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Messages - smcbuki

Pages: [1] 2
1
Shutterstock.com / Is Shutterstock dead?
« on: February 18, 2024, 04:59 »
Hi all,
Are you also experiencing extremely low revenue on Shutterstock?
My revenue is down 5-6 fold. It's a disaster.
Review times also became catastrophic. I am uploading vectors and I have to wait around 24-36 hours for my files to get reviewed.
So, despite my regular uploads, my revenue is going down each day.
How are your Shutterstock portfolios doing?

2
Same here.

3
Pond5 / Re: Pond5 has joined Shutterstock
« on: May 11, 2022, 07:52 »
edit

Great.

4
Shutterstock.com / Re: Pending and Reviewed Disappeared?
« on: March 16, 2022, 12:18 »
My images get approved relatively quickly, yet my portfolio is not growing at the same pace.
For example: 10 images get approved and my portfolio grows only by 4 images.

5
Adobe Stock / Re: Announcing Adobe Stock video subscriptions
« on: March 09, 2022, 12:18 »
More exciting news. The last thing that still provided decent return is gone. I used to upload my videos to Adobe first, see which ones would get traction and only then upload the low earners to SS. Now this is pointless.

Spend a pile of cash for very expensive 3d software and a powerful enough PC, spending hours and sometimes days modeling, texturing, lighting... Then rendering which also takes awhile, then editing, then keywording...
Good effort, here's a buck...

This. +1

6
Alamy.com / Re: Alamy restrict Russian sales on request
« on: March 09, 2022, 12:15 »
I guess I have to block Alamy thread also.
There are crap posters all over this entire forum.
It's not only crap posting... Some of your comments are so irrational and full of hatred.
I don't think Russian money is blood money. Is American money blood money? I mean, look at Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria... the list goes on. Is Turkish money also blood money, since they fight Kurds? Is Australian money blood money, because they celebrate the day they defeated Aboriginal people as Australia Day? Should we ban republican party supporters (or vice versa, democrats) from buying our products? We could go on and on, but it really gets down to this: Cancel Cuture.
I am sick of cancelling and I am sick of your crap posting.
You are not adding any value to the discussion and to this forum.
I also think all this is very, very unprofessional.

7
Shutterstock.com / Re: Sale have stopped?
« on: March 01, 2022, 17:33 »
My sales are good.
Better than 2021.

8
123RF / Re: Is it worth uploading vectors to 123RF ?
« on: February 17, 2022, 15:17 »

You should have contacted their support. They would push your pending images.
How many images you submit at a time definitely plays a role, almost everywhere. The larger your batch, the sooner your images get accepted.

If I have to contact support to have my images reviewed, that's another thing that is far from professional. They should know that they should review images contributor contribut. Obviously we don't upload content there just for fun. I will not run after them or any agency and beg them to review my images.
If 123RF and their system works for you, that's great for you. An agency that takes months to review content and where I have to contact them and tell them to do their job is not working for me.

And no, with no other agency the amount of photos I submit plays any role in how fast the images get reviewed.

Just came back to say your portfolio is adorable. :)

9
123RF / Re: Is it worth uploading vectors to 123RF ?
« on: February 17, 2022, 12:49 »
Hmmm, I only have a small portfolio there - as with all other agencies. Less than 1500 files.

But that I sometimes have to wait over 4 months until the images go through the review, there is only at 123rf. And this only happens there when I write to the contributor support. With all other agencies, the review process is just as fast as it is with all contributors, even if I upload very rarely and very little.

And - without wanting to seem arrogant - my income with 123rf, although it is much less than before, is still several times higher than $10 a month.

So I can't understand this policy of 123rf. Mass alone cannot be the criterion for the speed of the review.

