Author Topic: Microstock Photography - Beginners Guide (Read 139914 times)

leaf · « **on:** May 05, 2010, 14:19 »

I just thought i would start a thread giving an introduction to Microstock Photography for the new members of the forum. Hopefully this thread can be a source of good info and resources.

What is Microstock Photography
Microstock Photography is the term given to the business of selling your photos online through a Microstock agency. Microstock Photography is very similar to traditional stock photography but sets itself apart by offering images for sale at a very low cost (typically $1.00-$40). Microstock photography also has a very low threshold in regards to who can participate, unlock traditional stock photography agencies which often require a portfolio of several hundred or thousand images before you are accepted.
[Wikipedia Definition]

Microstock Agencies
There are many many microstock agencies which are willing to sell your images. However not all agencies have enough traffic to generate decent sales. The top 4 agencies are Shutterstock, iStock, Fotolia and Dreamstime. You can check out the poll on the right side of the page for the full list. The agencies are listed in order from highest to lowest earning site according to the monthly polls on MicrostockGroup.

Getting Started
Don't be mislead by the cheap prices - Microstock is a professional marketplace and is very technically demanding. Even if you are already a professional photographer, don't be surprised if you have troubles getting images accepted when you first start uploading. Take the rejections to heart and learn from them. You can also post images in the critique section to get other users opinions.

Common Rejections

Noise - When starting out, play it safe and shoot at the lowest ISO setting on your camera. Most microstock sites are very picky in regards to the amount of noise in a photo. It is also equally important that you correctly expose your images when you are shooting. If your images are dark and you lighten them in post processing you will be adding noise into your image.
Over-Sharpened - Sharpening is often a popular tool to over-use. To play it safe, simply don't sharpen your images. It may go against your gut instinct to not make your images 'look their best' but sharpening also sharpens the noise and will is a great way to get a reject.

Microstock Tools
Microstock Keyword Tool
Keyword List Comparison Tool

Blog Resources
MicrostockGroup Blog - the blog associated with this forum
MicrostockDiaries - a blog written by Lee Torrens,providing useful microstock insight
MicrostockInsider - Steve Gibson's microstock blog with loads of useful posts
MyStockPhoto - a blog focusing on the news side of Microstock Photography
Rasmus Rasmussen's Guide - A very informative group of blog posts with the option to buy an extended version of the info
Microstock Man blog and overview of various stock sites

Learning Resources
TutorVid - Brush up on your Photoshop Skills with these video tutorials

more to come...

waseefakhtar · « **Reply #1 on:** August 05, 2010, 18:18 »

This is actually really awesome site.. I've been following this forum for 2 months now.. and just signed up now... how mind-less of me..

Smiling Jack · « **Reply #2 on:** August 05, 2010, 21:59 »

Thank you Leaf.
Smiling Jack

jwsc101 · « **Reply #3 on:** August 12, 2010, 17:42 »

Really useful, thanks

tbmpvideo · « **Reply #4 on:** December 11, 2010, 23:13 »

Well organized presentation of your information! I like it! I will pay you the highest compliment and learn from it. Thanks!

edwardevans · « **Reply #5 on:** January 12, 2011, 23:25 »

Hi! I'm a photography buff. Oh well, actually I'm just a newbie to it but I've been checking on sites and this one came up. I'm glad I bumped into this site. This would be helpful to a newbie like me,

__________

newbielink:http://www.thebestblender.com/vita-mix-recipes/ [nonactive]

suemack · « **Reply #6 on:** January 13, 2011, 00:09 »

Rasmus Rasmussen's Microstock Photographer's Guide is filled with useful information. He has a link on his site to all the articles

leaf · « **Reply #7 on:** January 13, 2011, 04:52 »

Quote from: suemack on January 13, 2011, 00:09

Rasmus Rasmussen's Microstock Photographer's Guide is filled with useful information. He has a link on his site to all the articles

thanks I added that link to the list on the first post

dannyhitt20 · « **Reply #8 on:** March 04, 2011, 22:45 »

Nice guide...

robertosch · « **Reply #9 on:** March 05, 2011, 02:32 »

"more to come..."

Hey Leaf, you should say something about vectors too. I'm sure they are also vector newbies here, too...

Regards,

Robert

matt77 · « **Reply #10 on:** April 13, 2011, 07:12 »

I like this post very much. I will definitely be back. Hope that I can read more insightful posts then. Will be sharing your knowledge with all of my associates!

johnmessingham · « **Reply #11 on:** May 31, 2011, 07:34 »

Some food for thought, thank you.

