MicrostockGroup
Agency Based Discussion => Stocksy => Topic started by: Sean Locke Photography on September 13, 2017, 09:53
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In case you missed it in the other thread, the Call To Artists is now open. This is for photos and video. And you get to use our super cool uploader as part of the process.
" Stocksy is thrilled to announce the reopening of Call to Artists for the first time in 2 years. We are renowned for our co-op model, making artists co-owners in a business that pays the highest royalties in the industry (50-75%) and is dedicated to creative integrity.
Applications are open to anyone. We commonly look for artists with an eye for storytelling or who have complete bodies of work.
We’re currently seeking new international talent, with a focus on Southeast and East Asia, the Middle East, Australasia and Western Europe; as we look to represent and challenge traditional beauty ideals and stereotypes for a more inclusive world.
No matter your style, medium or location, talented photographers and cinematographers from anywhere in the world are welcome to apply. "
https://www.stocksy.com/cta/welcome (https://www.stocksy.com/cta/welcome)
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I see that for video exclusivity is required.
Does it mean exclusivity on a clip base or exclusivity for the full portfolio?
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I see that for video exclusivity is required.
Does it mean exclusivity on a clip base or exclusivity for the full portfolio?
For photos and videos, it is for the series. And also across mediums if you shot both.
example: Shoot a photo/video series with bob in jeans and a tank top at the fair. All photos and videos from that series is exclusive.
Then take Bob to the beach and shoot there in a swimsuit. You can put those somewhere else if you like.
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Awesome stuff.
Any tips, Sean? Is there a demand for non-realeased commercial travel shots?
Thanks in advance
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Awesome stuff.
Any tips, Sean? Is there a demand for non-realeased commercial travel shots?
Thanks in advance
They're a little more lenient on things that involve crowds or far away people then some other places, but I don't really know if that's something they're looking for especially. Unless it's part of a story.
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Can i in aplication sent images or videos that i have on other stock sites, or i have upload stuff that are not on any of stock sites?
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To give us an adequate sense of your work and style, we’re looking for a minimum of 25 photos and/or 10 videos, keyworded and with model/property releases (if needed).
So it has to be new stuff that has never been uploaded elsewhere? Strange, if they just want to "get a sense of your work and style". Could someone please clarify this point.
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The images submitted for the CTA, will go live if accepted as a member, so the should follow all the rules about logos and release. As such, they will need to be exclusive when they go live.
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Exclusivity for video is a big, big, big ask.
I don't know how many people would accept that, certainly not me
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That's totally up to you. Just keep in mind it isn't artist exclusivity, but series exclusivity. There are quite a few videos in the collection already, exclusive, if you want to get an idea of what the editors like.
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I've been working really hard and saving exclusive images for stocksy to apply so I'm going to make a new portfolio web link to show them ONLY these exclusive files.
I'm still trying to pick the best ones from the sessions to show them. It is hard because I only have this one shot to impress them.
Wish me luck!
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Hi Sean :)
I seem to remember last time they opened up, it was something like this : You can upload images to Stocksy, but if you are accepted (images goes live) you should remove it from other sites right away!
Can you confirm that? Can´t read it anywhere :-)
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I've been working really hard and saving exclusive images for stocksy to apply so I'm going to make a new portfolio web link to show them ONLY these exclusive files.
I'm still trying to pick the best ones from the sessions to show them. It is hard because I only have this one shot to impress them.
Wish me luck!
You need also to have a social media presence, you need to show active social presence etc. If you dont have that, they might reject you as well
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You need also to have a social media presence, you need to show active social presence etc. If you dont have that, they might reject you as well
Is it like a reality show where candidates have to jump through hoops and impress the judges, Master of Photography style?
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its a coop, so everyone needs to pull their weight
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I got the email as well, but with the twins I really have no time to put in the work. I would love to be a member of Stocksy though. Good luck to all who are going to apply.
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Hi Sean :)
I seem to remember last time they opened up, it was something like this : You can upload images to Stocksy, but if you are accepted (images goes live) you should remove it from other sites right away!
Can you confirm that? Can´t read it anywhere :-)
Yes, this doesn't have to be brand new content.
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Super! Thanks Sean :-)
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Really? who cares! ::)
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I've been working really hard and saving exclusive images for stocksy to apply so I'm going to make a new portfolio web link to show them ONLY these exclusive files.
I'm still trying to pick the best ones from the sessions to show them. It is hard because I only have this one shot to impress them.
Wish me luck!
You need also to have a social media presence, you need to show active social presence etc. If you dont have that, they might reject you as well
.
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Hi Sean,
I have applied for video. I don't have an instagram account. Do I have to open one?
Thanks!
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Also, for the purpose of the application, can I submit some old video clips which are online with other agencies?
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Also, for the purpose of the application, can I submit some old video clips which are online with other agencies?
Sure, as long as you can remove them from those agencies if you get approved. I don't think it would help to open an account - the idea is to have a group you can help promote Stocksy to. But that's not and end all - there are other things you can do.
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That's totally up to you. Just keep in mind it isn't artist exclusivity, but series exclusivity. There are quite a few videos in the collection already, exclusive, if you want to get an idea of what the editors like.
Thanks for the info Sean.
Yes I had a look at their video portfolio and what they like is totally different than what I do (I don't do lifestyle at all!).
But in any case, even series exclusivity for me is a no no
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I'd like to know what sales figures are like before I give my time uploading clips. They were pretty late to the video market and that makes me wonder what sales are like?
I uploaded a handful of clips to Dissolve at the start of the year and I get a few sales each month - but you've got to add up the time costs to think if it's worth it or not.
I don't know to much about Stocksy but this forum seems to make it feel like an elite club. I love the idea of a co-op and would like to be part of something that if you put a lot of work in then it pays you back.
The thing is how do we know what sales figures are like for video? Is the data out there somewhere?
I'm all up for giving my time and talent if the agency gives it back too.
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Does anyone know how long it will be open? I would like to have a shot but I want to put some work into preparing some images.
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Stocksy sells photos on Adobe Stock. Might as well upload directly to Adobe and skip the intermediary awkward 'exclusivity'.
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Stocksy sells photos on Adobe Stock. Might as well upload directly to Adobe and skip the intermediary awkward 'exclusivity'.
Stocksy sells on Adobe Premium! On Adobe Premium you can´t apply for contributing - you have to be invited by Adobe ;)
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I'd give my right brasilnut for a shot at Stocksy
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https://www.stocksy.com/1451389 (https://www.stocksy.com/1451389)
Is it a joke or what! Must be crazy to pay $175.00 or I'm stupid to understand the concept. Is this what you are looking for?
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https://www.stocksy.com/1451389 (https://www.stocksy.com/1451389)
Is it a joke or what! Must be crazy to pay $175.00 or I'm stupid to understand the concept. Is this what you are looking for?
Videos that reflect the kind of things and styles you see in current social media apps are very popular, so I hear.
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Hello everyone, Can I use the model release from other site for the application?
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Sean, thanks again!
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Oops, Stocksy only accepts H.264 codec. All my clips are PRORES 422. :(
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Oh, premium content. :-\
https://www.stocksy.com/1451389 (https://www.stocksy.com/1451389)
Is it a joke or what! Must be crazy to pay $175.00 or I'm stupid to understand the concept. Is this what you are looking for?
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https://www.stocksy.com/1451389 (https://www.stocksy.com/1451389)
Is it a joke or what! Must be crazy to pay $175.00 or I'm stupid to understand the concept. Is this what you are looking for?
I am not at Stocksy but that portfolio is truly amazing. Only Stocksy, Gettyimages and Pond 5 have that kind of work. Some people get it and some don't. For me those clips are powerful and inspiring. Others might think that a splash of fruits into the water or a group of businesspeople on a meeting desk in an aseptic office giving each other fake smiles is what it takes to make great content.
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Stocksy sells photos on Adobe Stock. Might as well upload directly to Adobe and skip the intermediary awkward 'exclusivity'.
Does Adobe Stock sell on Stocksy?
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Stocksy sells photos on Adobe Stock. Might as well upload directly to Adobe and skip the intermediary awkward 'exclusivity'.
Does Adobe Stock sell on Stocksy?
No. The Stocksy collection is one of quite a few individual and company portfolios that license their work through the Adobe premium collection (in addition to their own site).
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@Cider Apple
I heard Stocksy paid back 200,000 dollar to the community, which is awesome, but in the end it comes down to 222 dollar per contributor per year. Just want to say that it is a great gesture, and unique, but not one that makes you rich. It is down to the sales, some people will do well, some people won't and some people will sit in the middle. And thats just life.
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I'd like to know what sales figures are like before I give my time uploading clips. They were pretty late to the video market and that makes me wonder what sales are like?
I uploaded a handful of clips to Dissolve at the start of the year and I get a few sales each month - but you've got to add up the time costs to think if it's worth it or not.
I don't know to much about Stocksy but this forum seems to make it feel like an elite club. I love the idea of a co-op and would like to be part of something that if you put a lot of work in then it pays you back.
The thing is how do we know what sales figures are like for video? Is the data out there somewhere?
I'm all up for giving my time and talent if the agency gives it back too.
I am with Dissolve too, but Dissolve doesn't ask for exclusivity.
In Stocksy's case the problem is not the uploading time, but to give them images as exclusive.
Frankly I don't think anyone in video would go exclusive, even though it is only series exclusivity.
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@Cider Apple
I heard Stocksy paid back 200,000 dollar to the community, which is awesome, but in the end it comes down to 60 dollar per contributor per year. Just want to say that it is a great gesture, and unique, but not one that makes you rich. It is down to the sales, some people will do well, some people won't and some people will sit in the middle. And thats just life.
Don't know where you took that numbers, but from Wikipedia: "Stocksy now has over 900 contributing members, selected from over 10,000 applications. Its revenue doubled from 2014 to 2015, to $7.9 million. For 2015, Stocksy paid out over half of its revenue as royalties to its contributors, totaling $4.3 million."
$4.3 million paid out to 900 contributors makes an average of roughly $4.800 per contributor. Obviously some more, some less, but that's still a big difference.
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I am talking about end year profit, not total earnings. I am wrong about the number of contributors. You are correct.
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http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160608005340/en/Platform-Co-Op-Stocksy-United-Doubles-Revenue-7.9M (http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160608005340/en/Platform-Co-Op-Stocksy-United-Doubles-Revenue-7.9M)
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[url]http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160608005340/en/Platform-Co-Op-Stocksy-United-Doubles-Revenue-7.9M[/url] ([url]http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160608005340/en/Platform-Co-Op-Stocksy-United-Doubles-Revenue-7.9M[/url])
$200,000 in dividends. $4.3 million in royalties. Dividends + royalties = earnings.
However, $5,000 per year still won't make anyone rich... For non-exclusive it might be OK.
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@Cider Apple
I heard Stocksy paid back 200,000 dollar to the community, which is awesome, but in the end it comes down to 222 dollar per contributor per year. Just want to say that it is a great gesture, and unique, but not one that makes you rich. It is down to the sales, some people will do well, some people won't and some people will sit in the middle. And thats just life.
Actually, this year we upped that to $270K returned to members. Keep in mind, it's a proportional system based on your sales versus all sales.
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The rich get richer !! ;)
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Lol, yeah, I had a hard time deciding between the corinthian leather or the mink fur covers for my Porsche.
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Hi, Sean, I've looked at Stocksy FAQ page but I can't see payment options for contributors. Most of the agencies made their payment via PayPal I'm living in Turkey and PayPal doesn't operate here. Is Stocky made an agreement with Skrill or Payoneer?
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Yes, we offer Payoneer, PayPal and check.
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No idea how long we have to submit? A few days, a week, a month?
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I see that for video exclusivity is required.
Does it mean exclusivity on a clip base or exclusivity for the full portfolio?
For photos and videos, it is for the series. And also across mediums if you shot both.
example: Shoot a photo/video series with bob in jeans and a tank top at the fair. All photos and videos from that series is exclusive.
Then take Bob to the beach and shoot there in a swimsuit. You can put those somewhere else if you like.
I was on a wildlife photo tour for a couple of weeks. Each day, we shot one location in the morning and another in the afternoon, all in different places. Even within a single morning or afternoon session, we'd often travel quite a distance. What would be considered a "single series" in this case -- each morning and afternoon session? Each location? Both?