I guess you vectors are more complex or more stock-friendly than mine.
As for reviewing speed, I've read somewhere on this forum about prioritizing batches, but I can't find that thread now. I don't remember the agency in question.
BTW I have 5 files pending on 123RF for quite some time. I have submitted hundreds of vectors and batches always go through, but those singles get stuck for weeks.
Sometimes, while I'm still submitting, they accept a few dozens from that batch. Hence - prioritizing large batches.
In a way it makes sense. Reviewers pick larger batches from the queue, because they want to make more money, if they are paid by number of reviewed images.
If you submit one image every day, in one month you will have 30 submissions, one file per submission. Reviewers just won't bother to accept 30 micro tasks over one task with a large batch. When you contact support, they check your submissions and mark them as urgent. Maybe they pay more money (cents) for urgent reviews, or maybe they create one bigger batch from your separate submissions, and then reviewers check your files.
Anyways, this is way too much writing on this subject. :)

10
General Stock Discussion / Re: 4K Video Full Frame or Crop Sensor?
« on: February 17, 2022, 12:26 »
You also have to consider how the camera is generating the 4k video.

Often, even on full-frame cameras, 4K is obtained by using only a cropped 4k area, instead of the entire sensor.

Other cameras with faster processors can perform on-the-fly downsizing from max resolution down to 4K.

If that's the case, a full-resolution video downsized to 4K on a smaller sensor, might be better than a "cropped 4k" from a full frame camera.

This.

Pay attention to cropped video on full frame. You don't want to pay big money for full frame camera and lenses only to find out later it uses only 70% of sensor/lens area.
Also, it depends what you are filming. I use Panasonic GX85 with kit lens and cheap Chinese focal reducer with vintage lenses. It's filming on a budget, I know, but it works for stock.

11
123RF / Re: Is it worth uploading vectors to 123RF ?
« on: February 17, 2022, 11:25 »

This is not my experience with 123RF. They are very professional. They review times are more than acceptable (sometimes quicker than SS). Their support is great.
It can take months to accept images only if you don't submit often or if you submit just few images.

Taking months to accept images is hardly what I would call "professional" or an "acceptable" review time.   :o
How many or often you submit images shouldn't play a role.



 I created an account with them about a year ago, submitted some images, half a year later they were still not reviewed, so I  deleted the site from my bookmarks and wrote that chapter off. That's anything but professional and not an agency I want to work with.

You should have contacted their support. They would push your pending images.
How many images you submit at a time definitely plays a role, almost everywhere. The larger your batch, the sooner your images get accepted.

12
123RF / Re: Is it worth uploading vectors to 123RF ?
« on: February 17, 2022, 10:59 »
Hello. Sure it's not. But you have to upload before 2007 or 2008.
I sell wayback machines if you want...  ;D

Great, that comment!  ;D

And, yes, it's true. 123rf doesn't belong to the agencies where vectors bring in the big money.

what is you best agencies to sell vectors, instead adobe and SS ?

I can only answer the question very subjectively. Since my portfolio consists of renderings, vector graphics and photos, I would have to check very laboriously how many of the sales are vector graphics. That is hardly possible.

I would try - after AS and shutterstock - istock in the first place. There I have almost three times the amount of downloads compared to 123rf and also a higher RPD.

But I read from many providers that with them the RPD is very low at istock. With me, however, it is significantly higher than with shutterstock.

The upload process at istock is annoying and time consuming. And with 123rf it can take months until the images are accepted. There the review is a disaster!

"And with 123rf it can take months until the images are accepted. There the review is a disaster!"
This is not my experience with 123RF. They are very professional. They review times are more than acceptable (sometimes quicker than SS). Their support is great.
It can take months to accept images only if you don't submit often or if you submit just few images. The more files you have pending, the sooner they will review your images.

13
123RF / Re: Is it worth uploading vectors to 123RF ?
« on: February 17, 2022, 10:48 »
Hello
Is it worth uploading vectors to 123RF ?
Or this is just a waste of time ?

I have 5500 vectors on 123RF.
I make 5-10 USD per month. I still upload there, because it's really easy, considering my workflow.
So, you decide. If you have thousands of vectors on 12-15 small agencies and you get 10 USD per month from each of them, then you can make 150+ USD per month, or 1800 USD per year. That is a nice addition to "big agencies money" - SS, AS, iS, P5...  But, of course, uploading to 20 agencies takes a lot of time.
If you automate and/or optimize your workflow... maybe...


14
Shutterstock.com / Re: First full year of the "levels"
« on: January 01, 2022, 21:15 »
Surprised at how low dec was for me. Seems like shutterstock buyers went on a break almost mid Dec. Will try doing this analysis today

Same here.

