates, etc.

I'd say bye bye to microstock if I keep on working as much as I am and am not seeing any progress. If I dropped to under 25 cents of earnings per image per month I'd probably call it quits. I'm at about $2 PIPM now.

On top of my 50-60 hour per week day job I put in another 20-30 hours on photography. I'm totally burnt out but I still love photography. I'd be thrillled if I could make a living even working 50-60 hours just doing this.

madelaide · « **Reply #10 on:** January 03, 2009, 23:05 »

I don't compare it to my main job, otherwise I would be a huge failure.

My portfolio grows very slowly now, so I measure my earnings increase/stability/decrease each month. I also try to evaluate how each new series perform, to see if I am moving in the right direction, in order to focus on some subjects/styles and abandon others.

Regards,
Adelaide

avava · « **Reply #11 on:** January 03, 2009, 23:07 »

Hey There,

Those are tough questions for sure. I think the business one is easier for me just assure your cost to return balance and when your peice makes you say " YEA! this is a good gig " then I think you're covered. However there is the monster greed and what was enough last year sometimes isn't quite enough for this years plans for some reason. Always have to keep that monster in it's cage, ugly thing. Also how old are you and how long do you need your money to last you and do you have kids that want to go to college, and, and, oh god I need to relax again.
Personally I have a dollar per year that I shoot for but with the shrinking I am seeing in all my Macro RF returns and my lack of recent effort that number may now be a dream for years to come unless we see about 20% growth in this market over 09', but I don't think that will happen.
Family sets the vacation time or I keep working around the clock, next one is April. I am slowing more to help see the light again and try to improve my craft. That is hard to do shooting Micro stock at least for me. I would love to be able to work on one photo for 4 days at a time but it's tough to get that plan to function financially.

I need me a suga-momma

. Just keep shooting and take a walk away from it all as often as you can and don't be afraid to fail that is where you'll grow.

Best All,
AVAVA

gbcimages · « **Reply #12 on:** January 03, 2009, 23:55 »

I call it a success when I can use my God given talent and have a few places accept my images for sale and make a little off them .

Elenathewise · « **Reply #13 on:** January 04, 2009, 00:32 »

Quote from: avava on January 03, 2009, 23:07

I would love to be able to work on one photo for 4 days at a time but it's tough to get that plan to function financially.

Oh I would love to be able to do that so much:) Sometimes I do get carried away and spend way more time on an image that's financially reasonable - but those are also times when I learn, and that's priceless:)

sharply_done · « **Reply #14 on:** January 04, 2009, 03:26 »

My measure of success is how much leisure time I have combined with when and how I spend it.

Before turning to microstock I worked the typical 9-5, M-F hours. As a non-commercial photographer before that I spent a lot of my time making pictures of people when they weren't working (portraits, weddings, performances, events, ...), which means I worked nights and weekends. Success in this industry means I can work how and when I want. I cannot imagine, for the life of me, any other job that could possibly allow me this amount of freedom in my life.

Big plans this week: Hike up mountain and ski down it. Go to beach at sunrise and sunset. Drive Jeep down deep snow-covered road. Thanks a million microstock industry, I owe you big time!

Jack Schiffer · « **Reply #15 on:** January 04, 2009, 08:10 »

My measure of success is sitting on my butt and watching the money roll in

hali · « **Reply #16 on:** January 04, 2009, 10:56 »

once again, from most of you...
eg. sharply_done, like your peers PaulineW, etc.. (all familiar names in the forum here since i've started visiting it some 7 months ago), your response is one of
optimism . obviously you're in it because you feel it's better than working 9-5.
and to hear that you're making enough to be able to take time off , is also a lesson to newbies (as in being a new stock contributors) like myself.
Adelaide, good perspective and fine idea , ie... take stock (no pun intended) of what
progress we are making , what gets sold, what gets accepted.
Lisafx, i still remember your advice when i wrote you from within a site's email,
you said, "it takes time to build a good portfolio. it takes work and being aware of what a site wants, and what a site needs."

