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Messages - Anyka
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201
« on: January 31, 2017, 04:07 »
"Most of you will be familiar with this process from your other relationships in the industry. There are a few minor differences with Canva because we operate out of Australia, but the process is much the same: we will withhold a portion of your royalties and pay them to the Australian Tax Office, and youll need to claim them back via your own tax authorities in your country. "
On the contrary : we are not familiar with the process of withholding tax, because ALL other agencies do NOT withhold tax from contributors living in countries with tax treaties. This means WE (the contributors) have to fill out forms every year, for every agency, but no money is withheld.
The letter gives me the impression that Canva plans to do the very opposite : (1) withhold taxes, even if there is a double taxation treaty with your country. (2) We do not have do fill out forms or send anything to Canva (3) Canva will have to do a lot of paperwork to prove for every contributor, on an annual basis, which taxes have been withheld (4) Contributors in tax treaty countries should add these Canva documents to their annual tax documents and the paid amount will be deducted.
Lee, please correct me if I am wrong here?
In my case (Belgium), this would mean Canva will withhold 10% - the Belgian taxes on Royalties are 15%, so I will have to pay 5% on Canva income and 15% on all other royalties.
Now my question is : why do it the opposite way? I would say (from the point of view of Canva) it's less work for the agency to let us do the paperwork and withhold nothing?
202
« on: January 02, 2017, 03:32 »
Same here : December and October vanished .... then this morning December was back again, but October is still a big zero ...
203
« on: December 15, 2016, 05:13 »
There's not much left of my portfolio but I guess I might as well archive what information is there. The thing is, I can't figure out how to download a CSV file of my stats. I couldn't find anything that would allow me to do this on my stats page, nor anywhere else I looked. The FAQ was useless.
Could someone here point me in the right direction?
Go to your STATS page and wait patiently till your bar charts appear. You'll see "DAILY" : click on it and choose "MONTHLY". Right above "monthly" you'll see the word GROSS ROYALTIES and (in my case) a box with "X" (like an image that cannot be displayed). If you hover over that X, you'll see "GET YOUR DAILY STATISTICS IN CSV" : click on it and wait. (I know, it says DAILY, but you get Monthly). You can save each year, divided per month, in an Excel spreadsheet. (but wait with 2016 until a few days after year end). If you get an ERROR page, start all over again, as the BACK button doesn't work.
204
« on: October 24, 2016, 04:38 »
The OP makes designs with stock photography and wants to know our opinion about how these photos should be paid :
- payment to the contributor (via agency 123rf) EVERY TIME some one buys the design (like Canva);
OR
- 1x Extended License for EVERY photo used in a design (even if it is NEVER SOLD).
123rf wants the extended license, which would cost him a HUGE amount of money, without knowing if any one would ever need/use the image.
Canva uses the first option, only Canva does not work with an agency. Canva works directly with the contributors and pays for EVERY single USE. The OP wants to do the same. This would mean that successful designs will mean lots of credits/payments to the contributor (through 123rf) and non-successful designs will just "exist", without payment to the OP, the Agency or the Contributor.
(unsuccessful designs however WILL cost the OP the working hours to create them).
The only mistake he made (I think) is to already make quite a lot of designs BEFORE discussing this important matter with 123rf.
My personal opinion would be Payment per download, not the extended license.
- In case of extended license, DesignBold will try to make LOTS of designs with the SAME images (= cheaper). After receiving the extended license, contributors will not receive extra payment if a design proves super-successful.
- In case of Payment per download, DesignBold can make as many designs as they want, using different images all the time, and the better they do this (and the more variety), the more successful their sales will be = better for everybody (including 123rf).
I may be wrong of course, but this is my humble but honest opinion.
The only thing that might be better for us contributors, is using the Canva method (work without an external agency), but for that he would need to hire a lot more personnel.
Beside that important question about which license, he is ALSO looking for a co-founder, but that is not his main problem right now. His main problem is the fact that 123rf asks for an EL for every image, even if it does not sell at all.
Did I get that right?
205
« on: September 23, 2016, 02:28 »
Keep in mind the original post was from 18 months ago or thereabouts. I think it was dragged up by the crazy Russian spammer or the helicopter essay dude. The OP could be no longer of this world.
