Quote from: Zero Talent on May 03, 2024, 12:11

Happy to report two events:

- Last month was my best April ever.
- My lifetime earnings crossed $400K

Congratulations on these figures! I know very, very few contributors who can achieve such success with such a small portfolio. They are my role models. And you, too, have remained true to your motto "rather less, but very good".

If I see it correctly, you have an RPF (return per file - images and videos mixed, with a ratio of approx. 4:1) of around $200. That's really good!

We can still argue about whether talent is part of it or not. I say yes, you say no. But ultimately it doesn't really matter. The fact is: you deliver "stocky" image material - and that pays off.

What I can't remember: Did I ever ask you how long you've been offering on microstock?

Thanks, Wilm, cobalt and Pacesetter.

Yes, we can still argue. This job doesn�t require talent. It�s very much engineering, and not only about how to operate the equipment. Once you�ve identified the formula, you apply it over and over again. Zero Talent is required for such repetitive work.... 
We are producers, not artists.... like or not.

About your question: In September 2013, I uploaded my first photo to Shutterstock.

P.S. Averages can be deceiving. In this case, the Pareto principle works better (my top seller, a photo, brought in over $8k, my best video, over $7k).

I used TurboTax and I remember that there are provisions to declare taxes withheld outside the US.
I have a bit of that myself, not from microstock, but from a non-US investment fund.

I still think smart phones are not there yet, once compared to real good equipment. So i will not try it as of yet

It's a camera you have on you when you don't have your camera with you.
With a bit of processing, you can get perfectly acceptable photos/videos.

My smartphone upgrades were paid in full (and more) with money from stock:

Quote from: stoker2014 on March 31, 2024, 05:40

I provide links to stock photos. Will they be sold on the Fine Art America website?

These are more stock images. Find Art America is looking more for things that someone might get printed on a T-shirt, or framed and put on a wall, or put on a coffee mug.

What's wrong with hanging a random middle-aged guy with a fake smile and a tablet in his hand on your living room wall?

Quote from: stoker2014 on March 30, 2024, 09:15

Quote from: Faustvasea on March 30, 2024, 04:40

Quote from: stoker2014 on March 30, 2024, 04:23

I understand this site is for selling art photography. This site is not for selling stock photography.

Mate, that�s why it�s opened on off topic subforum, what�s your problem here ? Just move on. *.

My question was not about the microstockgroup.com site, but about the Fine Art America site.
I do not have problems. I do not upload to the Fine Art America site. But looking at what is sold there, I see it is not a stock photograph.

It is not, but since there is off topic subforum, and I know how forums works, I can ask others about that too.

All my FineArt America photos are also available on my microstock sites.

Quote from: stoker2014 on March 30, 2024, 04:23

I understand this site is for selling art photography. This site is not for selling stock photography.

Mate, that�s why it�s opened on off topic subforum, what�s your problem here ? Just move on. *.

With your permission, I could move this thread from the "Off-Topic" to the "Print on Demand" subforum, since it is obviously on-topic.

Quote from: Zero Talent on March 29, 2024, 07:36

As of today, I have almost 550 photos on FAA, and I have made over $12k there since I started in ~2014.
I do not advertise, promote or cross-promote anything, I don't interact with comments and likes.
My last FAA sale was two days ago (see below). The advertisement mentioned is not mine (this is what the FAA does, hence the deep discount).

Is that $12k profit or sales? As I know FAA will take a lot of commissions.

Profit.

Yes, for years either with a Samsung or iPhone.
I mostly use the phones for editorials and they sell ok.
With the iPhone, the latest models are ok with the 48 Mpixels ProRaw.
With Samsung which only shoots 12 Megapixels Raw, I find the RAW better than the 50M Jpeg, even when I resize the 50M, scaled down to 12M.
A final note about Samsung: The Expert RAW are bad! I mean bad!
They force a terrible plastic denoising that renders the Expert RAW pics useless!
Also, although the question is about photos, in the video, the iPhone in ProRes is naturally better,
but here's a suggestion about Samsung.
Go to the advanced menu in the video settings and double the bitrate.
This in 24 fps will double to almost 100 Mbps and makes a huge difference.
Finally, try to shoot HDR10+ with Samsung and then process it as Rec.709.
Shooting with the Samsung in HDR10+ forces the phone to shoot in H265 10-bit 4:2:0 without the need for an external application.