What if each of these sessions involved shooting multiple species of animals? If I submitted lion pictures from one session, would cheetah pictures taken during the same session (though not necessarily in exactly the same spot) be restricted as well -- even if they were not submitted or accepted?
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I see that for video exclusivity is required.
Does it mean exclusivity on a clip base or exclusivity for the full portfolio?
For photos and videos, it is for the series. And also across mediums if you shot both.
example: Shoot a photo/video series with bob in jeans and a tank top at the fair. All photos and videos from that series is exclusive.
Then take Bob to the beach and shoot there in a swimsuit. You can put those somewhere else if you like.
I was on a wildlife photo tour for a couple of weeks. Each day, we shot one location in the morning and another in the afternoon, all in different places. Even within a single morning or afternoon session, we'd often travel quite a distance. What would be considered a "single series" in this case -- each morning and afternoon session? Each location? Both?
What if each of these sessions involved shooting multiple species of animals? If I submitted lion pictures from one session, would cheetah pictures taken during the same session (though not necessarily in exactly the same spot) be restricted as well -- even if they were not submitted or accepted?
Bob in jeans = lion.
Bob in swimsuit = cheetah.
Different series.
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Well, I'd say "animals on safari" is one series, but you could ask the editors. It's kind of hard to market "polar's safari images" as an exclusive series if you can go to Shutterstock and get something in the same style and location with just a different animal.
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Well, I'd say "animals on safari" is one series, but you could ask the editors. It's kind of hard to market "polar's safari images" as an exclusive series if you can go to Shutterstock and get something in the same style and location with just a different animal.
But what constitutes the "same location"? Over two weeks, we covered nearly 1000 kilometres of territory involving several different ecosystems. The locations in the images don't look alike.
And why would these different locations and animals be any different from "Bob in jeans at the fair" and "Bob in swimsuit at the beach"? This wouldn't even be Bob in both shots; it would be "Bob in jeans at the fair" and "Jim in a swimsuit at the beach."
I would find it disconcerting if thousands of images taken on such a trip were locked up like this.
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Like I said, you'd have to have the actual images to check with the editors, and I'd imagine it depends on how "different" the various parts are.
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If image/series exclusivity is required, does this mean images that have never been sold elsewhere, or can I use images that have previously been available as long as I remove them from other sites?
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If image/series exclusivity is required, does this mean images that have never been sold elsewhere, or can I use images that have previously been available as long as I remove them from other sites?
Stocksy said the last time, that you can sell them on Stocksy but you have to remove them from other sites.
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Right.
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Hello Sean
with a portfolio of 10k at shutterstock you can expect to earn about 3000$ per month. What about Stocksy's?
Thank you for your response
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with a portfolio of 10k at shutterstock you can expect to earn about 3000$ per month. What about Stocksy's?
Wow, what a question. It would help if you included which kinds of images you shoot and perhaps an example :)
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with a portfolio of 10k at shutterstock you can expect to earn about 3000$ per month. What about Stocksy's?
Wow, what a question. It would help if you included which kinds of images you shoot and perhaps an example :)
People, lifestyle
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If image/series exclusivity is required, does this mean images that have never been sold elsewhere, or can I use images that have previously been available as long as I remove them from other sites?
Stocksy said the last time, that you can sell them on Stocksy but you have to remove them from other sites.
Thank you, and thanks to Sean for confirming.
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A further question: what is the situation with regard to property taken from a public position? Do you request a property release, as iStock and Fotolia do, or are you more lenient in this regard like Shutterstock? I have some images that include parts of buildings taken from a public street, and don't want to submit these if it's an instant rejection.
Thanks.
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Sean please one question, when logged and ready to upload images, will image review team judge my contributor status looking at my portfolio on my website (link provided during registration), or will they look only and even give more focus to images I upload through a Stocksy website (ones that are ready for sale if accepted))?
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Does anyone know how long it will be open? I would like to have a shot but I want to put some work into preparing some images.
From their facebook page : "There is no set deadline for applications at this time."
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A colleague makes $10,000 a month on a big lifestyle portfolio.
with a portfolio of 10k at shutterstock you can expect to earn about 3000$ per month. What about Stocksy's?
Wow, what a question. It would help if you included which kinds of images you shoot and perhaps an example :)
People, lifestyle
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I wish they took underwater stuff. I would gladly pull al of it off micro to work with Stocksy.
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I wish they took underwater stuff. I would gladly pull al of it off micro to work with Stocksy.
Why wouldn't they take under water stuff?
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I wish they took underwater stuff. I would gladly pull al of it off micro to work with Stocksy.
Why wouldn't they take under water stuff?
They don't want to get wet :-)
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I wish they took underwater stuff. I would gladly pull al of it off micro to work with Stocksy.
They do take underwater stuff.
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Hello Sean
with a portfolio of 10k at shutterstock you can expect to earn about 3000$ per month. What about Stocksy's?
Thank you for your response
You could earn anything from $93.32 a day to $8,368.23 a month. Or possibly more. Or less.
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I wish they took underwater stuff. I would gladly pull al of it off micro to work with Stocksy.
Why wouldn't they take under water stuff?
About two years ago they said no, that wasn't the style they were looking for so I assumed that is the same now.
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Does anyone know how long it will be open? I would like to have a shot but I want to put some work into preparing some images.
From their facebook page : "There is no set deadline for applications at this time."
Thanks Mir, I couldn't find it.
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There is a lot of underwater photography in the collection...
https://www.stocksy.com/search?text=Underwater+fish&sort=latest&page=1 (https://www.stocksy.com/search?text=Underwater+fish&sort=latest&page=1)
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Hey Sean
You've mentioned in the write up that you guys are looking for people from asia to contribute stuff. However in the country selection list the only names i could find were Hong Kong. No love for India, Malaysia and all others?
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk
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Which country selection list?
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Stocksy says it's interested in some locations, such as Western Europe. When you apply there is a form where you answer some questions about your work - there is a question about location; in my case, Portugal is not an option (and it is Western Europe), there is only, if I recall correctly, France and Germany.
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Which country selection list?
From the first page and from the application
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is good. i like stocksy as an high end rf agency.
i'm more a travel/generalist/doicumentary photographer.
i will apply mostly my best images for rf. exclusivity means if i travel in a country stocksy want all photos from the same trip?
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by the way editorial are allowed?
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Which country selection list?
From the first page and from the application
Yup, this list
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk
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by the way editorial are allowed?
Nope.
I'll ask about the list. I hadn't seen that part.
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I tried to submit an application but 4k videos in prores 422 HQ aren't even recognized... If I have to re-encode them in h264 I don't see a lot of interest in doing so...
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I can understand the appeal of Stocksy for photo.
But frankly, if your doing video, why on earth should you go exclusive?
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I can understand the appeal of Stocksy for photo.
But frankly, if your doing video, why on earth should you go exclusive?
Why not putting some to test the water...
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I tried to submit an application but 4k videos in prores 422 HQ aren't even recognized... If I have to re-encode them in h264 I don't see a lot of interest in doing so...
Yes, h264 is the format we use for delivery.
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I tried to submit an application but 4k videos in prores 422 HQ aren't even recognized... If I have to re-encode them in h264 I don't see a lot of interest in doing so...
It´s really easy! Finalcut -> Masterfile -> h264 and your done. And thinking that you probably have to do a rough selection of what Stocksy would take, then it´s not so time consuming as you might first think :)
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Hey Sean
You've mentioned in the write up that you guys are looking for people from asia to contribute stuff. However in the country selection list the only names i could find were Hong Kong. No love for India, Malaysia and all others?
And Hong Kong isn't even a country.
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Sean, do you by any chance know if Stocksy is interested in timelapses/hyperlapses? So that I don't waste anyone's time if there is no interest.
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Sean, do you by any chance know if Stocksy is interested in timelapses/hyperlapses? So that I don't waste anyone's time if there is no interest.
Well, we've got some, which would seem to indicate they'd probably like more. https://www.stocksy.com/search?text=timelapse&type=video&sort=latest&page=1 (https://www.stocksy.com/search?text=timelapse&type=video&sort=latest&page=1)
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hi sean i '0d like to ask one thing and hope to have an answers about what you think.
i'd like to upload, but i'm a bit sceptic about my photos. i found they can have a place in the collection, cause especially in travel i see a lot of holes in stocksy. i love colors, and do pp like everybody, sometimes i apply some cross processing or vico filter, to create a moody photos, but especially in travel photography i prefer to boost saturation.
looking the collection what i see is 95% of photos are desaturated and with pale tonality.
It seems like the world has the same colors, a bit like instagram nowadays, where you can find people flying from iceland to peru and have always the same color palette.
do you think true colors fidelity has a place in stocksy or not?
the only contributor i'd say has beautiful colors tonality is felix hug from what i saw. in addiction it seems as stocksy don't like real colors.
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hi sean i '0d like to ask one thing and hope to have an answers about what you think.
i'd like to upload, but i'm a bit sceptic about my photos. i found they can have a place in the collection, cause especially in travel i see a lot of holes in stocksy. i love colors, and do pp like everybody, sometimes i apply some cross processing or vico filter, to create a moody photos, but especially in travel photography i prefer to boost saturation.
looking the collection what i see is 95% of photos are desaturated and with pale tonality.
It seems like the world has the same colors, a bit like instagram nowadays, where you can find people flying from iceland to peru and have always the same color palette.
do you think true colors fidelity has a place in stocksy or not?
the only contributor i'd say has beautiful colors tonality is felix hug from what i saw. in addiction it seems as stocksy don't like real colors.
https://www.stocksy.com/felixhug#latest (https://www.stocksy.com/felixhug#latest)
the link to the portfolio i mentioned
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If image/series exclusivity is required, does this mean images that have never been sold elsewhere, or can I use images that have previously been available as long as I remove them from other sites?
Stocksy said the last time, that you can sell them on Stocksy but you have to remove them from other sites.
Is there a grace period for Alamy contributors? Image removal takes 6 months there.
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If image/series exclusivity is required, does this mean images that have never been sold elsewhere, or can I use images that have previously been available as long as I remove them from other sites?
Stocksy said the last time, that you can sell them on Stocksy but you have to remove them from other sites.
Is there a grace period for Alamy contributors? Image removal takes 6 months there.
I'm going to say you shouldn't submit those, then.
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Any estimate of when / how quickly does the Stocksy team revert with their decision regarding one's application?
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Any estimate of when / how quickly does the Stocksy team revert with their decision regarding one's application?
It won't be immediate. Usually they take time to look at the person's portfolio site, look into them a little deeper, maybe set up an interview. With this new paradigm, I'm not really sure.
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Any estimate of when / how quickly does the Stocksy team revert with their decision regarding one's application?
It won't be immediate. Usually they take time to look at the person's portfolio site, look into them a little deeper, maybe set up an interview. With this new paradigm, I'm not really sure.
my web site is still not ready. i put my instagram, could this be a penalty_
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Any estimate of when / how quickly does the Stocksy team revert with their decision regarding one's application?
It won't be immediate. Usually they take time to look at the person's portfolio site, look into them a little deeper, maybe set up an interview. With this new paradigm, I'm not really sure.
Not hearing anything is better. I'm told declines may start going out this week.
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Sean please one question, when logged and ready to upload images, will image review team judge my contributor status looking at my portfolio on my website (link provided during registration), or will they look only and even give more focus to images I upload through a Stocksy website (ones that are ready for sale if accepted))?
They will also look at the portfolio and use any other information given as well.
The "country" list doesn't disqualify anyone. It's just a list of places they wanted to flag. I passed this thread on to see if they wanted to add more.
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I don't use Instagram much at all with only ten posts. Would it be more harmful to link it or should I start uploading more?
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I'm in the same boat as you Zalee. I don't use social media too much to upload my work. I haven't applied yet because I don't know what to do. Sean mentions they will do a search on you so even if you don't submit your social links, they will see them anyway ...
Plus, the work on my Facebook page is very "artsy" and I would never submit it to stocksy.
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I'm the same with my Facebook page, I don't use it for my stock images. I haven't linked it but I have made a portfolio on another site to send them.
I'm also wondering like Jonbull about the instagram look they seem to prefer. It's not my normal way of processing but if that's what they like then maybe that's what I need to upload. I have a feeling younger photographers will be preferred. I think you have a great chance of getting in. Me, not so much ;) At least I'm in Australia, that might give me a chance.