2009 is here, and soon, i will be one year old stock contributor. i think the insight you've provided here will be something that keeps me "enthused" about building my port, as slow and time-consuming as it is, for someone who works 2 jobs aside from shooting for stock.

from you i learn it can't be that bad being a stock contributor. if so, i won't be reading all these optimistic responses from all of your long time contributors.

cheers from Halifax, N.S.

Tuilay · « **Reply #17 on:** January 04, 2009, 11:11 »

Quote from: hali on January 04, 2009, 10:56

Adelaide, good perspective and fine idea , ie... take stock (no pun intended) of what
progress we are making , what gets sold, what gets accepted.
Lisafx, i still remember your advice when i wrote you from within a site's email,
you said, "it takes time to build a good portfolio. it takes work and being aware of what a site wants, and what a site needs."

Amen ! No finer words can be added if you want to succeed as a stock contributor.
And, what is success? It's what gets me to take my camera out; not just what pays me to shoot .
If it ever comes to a point where I constantly measure my success of an image with how much it earns, I will pack it in.
To me, it's just that : Be a photographer first. Everything else is just icing to the cake.

Halifax N.S. is a lovely place to be . Congratulations !

hali · « **Reply #18 on:** January 04, 2009, 11:20 »

Quote from: Tuilay on January 04, 2009, 11:11

Amen ! No finer words can be added if you want to succeed as a stock contributor.
And, what is success? It's what gets me to take my camera out; not just what pays me to shoot .
If it ever comes to a point where I constantly measure my success of an image with how much it earns, I will pack it in.
To me, it's just that : Be a photographer first. Everything else is just icing to the cake.

Halifax N.S. is a lovely place to be . Congratulations !

Cheers Tuilay.
I moved to Halifax only a year ago from Montreal. Yes, it is a lovely place to be, albeit not as bustling with business as Montreal. The pubs are awesome here, and I love the waterfront enormously.

PaulieWalnuts · « **Reply #19 on:** January 04, 2009, 11:49 »

Actually, Sharply nailed it for me.

Equalling day job income is my goal. And that will give me more freedom and control over my life. Now my day job controls everything - how much (or little) time I have with my family, when I take a vacation and for how long, stress (project deadlines, PITA unreasonable clients, chasing down invoice payments, cancelled/delayed projects), etc.

Life is short. I want to look back and say I had a great family, work, and personal life. If I stay in the industry of my day job I'll never be able to say that. The last 15 years has been a work-oriented blur. Photography is a transition away from that life. If it's a beautiful day I want to drop everything and take my kids to the park. Now it's when I have the spare time which is usually when it's dark or raining. Stock photography seems to offer that level of freedom.

Success for me is being happy and being able to say "I have a great life".

avava · « **Reply #20 on:** January 04, 2009, 13:27 »

Hi All,

I love the answers from everyone here. One thing I here is the freedom it offers. I can remember myself saying that 11 years ago when I changed from commercial photography to full time stock. It was like WOW I can pick and choose no more art directors what an incredible life I am truly blessed. Now 11 years later doing the same thing don't get me wrong I still wouldn't do anything else in the world but it is more of a job then it was when I started and I think you have to prepare for the fun and newness to ware off a bit but still keep producing still keep your mind set on how lucky you are. I used to do physical labor, climbed telephone poles and pulled cable. When I am having a bad shoot I close my eyes go back to being 40' in the air with my hands frozen solid and the rain pounding, that pretty much does it then I for me then I feel great about my photography again. I tell my young students when they start to think they are all that. Just spend a day in a coal mine and then tell me that photography isn't a great way to get paid.

Best,
AVAVA

Lcjtripod · « **Reply #21 on:** January 04, 2009, 15:48 »

Everyones yardstick for success is different. I would say that if your happy with what you are earning and enjoying it. Your successfull.

I'm successfull by those standards.

-Larry

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Author Topic: how do you measure your success ? (Read 7101 times)

hali

shank_ali

Graffoto

lisafx

Elenathewise

ljooc

Sean Locke Photography

hali

RacePhoto

PaulieWalnuts

madelaide

avava

gbcimages

Elenathewise

sharply_done

Jack Schiffer

hali

Tuilay

hali

PaulieWalnuts

avava

Lcjtripod

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