|
MicrostockGroup Sponsors
This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.
Messages - Mantis
4476
« on: November 11, 2012, 14:34 »
Welcome!
4477
« on: November 10, 2012, 20:20 »
Seems to me that a court finding in favor of the eyeglass company would be opening a slippery slope. That would mean that any image with an "object" in it would be subject to design infringement.
Took the words right out of my mouth.
4478
« on: November 10, 2012, 20:18 »
A guy making $8K a month - in his spare time - is posting here, asking if he can succeed in microstock? Am I the only one thinking this is a put-on?
No you are not.
4479
« on: November 10, 2012, 16:38 »
All I have to say is that if you are really making 8 grand a month doing this part time then you must have some excellent stuff. I do, however, find it hard to believe that two years ago you were making $3500 and today you are making 8 grand. Some of the best in the industry like Sean Locke and Lisa FX are uploading a lot of great quality images and it's all they can do to keep their incomes the same from month to month (I am basing this on previous posts by each of them). Just doesn't add up unless you have an extraordinary skill of combining photos/illustrations with cool special effects that don't compete with other work out there and are a missing link in terms of customer needs.
I am not saying it isn't true that you went from 3.5k to 8. k a month in 2 years but I am saying that this seems unlikely given what everyone else is reporting.
4480
« on: November 10, 2012, 12:08 »
Well you made me check and they are indeed rolling in. But by checking I just noticed a whopping $2.88 EL sales. What . is up with that?
4481
« on: November 10, 2012, 09:06 »
On my Galapagos trip a while back I added a 7 day stint in the Amazon to dive with the pink river dolphins. We stayed on a junky river boat with nothing more than screens to protect us from the bugs, no AC, very third world. Showers were water being pulled in from the Amazon, over us, and right back into the Amazon. At best the shampoo made us smell better. Wife came home with malaria. The jungle trekking was pretty wet and you couldn't see much but could hear a lot. If you get the chance, fish for some piranha. just put some raw meat on a hook and you will catch one pretty quickly. While diving in the Amazon we had no issues with them, but if you choose to swim in it don't pee in the water. They have those parasites that swim up your pee hole.
Lots of locals bathing along the shore as well and their huts/homes are pretty rustic but very interesting. I arranged to go to a school in the jungle and I brought a couple of book bags full of toys and school supplies. after handing the school supplies over to the head person, my wife and I walked around the area, tossing Frisbees and balls to the kids one at a time. We had a "chain of children" following us for an hour, like a long tail behind us. Once the toys were gone, the kids disappeared.
It was quite expensive for us because we had to fly in scuba gear (tanks) on small planes. As excited as we were to dive the Amazon, the visibility was zero feet. All you could feel were "things" crawling on your legs and brushing up against you. Not for the weak hearted for sure.
4482
« on: November 10, 2012, 08:48 »
My $7.87 wasn't repurchased but I managed to get two new sales today, one for $100 and one for $160, both non distributor so I get to keep my 60%.
4483
« on: November 10, 2012, 08:46 »
Does Fotolia really hate travel pics (mostly Landscape)? From my two trips I am lucky to get 25% Acceptance Rate from them. Yet, if I shoot a Tomato on White is hits 100% AR. Next time I travel it will be to a Tomato farm with my white boards in hand...
Yes. I have some really cool shots of seascapes and virtually all of them have been rejected. Not that it matters, but they've been accepted everywhere else including IS, DT, SS, etc.
4484
« on: November 10, 2012, 08:39 »
the fact that 123 hasn't chimed in is our answer. It's gonna happen. Why? Greed. They saw that Istock got away with it so why not. They saw brilliance in IS's move and simply replicated the model. What's next? Pay to upload?
4485
« on: November 09, 2012, 21:14 »
Horrible!
4486
« on: November 09, 2012, 20:55 »
Then he is in the wrong business. Forget the excuses. That kind of work is brutal. Doing it right means this: You wouldn't have to post in these forums. Wedding photography is an art and so is managing the clients. I will stop here. If the person cannot edit to the satisfaction of the client they are in the wrong biz...
4487
« on: November 07, 2012, 20:31 »
A sale on Monday. Refunded on Tuesday.
Same here.
4488
« on: November 06, 2012, 18:21 »
I had two(!) sales already this month. I hope this is the beginning of a change.
Don't hold your breath. Honestly I don't see how they are surviving. I have made 35 cents this month with 2500 images.
4489
« on: November 04, 2012, 17:52 »
I'm back already, Mantis. 
I have 3 batteries and 3 cards (2x4GB + 1x8GB).
Well I can't wait to see your work, if you share it here. Welcome home!!
4490
« on: November 04, 2012, 10:50 »
Last month I hit a low for this year for Istock sales (not PP). Month over month my sales continue to decline with about 2100 images there. Like most of you I have added somewhere around 500 more images this year but negative growth is my reward. My PP sales were climbing to make up most of the losses from IS sales but Sept I did only avg with PP and for the first time this year I didn't make $500 for the month. I have a regular job so I feel really bad for those who rely on that income for a living. They have no voice, and just have to accept the inept responses from IS and struggle to make ends meet.