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I wish I could see your work Zalee. I wish you luck! We all deserve better and Stocksy seems like such a great place. I can only hope they like our work :)
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hi sean i '0d like to ask one thing and hope to have an answers about what you think.
i'd like to upload, but i'm a bit sceptic about my photos. i found they can have a place in the collection, cause especially in travel i see a lot of holes in stocksy. i love colors, and do pp like everybody, sometimes i apply some cross processing or vico filter, to create a moody photos, but especially in travel photography i prefer to boost saturation.
looking the collection what i see is 95% of photos are desaturated and with pale tonality.
It seems like the world has the same colors, a bit like instagram nowadays, where you can find people flying from iceland to peru and have always the same color palette.
do you think true colors fidelity has a place in stocksy or not?
the only contributor i'd say has beautiful colors tonality is felix hug from what i saw. in addiction it seems as stocksy don't like real colors.
Again, I'm not an editor, but the trend has mostly moved away from cross processing and vsco filters. They really want a natural look to the image. Not oversaturating colors like you'd see on SS that helps an image grab attention.
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Submitted an application this weekend. Now we wait.
Wanted to say a big thank you to Sean Locke for so patiently responding to the many questions and comments here.
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"We require image and video exclusivity." ;D
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Just for a record!
The founder of Stocksy is the same Bruce Livingstone who founded iStockphoto and destroyed for $50 million! If he has an opportunity guess will do the same with his new toy, but now for less money than iS
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Just for a record!
The founder of Stocksy is the same Bruce Livingstone who founded iStockphoto and destroyed for $50 million! If he has an opportunity guess will do the same with his new toy, but now for less money than iS
Apparently you don't understand how co-operative organizations work.
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Just for a record!
The founder of Stocksy is the same Bruce Livingstone who founded iStockphoto and destroyed for $50 million! If he has an opportunity guess will do the same with his new toy, but now for less money than iS
Apparently you don't understand how co-operative organizations work.
Fritz may not understand how a co-operative organization works, but can see a person for who they are, a leopard can't change its spots. Sellout or savior?
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Lol, just in and out for the one post? Ok.
Bruce doesn't own Stocksy. The shareholders/members do. He couldn't sell it even if he wanted to.
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Just for a record!
The founder of Stocksy is the same Bruce Livingstone who founded iStockphoto and destroyed for $50 million! If he has an opportunity guess will do the same with his new toy, but now for less money than iS
Apparently you don't understand how co-operative organizations work.
...Also sprach Zarathustra (Übermensch)
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hi sean i '0d like to ask one thing and hope to have an answers about what you think.
i'd like to upload, but i'm a bit sceptic about my photos. i found they can have a place in the collection, cause especially in travel i see a lot of holes in stocksy. i love colors, and do pp like everybody, sometimes i apply some cross processing or vico filter, to create a moody photos, but especially in travel photography i prefer to boost saturation.
looking the collection what i see is 95% of photos are desaturated and with pale tonality.
It seems like the world has the same colors, a bit like instagram nowadays, where you can find people flying from iceland to peru and have always the same color palette.
do you think true colors fidelity has a place in stocksy or not?
the only contributor i'd say has beautiful colors tonality is felix hug from what i saw. in addiction it seems as stocksy don't like real colors.
Again, I'm not an editor, but the trend has mostly moved away from cross processing and vsco filters. They really want a natural look to the image. Not oversaturating colors like you'd see on SS that helps an image grab attention.
i add some photos to explain what for me is color photography. these photo are not in the batch i will send mostly for editorial problem but the quality is similar, and content also. i would like to have a feed back from you Sean if these are content and color quality that for u stocksy can be pleased of.
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I'm not an editor, so all I can do is look at the collection and compare. I don't think there's anything there that would make it into the collection, but then again, there's stuff in the collection that I wouldn't have thought would make it, so ...
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I'm not an editor, so all I can do is look at the collection and compare. I don't think there's anything there that would make it into the collection, but then again, there's stuff in the collection that I wouldn't have thought would make it, so ...
yes i wrote i won't send these cause i found them more oriented to other agency like offset. i was talking about color.
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The yellow and pink looks a little more saturated then I would do these days, and the one is too unevenly exposed, imo. But otherwise, I don't see anything screaming out.
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The yellow and pink looks a little more saturated then I would do these days, and the one is too unevenly exposed, imo. But otherwise, I don't see anything screaming out.
yes i silhouetted to make the people unrecognizable...is not a planned shot. thanks for input. i will already sent a batch.
but it's written no less than 25 images but how many we can send?
i sent 70 to show a variety of theme, but i can send more or is enough?
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Do Stocksy like Fine Art stuff?
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The yellow and pink looks a little more saturated then I would do these days, and the one is too unevenly exposed, imo. But otherwise, I don't see anything screaming out.
yes i silhouetted to make the people unrecognizable...is not a planned shot. thanks for input. i will already sent a batch.
but it's written no less than 25 images but how many we can send?
i sent 70 to show a variety of theme, but i can send more or is enough?
I would say you want to send enough to say "here's the kind of contributor I am", but so many that your style and/or niche gets lost.
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Any suggestion for a portfolio site?
Do I need a private domain name for it or free portfolio sites with -their name/my name- style domains acceptable?
.. and finally, anyone know about the deadline?
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Any suggestion for a portfolio site?
Do I need a private domain name for it or free portfolio sites with -their name/my name- style domains acceptable?
.. and finally, anyone know about the deadline?
i like 4 format
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Here's my shortlist if anybody is interested to see. Do I have a chance? ???
www.brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2017/09/21/full-stocksy-submission-shortlist-inside-wish-me-luck/ (http://www.brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2017/09/21/full-stocksy-submission-shortlist-inside-wish-me-luck/)
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Here's my shortlist if anybody is interested to see. Do I have a chance? ???
[url=http://www.brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2017/09/21/full-stocksy-submission-shortlist-inside-wish-me-luck/]www.brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2017/09/21/full-stocksy-submission-shortlist-inside-wish-me-luck/[/url] ([url]http://www.brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2017/09/21/full-stocksy-submission-shortlist-inside-wish-me-luck/[/url])
I don't think you have a chance. Not to be rude, just being honest and realistic. Stocksy has great work, and they look for the wow factor. This is my attempt in 2015, https://www.flickr.com/photos/semmickphoto/albums/72157659054531483 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/semmickphoto/albums/72157659054531483) didn't make it and I can see why. LOL
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Here's my shortlist if anybody is interested to see. Do I have a chance? ???
[url=http://www.brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2017/09/21/full-stocksy-submission-shortlist-inside-wish-me-luck/]www.brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2017/09/21/full-stocksy-submission-shortlist-inside-wish-me-luck/[/url] ([url]http://www.brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2017/09/21/full-stocksy-submission-shortlist-inside-wish-me-luck/[/url])
No.
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No.
I need to understand, what I see on sale on the site is really not exceptional but the barrier to entry seems very high...
Is there any real valid reason or is this some kind of snobbery to make this club seems more select and desirable ?
I'm not speaking for myself but I'm trying to understand, I canceled my application for videos as I refuse to encode my videos in h264 which is not adapted for stock in 2017 and exclusivity is also a big no go...
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I don't think you have a chance. Not to be rude, just being honest and realistic. Stocksy has great work, and they look for the wow factor. This is my attempt in 2015, https://www.flickr.com/photos/semmickphoto/albums/72157659054531483 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/semmickphoto/albums/72157659054531483) didn't make it and I can see why. LOL
No worries. I know it's a long shot.
I know I need to invest in hiring some models which would help to pull off the higher commercial stuff.
This one would qualify but obviously don't have a MR.
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I think you need to get a lot of guys in their early 30's with beard, fancy sunglasses, a surf board under their arm and a Volkswagen van from the 80's (this is absolutely mandatory).
But, is it worth the effort?
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What about similar or sister images from an existing shoot with the same model and location that's already selling on another agency's site, but not the same image? The 2017 open call application page did not indicate these images can not be submitted. Just need to make sure. Thanks!
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Your work is pretty good.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3003 using Tapatalk
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The stocksy idea is cool and the project is fair, i think is the more friendly agency.
Part of this sucess secret is sell macro quality images at 1/4 price, great curation, real exclusivity and different style....(plainpicture cheaper style, stocksy didnt discover the hipsters)
People are earning good money there, but finally, what sells is lyfestyle images. Is ever the same history, "rare" images for be aproved, "stocky" images one time you are in. Worker smiling with crossed arms sell more than that hipster,s back in the forest.
All images i see here in this post arent enough unique or god for be in. Yes, i will apply but my images arent enough "unique" for be in.
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What about similar or sister images from an existing shoot with the same model and location that's already selling on another agency's site, but not the same image? The 2017 open call application page did not indicate these images can not be submitted. Just need to make sure. Thanks!
No. Stocksy is series exclusive.
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I see that many, but not all, of the current Stocksey contributors have links to their websites from the Stocksy bio. I want to apply, and can provide a link to my website, but that is currently a very 'stock', (think Shutterstock, etc.) website, and I want to apply to Stocksy with some slightly different images that I've been working on.
My question is how important is it to have an independent website, and will Stocksy just look at mine and reject me because it is too mainstream stock? If I was approved, I wouldn't particularly want to link to my main website as, stylistically, it's very different to the kind of work I would want to submit to Stocksy.
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The review team is pretty good at looking at the "whole picture", so showing an amount of other work may be a good indicator that you're serious about creating content. That may be an important factor, as we would like to have more people that consistently upload.
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Thank you Sean, that helps a lot. I am finalising images for my application, and will submit over the weekend.
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Thank you Sean!
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How many of you guys are submitting more than 25? I'm doing my best 25 (exclusive) but wonder if I should do more (like 50)
I've already done the model releases but then realized I didn't have to for an application ...
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Because it said we can continue to upload as many as 100 I have added a few more because I figure if they reject me I can then upload them elsewhere. Hopefully they won't take too long to decide if they like us or not.
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Is here anyone who submitted their work before? Do you get some kind of explanation why you aren't accepted? I would just love to have a feedback from them, no matter the outcome
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Is here anyone who submitted their work before? Do you get some kind of explanation why you aren't accepted? I would just love to have a feedback from them, no matter the outcome
I was rejected on the bases of aesthetic quality, doesn't get more ambiguous than that, I asked for more details but were not given. I would suggest to get a look and feel of the Stocksy library and send images that you think would fit right in, but you have to be objective and honest towards yourself.
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Anyone got an answer so far?
Still no limit date to submit?
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If images are approved, is there a facility to edit keywords/descriptions at a later date if you notice an error or something missing?
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If images are approved, is there a facility to edit keywords/descriptions at a later date if you notice an error or something missing?
Images that are online, or in the queue can always be modified.
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Thank you, Sean.
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How long do they respond after the application? I have been waiting more than two weeks. I wonder how much longer to languish in anticipation.
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Wow...Upload to stocksy is worst than istock ESP trhee times!!.... What a hell!!
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Still no news whether approved or not. Anyone ?
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No news yet for me. I was going to upload a few more yesterday and couldn't because my application is "currently under review". I wonder if it is one person who decides if you get accepted or several? Just curious about the process of accepting people...
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No news yet for me. I was going to upload a few more yesterday and couldn't because my application is "currently under review". I wonder if it is one person who decides if you get accepted or several? Just curious about the process of accepting people...
That didn't prevent me from uploading more yesterday.
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Thanks PhotoBomb. I can drag and drop them apparently but the green "Upload Assets" doesn't work anymore ... Wishing everyone luck on getting in!
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Wow...Upload to stocksy is worst than istock ESP trhee times!!.... What a hell!!
completely disagree...superb interface..the collectocio or shot possibilities are amazing.
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My 2 cents: looks like they are "cleaning" the house first; noticeably photographers who have been contributors for some time but whom do not contribute regularly are back to submitting. I suspect that only after Stocksy "cleans" the house will they choose new contributors, accordingly to subjects and styles that are lacking in the "cleaned" house. So, there is no limit date to apply, there is no clear info on how many new contributors are being invited/approved and no clear info yet on when answers will be sent. It all will depend on how the "cleaning" goes.
I read - don't remember where, probably in this thread - that Stocksy is looking for contributors who will submit regularly, which to me makes sense as there is no sense in accepting a limited number of members and then these members do not contribute regularly.
