Author Topic: Question for new microstock photographers regarding sales. (Read 6776 times)

PryorMan · « **on:** April 03, 2014, 14:02 »

I wanted to see how I'm doing compared to some other new people. I have been accepted to DT and FT with around 20 pics and 123RF, P5, BigStock, CanStockPhoto, and CC with around 45-55 in each. I made about $10 last month

.

I have a second try pending to IS and I think I have been accepted to SS (pending my ID clearing).

So how does this track with your experience? I have been seriously working on microstock for a couple months now and am just starting to get the feel for things.

Thanks for any feedback!

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #1 on:** April 03, 2014, 14:14 »

I'm not a newbie by any stretch of the imagination, but I'd say you are doing OK. I made $10.30 in my first month - but that was 10 years ago.

Goofy · « **Reply #2 on:** April 03, 2014, 14:26 »

Quote from: PryorMan on April 03, 2014, 14:02

I have been seriously working on microstock for a couple months now and am just starting to get the feel for things.

Serious? I am been 'Seriously' working on microstock for over 2 years and Don't have the feel for things yet.

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #3 on:** April 03, 2014, 14:30 »

Quote from: Goofy on April 03, 2014, 14:26

Quote from: PryorMan on April 03, 2014, 14:02
I have been seriously working on microstock for a couple months now and am just starting to get the feel for things.

Serious? I am been 'Seriously' working on microstock for over 2 years and Don't have the feel for things yet.

Be nice

Two months is long enough to find out that it ain't half as easy as it seems. And he has got himself on a respectable array of agencies.

Jo Ann Snover · « **Reply #4 on:** April 04, 2014, 00:38 »

I'm not a newbie either, but I don't think comparisons will help you much. Yuri was new once, and he took off pretty quickly - much faster than most of us

You'll need to figure out what works at each agency - you can see the rough sales heft of the agencies from the poll results, so you know to pay more attention to feeding Shutterstock than Dreamstime. You need to figure out what you can shoot - access, skill, interest - and what there's a market for. Some things are great to look at but not all that useful as stock; some are great sellers but in such bountiful supply that you'll have a hard time getting any traction given that you're new and the competition has great search position. If you do anything seasonal, remember that you'll want to have those available 3 months or so prior to the event (and my Christmas images sell year round, but just not in the volume they do in the fall).

You'll then need to build a portfolio of a decent size to get an idea if you're on the right track or not. Good luck!

shudderstok · « **Reply #5 on:** April 04, 2014, 01:02 »

Quote from: BaldricksTrousers on April 03, 2014, 14:30

Quote from: Goofy on April 03, 2014, 14:26
Quote from: PryorMan on April 03, 2014, 14:02
I have been seriously working on microstock for a couple months now and am just starting to get the feel for things.

Serious? I am been 'Seriously' working on microstock for over 2 years and Don't have the feel for things yet.

Be nice Two months is long enough to find out that it ain't half as easy as it seems. And he has got himself on a respectable array of agencies.

a blind person with a decent camera can get onto most microstock sites, they don't really set the level too high. seriously, can you name one microstock agency that has ever 'edited' an image?

shudderstok · « **Reply #6 on:** April 04, 2014, 01:10 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on April 04, 2014, 00:38

I'm not a newbie either, but I don't think comparisons will help you much. Yuri was new once, and he took off pretty quickly - much faster than most of us

You'll need to figure out what works at each agency - you can see the rough sales heft of the agencies from the poll results, so you know to pay more attention to feeding Shutterstock than Dreamstime. You need to figure out what you can shoot - access, skill, interest - and what there's a market for. Some things are great to look at but not all that useful as stock; some are great sellers but in such bountiful supply that you'll have a hard time getting any traction given that you're new and the competition has great search position. If you do anything seasonal, remember that you'll want to have those available 3 months or so prior to the event (and my Christmas images sell year round, but just not in the volume they do in the fall).

You'll then need to build a portfolio of a decent size to get an idea if you're on the right track or not. Good luck!

anyone with a so so folio back at the beginning could have hit gold on any microstock site, now they might not hit gold but they will get accepted still the same. that is yuri's secret, his early work was utter rubbish by any standard, but then it was also being sold for pennies on the dollar against the normal pricing which was hundreds of times higher at that point in time - that was the success of most microstockers. that said his worked has come a long way.

if any of these micros had any editor's ever, then the likes of yuri and sean would have never had a beginning. there early work was not up to par of what it took to pass any respectable agency that had a decision making process in place at the time.

pass a completely brainless multiple choice test and show us three photos that your camera produced is what microstock got it's foundation on.

