Quote from: antistock on February 07, 2012, 14:46
quantity might be of secondary importance but on the other side nobody is starving with 10,000 images in portfolio.

i also disagree.  10000 in the portfolio does not make you successful.  i want to change my position from a little earlier also and say that I agree it's not quality or quanity that really counts either.  it is placement.   you can have 5000 great images on page 200 of best match and you will starve.  you can fave some crappy images one best match page one and you will thrive.  for the most part your success is defined by the matrix.

Quote from: gostwyck on February 07, 2012, 12:59

Quote from: Synonymous on February 07, 2012, 12:45

Quote from: antistock on February 07, 2012, 00:56

Quote from: Synonymous on February 06, 2012, 23:36
if it really is the end of the stock work then what? what is left?  pack up our bags and go home?

it's gonna take a few years to reach the point of non-return but the die has been cast.

agencies can survive without too many contributors, but contributors can't survive without agencies.
the OP has 3500 images on IS and he's starving, soon you will need 5000 images, then 10.000, and then it will be finally financially unsustainable and people will give up.

this industry has been completely cannibalized and it lived on his laurels for too long.
there's simply no more cake to eat and buyers are screaming for even  cheaper prices (!).

i am at over 4500 images and I too am starving.  I think 5000 or 10000 would not stop me from starving.  i am with less than twenty percent my value from a year or so ago

It's not quantity that counts but quality. Quality trumps quantity every time. The contributors who will survive are the ones who produce the best images in their subject matter, not the most images.

it is actually a combination of both.   every submitted image isn't going to be the highest quality.  also even with the highest quality image, you will need more than just a few.  this sweet spot is going to be different for each contributor.  also, the value of the amount earned is going to be different.  for me I my images aren't the best but they are pretty darn good yet they have disappeared from the best match over the last year or so.  you may have the most awesome perfect image ever but it is useless if no one can find it.

Quote from: antistock on February 07, 2012, 00:56

Quote from: Synonymous on February 06, 2012, 23:36
if it really is the end of the stock work then what? what is left?  pack up our bags and go home?

it's gonna take a few years to reach the point of non-return but the die has been cast.

agencies can survive without too many contributors, but contributors can't survive without agencies.
the OP has 3500 images on IS and he's starving, soon you will need 5000 images, then 10.000, and then it will be finally financially unsustainable and people will give up.

this industry has been completely cannibalized and it lived on his laurels for too long.
there's simply no more cake to eat and buyers are screaming for even  cheaper prices (!).

i am at over 4500 images and I too am starving.  I think 5000 or 10000 would not stop me from starving.  i am with less than twenty percent my value from a year or so ago

Quote from: antistock on February 06, 2012, 13:54

Quote from: mirkic on February 06, 2012, 11:36
I could swear that I wouldn't ever fall bellow 500$ a month... and bellow 300 at getty... and wallaaaaa! I did last summer! And in november with getty! 140$ month!

it's math, people don't realize it because the decline is so slow and month by month with up and downs in the middle but it's just a matter of time.
this in turn will kill the actual oversupply as new contributors will not spend a long time uploading and editing when they face a meager or zero return.

it's the same in every market actually.
RM/RF stock has simply reached the end of the road, both by quality and quantity.

if it really is the end of the stock work then what? what is left?  pack up our bags and go home?

wow.  this is my first post here but I feel so sorry for your situation.  It really brings me to tears to see so many suffering like this.