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Why do you think they are cleaning house? Are images missing from the database?
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I didn't mean cleaning as in removing individual images; I meant that inactive contributors could be persuaded to contribute or given a deadline. And if inactive contributors don't want to contribute they could be invited to leave, that's what I meant. In that case, Stocksy would only later know how many and what subjects and areas they could take on new contributors.
It's just my 2 cents, hope I explained it clearly. :)
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More wild speculation :P
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About Stocksy exclusivity, I've seen Sean's message on series exclusivity, but I have another question - can the picture be removed from the other agencies and then offered to Stocksy, is then the image exclusive?
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Yes, that's fine.
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Anyone heard back yet? Do we have any idea how long it will take to hear whether a contributor is approved or not? A week? A month? Three months?
It would be good to have a rough timescale.
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More wild speculation :P
As usual.
Uploaded last 5 more yesterday, after already being under review. Now I'm just waiting for the rejection notice. They can do what they want. Seems to be a good agency and working for quality also favorable to the limited number of qualified artists. I'd be proud just to be a member, but I think that's unlikely.
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Thanks Sean... I also don't see until when is the call for artists opened?
Jim, Indeed, being accepted would give some sense of purpose to all this...
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Thanks Sean... I also don't see until when is the call for artists opened?
Jim, Indeed, being accepted would give some sense of purpose to all this...
I don't know of any close date yet.
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I wanted to upload some more images today, (email said I could upload up to 100), but I don't appear to be able to submit anything. Is there a problem?
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Call it whatever you want, but if you search latest images you will spot at least one contributor whose "oldest" images are from October. If it's an "old" contributor who just now contributed images or if it's a new select from this Call to Artists ... who knows? :)
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I wanted to upload some more images today, (email said I could upload up to 100), but I don't appear to be able to submit anything. Is there a problem?
False alarm - it's working again now.
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I applied to Stocksy a month ago when I first saw the call for artists and am still waiting for a response. Does anyone know how long the application process takes? I think it said two weeks when I submitted? Do they just not follow up if you're rejected?
I was also recently accepted to Cavan images where I did submit my editorial images with them. I also want to submit my commercial images to Cavan but can't yet because most of them are sitting waiting for a response from Stocksy.
Does anyone know if Stocksy has a time limit for removal of images after acceptance? I think Alamy has 60 days for example. I just don't want my images to be crossing paths between to exclusive sites if I am accepted to Stocksy!
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^ few years ago friend got accepted after around ~6 months :)
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^ few years ago friend got accepted after around ~6 months :)
Wow 6 months! Thanks though :)
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6 months? That's a long time to be holding stuff back from other sites, so I hope the wait is worth it.
I thought Sean said a week or two back that they were already starting to contact contributors, or is that just wishful thinking on my part?
Edit: I just checked back this thread and can't see the post I was referring to. I'm sure I didn't imagine it, so maybe it was on a different thread somewhere?
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What will give us more profit: Stocksy or Cavan?
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6 months? That's a long time to be holding stuff back from other sites
That is exactly why I won't attempt to apply there. My new work goes immediately to agencies (RM and RF) that do accept my work and provide proven steady income. I can't even understand the logic of putting completed productivity on hold for a year or two until the call to artists is open, then submit that work in hopes I might get accepted months later. That to me translates to loss of income.
Love the concept of Stocksy but it ain't for me as the time delays are counter productive to my situation.
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Our acceptance time is a week or less. But nobody is telling you to withhold submitting to other places until after you're accepted.
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Our acceptance time is a week or less. But nobody is telling you to withhold submitting to other places until after you're accepted.
Thanks for the info. Cavan Images has a long hold on removed images after they approve, so anything I submit to them that's accepted is off limits to my Stocksy application.
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6 months? That's a long time to be holding stuff back from other sites, so I hope the wait is worth it.
I thought Sean said a week or two back that they were already starting to contact contributors, or is that just wishful thinking on my part?
Edit: I just checked back this thread and can't see the post I was referring to. I'm sure I didn't imagine it, so maybe it was on a different thread somewhere?
You didn't imagine it. :) It's on page 4 of this topic.
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rejection mail received, "After reviewing your work, we don’t feel there is a fit at this time. "......
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rejection mail received, "After reviewing your work, we don’t feel there is a fit at this time. "......
Do you mind me asking - did you submit a variety of image subjects i.e. people,landscape,food,etc or was it mostly of a single genre? And did you do some kind of desaturated look (the kind stocksy seems to have/prefer?
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rejection mail received, "After reviewing your work, we don’t feel there is a fit at this time. "......
Do you mind me asking - did you submit a variety of image subjects i.e. people,landscape,food,etc or was it mostly of a single genre? And did you do some kind of desaturated look (the kind stocksy seems to have/prefer?
I uploaded 95 images, including people, landscape, animal, flower, etc (no food)
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6 months? That's a long time to be holding stuff back from other sites, so I hope the wait is worth it.
I thought Sean said a week or two back that they were already starting to contact contributors, or is that just wishful thinking on my part?
Edit: I just checked back this thread and can't see the post I was referring to. I'm sure I didn't imagine it, so maybe it was on a different thread somewhere?
You didn't imagine it. :) It's on page 4 of this topic.
Thanks @m00n, I missed it when I looked back.
From what is says, no news is good news, so I guess that's some consolation to hold onto.
@yanjf, sorry you weren't successful but do you mind sharing the time frame from submission to rejection email, just to give a rough idea?
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6 months? That's a long time to be holding stuff back from other sites, so I hope the wait is worth it.
I thought Sean said a week or two back that they were already starting to contact contributors, or is that just wishful thinking on my part?
Edit: I just checked back this thread and can't see the post I was referring to. I'm sure I didn't imagine it, so maybe it was on a different thread somewhere?
You didn't imagine it. :) It's on page 4 of this topic.
Thanks @m00n, I missed it when I looked back.
From what is says, no news is good news, so I guess that's some consolation to hold onto.
@yanjf, sorry you weren't successful but do you mind sharing the time frame from submission to rejection email, just to give a rough idea?
First image was uploaded on Sept. 14, but the day before yesterday I started to upload those images to Shutterstock, approved and one of them been sold immeditately, because it is easy to delete them if stocksy approve my application. This morning, rejection email received...
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6 months? That's a long time to be holding stuff back from other sites, so I hope the wait is worth it.
I thought Sean said a week or two back that they were already starting to contact contributors, or is that just wishful thinking on my part?
Edit: I just checked back this thread and can't see the post I was referring to. I'm sure I didn't imagine it, so maybe it was on a different thread somewhere?
You didn't imagine it. :) It's on page 4 of this topic.
Thanks @m00n, I missed it when I looked back.
From what is says, no news is good news, so I guess that's some consolation to hold onto.
@yanjf, sorry you weren't successful but do you mind sharing the time frame from submission to rejection email, just to give a rough idea?
First image was uploaded on Sept. 14, but the day before yesterday I started to upload those images to Shutterstock, approved and one of them been sold immeditately, because it is easy to delete them if stocksy approve my application. This morning, rejection email received...
Thanks @yanjf
Sorry you didn't get accepted, but I hope the images work well for you elsewhere
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Hi veryone! I am a contributtor principally on Getty, and a bit on Shutter and others microagencies, I am pushing harder there, in micro...
Now I have seen the call to artist I am trying to go with stocksy, but I have some doubts. I fill the page and now i can upload videos and/or photos.
1. They say to upload a "minimum of 25 photos or/and 10 videos" , so I can upload more than 10 videos. Is better then to split and upload now 10, and if I get rejected upload other 10, or upload directly 20 or more for getting more options? Is better to focus in some kind of videos or better a mix of themes (family, landscapes, adventure...)?
2. anyone know if they admit the model release from the app "Easy releasy" or just the realese form form them?
Thanks a lot and luck for evryone!!!
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2. anyone know if they admit the model release from the app "Easy releasy" or just the realese form form them?
Yes, they accept 'Easy Release'
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Sorry if this had already been covered.
I'm reading the legal agreements. As far as I understand stocksy is a cooperative with contributors applying for membership with Stakeholder Group C.
What I like to know is how much / how far contributors are held liable. If there were any financial problems or bankrupt are Stakeholders Group C held responsible for liablity of the cooperative?
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Sorry if this had already been covered.
I'm reading the legal agreements. As far as I understand stocksy is a cooperative with contributors applying for membership with Stakeholder Group C.
What I like to know is how much / how far contributors are held liable. If there were any financial problems or bankrupt are Stakeholders Group C held responsible for liablity of the cooperative?
Generally, (in most countries), being a shareholder in a Cooperative means liability is limited to the value of your shares and, as you would only own one share, it would be very limited, and certainly not cost-effective for anyone to pursue you anyway. In the event of the holding company going bankrupt, your share would be worthless , so liability = zero.
I'd be glad if Stocksy could confirm my understanding here to be correct?
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Sorry if this had already been covered.
I'm reading the legal agreements. As far as I understand stocksy is a cooperative with contributors applying for membership with Stakeholder Group C.
What I like to know is how much / how far contributors are held liable. If there were any financial problems or bankrupt are Stakeholders Group C held responsible for liablity of the cooperative?
Generally, (in most countries), being a shareholder in a Cooperative means liability is limited to the value of your shares and, as you would only own one share, it would be very limited, and certainly not cost-effective for anyone to pursue you anyway. In the event of the holding company going bankrupt, your share would be worthless , so liability = zero.
I'd be glad if Stocksy could confirm my understanding here to be correct?
Yes at least in Germany this is true for a "stock company" (Aktiengesellschaft). Concerning a cooperative german rules are different. Normally all members of a cooperative are liable with their personal assets unless there is a written agreement that they are not made responsible. I'm not a native english speaker, if this passage appears somewhere at stocksys legal agreements I'd appreciate someone ponting me to them.
Anyway it's a good idea if Stocksy can clarify on this.
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Sorry if this had already been covered.
I'm reading the legal agreements. As far as I understand stocksy is a cooperative with contributors applying for membership with Stakeholder Group C.
What I like to know is how much / how far contributors are held liable. If there were any financial problems or bankrupt are Stakeholders Group C held responsible for liablity of the cooperative?
Generally, (in most countries), being a shareholder in a Cooperative means liability is limited to the value of your shares and, as you would only own one share, it would be very limited, and certainly not cost-effective for anyone to pursue you anyway. In the event of the holding company going bankrupt, your share would be worthless , so liability = zero.
I'd be glad if Stocksy could confirm my understanding here to be correct?
Yes at least in Germany this is true for a "stock company" (Aktiengesellschaft). Concerning a cooperative german rules are different. Normally all members of a cooperative are liable with their personal assets unless there is a written agreement that they are not made responsible. I'm not a native english speaker, if this passage appears somewhere at stocksys legal agreements I'd appreciate someone ponting me to them.
Anyway it's a good idea if Stocksy can clarify on this.
I believe that in Canada, the Shareholder Liability is the same for a Cooperative as it is for a Limited Liability Company. I don't think you are at any risk if you are approved as a contributor.
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for BC:
A statement that the liability of the members or investment shareholders is limited in accordance with the Act.
https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/693.nsf/eng/h_00073.html#faq (https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/693.nsf/eng/h_00073.html#faq)
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for BC:
A statement that the liability of the members or investment shareholders is limited in accordance with the Act.
[url]https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/693.nsf/eng/h_00073.html#faq[/url] ([url]https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/693.nsf/eng/h_00073.html#faq[/url])
Thanks, Nica.
I also checked the Parliamentary Bill, which also confirms Limited Liability for shareholders in section 3 Part C:http://publications.gc.ca/Collection-R/LoPBdP/LS/361/c5-e.htm
I didn't think there was an issue, but it's always good to read it in black and white.
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Hi,
I just wanted to check that I understood correctly... Is it ok to apply with images that are already accepted at other sites (shutterstock/istock/Adobe) so long as they are removed if accepted at Stocksy?
Also, how does one go about deactivating images from istock if successful? I think you can remove images from shutterstock and Adobe manually in your account but I wasn't sure if this was the case for istock...?
Thanks
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Hi,
I just wanted to check that I understood correctly... Is it ok to apply with images that are already accepted at other sites (shutterstock/istock/Adobe) so long as they are removed if accepted at Stocksy?
