Just starting out and looking for a good site to upload news type images to,is Demotix worth trying or are there better sites to upload to?

I ask as having checked out a few forums it seems the jury is still out on Demotix.

I have 60 published stories at Demotix with 722 images.  I uploaded my first story with them in September 2011.

The good...if you put the effort into it and you shoot stories of national/international interest, you will do well.  Check out Steve Rhodes portfolio (he's based in San Francisco).  He uploads at least one story per day....twitter handle is @tigerbeat.  He does well.  When you upload to Demotix your images are also reviewed by Corbis Editors and your images are placed into the Corbis collection.  Unlike Corbis, you earn 50% of the royalty that Corbis gets (I've verified this with a Corbis editor).  My images have been used in very respectable publications via Demotix - everywhere from The Huffington Post, The Guardian, and Time.  The staff is terrific but there seems to be a lot of turnover.  Ossie is the main editor and he's awesome to work with.  Jeff is an editor at Corbis and he's great to work with as well.  They have assisted me in getting accreditation a few times (I believe you need 25 published stories before you can apply for accreditation to events).  Fees earned are on par with any other RM news agency - anywhere from a few Euro (Daily Mail) to what you would expect to get from a newspaper fee.  Images are licensed on a rights managed basis.

The bad...it takes a while to get paid.  I have images that have been used some time ago for which I am still waiting payment - I can think of one in particular that was used in DNA India last summer that I haven't been paid for (yet).  Most folks upload 5 stories and leave...they don't have the patience to stick with it.  The forums are riddled with people looking to make a quick buck and that's not what the site is for.  You also have to understand that if you are uploading news images, you stand a chance of your images getting stolen....you need to learn to live with that reality.  Demotix/Corbis will chase down whats worth chasing down in my experience.  They are run with a very small staff so emails going to them don't get answered very often (another point of frustration with contributors who are new).

I am not sure but there seems to be a transition of some sort going on.  Stephen Sidlo was the main editor and he has left.  Rachael was an editor and she has left.  It appears Corbis is running quite a bit of the show there and I'm not sure what's going on behind the scenes at the moment but I'm sure it will work out.

I would recommend them.  You will do well if you do your part.  Again - stories must be of NATIONAL or INTERNATIONAL interest - something you would likely see on the evening news that isn't just pertinent to your community.  Don't just upload snapshots of people....Corbis is more likely to pick up your work if you can actually provide names of people in the scenes you are shooting (as a photojournalist would).  There are many tutorials and resources on their website on how to be successful.  Use them.

I have received royalties from them every month this year so far from stories I've uploaded.

Thanks Ed, great information. I have seen a few forum posts elsewhere talking about Demotix and it gets mixed reviews with lots of complaints about low fees etc but that could just be from people who don't fully understand how the news market works in regards to payments etc. There were a few photographers in my city who were selling through Demotix but i did get mixed reviews from them when i talked to them,one was selling through some sort of Demotix subscription deal but he was not allowed to say anything about it and the other left after a year so anything he said may have been slightly clouded by his negative experience. Will have to sign up and see if i can find out some more info from their forums.

Thanks Ed, great information. I have seen a few forum posts elsewhere talking about Demotix and it gets mixed reviews with lots of complaints about low fees etc but that could just be from people who don't fully understand how the news market works in regards to payments etc. There were a few photographers in my city who were selling through Demotix but i did get mixed reviews from them when i talked to them,one was selling through some sort of Demotix subscription deal but he was not allowed to say anything about it and the other left after a year so anything he said may have been slightly clouded by his negative experience. Will have to sign up and see if i can find out some more info from their forums.

The subscription deal is confidential and is by invitation only.  Only the people that contribute to the subscription area know the exact details.  I remember an email coming out about it a couple of years ago when it was being experimented with but I didn't really pay much attention to it.

Demotix wants content and my understanding is that you are required to upload frequently if you are a subscription photographer (I think it's something like once per week but again, I don't know the details).  Demotix does offer a press/media credential where you pay for the credential to be sent to you and you are required to upload on a regular basis - at least once every 6 weeks in order to keep it active.  I have used the credential to get into certain events that don't require accredidation and have not had any trouble.

Ok, RM, so I cant upload editorial I have on SS?

Thats not what they say.

I noticed we can go way before 2014 when adding a new story so I would say they are willing to get past events, anyway I will see how it goes

But I have no RM, so its useless for me. I might as well close my account again.

I am always going/leaving RM, this might be a great opportunity to try it again (RM) or maybe not...

Just saw on the forum that someone got paid a nickel ($0.05) for a sale. Think i will stick with uploading elsewhere.

Just as an FYI, I used to shoot news and uploaded a ton of stuff from the area I was working in. They NEVER sold a single thing for me. I even shot some NASCAR and NHRA stuff for them. Never sold. I think that you really have to be "in the thick of it" to get sales. Something like images from Ferguson last week or a similar event that is garnering national/international attention might be a great seller but that is about it.

If I worked in NY or Chicago, maybe then I could find something that sells. It is hard to get anything out of them if you are shooting local news or events.

Something like images from Ferguson last week or a similar event that is garnering national/international attention might be a great seller but that is about it.

exactly.
either that or you won't sell, there's no demand on their channel for local or minor news.

Quote from: SLStudios on August 27, 2014, 14:08

Something like images from Ferguson last week or a similar event that is garnering national/international attention might be a great seller but that is about it.

exactly.
either that or you won't sell, there's no demand on their channel for local or minor news.

I disagree.

A local bicycle event published in an Indian publication
http://edendicott.photoshelter.com/gallery-image/Tear-Sheets/G00008W0OIjiGtWY/I0000nuuRjipYJEI

A local annual parade that takes place in Denver published in the UK
http://www.horseandcountry.tv/photo-of-the-day?nnid=91238

Aside from breaking news such as what's going on in Ferguson (and the related rallies going on nation wide), daily life and daily traditions are appealing to various news editors/agencies.

Just be sure it's current.

24 stories uploaded immediately after the event; 12 international events; total revenue: 0.
Same pictures were sold and published on paper magazines and newspapers through another agency, one in particular was published in 34 countries, but not from Demotix. 

A friend of mine, that is not a news photographer, has sold some pictures uploading 8 stories. Stock pictures as Lavender field, cat walking on the wall, red motorcycle parked in front of tour eiffel and so on.

That's it.

P.S. I don't need their dummie press card