MicrostockGroup
Microstock Photography Forum - General => General Stock Discussion => Topic started by: PaulieWalnuts on December 22, 2007, 10:55
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Do buyers take contributor's profiles into consideration when buying an image?
As an example, will they skip over a newbie profile ("I just started taking pictures with my point & shoot") to try and find a more experienced photograher ("20 years in the business, studio, multiple Canon pro DSLRs"). Or is it the individual image that matters most?
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i would guess that they just look for the picture they want and download it. they might looks for high res files, or if they need lots of one type of image, look for people with professional looking pictures, but in general - I think they just buy what they need.... in and out. They don't have time to 'make friends' :) .... but that is just a guess.
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I'd agree with that. I'd go so far to say that your bio doesn't even really matter in the 'real' photography world, where who you know is very important.
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It's just a guess, but I can only think of a buyer spending time looking for a photographer's profile is he is really impressed with one or more image he bought from the same person.
It may serve however if you intend to market your images yourself.
Regards,
Adelaide
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I think they do take a contributers profile into consideration when buying images.
Not necessarily each time they download an image. But i think at some point, buyers who download on a regular basis may feel the need to investigate the status of a certain photographer.
Its the same principle when you buy a bag of chips, you don`t really pay attention to the ingredients right...
But some do.
I guess to me, if i was a buyer, i think i would check beforehand on who took the image etc...
Just for the sake of knowing who took the picture and if the photographer is selling a lot.
Its hard to tell really.
Good question by the way!
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I've heard of photographers getting assignment work through their profiles on sites. I doubt that an interested buyer would contact you for an assignment though if you claim your photos were created with the Sony pocket camera your grandkid gave you for Christmas. Also, niche photographers must benefit somewhat by their profile - if someone has hundreds of medical photos their profile might confirm that they have a medical background and have given accurate representations. Just my thoughts. (Maybe my own profile shouldn't be so vague.)
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I buy a small number of photos, and I only look at the contributor's profile when I notice that I'm buying from the one contributor many times. This has happened a few times, and I still 'watch' those contributors.
I too have heard of photographers getting offline work through their profiles. iStockphoto push this fact in their publicity.
I also know that many buyers who buy similar themed images over and over, will often have their favourite photographers whose portfolio they'll search through first.
This leads into the branding exercise. Yuri, Andres & Ron sell a lot more than anyone else because they're high profile and product consistent quality. Many buyers have a short list of trusted contributors who seldom let them down.