4491
« on: November 04, 2012, 10:43 »
DT is pretty cyclic for me at 2500 images. Sept was around $220, not a BME but better than average. However it is not unusual for me to do a $130 month the next month. Very big swings indeed.
4492
« on: November 04, 2012, 10:37 »
Wondering if anyone has bothered to join and accept the royalties.
4493
« on: November 04, 2012, 10:33 »
Luis my head is spinning...lol. Good summary .
4494
« on: November 04, 2012, 10:29 »
I'm going to Sicily & Malta tomorrow. Any hints are appreciated, especiallly photo ideas and tips.
Have a good time? Send a postcard? LOL
Yes photo tip, take twice as many as you think you need. It's digital, it's virtually free to hit the delete button later, but you would have to pay a bunch to go back and re-shoot anything. Make that three times what you think you need. Memory is cheap.
Don't forget to pack your charger, and spare batteries and lots of memory cards.
This is very sound advice. I travel to some remote places and even if not remote, what race says means a lot. I can't tell you how many people I have bailed out because they forgot some piece of equipment or batteries. Plus, enjoy your time...don't make it a stock eye when you shoot more than something that simply pleases you. Enjoy your trip.
4495
« on: November 04, 2012, 10:26 »
2) Different reviewers with different ideas on what has CV, which is subjective depending upon which reviewer is reviewing your images at the time. Still falls back to the fact that CV is subjective.
Falling back on previous reviewer's decisions can at least create more consistency. That is the point.
It's not falling back on a previous reviewers decision it is that they are different reviewers with different thoughts on what has CV.
one solution would be to have any images rejected for subjective reasons - LCV, framing, composition, etc automatically be sent to a second reviewer and only rejecting if both agree.
this would be a much more reasonable (and fair) approach, but unlikely.
This has worked for me a few times.
4496
« on: November 01, 2012, 08:26 »
^^ Totally the risk of joining new MS sites. I think that has happened to some degree on most MS sites. Now, someone like Kozzi, they are coming in dirt cheap and maybe they will get a pool of nice images and raise their prices to where everyone else is   I wonder how many people have signed up with Kozzi anyway. I wouldn't touch them with a 10-foot pole. I've been looking for that next site and have eliminated Pocketstock, Kozzi and Pond5 based on the excellent feedback MSG has provided me. Probably not any other site to consider and given your feedback, Pocketstock has joined the dark side.
4497
« on: November 01, 2012, 08:21 »
1) It has been 72hrs for some time now, even if you cant see it it is searchable.
2) Different reviewers with different ideas on what has CV, which is subjective depending upon which reviewer is reviewing your images at the time.
3) Mass produced letter for everyone who questions the review process, just resubmit with a note stating what you fixed and move on.
My Take is this is normal op at any given time and that Florin1961 is still new to this somewhat and therefore a NEWB.
Stop worrying about what you have no control over upload more and keep on getting it, move on.
Sound advice. Does not help to ponder too much about what you can not change.
^^ This correct. When I feel strongly about an image or series of images and they get rejected, I either resubmit with a note or send an email to contributor help and ask for a re-evaluation. Here's the kicker. Sometimes I hear back from them and other times I do not. The last time I did this they responded, re-reviewed my images and accepted all of them. So if you believe in your work then fight for every one you feel is a winner. I have had two images recently that are nice but simply were not worth fighting the rejection..both considered trademark violations. I just didn't want to fight that battle because it's their policies that also account for rejections, not necessarily image technical quality and marketability (LCV).
4498
« on: November 01, 2012, 08:12 »
My only complaint is that Istock sales continue to nose dive, PP was flat this month, but overall is rising, helping to offset IS losses. FT suckie as usual. BigStock crummy month. 123, SS, DT, DP, PD, CanStockPhoto and Alamy all up over last month. Stockfresh even managed to pull in $12 bucks this month 
4499
« on: October 30, 2012, 07:07 »
Really, what's the point? If you shoot macros, you use a different lens then landscapes, then portraits, then lifestyle.
Right^^. Just depends on what you are trying to shoot. I use my 60mm macro when I am shooting bullets, and 50mm portrait when shooting portraits and 24-70 when I am not sure what I'll run into and wide angle when I am shooting landscapes. O may use my 400mm zoom when shooting rock climbers, for example, so for me I don't tie myself to any one single lens.
4500
« on: October 28, 2012, 13:48 »
Then you have macro and wide angle ports, extension rings, ports, gears, sync cords, strobe arms, aiming lights, diopters, tools, and one big thing is knowledge of trouble shooting your system when it doesn't work. Take it from me and sgoodwin...you need spectacular stuff and it is very selective in terms of what buyers purchase. One of my biggest frustrations was to have National Geographic purchase two of my images for about 50 cents each for web use. A good system can run you $15,000 with the right lenses, camera and all the accessories you need to be competitive. Look at what I just said. I got 50 cents for a underwater image. That can take more than a lifetime to re-coup your costs. I have my system because I am in the industry, so uploading UW images is just because I have them, not because I went out and bought a system to get them for MS.
|
Sponsors
Microstock Poll Results
Sponsors
|
Show Posts