Also, how does one go about deactivating images from istock if successful? I think you can remove images from shutterstock and Adobe manually in your account but I wasn't sure if this was the case for istock...?
Thanks
You have to ask Istock to remove them and hope that they oblige. I have uploaded mostly new images for the application but for the few I already have on istock, if it comes to it I will close my account.
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any news?
one month to give an answer?
maybe they various step of decision to approve a new contributor...i don't know.
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I asked and they got a ton of response and are actively going through and evaluating many a day. So it is moving along. Just a lot to get through and still a small team.
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I am heading out to a model shoot later today and want to submit the images to beef up my application since I don't have many images with people. Do they only accept their model release from their site or can I submit with Easy Release from the app on my phone? I have had an agency in the past who wouldn't accept a digital signature too.
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I asked and they got a ton of response and are actively going through and evaluating many a day. So it is moving along. Just a lot to get through and still a small team.
Thanks for the update, Sean. Trying to be patient ;)
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I am heading out to a model shoot later today and want to submit the images to beef up my application since I don't have many images with people. Do they only accept their model release from their site or can I submit with Easy Release from the app on my phone? I have had an agency in the past who wouldn't accept a digital signature too.
yes, they accept Easy Release.
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I am heading out to a model shoot later today and want to submit the images to beef up my application since I don't have many images with people. Do they only accept their model release from their site or can I submit with Easy Release from the app on my phone? I have had an agency in the past who wouldn't accept a digital signature too.
yes, they accept Easy Release.
And generic releases? I Uploaded a few people shots in my application, and used the release I had on file. I can easily get another if needed, but it's good to know for reference.
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Yes, generic releases too.
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Yes, generic releases too.
Thanks, Gillian.
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I am heading out to a model shoot later today and want to submit the images to beef up my application since I don't have many images with people. Do they only accept their model release from their site or can I submit with Easy Release from the app on my phone? I have had an agency in the past who wouldn't accept a digital signature too.
yes, they accept Easy Release.
Thank you for the info!
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I have submitted an application and some images with people
I have the releases but did not upload the releases with my application, as I remeber reading somewhere that they are not required unless the images are approved and you become a member of Stocksy.
Just want a confirmation if this is correct, or are the releases required beforehand!
Thanks!
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I have submitted an application and some images with people
I have the releases but did not upload the releases with my application, as I remeber reading somewhere that they are not required unless the images are approved and you become a member of Stocksy.
Just want a confirmation if this is correct, or are the releases required beforehand!
Thanks!
1) Why would they say it if it is not true?
2) Why would you not submit a release if you know how to? I know it's a pain, but don't you want to show that you know how to manage the details of submitting content? Why not put your best foot forward.
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More info: https://blog.stocksy.com/cta-faq
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Got it
And thank you
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Hello
I'm having a hard time uploading my photos to the Stocksy site, there are 2 or 3 that pass and then it crashes. I don't see any ftp server available.
Does anyone have the same problem?
Thank you
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I have all my images uploaded and all are now showing an orange spot (minimum requirement for adding to queue). Is there a way to add all the images to the submission queue with one move or do I have to add each image singly? Thanks.
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Hello
I'm having a hard time uploading my photos to the Stocksy site, there are 2 or 3 that pass and then it crashes. I don't see any ftp server available.
Does anyone have the same problem?
Thank you
Tried to upload 90+ but only 50 got through first time. Went back to check the size and a few were just under the minimum 6Mp....eliminated them and retried the upload of the 40+ first-time failed images. Second time around all were uploaded, so it was maybe some temporary glitch.
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I have all my images uploaded and all are now showing an orange spot (minimum requirement for adding to queue). Is there a way to add all the images to the submission queue with one move or do I have to add each image singly? Thanks.
The usual shift or control to add to selection. Also, cntrl-a if one is already selected.
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I have all my images uploaded and all are now showing an orange spot (minimum requirement for adding to queue). Is there a way to add all the images to the submission queue with one move or do I have to add each image singly? Thanks.
The usual shift or control to add to selection. Also, cntrl-a if one is already selected.
Thanks Sean.
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Do we have to supply MR with the submission for CTA? Because quick start guide says we can provide them later?
I have all MRs but it would be a lot easier if we could provide them IF we are accepted to Stocksy at all.
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Got a standard "we don’t feel there is a fit at this time" rejection email today, so those who applied may hear soon about their applications, lookout for your mailbox.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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I've also had my rejection... I'm not surprised, I'm definitely not hip enough for them. At least I can move on and upload elsewhere. Good luck to you all!
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I'm still in the running, maybe they saw some magic in my brasilnuts ::)
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Do we have to supply MR with the submission for CTA? Because quick start guide says we can provide them later?
I have all MRs but it would be a lot easier if we could provide them IF we are accepted to Stocksy at all.
More info: https://blog.stocksy.com/cta-faq
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^ Thanks!
Is it possible to change our web address/social media contact that we added in the beginning?
Because I'd like to update it, and I can't find it anywhere.
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I wonder if this is the kind of stuff they're looking for. I've just included it and have a batch close to 50 images...let's see...
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Has anyone actually been accepted yet?
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Still waiting for my rejection email ;D
Friday will be 4 weeks since applying
I think some of my images are a good fit (my biased opinion) but I have very little net presence to speak about
We'll see
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Seven weeks as of today and still waiting (now I have probably jinxed myself and will get a rejection letter tomorrow :P)
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What does actually mean "social presence"? Does it have to be instagram? For example I'm much more active in facebook for example, but if instagram is a must that it is equal to not socially priesent for me...
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My initial application/uploads were on 9-14 - still no word.
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Submitted my application a few days ago, currently at 50+. Not sure if my work will suit, some are more creative but many are fine art of landscapes and people of Nepal, China, Norway, Bhutan, Myanmar, Morocco etc. and a few drone shots of the same, as the application notes suggested they were looking for people based or supplying East and SE Asian stock. We'll see, I'm just starting out on this stock road :)
My typical work can be seen on Instagram at : thedragonsfather
Photos submitted so far can be seen in the screenshots attached. Any chance do you guys think or not sufficiently 'stock' orientated ?
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Photos submitted so far can be seen in the screenshots attached. Any chance do you guys think or not sufficiently 'stock' orientated ?
Stocksy doesn't accept editorial images so images with identifiable people, of which you have quite a few, won't/may not be considered in the application unless you have the model release. Some have said you can submit later though...
As for what they're looking for, it seems like they're looking for that "wow" factor, of which you've certainly demonstrated with some of your images. I've put together 60 images so far, adding a few of my best ones from my recent trip to Tuscany.
Seems like we have a similar travel-orientated style.
Attached are my 60:
Good luck to us!
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Hi, I finished to add some photos, initially I uploaded just videos, but they send me mail telling me thate the procces of application was finished but I can keep uploading until they decide if they want me hehehe, so I uploaded some photos, I attatch it, the videos are slow motion of naked man (from back) running to the waves, and aerial shots of man in a clif with open arms...
Please tell me what you think about :)
Frogfish, I like your photos, but it seem, for me, without an personal point of view, they are great, but I cant see "your personality", and I think that this is important in stocksy the "author" print...
Brasilnut, I dont know if you ask for impressions about your photos, I think if you have put the photos is for this, so in my opinion there is a lack of more risk, I mean, the photos are ok, good, great, but I miss more original or diverse perspective
Sorry for my english (i tried my best) in spanish my opinion is much better hahahahaha
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so in my opinion there is a lack of more risk, I mean, the photos are ok, good, great, but I miss more original or diverse perspective
I appreciate your feedback and I agree with you. I desperately need to get some model-released stuff and don't want to invest in those types of pics without being accepted (chicken and egg). In any case, going through my 450 or so images from my week in Tuscany and looking for something wow and original. Lots of unreleased stuff so my options are a bit limited.
Perhaps something like this???
Sorry for my english (i tried my best) in spanish my opinion is much better hahahahaha
Impressive milky-way stuff, by the way.
Buena suerte amigo!
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Thanks, I m glad you liked it.
Yes, that photo is more close to the stocksy spirit (I think) but, sorry always there is a "but", the persons are pasted to the background, if you have some of this shots more from low angle for getting the silhouettes aginst the sky it would be greater.
If you are in Florence try to play with the tipycal scenes (old bridge, David, etc) but playing with shuttr speed for example and getting photos with "no people" (desappeared if you put 30 seconds of shutter) I dont know is just an idea, hehehe
Buena suerte también para tí!!!
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getting photos with "no people" (desappeared if you put 30 seconds of shutter) I dont know is just an idea, hehehe
Pronto!
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in my opinion you should study more the stocksy library before applying.
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in my opinion you should study more the stocksy library before applying.
... brutally honest.
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in my opinion you should study more the stocksy library before applying.
If you're a gambling man, what odds would you give me to be accepted?
MicroVegas has the current line at:
1.25 (-400) NO
4.00 (+400) YES
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in my opinion you should study more the stocksy library before applying.
If you're a gambling man, what odds would you give me to be accepted?
MicroVegas has the current line at:
1.25 (-400) NO
4.00 (+400) YES
everything is possible but i think the same betting value.
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everything is possible but i think the same betting value.
Odds just tilted slightly in my favour with this one...
Now
1.35 NO
3.65 YES
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getting photos with "no people" (desappeared if you put 30 seconds of shutter) I dont know is just an idea, hehehe
Pronto!
Nice! Try also to play with shutter at day (with filter), I like a lot the last you put (siena street), if you can one like that with someone would be perfect. Of course always is my personal opinion ;) I am like you hoping to get admitted in stocksy ;)
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Interesting conversation and thanks to all for their opinions. It's great to get different perspectives. Until I get a refusal I'll keep uploading until I reach the 100 limit.
I do have some MRs however they don't need to be uploaded until you are accepted. Obviously some of those shots won't have them regardless but I'm sure I read Stocksy also accept editorial shots ? Is that incorrect ?
For the 2nd x 50 shots I'll upload I guess I'll concentrate more on shots with unidentifiable people in them and probably more Oriental 'subjects' (not people) as well as some MR released shots of my daughter (a model in London). I've lots of city / country shots similar to the latest one Brasilnut posted. It's difficult to get an 'author's perspective' when shooting land or some city scapes though, especially when I often go to a lot of trouble to exclude people from the shots (guess I'll have to change, or add to, my shooting style in future) ;D
Oft times though it's just there are not many shots of that location (maybe it's tough to get too or climatic conditions dissuade many) so that any good quality shots stand out - at least that's what I'm hoping !
What is Micro Vegas ?
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No, we don't currently accept editorial.
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Hello everybody, I have completed my application on September 17 and I sent 100 photos and videos as asked. I have sent 25 exclusive footage and, 30 exclusive photos. The rest were non-exclusive photos because I have asked how is working and got the answer that yes, I can send non-exclusive content, but, in case of approval, this content will be deleted by the reviewers. I have tried to send various photos and footage, even if my specialty is food, I have sent lifestyle, conceptual, animals and travel. I choose some of my best content. I am pretty active on socials, specially with my Facebook page. With all this, on October 12 I have received the negative answer:
"Thank you for your interest in Stocksy. After reviewing your work, we don’t feel there is a fit at this time.
As you can imagine, we get a lot of applications and it’s always a difficult decision, but we only have room for a small group of contributors.
We wish you the best in your future endeavours and thank you for taking the time to apply and share your work with us.
We hope you have a great day,"
I strongly believe they rejected me because my photos doesn't tell a story. Portfolio must tell a story and has to have a beginning related to the end, everything in the same style. In my portfolio the story lacks and is pretty messy. Also I have sent some exclusive images which were part of non-exclusive series. This was wrong too, but I didn't know. I try to reorder my ideas and my portfolio and I will try again. But I want to tell you that is hard to reach what they want, I strongly believe that only an editor can have enough eye to order portfolio and public image in order to match with Stocksy.
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Soon there are two months since I completed my application. Sean, do you have any information what the maximum waiting time is ?
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Hello everybody, I have completed my application on September 17 and I sent 100 photos and videos as asked. I have sent 25 exclusive footage and, 30 exclusive photos. The rest were non-exclusive photos because I have asked how is working and got the answer that yes, I can send non-exclusive content, but, in case of approval, this content will be deleted by the reviewers. I have tried to send various photos and footage, even if my specialty is food, I have sent lifestyle, conceptual, animals and travel. I choose some of my best content. I am pretty active on socials, specially with my Facebook page. With all this, on October 12 I have received the negative answer:
"Thank you for your interest in Stocksy. After reviewing your work, we don’t feel there is a fit at this time.
