I just wanted to start off and say thank you to the many members contributing in these forms.  I've been lurking for a month or so and reading most of the newer posts and it's definitely helped me understand microstock better.  I saw my friend selling 5-20 pics a day on shutterstock so I thought I would give a try at it.  I am an amateur photographer and have shot about 2k shots with my D80.  Most of the content I used for submission was from a trip to Hawaii and I was just learning how to use the camera (should have taken a tripod for the trip).

Here are the 17 pics I submitted to Fotolia and dreamstime (Recommended by my friend as starter sites before trying shutterstock/istockphoto) http://www.flickr.com/photos/residentg2k6/sets/72157624112189387/detail/

Fotolia wasn't particularly helpful in giving me feedback with rejections.  They accepted DSC_0080 (dragonfly), DSC_0816 (black cow) , DSC_0819 (brown cows) and DSC_0924 (radiotelescope)

Dreamstime accepted DSC_0148 (duck), DSC_0819 (brown cows), DSC_0928 (sunset), DSC_0929 (Keck observatories), DSC_0930 (Gemini North)

The only overlap between the two sites was they both like the brown cows pic (which I didn't think was that great to begin with).  I understand now that these pics probably won't sell a lot like the vectors and pics of business people that are the top sellers at most sites.  I'd like some feedback as to how I could improve on what I have shot so when I consider shooting similar material it would have a better (read more marketable use) and also any pointers to improve my crappy skills as a photographer Tongue   I'll go with Dreamstime's reasons since they seem to be more helpful:

DSC_0040 (butterfly) - This image does not yet meet our present requirements in terms of technical quality, composition, lighting setup, color, or overall attention to detail.
QUESTION - This image to me appears to be technically OK.  I know ISO 100-200 is optimal.  I don't think there's much noise (was shot handheld on Nikkor 18-200mm at 200mm with DX crop of the D80) and  I cropped it somewhat in CS5 to get rid of wasted fill of leaves in background.  Would this be considered blurry since I didn't use tripod or is it sharp enough to be decent?  I know it's not a full-res version - any place I can upload those? Anything wrong with butterfly being off center?  Colors off?  I didn't do any work in CS5 since I just got the program and still figuring out very basics.

DSC_0159 (yellow tree) - This image does not yet meet our present requirements in terms of technical quality, composition, lighting setup, color, or overall attention to detail.
QUESTION - I didn't notice the overexposed sky at the top until I was cropping it.  Guess the higher ISO (450) and blown out sky are killing it's chances.  Any way to fix/salvage this pic?  Probably if I used a tripod I could have dropped the ISO and lowered the +1/3 EV I added (again I am a noobie and was just learning the camera so please forgive me)

DSC_0160/168 (hydrangeas) - This image does not yet meet our present requirements in terms of technical quality, composition, lighting setup, color, or overall attention to detail.
QUESTION - Now I looked at the other hydrangea pics available on shutterstock and I must say mine is more colorful and has the image centered better than most pics.  But now I see the ISO at 640.  Other than using a tripod/external lighting was there any thing else I should have done?  Any way to salvage/repair this pic for resubmission?

DSC_0176 (spider) - The image contains a large amount of noise artifacts. Please fix this issue using noise-removal software and resubmit. You can also check this thread: http://www.dreamstime.com/thread_109
QUESTION - I'm surprised they even asked me to resubmit this.  Again this was at full zoom on the 18-200mm (not the sharpest lens) and handheld with no flash (didn't take my SB800 with me since this was shot on a trip to Seattle) so the ISO is 720.  I did think it has nice bokeh with the blurred out green in back.  Would running it through CS5 Noise filter do it or would I need a better noise program like the ones posted in other threads?  Or is this a hopeless pic Tongue

DSC_0176 (spider) - Lack of composition. Please visit the Stock Photo Utilities section of our site or the message boards for more information on how to produce stock-oriented images.
- Poor lighting setup, poor contrast or incorrect exposure.
QUESTION - This was a bird in the hotel lobby of the Hilton.  Even if I used the SB800 flash and tried to bounce it off the ceiling (40-50ft ceiling) I think I would have has crappy lighting.  I probably would have needed to take the flash off the hotshoe with a cable right?  Or maybe a diffuser would have done the trick?  I was thinking of cutting around the bird and changing to background to white (a tedious task I guess because I didn't see more than a couple head-on macaw pics on white background)?  Is it worth the effort?  Is this pic repairable?

DSC_0701 (green beach) - Poor color: this image has a low color profile and needs improvement in order to increase its sales potential. You can process your image with color enhancement software, such as Photoshop, giving it the appeal it needs. - Poor lighting setup, poor contrast or incorrect exposure.
QUESTION - Off the bat I can see the white waves may be blown out.  I had a UV filter on the lens but no polarizer - would that have helped?  They suggest improving color profile - I guess making it pop?  Any easy ways to do that?

DSC_0878 (mountain/clouds) - There are visible dust, stains, and/or scratches from the scanning process, or abnormal spots on your image generated by dust on the camera sensor and/or stains/dust on the camera lens. Please fix the problem and resubmit.
QUESTION - I'm not seeing what they're seeing.  I did use CS5 Content Aware to get rid of a vertical sun flare on right along the left margin (clouds show a little distortion there if zoomed in) but I'm not sure where's they're seeing the dust/stains.

DSC_0931 (triangular shadow) - Lack of composition. Please visit the Stock Photo Utilities section of our site or the message boards for more information on how to produce stock-oriented images.
- Poor lighting setup, poor contrast or incorrect exposure.
QUESTION - I personally thought this was a nice picture (reminds me of the pyramid shadow scene from 5th Element).  I'm not sure how I could have used any lighting here.  Guess I could have messed around with the exposure.  Any suggestions?

Any general suggestions/criticisms are also welcome.  I got a 6month only baby girl that ends up being most of my photo subjects lately but would love to be able to take better stock photos once she's running around rose gardens and stuff Smiley  Equipment so far is a Nikon D80, Nikkor 18-200 VR, Nikkor 12-24, SB800 Speedflash and just got a cheapie Dynex tripod a few days ago.  Will get a Bogen or something like that when I see a sale and probably a monopod for traveling.  I want to also try macro shots so I'm looking for a white table and trying to figure out how to light the object with 2 or 3 devices.  Will probably also be buying a macro lens and maybe D3 or successor when it comes out (if wife allows me lol).