Oops! Thanks!
206
« on: September 23, 2016, 01:38 »
I do not outsource retouching for my microstock photography, but I do use outsourcing for portraiture (belly & baby photography). I pay 2 $ per image to remove every skin blemish including acne, cellulite, clothing marks, pregnancy stripes, scars, red spots, bruises, shiny spots etc. No color correcting or other improvements.
- how fast do you work? (turn-around of 2 days possible? I send batches of 8 to 16 images)
- what if a person is really a lot of work (lots of skin impurities), or there are 3 people in the photo? (right now, it's 2 $ no matter how much work).
- you really need a PayPal account, but I pay 5% extra per Paypal payment.
- I send the 40 Mb images in LZW TIF format, in Profoto RGB and I want them back in the same format (I send them through "We Transfer") - is this possible?
- most retouchers offer 1 free sample photo to show their skills.
207
« on: September 11, 2016, 01:35 »
Sold 32 images on DT today, which is the exact number of images I took of 1 Asian woman. He/she bought them all.
208
« on: August 12, 2016, 05:56 »
209
« on: August 12, 2016, 05:01 »
I already got a reply from Pond5 : it's an official request for verification from Pond5. Oh well, I better be just a bit too paranoide than get my account(s) hacked  Reason for verification : they need to know if I'm a real photographer, so they wanted some proof (like my official website, screenshot of my workspace etc.). I've been with Pond5 since 2011 ...
210
« on: August 12, 2016, 03:36 »
AND do inform them about this. I don't think they monitor our talks here at all.
Or I am deluding myself. 
OK, done!
211
« on: August 12, 2016, 01:05 »
why ask a bunch of strangers and on a forum instead of emailing p5, that would be the safest option
After so many years on this forum, I really don't see you as strangers any more
212
« on: August 11, 2016, 15:09 »
I got this mail : Your Action Is Required.
We take protecting our artists and their intellectual property very seriously. We are currently taking major steps across the site to ensure that both our artists and buyers are protected from fraudulent content. In order to do this, we need your help please take a moment to confirm and verify your identity with us.
The deadline to verify your account is August 26th.My name is spelled correctly, which makes it look real, but the sender is : [email protected] = looks like phishing Any one else got this mail? Can any one from Pond5 tell me if this comes from them or not? I'm not going to click that "VERIFY YOUR ACCOUNT" button without knowing for sure.
213
« on: July 23, 2016, 01:00 »
Not serious : my camera would make a sound or give a few light flashes when I call it ... I keep on forgetting where I put my camera in the middle of a photo session. Would be nice if my camera would just tell me "Hey, I'm HERE!".
Serious : a flip-down LCD screen like so many non-pro cameras have, so I don't have to use my angle-viewer if I want to shoot real low.
Super serious : I am dreaming of the day Canon starts selling medium format (at reasonable pricing of course) with EF mounts.
214
« on: July 18, 2016, 15:42 »
What country are you in?
215
« on: July 14, 2016, 09:38 »
SS since 2006 - 8000 files, and yes, in the same boat as Rinder. Declining sales since 2012. One difference however : I ALWAYS expect declining sales (even in 2012), simply because I'm a pessimist in nature. So when everybody is talking about diversifying, I do that, but not within microstock, not even within stock photography. When I left my day job end of 2011, I did not have the guts to put all eggs in 1 basket, so I started a portrait business. Right now, I spend 90% of my time photographying belly&baby portraits and I love it. And when I see an opportunity to shoot something fresh/new, I will shoot it and submit to SS and other agencies. So I submit less than the early days, but no typical stock stuff anymore. I'm glad I did, because if the decline in stock (not just SS!!) goes on like this, I'll be so happy I still have those bellies & babies 
216
« on: June 07, 2016, 06:43 »
Started in 2006, so "mature port" in 2012 (top year).
2016 = -43% compared to 2012.
As 10% of that is due to being kicked out of Fotolia, one can say that only 33% is due to "market reasons".
2012 was also the year that I quit my day job and became a fulltime photographer (not fulltime STOCK!).
2016 is the year that my non-stock photography income will exceed my stock income.