P.S. I haven't used the latest Samsung that I think shoots 50m in RAW, but only in the big model.

I fully agree with your Expert RAW assessment.
Expert RAW is neither "expert" nor "raw." It's a gimmick for the plebeians.

Instead, and especially for videos (but also for photos), I highly recommend you try MotionCam Pro.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.motioncam.pro

On my S24 Ultra, I can shoot full-sensor (4080 x 3060) 10-bit RAW video at 30 fps with no frame loss. Imagine that!

This RAW video can be either converted to a stream of uncompressed RAW DNG photos, which can be edited in Lightroom and reassembled as a video, or it can be exported as ProRes or Log video to be color-graded using a classic process.

For photos, ProShot is also a great alternative, also being able to shoot "pure" uncompressed RAW with all 4 cameras (same as MotionCam Pro)

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.riseupgames.proshot2

Too bad Samsung has not opened up the Camera API to higher resolutions, allowing third-party developers to do a better job.
A very monopolistic attitude, unfortunately.

I'm paid every 1.5 months or so. But a smaller payout threshold is better, of course.

Quote from: Zero Talent on March 04, 2024, 11:34

Quote from: stoker2014 on March 04, 2024, 11:24

My iPhone shoots 8-bit video, although it was purchased in the fall. Yes, the Blackmagic Camera application can record video in prores on it, but I'm not sure that this prores is obtained from a 10-bit source.

If your iPhone is that recent, then you can enable ProRes and shoot 10-bit videos.
Now you learned another new thing.
You're welcome!

Is your application installed on iPhones ?

I don't need it, I already have the Blackmagic Camera app and have a choice of prores.

No. MCP is only working on Android phones.

The screenshot I added above is from Apple support:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/109041

And now you know that you can also shoot 10-bit videos on your iPhone!

You're welcome!

Quote from: Zero Talent on March 04, 2024, 10:58

Quote from: stoker2014 on March 04, 2024, 10:56

Zero Talent, do you shoot video in 4032 x 3008 resolution? 

I have already mentioned that MCP has the capability to utilize the full sensor if that is your preference. However, it appears that you are not receptive to this information.

So, the MCP application took a video on your phone and wrote that the video is 10 bits. Right? We only have 10 bit videos shot in this application. Before this app, you didn't know that your camera shoots 10-bit video? This is not written anywhere.

Ok, let's assume that I believed you. This means you can try shooting in LOG on your phone. That's all that interested me in this topic.

The screenshots are made with a 3rd party app: MediaInfo.

Please be aware that this information is not new to me or to many others who are interested in modern technologies.
FYI, for several years, Samsung Galaxy devices, as well as other contemporary Android and iPhones, have been capable of capturing 10-bit video.

It is unfortunate that you only learned this today. However, it is better late than never, correct? You're welcome!
Below is an example of such a video shot with the stock camera app.

Quote from: Zero Talent on March 04, 2024, 10:33

1. The S24U is capable of recording 10-bit video.

Will there be evidence other than words?
I read the characteristics of your phone, I did not see such information there.

I discuss what interests me. And I became interested in how you can shoot professional video with a small sensor.

Please refer to the attached screenshot for evidence. As previously mentioned, the size of the sensor is not relevant in this context. The objective is to optimize the capabilities of the available resources.

I am not here to prove you anything. Do your own research.

I am not here to educate you on how to shoot LOG.
Do your own research.

The best advice I can give you is to have an open mind, but I already know it's futile advice because you see conspiracies in all evidence contradicting your deep-rooted beliefs.