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #7 on:** April 04, 2014, 03:22 »

Did you get out of bed the wrong side today Shudderstok? Oh, no, I forgot: You're always like that.
I know a retired professional with a lifetime of photography behind him who failed the entrance test for Shutterstock.
Yes, it was easy at the beginning. That's not really relevant, though.

shudderstok · « **Reply #8 on:** April 04, 2014, 05:12 »

Quote from: BaldricksTrousers on April 04, 2014, 03:22

Did you get out of bed the wrong side today Shudderstok? Oh, no, I forgot: You're always like that.
I know a retired professional with a lifetime of photography behind him who failed the entrance test for Shutterstock.
Yes, it was easy at the beginning. That's not really relevant, though.

nope i woke up just fine, thanks for asking. i am just calling it as i see it. and fyi after being on GI, TIB, Alamy, and Tony Stone and making a decent full time living for years in stock before microstock was around, as well as being very successful in both commercial and assignment photography, I too failed at SS, three times. That was in 2007. My work did not have technical merit and was not stock worthy??? yet in only two years at IS i became diamond. Go figure. Can't quite figure that one out actually, iv'e been shooting stock full time for way too long, and SS tells me i don't have technical know how or good composition.

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #9 on:** April 04, 2014, 06:58 »

Ah, that explains your Shutterstock thing.
I recall, years ago, some of the old guys running down the amateurs on the micros, then being outraged when they tried to join only to get rejected. In the early days there were probably some aspects of the micros, such as processing and touching-up the images, that would have been alien to shooters brought up on film.

shudderstok · « **Reply #10 on:** April 04, 2014, 07:54 »

Quote from: BaldricksTrousers on April 04, 2014, 06:58

Ah, that explains your Shutterstock thing.
I recall, years ago, some of the old guys running down the amateurs on the micros, then being outraged when they tried to join only to get rejected. In the early days there were probably some aspects of the micros, such as processing and touching-up the images, that would have been alien to shooters brought up on film.

actually amigo, that explains my microstock thing

i am old school, you shot it right the first time - end of story. you submitted 100+ images on slide and that was proof you knew your crap or you did not. micros changed that, and the rest is history. so now i find myself in the way things are now, do i like it? not one bit man. but one has to deal with it. i am a believer that anyone who works their ass off and sticks with it will make it in any environment, and that said, there are many who will fail and be all piss ant about it. the only reason i make money at photography is for two reasons, i am good (yeah those are my hands self applauding) and lot's of hard work - and that my friend will be a common denominator in those who have success (apart from the self applaud hand clapping cause you welded bicycle wheels together and became a bullshite artist gee i am great thing) LOL

ShadySue · « **Reply #11 on:** April 04, 2014, 08:17 »

Quote from: PryorMan on April 03, 2014, 14:02

I wanted to see how I'm doing compared to some other new people. I have been accepted to DT and FT with around 20 pics and 123RF, P5, BigStock, CanStockPhoto, and CC with around 45-55 in each. I made about $10 last month .

I have a second try pending to IS and I think I have been accepted to SS (pending my ID clearing).

So how does this track with your experience? I have been seriously working on microstock for a couple months now and am just starting to get the feel for things.

Thanks for any feedback!

Don't worry about iS; it's next to pointless for new files. Back in the day, yes. Just checked back, I uploaded my first file there on 19 Dec 2006, and in Jan 2007, I made $22.44, from 33 dls.
However, almost everyone, newbie or highly experienced, is finding it hard to get traction for their new files on iS, and this has been going on for at least 18 months.
I was shown one relative newbie's port which has had reasonably good dls (beating many diamonds/black diamonds for volume) in about seven months. I was astonished, as although the images were very good, they weren't unusual/niche.

PryorMan · « **Reply #12 on:** April 04, 2014, 08:49 »

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on April 04, 2014, 00:38

You need to figure out what you can shoot - access, skill, interest - and what there's a market for. Some things are great to look at but not all that useful as stock; some are great sellers but in such bountiful supply that you'll have a hard time getting any traction given that you're new and the competition has great search position.

Thanks for the advice. Honestly, this is one of the first things I did getting started. I knew that I had no interest in working with people, and would much rather shoot nature, animals, landscapes, and macros (once I can save up for a dedicated macro lens). I picniche a list of things during the week and then on the weekends try shoot a couple different topics.

Thanks everyone for the feedback!

shudderstok · « **Reply #13 on:** April 04, 2014, 09:47 »

Quote from: BaldricksTrousers on April 04, 2014, 06:58

Ah, that explains your Shutterstock thing.
I recall, years ago, some of the old guys running down the amateurs on the micros, then being outraged when they tried to join only to get rejected. In the early days there were probably some aspects of the micros, such as processing and touching-up the images, that would have been alien to shooters brought up on film.

hey man, i gave you a heart (muah) just to get you into "great post" terrain. life altering isn't it? and i got another minus (-) oh dear, time to reflect.

Digital66 · « **Reply #14 on:** April 04, 2014, 10:04 »

Quote from: shudderstok on April 04, 2014, 01:02

Quote from: BaldricksTrousers on April 03, 2014, 14:30
Quote from: Goofy on April 03, 2014, 14:26
Quote from: PryorMan on April 03, 2014, 14:02
I have been seriously working on microstock for a couple months now and am just starting to get the feel for things.
Serious? I am been 'Seriously' working on microstock for over 2 years and Don't have the feel for things yet.
Be nice Two months is long enough to find out that it ain't half as easy as it seems. And he has got himself on a respectable array of agencies.
a blind person with a decent camera can get onto most microstock sites, they don't really set the level too high. seriously, can you name one microstock agency that has ever 'edited' an image?