217
« on: May 18, 2016, 05:57 »
@ rimglow Feel free to use this code: SHUTTER55. Looking forward to having you on board!
I just received the invitation code, so I could get started. However, can some one explain to me how "photo thieves" are identified? I'm talking microstock here. 99% of my stock photos on the internet are (hopefully) legally bought from one of the agencies. So the only cases where theft is a sure thing are : (1) watermark still on photo, and (2) photo is for sale by a website that is NOT a partner of one of the agencies. I can hardly believe Pixsy is going to check all this, so is it correct to assume that - if I upload 5000 images (or can I send a link to Shutterstock?  ) - I am the one who should alert Pixsy and not the other way round?
218
« on: May 04, 2016, 03:18 »
Is there a way to try this out before making the jump?
219
« on: May 02, 2016, 11:24 »
They also have not reviewed my last 4 batches - that's a backlog of more than a month. They used to be a lot quicker.
220
« on: April 14, 2016, 14:00 »
I would never use Lightroom for keywording, as Lightroom puts them in alphabetical order. At least 2 agencies (Fotolia and Alamy, maybe others too) require keywords in order of importance.
Hi Anyka
Which keywording software do you use?
Kind Regards, TW
I have never found (yet) an easy keywording software package that leaves the keywords in the order as I type them, so I still do it in Photoshop.
221
« on: April 04, 2016, 14:01 »
Something very weird is going on there : every time I click on "upload", I get to see images of other contributors in a completely different lay-out ... 
222
« on: March 21, 2016, 16:39 »
Anyway I've closed my account on 500px and hope that many will follow: https://500px.com/settings (the delete my account forever is down on right)
All the best with your new venture
Thanks, you save me the time to find out how to delete my account. Just did it.
223
« on: March 19, 2016, 16:14 »
I must spend days editing a 1 hour photo shoot and they have no idea. My husband said to show them before and after pictures so they might understand ...
Either way, If I double my price, people will get very upset with me. I'm just going to take time off from it for a while and come back again with a higher price.
Just an idea - it works for me, may be it works for you : Many customers want "ALL" photos, or at least lots of them, not just 10 or 20. Editing all photos is a nightmare, so I beside the fully edited packages (with 8 to 20 images), customers can buy non-edited images at a much lower price. These images are not high resolution, but they are printable. So you could have a price for the photo session alone, and let the customer choose an add-on package with X images edited. Then they can add as many non-edited images as they like (at X dollars a piece). This way they are in control of what they spend, even if you raise your pricing. And one other thing : you should never give a customer "way more" than what's in their package. You can SHOW them that you have more to images (watermarked!), but if they want them (even non-edited), they will have to pay for them. The easiest way to reduce your amount of work is to make the IMAGES more expensive, not the photo session.
224
« on: March 15, 2016, 17:24 »
Oh gosh no! I don't want the liability. I've seen my own work in things it shouldn't be in and can't fight it...
But I meant with the consent of your customers, model releases and stuff.. You feel shy to raise your fee putting so many efforts into the photoshoots and processing, then maybe you could agree with some of your clients for certain images to be used in stock...
I do this occasionally, when a couple is very photogenic, or when they have twins, or a super cute little brother, or when it's my make-up artist who's pregnant ... I let them choose between a regular (paying) session and a stock session. If they choose to sign a model release, I give them a free session, dvd and photo book. But as new stock images don't sell as good as in "the old days", I must say that a paying portrait session usually gives more income.
225
« on: March 15, 2016, 15:57 »
Teddy is absolutely right. I started microstock in 2006 and quit my day job in 2012. That year I added family photography, as I did not want to put all eggs in 1 basket.
This year, my portraiture has grown into being specialised in Belly & Baby photography and my income is 50/50% stock and belly/baby.
I shoot about 100 to 150 images during a session. Clients choose from a watermarked (non-edited) gallery with an average of 45 images, and I only edit the images they buy. My pricing is way higher than yours. I do not show anything on Facebook before full payment.
Clients find me through Google, so I put a lot of effort in my website, SEO and blogging.
If you are afraid to raise your pricing, is it because you think you are not good enough? If so, practice with free sessions, and only put your BEST work on your website. However, if you ARE good enough, raise your pricing and work on marketing, website and SEO.
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