15
General - Stock Video / Re: Fujifilm X-E4 240fps
« on: November 29, 2021, 10:51 »
I'm no expert, and I;ve never used Fuji, but it looks perfectly respectable and no reason it wouldn't be suitable for stock... I mean APS-C, Full 4K recording, 200Mbps, 240fps option... will do the job and it's a pretty decent price. I'd prefer 10-bit 4:2:2 output and F-Log, but you're unlikely to get that for less than $1000.
I can have it for 850EUR in my country and since I mostly use vintage manual lenses, I'd only need an adaptor (EF-X).
But...
I've just downloaded out of camera 240 fps sample and I'm very disappointed.
There's a MONSTER moir on everything. It's unusable for stock, as I see it. Actually, I'm not sure if this is moir or 720p (or even lower resolution) scaled up to 1080p. Maybe it's 720p with moir. Maybe if I do some heavy processing, maybe then it woud be useful for stock.
Anyways, it looks just like 1080p 240fps on my phone.
Again, if someone has one, please tell me your impressions.

16
General - Stock Video / Fujifilm X-E4 240fps
« on: November 28, 2021, 05:34 »
Is Fujifilm X-E4 240fps 1080p usable for stock footage?
I cannot rent here and I don't know anyone who uses it.
I know there are some videos on Youtube, but Youtube codec always ruins video quality.

17
Shutterstock.com / Shutterstock Image sets / Video sets
« on: November 07, 2021, 03:20 »
Should I create image/video sets? Is it going to increase my sales/visibility/ranking, or is it only good for "viewing my contents performance and staying organized".
What's your experience? Do you have sets?

18
Ok. So, about those vector nominations...
I got hundreds of vectors nominated and now I don't know what to do. What's the acceptance rate?

19
Thank you all for constructive replies.
I didn't mean to start a fire here.

20
Thank you all for your replies!
I'll use only one account.
Good point about climbing the ladder!

21
https://support.submit.shutterstock.com/s/article/Can-I-open-a-second-account

Thank you for you answer.
Actually, I was going to create that second account for my wife. We are together in stock illustration and we use one (my) account right now.
What I'm trying to ask is...
Do you think that if I mix content (adding photo and video to my illustration/vector portfolio) it may hurt my search rankings and sales?

22
Hi, all,
I sell illustrations and vectors on SS, but I also want to try to sell video and photo, since I already have a 4k camera.
Should I create separate account for photo and video?
I'm doing good with vectors and I don't want to mess something up.
Do you think it would be counterproductive to mix content?

23
Ok, so I've checked my port on AS...
Same visibility with and without VPN (chose multiple locations all over the world). My search rankings are identical from all locations.
I'm located in Eastern Europe. Where are you from?
I guess it doesn't affect all regions?

24
General - Stock Video / Re: To 4K or to not 4K...
« on: February 21, 2021, 04:14 »
it's all about content,not resolution or equipment..btw mobile phones are not the choise if you take stock seriously...even the best mobile is thousand miles away from a crappy camera...

I beg to differ. Smartphone cameras are excellent, because they are always at hand. You can make some great editorial, although you didn't bring your gear. And sometimes, when you shoot editorial, on the street, people get nervous if you pull out big fancy camera with gimbal or tripod. When you use a smartphone, people tend to be more relaxed and think of you as of a tourist or a vlogger or something.
What I'm trying to say is: yes - cameras are better, but you can add great stuff (mainly editorial) to your portfolio using your phone.

25
I am using Adobe Illustrator and I always edit file info of my vectors. Shutterstock and 123RF pull all metadata, but Adobe Stock pulls out just a title and then he just suggests keywords.
How can I resolve this?
It's not really big trouble for me to copy/paste keywords from SS or 123, but I'm thinking of adding more agencies (Alamy, Dreamstime, Vectorstock...) and I understand things get more complicated if you don't use metadata.

I checked on this for you and confirmed that you need to embed your keywords in a jpg file add it to a .zip folder with the vector for your submission to have the system read the keywords. Otherwise, copy/paste as you noted or a CSV file will be your best alternative.

-Mat

Thanks. I'll give it a try, again. I'm probably mistaking somewhere.

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