Sadly, I agree with you.

Digital66 · « **Reply #15 on:** April 04, 2014, 10:21 »

Quote from: shudderstok on April 04, 2014, 01:10

Quote from: Jo Ann Snover on April 04, 2014, 00:38
I'm not a newbie either, but I don't think comparisons will help you much. Yuri was new once, and he took off pretty quickly - much faster than most of us

You'll need to figure out what works at each agency - you can see the rough sales heft of the agencies from the poll results, so you know to pay more attention to feeding Shutterstock than Dreamstime. You need to figure out what you can shoot - access, skill, interest - and what there's a market for. Some things are great to look at but not all that useful as stock; some are great sellers but in such bountiful supply that you'll have a hard time getting any traction given that you're new and the competition has great search position. If you do anything seasonal, remember that you'll want to have those available 3 months or so prior to the event (and my Christmas images sell year round, but just not in the volume they do in the fall).

You'll then need to build a portfolio of a decent size to get an idea if you're on the right track or not. Good luck!
anyone with a so so folio back at the beginning could have hit gold on any microstock site, now they might not hit gold but they will get accepted still the same. that is yuri's secret, his early work was utter rubbish by any standard, but then it was also being sold for pennies on the dollar against the normal pricing which was hundreds of times higher at that point in time - that was the success of most microstockers. that said his worked has come a long way.

if any of these micros had any editor's ever, then the likes of yuri and sean would have never had a beginning. there early work was not up to par of what it took to pass any respectable agency that had a decision making process in place at the time.

pass a completely brainless multiple choice test and show us three photos that your camera produced is what microstock got it's foundation on.

This is an ugly truth! At istock for example, many people reached Gold or even Diamond level because they started early when there was almost no competition and had a so so portfolio. Nowadays many of them hardly sell anything.

pancaketom · « **Reply #16 on:** April 04, 2014, 11:20 »

Quote from: shudderstok on April 04, 2014, 01:02

Quote from: BaldricksTrousers on April 03, 2014, 14:30
Quote from: Goofy on April 03, 2014, 14:26
Quote from: PryorMan on April 03, 2014, 14:02
I have been seriously working on microstock for a couple months now and am just starting to get the feel for things.

Serious? I am been 'Seriously' working on microstock for over 2 years and Don't have the feel for things yet.

Be nice Two months is long enough to find out that it ain't half as easy as it seems. And he has got himself on a respectable array of agencies.

a blind person with a decent camera can get onto most microstock sites, they don't really set the level too high. seriously, can you name one microstock agency that has ever 'edited' an image?

Why would a microstock agency edit an image? - they just reject it and let you edit it or not. That said I did have a very specific suggestion for changing the relative color levels for an image from one site. It is microstock. The level isn't supposed to be set too high (that would be too high). Actually the level is probably set higher than the return dictates now.

Nikovsk · « **Reply #17 on:** April 06, 2014, 18:48 »

I think you're doing well. I started this february and made U$ 0.75 (BS only) and U$ 6.85 in the second month (BS, CS, IS, DT, FT) and april is already better than march. I have between 100-300 files online, hopefully things will get going when I add SS. Thinking about uploading to PD and P5 but I guess I'll wait until I have more images.

rkris · « **Reply #18 on:** April 09, 2014, 05:46 »

I started uploading this year as well.

In Febrary I made $5,68 and $18,93 in March. I have now between 50 and 60 images on line, depending on site. I have made money on SS, FT, IS and 123. SS and FT is currently my best perfomers. Nothing yet on DT, DP or YM. I'm kind of surpised that I have 0 dl from DT, but I guess my port is not good enough yet. So far I've been enjoying the experience and I believe my skills will continue to grow from shooting stock.

PryorMan · « **Reply #19 on:** April 11, 2014, 08:18 »

rkris and Nikovsk, Thanks for the reply's!

I have only made .35 with DT so far with 18 pics over two months. FT is better with $1.54 from 13 pics. I have done the best with 123RF and CanStockPhoto. I just got accepted to SS and IS and already have sales at SS. I have uploaded to P5, BS, YM, DP,VR, MS and CC but I don't know how long I will give them, its a lot of work to upload if they're not generating an sales.

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Author Topic: Question for new microstock photographers regarding sales. (Read 6776 times)

PryorMan

BaldricksTrousers

Goofy

BaldricksTrousers

Jo Ann Snover

shudderstok

shudderstok

BaldricksTrousers

shudderstok

BaldricksTrousers

shudderstok

ShadySue

PryorMan

shudderstok

Digital66

Digital66

pancaketom

Nikovsk

rkris

PryorMan

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