As you can imagine, we get a lot of applications and it’s always a difficult decision, but we only have room for a small group of contributors.
We wish you the best in your future endeavours and thank you for taking the time to apply and share your work with us.
We hope you have a great day,"
I strongly believe they rejected me because my photos doesn't tell a story. Portfolio must tell a story and has to have a beginning related to the end, everything in the same style. In my portfolio the story lacks and is pretty messy. Also I have sent some exclusive images which were part of non-exclusive series. This was wrong too, but I didn't know. I try to reorder my ideas and my portfolio and I will try again. But I want to tell you that is hard to reach what they want, I strongly believe that only an editor can have enough eye to order portfolio and public image in order to match with Stocksy.
Oh, so sorry, after the hard work... Thanks for sharing yours learnings. I have a question: you said that they allow to upload non exclusive material and if they selected you should deleted it, where did you read about this? I just uploaded exclusive material, but if that you said is tru I would like to complement with my best shots (wich ones arent exclusives) If you or anyone can confirm this, or this will penalize me... Thanks a lot!
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Soon there are two months since I completed my application. Sean, do you have any information what the maximum waiting time is ?
I don't think there's any max. You would not believe the number of images that have been uploaded as part of the CTA. It's not surprising it's taking a while. Unfortunately. Sorry about that. We're actually in the process of expanding the editing team, which will help.
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I strongly believe they rejected me because my photos doesn't tell a story.
I guess this is "storytelling"...
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Hello everybody, I have completed my application on September 17 and I sent 100 photos and videos as asked. I have sent 25 exclusive footage and, 30 exclusive photos. The rest were non-exclusive photos because I have asked how is working and got the answer that yes, I can send non-exclusive content, but, in case of approval, this content will be deleted by the reviewers. I have tried to send various photos and footage, even if my specialty is food, I have sent lifestyle, conceptual, animals and travel. I choose some of my best content. I am pretty active on socials, specially with my Facebook page. With all this, on October 12 I have received the negative answer:
"Thank you for your interest in Stocksy. After reviewing your work, we don’t feel there is a fit at this time.
As you can imagine, we get a lot of applications and it’s always a difficult decision, but we only have room for a small group of contributors.
We wish you the best in your future endeavours and thank you for taking the time to apply and share your work with us.
We hope you have a great day,"
I strongly believe they rejected me because my photos doesn't tell a story. Portfolio must tell a story and has to have a beginning related to the end, everything in the same style. In my portfolio the story lacks and is pretty messy. Also I have sent some exclusive images which were part of non-exclusive series. This was wrong too, but I didn't know. I try to reorder my ideas and my portfolio and I will try again. But I want to tell you that is hard to reach what they want, I strongly believe that only an editor can have enough eye to order portfolio and public image in order to match with Stocksy.
Oh, so sorry, after the hard work... Thanks for sharing yours learnings. I have a question: you said that they allow to upload non exclusive material and if they selected you should deleted it, where did you read about this? I just uploaded exclusive material, but if that you said is tru I would like to complement with my best shots (wich ones arent exclusives) If you or anyone can confirm this, or this will penalize me... Thanks a lot!
My understanding was that you would have to be able to delete any images accepted from all of the other sites that they are currently for sale now - and they would stay at Stocksy.
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Hello everybody, I have completed my application on September 17 and I sent 100 photos and videos as asked. I have sent 25 exclusive footage and, 30 exclusive photos. The rest were non-exclusive photos because I have asked how is working and got the answer that yes, I can send non-exclusive content, but, in case of approval, this content will be deleted by the reviewers. I have tried to send various photos and footage, even if my specialty is food, I have sent lifestyle, conceptual, animals and travel. I choose some of my best content. I am pretty active on socials, specially with my Facebook page. With all this, on October 12 I have received the negative answer:
"Thank you for your interest in Stocksy. After reviewing your work, we don’t feel there is a fit at this time.
As you can imagine, we get a lot of applications and it’s always a difficult decision, but we only have room for a small group of contributors.
We wish you the best in your future endeavours and thank you for taking the time to apply and share your work with us.
We hope you have a great day,"
I strongly believe they rejected me because my photos doesn't tell a story. Portfolio must tell a story and has to have a beginning related to the end, everything in the same style. In my portfolio the story lacks and is pretty messy. Also I have sent some exclusive images which were part of non-exclusive series. This was wrong too, but I didn't know. I try to reorder my ideas and my portfolio and I will try again. But I want to tell you that is hard to reach what they want, I strongly believe that only an editor can have enough eye to order portfolio and public image in order to match with Stocksy.
Oh, so sorry, after the hard work... Thanks for sharing yours learnings. I have a question: you said that they allow to upload non exclusive material and if they selected you should deleted it, where did you read about this? I just uploaded exclusive material, but if that you said is tru I would like to complement with my best shots (wich ones arent exclusives) If you or anyone can confirm this, or this will penalize me... Thanks a lot!
My understanding was that you would have to be able to delete any images accepted from all of the other sites that they are currently for sale now - and they would stay at Stocksy.
He wrote: The rest were non-exclusive photos because I have asked how is working and got the answer that yes, I can send non-exclusive content, but, in case of approval, this content will be deleted by the reviewers.
I understand that is talking about the reviewers of Stocksy... But it have more sense that you said, that if the maeterial will get, you should have to delete from other places.
I am doubting to put this ones:
http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/v%C3%ADdeo/timelapse-of-man-standing-while-the-people-move-pel%C3%ADculas-de-stock/692848666?suri=1 (http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/v%C3%ADdeo/timelapse-of-man-standing-while-the-people-move-pel%C3%ADculas-de-stock/692848666?suri=1)
http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/v%C3%ADdeo/timelapse-of-couple-of-lovers-embracing-themselves-pel%C3%ADculas-de-stock/815913346?suri=1 (http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/v%C3%ADdeo/timelapse-of-couple-of-lovers-embracing-themselves-pel%C3%ADculas-de-stock/815913346?suri=1)
What do you think? it will worth?
Thinks!!!
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Hello everybody, I have completed my application on September 17 and I sent 100 photos and videos as asked. I have sent 25 exclusive footage and, 30 exclusive photos. The rest were non-exclusive photos because I have asked how is working and got the answer that yes, I can send non-exclusive content, but, in case of approval, this content will be deleted by the reviewers. I have tried to send various photos and footage, even if my specialty is food, I have sent lifestyle, conceptual, animals and travel. I choose some of my best content. I am pretty active on socials, specially with my Facebook page. With all this, on October 12 I have received the negative answer:
"Thank you for your interest in Stocksy. After reviewing your work, we don’t feel there is a fit at this time.
As you can imagine, we get a lot of applications and it’s always a difficult decision, but we only have room for a small group of contributors.
We wish you the best in your future endeavours and thank you for taking the time to apply and share your work with us.
We hope you have a great day,"
I strongly believe they rejected me because my photos doesn't tell a story. Portfolio must tell a story and has to have a beginning related to the end, everything in the same style. In my portfolio the story lacks and is pretty messy. Also I have sent some exclusive images which were part of non-exclusive series. This was wrong too, but I didn't know. I try to reorder my ideas and my portfolio and I will try again. But I want to tell you that is hard to reach what they want, I strongly believe that only an editor can have enough eye to order portfolio and public image in order to match with Stocksy.
Oh, so sorry, after the hard work... Thanks for sharing yours learnings. I have a question: you said that they allow to upload non exclusive material and if they selected you should deleted it, where did you read about this? I just uploaded exclusive material, but if that you said is tru I would like to complement with my best shots (wich ones arent exclusives) If you or anyone can confirm this, or this will penalize me... Thanks a lot!
My understanding was that you would have to be able to delete any images accepted from all of the other sites that they are currently for sale now - and they would stay at Stocksy.
He wrote: The rest were non-exclusive photos because I have asked how is working and got the answer that yes, I can send non-exclusive content, but, in case of approval, this content will be deleted by the reviewers.
I understand that is talking about the reviewers of Stocksy... But it have more sense that you said, that if the maeterial will get, you should have to delete from other places.
I am doubting to put this ones:
[url]http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/v%C3%ADdeo/timelapse-of-man-standing-while-the-people-move-pel%C3%ADculas-de-stock/692848666?suri=1[/url] ([url]http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/v%C3%ADdeo/timelapse-of-man-standing-while-the-people-move-pel%C3%ADculas-de-stock/692848666?suri=1[/url])
[url]http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/v%C3%ADdeo/timelapse-of-couple-of-lovers-embracing-themselves-pel%C3%ADculas-de-stock/815913346?suri=1[/url] ([url]http://www.gettyimages.es/detail/v%C3%ADdeo/timelapse-of-couple-of-lovers-embracing-themselves-pel%C3%ADculas-de-stock/815913346?suri=1[/url])
What do you think? it will worth?
Thinks!!!
stocksy has a specifik color palette that most people struggle to understand. clearly they want some colors desaturated more than others. people seems to not recognize this important point of stocksy. they don't want colors like micro stock.
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I was also rejected. I got the same - probably preset - answer eZeePics was given. I gave it a try but I am actually happier I got accepted and started uploading to robertharding because I mostly do travel pics and videos. Now I understand why Brasilnut mentions you have to slowly build your portfolio there!
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Now I understand why Brasilnut mentions you have to slowly build your portfolio there!
I'm just wingin' it. Just hope they like my style.
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I was also rejected. I got the same - probably preset - answer eZeePics was given. I gave it a try but I am actually happier I got accepted and started uploading to robertharding because I mostly do travel pics and videos. Now I understand why Brasilnut mentions you have to slowly build your portfolio there!
I didn't know of Robert Harding - they seem a great fit for my travel & landscape photography (see the pics I posted to Stocksy above) so if I don't get into Stocksy I'll give RH a try.
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I didn't know of Robert Harding - they seem a great fit for my travel & landscape photography (see the pics I posted to Stocksy above) so if I don't get into Stocksy I'll give RH a try.
They'll have no issues accepting some of your images.
My rejection rate with them is about 80%, which is fine because I put the remainder of the images on Alamy as RM.
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Just my case Brasilnut! I have about one in four accepted up to now, though still waiting for videos review. Have to ask, why RM and not Royalty Free to Alamy? Should I also tag them editorial only, or not?
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I didn't know of Robert Harding - they seem a great fit for my travel & landscape photography (see the pics I posted to Stocksy above) so if I don't get into Stocksy I'll give RH a try.
They'll have no issues accepting some of your images.
My rejection rate with them is about 80%, which is fine because I put the remainder of the images on Alamy as RM.
I'm not sure if I'm reading it correctly but they require images to : be a minimum of 50mb uncompressed (panorama’s 100mb) however they also state that We accept photographs shot with professional quality dslr or mirrorless cameras with a minimum of 12 mega-pixel sensors and pro lenses that surely can't be correct ! Print sizes would be massive at 50MB and a 12MP camera doesn't produce a 50MP file, even after conversion to TIFF !
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My application is pending for about month or so, same situation with FreshStock.
I think that they was overwhelmed with crappy pix. Anyway, i don't think they are better earners than SS.
Prediction is 98% accurate.
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Have to ask, why RM and not Royalty Free to Alamy? Should I also tag them editorial only, or not?
Personal preference, although not a huge difference between RM and RF on Alamy anymore.
If you license unreleased RF you'll need to tag them as editorial only, however with RM that isn't necessary (Alamy do a good job to make this as confusing as possible).
be a minimum of 50mb uncompressed (panorama’s 100mb)
This is uncompressed. Not sure the exact number but it's about 12mb min after exporting as JPEG. I've had issues with these requirements in the occasions when I've had to crop and they wouldn't accept, but at worst cases, I up-size some of the images. Of course this isn't the best solution as it fks up the resolution but what else could I do but for re-shooting (which isn't possible since I've had to travel far).
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If they want "storytelling", this is my story.
This woman collects stray dogs and makes them into fancy jackets to sell in the boutique shops of Milan. The cuter the dog, the softer the fur.
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If they want "storytelling", this is my story.