Shank_ali · « **Reply #12 on:** July 08, 2011, 12:49 »

No-one seems to of mentioned the pleasure factor.If you really find photography enjoyable and stimulating you will certainly enjoy uploading your images to microstock sites and seeing them sell.It will encourage and inspire you and your work will get better and more productive.
You also need to view ALL your work at 100% before submitting to the various sites.It might be a PITTA but after a few months it becomes second nature with your post editing.
Also browse the microstock collections to help you understand better what type of work attracts sales.

velossaraptor · « **Reply #13 on:** July 14, 2011, 15:54 »

great intro!

lawrencebrussel · « **Reply #14 on:** July 19, 2011, 06:40 »

Nice post leaf, it was helpful.
loved this place. Amazing people here .

corareed · « **Reply #15 on:** July 19, 2011, 13:45 »

That is great! I have been thinking for some years about writing a book on microstock, but it's been done so well by folks like you. I am now thinking about a blog of something on the pet peeves of photo editors, posing models, and keywording. (Maybe that is 3 blogs.)

ruigsantos · « **Reply #16 on:** August 21, 2011, 11:23 »

Great thread!

itsrich · « **Reply #17 on:** August 22, 2011, 18:44 »

I have a great question

I am just starting to contribute stock. I have a very large catalogue.

I am starting to realise how tedious and boring all the different stages in the processes are. Is there any software that adds descriptions, names etc to retouched images and can upload TO MULTIPLE stock libraries. I want to find out which libraries work best for me without all the repetitive tasks for each stock library. Something like DeepMeta, but for multiple libraries.

Many thanks

Rich!

leaf · « **Reply #18 on:** August 22, 2011, 19:10 »

Quote from: itsrich on August 22, 2011, 18:44

I have a great question

I am just starting to contribute stock. I have a very large catalogue.

I am starting to realise how tedious and boring all the different stages in the processes are. Is there any software that adds descriptions, names etc to retouched images and can upload TO MULTIPLE stock libraries. I want to find out which libraries work best for me without all the repetitive tasks for each stock library. Something like DeepMeta, but for multiple libraries.

Many thanks

Rich!

I suggest starting a specific thread for this question. .. and maybe post a link here. Also, check out the microstock services section
http://www.microstockgroup.com/microstock-services/

gemmy12 · « **Reply #19 on:** November 08, 2011, 01:47 »

Hello everyone..
I am new to this site as well as to the photography world as well. Its my hobby though after buying my 1st DSLR, few of my photographs have won few awards and prizes by local clubs and also state level contests. Still i feel I need a lot to improve my photography. However I wat to try my photographs in microstock sites.
So can any one of you suggest me "which microstock site/sites is/are best to start for a beginner and WHY ?"
I have been searching for my answers in the net and now i think I've come to right place.

Thanking you in advance !

FD · « **Reply #20 on:** November 08, 2011, 10:47 »

Quote from: dr_skn08 on November 08, 2011, 01:47

'which microstock site/sites is/are best to start for a beginner and WHY ?"

Dreamstime because there is no entry "exam". Just don't send too many at a time or it will bring down your acceptance ratio (and your sales). Honestly, the best would be to upload here a few images full size (you can watermark them) and ask for advice. There are some top microstock photographers around that will be happy to critique you.

YodaShotInRAW · « **Reply #21 on:** January 08, 2012, 10:48 »

Thanks! Just getting started and this helped.

steheap · « **Reply #22 on:** January 09, 2012, 19:31 »

Quote

"which microstock site/sites is/are best to start for a beginner and WHY ?"

Interesting question. I've always recommended CanStock as the first site. Why? Because their reviews are very fast, they are pretty fair in terms of standards - they reject poor images, but they don't have the "too many images" problem that Dreamstime has. So you can get a good feel for whether you are putting forward the right sort of images pretty quickly on that site.

I've recommended that to all the buyers of my eBook (and a few friends as well) without any negative views so far.

Steve

gemmy12 · « **Reply #23 on:** January 10, 2012, 00:13 »

Quote from: steheap on January 09, 2012, 19:31

Quote
"which microstock site/sites is/are best to start for a beginner and WHY ?"

Interesting question. I've always recommended CanStock as the first site. Why? Because their reviews are very fast, they are pretty fair in terms of standards - they reject poor images, but they don't have the "too many images" problem that Dreamstime has. So you can get a good feel for whether you are putting forward the right sort of images pretty quickly on that site.

I've recommended that to all the buyers of my eBook (and a few friends as well) without any negative views so far.

Steve

Hello steve..
Thank you for your suggestion. i am almost a regular reader of your articles in your site and they have been beneficial for me. I do find them interesting specially the data regarding your sale. Thanks for sharing ideas. Keep it up ! :-)

THP Creative · « **Reply #24 on:** January 16, 2012, 19:05 »

Hi Guys,

Hope it's ok to post this here Leaf, just thought it relevant to the topic.

I have created a website with agency reviews, tips etc specifically to help out beginners in microstock, as I needed something like this when I began a couple of years ago.

You can see it at...

http://www.microstockman.com

Yes, it contains referral links (got to pay for web hosting somehow!).

Hope it's of some use.

Cheers

Tim (THP)

MicrostockGroup Sponsors

Author Topic: Microstock Photography - Beginners Guide (Read 139914 times)

leaf

waseefakhtar

Smiling Jack

jwsc101

tbmpvideo

edwardevans

suemack

leaf

dannyhitt20

robertosch

matt77

johnmessingham

Shank_ali

velossaraptor

lawrencebrussel

corareed

ruigsantos

itsrich

leaf

gemmy12

FD

YodaShotInRAW

steheap

gemmy12

THP Creative

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