Thank you, Microbius, for the suggested way to find our work on the web...

SSTK trading at 21.55 after opening at $17 per share.

Sorry, but your quote is incorrect.  For the Retail Investor (you and me), the stock market opens at 9:30AM EST, and Shutterstock (SSTK) OPENED at $22.50, not the $17 you quoted.  The High was 22.90, the Low was 21.28, and it CLOSED at 21.66, actually lower than it opened...

IPOs are like that, there's always the price 'special' investors (favored bank customers, etc) get on board with before it's real first day on the stock exchange, that was the $17 before it's first 'real' day on the open market. So it almost always looks like a big jump, but the first time 'Joe Blows' like us could have bought was at the opening price of $22.50 at 9:30 this morning.   Just look at any daily stock chart.
 
(I trade stocks/options regularly)

I wish SSTK the best... just wanted to clarify this point.

I love SS and have been a contributor since 2005, but I will not be buying any stock right off the bat.  To do so without knowing if institutional investors will get on board ('Smart Money') amounts to speculating/gambling versus investing for the retail investor (known on Wall Street as 'Dumb Money').

SS will not have the the public interest of a Facebook, Yahoo, etc. so you don't have to worry about missing the train out of the station.  How many people still go 'huh?' when you even mention the term stock photography, let alone 'microstock'?  Besides, other important things to know would be lockup period, etc.... Look how much further FB fell when the lockup period was over.

I'll let the Smart Money with their smart analysts advise their institutional clients whether SS is a good buy as a stock, and if it is, the Smart Money will move the stock price.  Just look for price action on high volume (and even what is low, normal, or high volume will take time to establish).   As retail investors, we can only go along for the ride, but I have no idea what direction from the $13-$15 range that is. 

Normally, one could look at cohorts to see how a group of like stocks is moving (metals, tech, transportation, etc), but with Getty being taken private, Corbis being private (ala Bill Gates), and Sipa (I read it is the third largest stock agency in the world?? owned by a German group), it's hard to know how it would do.  Too much in the dark for me to just 'buy and hope'.

There ain't gonna be a public frenzy over Shutterstock, so you don't have to 'jump in'.  If there is value, then there will be plenty of time to get on board and hopefully grow with the company.  I wish SS all the best!

Anyone?  I'm not looking to pit one service against the other, just info on anyone's experiences in using either to help me decide who to go with.  Any replies greatly appreciated, thanks.

Congrats on your new D7000, it is a great camera.  I just got the D800E and will pair it with my D7000 on outings, since the D7000 is a DX camera, and the D800E is a full frame camera.

I would highly recommend 1) buy Darrell Young's 'Mastering the Nikon D7000', which is less than $10 as a Kindle download from Amazon.  Amazon has free Kindle apps for iPhone, Mac, Windows (not sure what you have), so for one $10, I have easy access to a great manual on my laptop AND iPhone (handy for trips or out in the field.

2) If you haven't already, join Nikonians.org (free) and you can ask questions on their D7000 forum. I have > 5 Nikon bodies (including the D3x), and often got answers the same day when I was on a trip, for example.  But Darrell's book is well organized and in Kindle, you can do a word search for specific issues.  WELL Worth the money.

Use the Fine-Tune autofocus.... I did, and it actually made me realize that my beloved 70-200mm VR1 was the problem (she has since been repaired/restored).

Also, you should be able to set the second card slot for either copy (backup), or overflow, or 1st slot Raw and 2nd slot jpeg... its in the Menu  if u have problems, I'll try and check back later... gotta run.

I pretty much stick to Nikon stuff only, I once bought a 'knock off' battery for my D3, and it wouldn't hold a charge after a year...you get what you pay for.... I would always try to bite the bullet and pay for Nikon quality.

I looked for you on Adobe.com, and I don't see how you can get an updated version of ACR for Photoshop 8 (CS1?).  It looks like they stopped updating for CS1 after 2005, well before the D7000 came out.  I have recently bit the bullet for Lightroom4 (I use Photoshop CS5 extended) because I am getting serious about DAM (Digital Asset Management) and also Time-lapse photography, so the LR4 had some great capabilities for both, but the ACR in Lightroom 4 is pretty much the same engine as in the latest CS6.  It's a learning curve, yeah, but worth it in the near and long run.

So ways to possibly consider not having to use NX2 (I also hate going between 2 programs, although  LR-Photoshop makes more sense than NX2-Photoshop imo, to get an ACR version that recognizes the D7000 and for less money than upgrading to CS6 is to buy LR4, or maybe even Photoshop Elements 10.  I wonder if Elements 10 has more to offer than CS1, PS 8.

Another way I save money is for ~$99 I joined NAPP, then go through their discount page.  They offer discounts on Adobe products, have a great link for BH photo, for example... If you will be buying any equipment at all in the next year, you can likely save on free shipping alone, and they have 'NAPP' member only specials that came in handy for gift giving times last year.  Just something to consider...

I found working with NX2 too cumbersome.

Sometimes getting a great camera means upgrading software.