This woman collects stray dogs and makes them into fancy jackets to sell in the boutique shops of Milan. The cuter the dog, the softer the fur.
one question..did you manage to spend one hour browsing the stocksy collectioN?
this is an editorial story. good for getty or reuters maybe, if part of a series.
you are misunderstanding the meaning of storytelling.
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one question..did you manage to spend one hour browsing the stocksy collectioN?
I do sort of get what they want and I did browse. They want something that has a start, middle and end. Like a patient going to to the doctor, there's the sickness, getting out the door, arriving at the office, checkin with receptionist, seeing doctor (most important part) then the rest.
I captured a screenshot of an interesting story of an ethnic woman at the track, highlighting back to health issues since it appears that she recently gave birth (as per the stretch marks).
All this is cool and I could do...but don't want to fork out expenses on models at this stage before getting accepted (chicken and egg scenario). I have included some images of friends/relatives but the story isn't complete.
Anyway, it's all cool...happy either way if I'm in or not.
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one question..did you manage to spend one hour browsing the stocksy collectioN?
I do sort of get what they want and I did browse. They want something that has a start, middle and end. Like a patient going to to the doctor, there's the sickness, getting out the door, arriving at the office, checkin with receptionist, seeing doctor (most important part) then the rest.
I captured a screenshot of an interesting story of an ethnic woman at the track, highlighting back to health issues since it appears that she recently gave birth (as per the stretch marks).
All this is cool and I could do...but don't want to fork out expenses on models at this stage before getting accepted (chicken and egg scenario). I have included some images of friends/relatives but the story isn't complete.
Anyway, it's all cool...happy either way if I'm in or not.
no they want images who fit the collection for style creativity and colors palette. you can send only single image but they should fit the collection. maybe you never shot with models, but when you do a session is clear that you create a story but these images u added are just a session of sport with model. i doubt the photographer aimed at what you explained. it was just a session.
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no they want images who fit the collection for style creativity and colors palette.
I see some VSCO. Just need to gauge more of their style.
I'm a big fan of KODAK Portra 400.
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brasilnut is starting to annoy me.
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brasilnut is starting to annoy me.
I'm out.
Best of luck to everybody.
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Got rejection today. After nearly 2 months of waiting. Relieved to be able to move on with the images but disappointed not to get some firsthand experience on the site.
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one question..did you manage to spend one hour browsing the stocksy collectioN?
I do sort of get what they want and I did browse. They want something that has a start, middle and end. Like a patient going to to the doctor, there's the sickness, getting out the door, arriving at the office, checkin with receptionist, seeing doctor (most important part) then the rest.
I captured a screenshot of an interesting story of an ethnic woman at the track, highlighting back to health issues since it appears that she recently gave birth (as per the stretch marks).
All this is cool and I could do...but don't want to fork out expenses on models at this stage before getting accepted (chicken and egg scenario). I have included some images of friends/relatives but the story isn't complete.
Anyway, it's all cool...happy either way if I'm in or not.
I know this Spanish photographer. He was admitted a month ago and is great photographer.
Good luck to all. I'm waiting for a month.
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one question..did you manage to spend one hour browsing the stocksy collectioN?
I do sort of get what they want and I did browse. They want something that has a start, middle and end. Like a patient going to to the doctor, there's the sickness, getting out the door, arriving at the office, checkin with receptionist, seeing doctor (most important part) then the rest.
I captured a screenshot of an interesting story of an ethnic woman at the track, highlighting back to health issues since it appears that she recently gave birth (as per the stretch marks).
All this is cool and I could do...but don't want to fork out expenses on models at this stage before getting accepted (chicken and egg scenario). I have included some images of friends/relatives but the story isn't complete.
Anyway, it's all cool...happy either way if I'm in or not.
I know this Spanish photographer. He was admitted a month ago and is great photographer.
Good luck to all. I'm waiting for a month.
Sorry MxR, I'm lost. Who is the Spanish photographer?
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Waiting 40 days for review but im happy with offset and w61 if im rejected.
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Waiting 40 days for review but im happy with offset and w61 if im rejected.
You can not worry. You have a good portfolio, I think they will accept.
p.s. Does the W61 have sales? They invited me, but I have not worked with them yet.
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Waiting 40 days for review but im happy with offset and w61 if im rejected.
You can not worry. You have a good portfolio, I think they will accept.
p.s. Does the W61 have sales? They invited me, but I have not worked with them yet.
Thanks...but i was recejected by Stocksy all years by them... I am used to it!
i sent ypu a PM
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brasilnut is starting to annoy me.
I'm out.
Best of luck to everybody.
And I'm just wondering what's taking my rejection so long? I mean that. I thought I'd apply just to see but I'm pretty sure they want models, lifestyle, trendy artistic, stylish, no bright typical micro. I'm none of that, but still, I thought it made sense to at least apply and hope? I'd look forward to sending them the more artistic works and not waste time with the same on Micro.
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And I'm just wondering what's taking my rejection so long? I mean that. I thought I'd apply just to see but I'm pretty sure they want models, lifestyle, trendy artistic, stylish, no bright typical micro. I'm none of that, but still, I thought it made sense to at least apply and hope? I'd look forward to sending them the more artistic works and not waste time with the same on Micro.
I'm still in the running.
I'm out of discussing it here as I'm obviously annoying people (which is not my intention).
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And I'm just wondering what's taking my rejection so long? I mean that. I thought I'd apply just to see but I'm pretty sure they want models, lifestyle, trendy artistic, stylish, no bright typical micro. I'm none of that, but still, I thought it made sense to at least apply and hope? I'd look forward to sending them the more artistic works and not waste time with the same on Micro.
I'm still in the running.
I'm out of discussing it here as I'm obviously annoying people (which is not my intention).
Glad you're still in the running ;) I think you're just trying to hard to ask everyone what they think Stocksy wants. Don't over analyze it, I think that they are simply looking for fresh new creative work. Put forth a portfolio you believe in and love and even if they don't accept you you know who you are as a photographer. Just be authentic.
I get it I want to be on the site too, the waiting and getting your hopes up sucks if it's a no in the end (8 weeks and counting here). However I want to create work I want to create and if it is a fit, it's a fit, if not then I will look to sell my current work somewhere it will succeed and try again later on when I have newer work for them to review.
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And I'm just wondering what's taking my rejection so long? I mean that. I thought I'd apply just to see but I'm pretty sure they want models, lifestyle, trendy artistic, stylish, no bright typical micro. I'm none of that, but still, I thought it made sense to at least apply and hope? I'd look forward to sending them the more artistic works and not waste time with the same on Micro.
I'm still in the running.
I'm out of discussing it here as I'm obviously annoying people (which is not my intention).
Glad you're still in the running ;) I think you're just trying to hard to ask everyone what they think Stocksy wants. Don't over analyze it, I think that they are simply looking for fresh new creative work. Put forth a portfolio you believe in and love and even if they don't accept you you know who you are as a photographer. Just be authentic.
I get it I want to be on the site too, the waiting and getting your hopes up sucks if it's a no in the end (8 weeks and counting here). However I want to create work I want to create and if it is a fit, it's a fit, if not then I will look to sell my current work somewhere it will succeed and try again later on when I have newer work for them to review.
Probably the best advice towards him and/or anyone in regards to Stocksy. I was asked to join long ago during the clandestine stage of the agency and chose not too mainly because I did not want to drop exclusivity and the momentum I had with you know who. Years later I am still very much glad I made the choice I did.
"I want to create work I want to create and if it is a fit, it's a fit, if not then I will look to sell my current work somewhere it will succeed" +100
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It's been two months since my submission and still no news from them. Is anyone here get reply from them?
How many contributor they will accept this year? If its only ten or less, then it will be really hard competition.
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It's been nearly 2 months from mine application too, still nothing. Even with the numbers higher than 10 accepted contributors this year, it is still a hard competition - I assume they need time, probably a lots of applications and crazy amounts of pictures
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10??? Are you serious?
How this could be real :o
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I do not think Stocksy will mobilize so many people to admit only 10 contributors. It is not the Willy Wonka Choclate factory. In other occasions they have been 500.
If that were true I would not waste my time indexing 100 photos and many photographers that I know would not either.
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I do not think Stocksy will mobilize so many people to admit only 10 contributors. It is not the Willy Wonka Choclate factory. In other occasions they have been 500.
If that were true I would not waste my time indexing 100 photos and many photographers that I know would not either.
I don't think that either. I believe the number will have 3 figures. But that number doesn't mean anything without the other one - number of applications. 100/1000 or 100/10000 it's a big difference
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100 it’s few either. I never thought about such little chances
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This is all wild speculation.
You are not competing against the number of applications sent in whether its 1000 or 100,000.
You need to show you have a style they want and that you would be an asset to the co-op.
They may be willing to add 100 or maybe 500 new artists but if only a handful of applications appeal to them, then that's all they will invite onboard.
Yes, I'm still waiting to find out if I made the cut.
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Yes, I'm still waiting to find out if I made the cut.
Me too. As far as I'm aware nobody has been accepted yet.
Can anybody confirm this?
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Most of those who apply know what they are applying for. I am giving respect for all the competitors and that's why numbers for me are important. If you wanna get in, it's not about being good, it's about being great. A lots of brilliant artists at stocksy have already set the bar high.
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Tell me more about the 1,000-person cap on membership.
BW: There is, yes. We're at 900 photographers, right now.
How do photographers become Stocksy members?
BW: So far, everyone has joined up organically. We have an open application process half of the year, from June until the end of December. On average, over the last three years, we've gotten about 5,000 applications each year. That is why we close it down for six months—to sift through all the applications.
https://www.shareable.net/blog/interviewed-stocksys-brianna-wettlaufer-and-nuno-silva-on-building-a-cooperative-stock-photo (https://www.shareable.net/blog/interviewed-stocksys-brianna-wettlaufer-and-nuno-silva-on-building-a-cooperative-stock-photo)
What I understood from that article, there's only 100 seats left for new contributor.
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Thank you for sharing that article :) It helps put things in perspective.
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Wow
Well that pretty much means I dont have a snowballs chance..
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Wow
Well that pretty much means I dont have a snowballs chance..
Ditto.
I don't think I have that range or vision for them, but I will keep trying. :)
Great article.
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Yes, I'm still waiting to find out if I made the cut.
Me too. As far as I'm aware nobody has been accepted yet.
Can anybody confirm this?
A couple of weeks ago I was browsing latest images on Stocksy and checking some profiles; doing this I came across 2 or 3 members with smaller portfolios, whose older images date from October 2017. Not sure when they signed, but I'd say in the actual Call to Artists ...
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Wow
Well that pretty much means I dont have a snowballs chance..
It's tough at the top.
Bring it on, Stocksy! 8)
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Last news from recente accepted contributor a week ago is only new 6/7 new contributors.
Maybe they are making short lists and then suddenly solve more requests.
I sent 4 partial sessions a lot of time ago that I reserve for stocksy in case of luck. What's new I'll send it to my usual places, productions cant stop!
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Last news from recente accepted contributor a week ago is only new 6/7 new contributors
:-\
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A couple of weeks ago I was browsing latest images on Stocksy and checking some profiles; doing this I came across 2 or 3 members with smaller portfolios, whose older images date from October 2017. Not sure when they signed, but I'd say in the actual Call to Artists ...
I've seen this too. It means they started sending emails with good news too :)
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Wow, its been a long time. Lets hope they come back with some reply
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I've noticed people talking about how your submission needs to adhere to 'their vision or style or colour palette'. However it seems to me that is not true at all, in fact this quote from the interview with Stocksy CEO/Co-Founder Brianna Wettlaufer says quite the contrary .. so don't give up hope if your style/colour palette doesn't meet what you've seen on Stocksy !
BW: Our editors are closely involved in reviewing the people that apply. In our first year it was anyone that had artistic merit and the same sort of visual goal that we were after. This last year, we've been looking for people who are going to grow what's in the collection.
That's an extension of the concerns of our members. If someone's shooting particular content in a particular style, and then we bring in someone who's doing the same thing, that's no longer going to be a collaborative relationship—it's going to get very competitive. So right now the focus is on finding people who expand the creative vision in some new way that doesn't encroach on what's already there.
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I've noticed people talking about how your submission needs to adhere to 'their vision or style or colour palette'. However it seems to me that is not true at all, in fact this quote from the interview with Stocksy CEO/Co-Founder Brianna Wettlaufer says quite the contrary .. so don't give up hope if your style/colour palette doesn't meet what you've seen on Stocksy !