There was value in his rant.  Also, keep in mind who some of his intended audience was, those who had outcried his publishing a book on microstock photography.  So, some of the harsher criticisms here might be more acceptable if he was preaching just to the choir, but remember this was a reponse ALSO to those who just outright hate microstock photography/photographers.

Many comments in this thread also have much value.  And Lagereek, you are funny as hell

I just checked, and it turns out I have a small portfolio there from 123RF as well, with sales. I know it is from 123RF originally, because I had a unique (different than my userid at other MS agencies) name at 123RF that is the same name for PixMac.  So if 123RF is no longer a Partner, then where is the money going???  I certainly have never heard from them.  I did send an email to them on this...

I have a full time job.  Does it count as "life"?

I also have my dear lovebirds: http://www.mariaadelaidesilva.net/agapornis/

Wow, Maria! I loved your youtube video.  I've hatched chickens before, and they seem self sufficient the first day.  The one day lovebirds look so helpless.  On what day do they stand on their own?

I'm an M.D., spend 50+ hours/week in the O.R.  Hobbies: photography, gardening, 'homesteading', guitar, and I justbought a flamenco guitar to learn for 2010...

I had 2 today, unusual for my tiny port (< 400 images).  Congrats to Lisa and nrubok!  Thank you Shutterstock.  I never have had issues with them.

Quote from: CarolinaSmith on December 31, 2009, 14:45

Congrats on  your D3x.  I too just bought one.  When it was first on the market (about a year ago) I said I would give Nikon one year to come out with a less expensive body but with a greater than 20MP sensor.  I kept waiting impatiently, and the 'D700x' or similar never materialized.  I had the D3, but kept wanting the 20MP+ body.

So I bit the bullet a few weeks ago and do not regret it one bit.  Besides, it was totally paid for by microstock earnings this year.

  It is amazing how you can pull so much detail even when enlarging in postprocessing.  Nikon's CLS (Creative Light System) is enough alone to keep me with Nikon.  But when even Canon photogs spend money on Nikon's amazing 14-24mm f/2.8 (which I also have) to put on a Canon body.... and the D3x is named CAMERA OF THE YEAR, well, I would really think very hard before 'switching' to Canon, especially if you have other Nikon equipment.  To me, Nikon has it all, lighting system, lenses, and now what others have crowned, the best dSLR to date (not counting medium format bodies), the D3x.  Even Nikon's raw developer took leaps and bounds, Capture NX2 with it's U point technology.

From capture to post processing, I feel Nikon now has the total package from which a photographer will only be limited by his/her own imagination, skills, or knowledge base.

I am now totally satisfied and do not plan on buying another Nikon body until they come out with a dSLR that has HD 1080p video capability. 

http://www.nikon.com/about/news/2009/0817_EISA_01.htm
http://www.popphoto.com/Features/Camera-of-the-Year-Nikon-D3x

Best to all in 2010!

http://CarolinaSmith.com

Congrats on your purchases. I'm one of the people who jumped. I got tired of waiting for a D700x, sold my D300 and other stuff, and picked up a 5D MII. I have no regrets.The image quality of the 5D is incredible. 

The D3X is awesome and offers better focusing, pro body, and a list of other stuff. But for what I'm shooting I couldn't find one reason to spend the extra $5,000.

Both Canon and Nikon make great systems. I don't think either is just "better". They both have pros and cons.

Paulie, you are 99% correct! The other 1% can't help but come from a Nikon diehard fan  .  Congrats on your purchase also. 

I don't know how many times I almost pulled the trigger to buy the Canon 5D MII, especially after watching Vincent Laforet's movies! (and have you seen the latest, 'Nocturne'?...really fabulous).   It took the fact that I was already heavily invested in Nikon gear (and happily so), 13+ lenses plus flash (including R1C1 outfit), plus other Nikon bodies to keep me from pulling the trigger (an economy of scale then comes into play).   I have been with Nikon a long time (Nikomat FTN, Coolpix 5000 on up) and am somewhat a loyalist (not just because, but because their equipment has proven itself over and over to me).  But I didn't want to manually focus my Nikon lenses on a Canon body. 

Now if I could AUTOfocus a Nikkor on a Canon body (LiveView is fantastic, but too cumbersome in many situations), well then, that'd be a different story!

Best wishes for a great 2010 microstock year!

Thanks for the replies.  Seems like Andres has > 8000 photos there and Yuri has > 10000 photos there.  Maybe that's who's making the payouts.

I am, well, Carolina Smith... been uploading to microstock since Apr2005, often read the forums, but respond very infrequently, since I have a way more than full time profession (though photography is a passion of mine, and one I plan to 'retire' into).  I enjoy following sjlocke's comments (pithy and funny) and LisaFx (hey, I saw your hubby on a hospital brochure not too long ago! I was going to tell you, but got dropped from your IS network for , well, responding too infrequently  , don't worry, no offense taken!).  I submit to ~ nine agencies and continually seek to grow as a photographer.  I just had a Nikon D300 modded by Hutech for astrophotography, am teaching myself time-lapse photography.  There is just so much I wish I could do.  I strive for quality over quantitiy and love every moment of it, pain in the arse or not.  Photography rocks. ok,  nuff about me.

http://CarolinaSmith.com