BW: Our editors are closely involved in reviewing the people that apply. In our first year it was anyone that had artistic merit and the same sort of visual goal that we were after. This last year, we've been looking for people who are going to grow what's in the collection.
That's an extension of the concerns of our members. If someone's shooting particular content in a particular style, and then we bring in someone who's doing the same thing, that's no longer going to be a collaborative relationship—it's going to get very competitive. So right now the focus is on finding people who expand the creative vision in some new way that doesn't encroach on what's already there.
even those accepted this month have the same color palette and tone of typical stocks.
they look for new content but the style must be similar. most of the photos posted here on this thread will not adhere. stocksy like neutral saturation...people keep uploading files who have too much colors in my opinion.
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How do you guys know who is accepted this month?
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How do you guys know who is accepted this month?
Only if to search among new images small new portfolio.
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I've been waiting since September. Received a refusal today.
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I've been waiting since September. Received a refusal today.
Wow 3 months to wait for a refusal
I guess they’re still going through September applications
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I've been waiting since September. Received a refusal today.
Please, could you say which day of September you received the email confirming that your application was complete? It is to calculate how many more days I have to wait for the answer. Thank you very much!
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I think there are no rules with dates. Mine was also completed in September and I'm still waiting
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I think there are no rules with dates. Mine was also completed in September and I'm still waiting
Okay, but September has 30 long days ;)
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Okay, but September has 30 long days ;)
True, but if you read other threads on this same topic (applications for the last few years) you will find that there were people waiting 5-6 months for a refusal. We can still hope ofc :)
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Okay, but September has 30 long days ;)
True, but if you read other threads on this same topic (applications for the last few years) you will find that there were people waiting 5-6 months for a refusal. We can still hope ofc :)
OMG! 5-6 months! :o :-[
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Please, could you say which day of September you received the email confirming that your application was complete? It is to calculate how many more days I have to wait for the answer. Thank you very much!
I sent a request on 13 September. 8)
Good luck to all who are still waiting for the answer!
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I sent a request on 13 September. 8)
Good luck to all who are still waiting for the answer!
So sorry for the bad news shutterspeed. Thank you for support, waiting is the hardest part
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Please, could you say which day of September you received the email confirming that your application was complete? It is to calculate how many more days I have to wait for the answer. Thank you very much!
I sent a request on 13 September. 8)
Good luck to all who are still waiting for the answer!
About 70 days; 2 months and 10 days. Well... this is always better than 5 or 6 months. ;D We will wait patiently...
Thank you very much, shutterspeed! :)
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I submitted mine in October. I've been working so hard (and still am) but given how few they accept, I know my chances are slim. Keep us posted guys and good luck to everyone waiting.
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(https://scontent.frec1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/23916509_1426792570752260_4424441103057529239_o.jpg?oh=47062c88151d83ef7101629a56b25dc0&oe=5A93B507)
My content submitted to StockSy on November 12, 2017
I would like your opinion on my submitted content, thank you very much for the attention and I wish everyone good luck.
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Sean and others, can you help me understand why a social media presence is sort of a requirement? I don't get it. The definition of stock imagery is images that are bought to serve a specific purpose. Why does it matter whether or not the creator has a footprint in social media?
Thanks.
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Sean and others, can you help me understand why a social media presence is sort of a requirement? I don't get it. The definition of stock imagery is images that are bought to serve a specific purpose. Why does it matter whether or not the creator has a footprint in social media?
Thanks.
Excellent question!!! I don't even own a device, I don't do social media apart from Linkedin which I deem only to be an online accessible Rolodex, and even then I don't share who my contacts are. Yet I make a very successful living primarily shooting only stock.
I personally have never understood why a social media presence and being considered for Stocksy is even relevant.
Sean, I would really like to hear a solid answer on this one as the relevance mystifies me.
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Sean and others, can you help me understand why a social media presence is sort of a requirement? I don't get it. The definition of stock imagery is images that are bought to serve a specific purpose. Why does it matter whether or not the creator has a footprint in social media?
Thanks.
It's a cooperative effort, everybody contributes to the promotion of the company, more social media presence, more hashtags more links, more visability, better search positions more sales.
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I would also put forward that some of the 'hopefuls' are and have been shooting themselves in the foot with their social media postings. Stocksy, like employers and universities, are using social media to screen applicants. Stocksy is looking for partners they won't be embarrassed by in representing the co-op.
A questionable social media presence is probably worse than none.
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Sean and others, can you help me understand why a social media presence is sort of a requirement? I don't get it. The definition of stock imagery is images that are bought to serve a specific purpose. Why does it matter whether or not the creator has a footprint in social media?
Thanks.
As a co-op, members are supposed to be promoters or ambassadors for the business to help with publicity or promotion, etc. Having a social media presence of some sort that can be used towards that end is one way to accomplish that.
2.4(e) of the bylaws says: (e) A Member is expected to support and promote the Cooperative.
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Three good responses and it all makes more sense now.
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A questionable social media presence is probably worse than none.
WOW. Really?
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I didn’t fill my social media links while registering, how can I fix it now? My account is under review
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A questionable social media presence is probably worse than none.
WOW. Really?
I believe that. I can see how a presence that has objectionable work unrelated to Stocksy imagery...or some other bad move, could be worse than a blank slate.
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If you think you missed to put it in the application, link it to your website. I couldn't decide which one to pick so i linked all my profiles there in one place.
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A questionable social media presence is probably worse than none.
WOW. Really?
I believe that. I can see how a presence that has objectionable work unrelated to Stocksy imagery...or some other bad move, could be worse than a blank slate.
I can understand making an a$$ of yourself publicly on any social media is sad and undesirable, but to be considered "worse" than not having any online social media presence is rather a sad reflection of today's world.
Then again, I can also last a day or a week or a month without always having to check-in for self validation and to see what I am missing. I’d rather live my life instead of trying to come up with the perfect spin on it for my social profile.
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stocksy is more oriented towards an instagram style made of "real " life situation. if you spend your time analyzing their portfolio u see this, and it's clear that they prefer contributors more oriented toward instagram, a grudge and outdoor lifestyle.
that's why i don't understand many people submitting sending photos who have typical micro stock style to an agency who will never consider them.
they look for some theme different from their portfolio they have now but with characteristic similar to the portfolio, it's simply clear. sending perfect landscape or cityscape you can find in micro stock won't help you in, or photos with strong blue daylight sky, photo of people who look so fake int here pose won't help you neither. even most of the model u see in the photos looks so different from the model u see in micro stock.
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stocksy is more oriented towards an instagram style made of "real " life situation. if you spend your time analyzing their portfolio u see this, and it's clear that they prefer contributors more oriented toward instagram, a grudge and outdoor lifestyle.
that's why i don't understand many people submitting sending photos who have typical micro stock style to an agency who will never consider them.
they look for some theme different from their portfolio they have now but with characteristic similar to the portfolio, it's simply clear. sending perfect landscape or cityscape you can find in micro stock won't help you in, or photos with strong blue daylight sky, photo of people who look so fake int here pose won't help you neither. even most of the model u see in the photos looks so different from the model u see in micro stock.
I agree. Models in stocksy photos are ''normal'' people, more like your grandma or neighbour, not people that are generally considered being models
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I agree. Models in stocksy photos are ''normal'' people, more like your grandma or neighbour, not people that are generally considered being models
Gotta get in touch with this lady to hire her for a photo shoot to strenghten my Stocksy application :D
https://www.boredpanda.com/funny-self-portraits-kimiko-nishimoto-89-year-old/ (https://www.boredpanda.com/funny-self-portraits-kimiko-nishimoto-89-year-old/)
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They want free marketing from their contributors.
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They want free marketing from their contributors.
It's a cooperative, not a traditional agency, they're supposed to all work together for their common gain.
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They want free marketing from their contributors.
It's not free; contributors get a share of the profit at year's end.
Join them or don't, but at least represent their business model correctly if you intend to criticize
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I sent my submission a month ago, and no news so far.
Shall I assume a rejection?
:-\
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Shall I assume a rejection?
No news is good news until the bad news.
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I sent my submission a month ago, and no news so far.
Shall I assume a rejection?
:-\
I submitted my photos at the end of September and haven't heard of them back... :'(
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Same thing... submitted the first 25 batch and still waiting for a responce... Any news about the timing for approva?
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Rejected a month ago. Added applications images back into my regular uploads.
Happy to say my application images are all currently selling well instead of waiting for evaluation at Stocksy.
This is a really long time for contributors to be holding up valuable images!
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This is a really long time for contributors to be holding up valuable images!
If they were editorials I'd be seriously annoyed since they have a shorter shelf life but my pics are kinda timeless (don't know about yours). Agreed, a long time to wait...no news is good news.......maybe the people waiting are on the reserve list.
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This is a really long time for contributors to be holding up valuable images!
If they were editorials I'd be seriously annoyed since they have a shorter shelf life but my pics are kinda timeless (don't know about yours). Agreed, a long time to wait...no news is good news.......maybe the people waiting are on the reserve list.
They don't take Editorial right? They didn't require exclusive for application images, just anything that went live. Since I make mostly Editorial I sent in scenic and got rejected, which was what I expected. My materials don't match what the site needs or wants, I just thought I'd see if the panoramas or nature would apply. Answer last week is NO!
Good site with a good grasp of what upper level buyers want. For all the times we complain about spam and too many similar images and all the crap that's getting accepted on the Micro sites, here's to Stocksy for integrity and class. That's why the site is a success. Poll says 375 but only two people. That's five times SS by the way.
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well more than 2 months and half..i find disrespectful and unacceptable terms. but my theory is that they don't want to add many contributor before christmas to not hurt the sale of current contirbourtor for christmas theme.
I'm sure after christmas the will clean very fast the queue
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Got a no... Guess need to start collecting for next year
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Got a no... Guess need to start collecting for next year
I'm so sorry. Your pictures are very good.
Please, could you say which day and month you received the email confirming that your application was complete? It is to calculate how many more days I have to wait for the answer. Thank you very much!
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I got a no as well.
Unfortunately, the response was a standard wording email saying I wasn't a good fit for Stocsky. My application included some parts of buildings, (all taken from public positions and not from private land), and some stock sites would take these where others might request a property release.
As it took two months to make a decision, a fuller response would have been helpful so that I would at least know whether the rejection was based on my photographic style rather than a property release issue.
I get that they've been swamped, but without pointing us in the right direction, we won't know what we need to modify for next time.
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Got a no... Guess need to start collecting for next year
I'm so sorry. Your pictures are very good.
Please, could you say which day and month you received the email confirming that your application was complete? It is to calculate how many more days I have to wait for the answer. Thank you very much!
Just got it yesterday.
Best of luck to you. Do help us get better if you get in
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I got a no as well.
Unfortunately, the response was a standard wording email saying I wasn't a good fit for Stocsky. My application included some parts of buildings, (all taken from public positions and not from private land), and some stock sites would take these where others might request a property release.
As it took two months to make a decision, a fuller response would have been helpful so that I would at least know whether the rejection was based on my photographic style rather than a property release issue.
I get that they've been swamped, but without pointing us in the right direction, we won't know what we need to modify for next time.
Absolutely agree on this. It helps even if they do a small tutorial on the stocksy style, will help point people in the right direction and get a better base the next time
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Got a no... Guess need to start collecting for next year
I'm so sorry. Your pictures are very good.
Please, could you say which day and month you received the email confirming that your application was complete? It is to calculate how many more days I have to wait for the answer. Thank you very much!
Just got it yesterday.
Best of luck to you. Do help us get better if you get in
Thank you so much, but I was asking about the day the waiting time began; the day you received the email confirming that your application was complete and the waiting time began. It is to have an idea of how much time they take to respond.
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Got a no... Guess need to start collecting for next year
I'm so sorry. Your pictures are very good.
Please, could you say which day and month you received the email confirming that your application was complete? It is to calculate how many more days I have to wait for the answer. Thank you very much!
Just got it yesterday.
Best of luck to you. Do help us get better if you get in
Thank you so much, but I was asking about the day the waiting time began; the day you received the email confirming that your application was complete and the waiting time began. It is to have an idea of how much time they take to respond.
The delay has been really variable. They are not processing applications in order or using a standard delay. So you can't estimate. You'll just have to wait. Best as I can tell, the longer you are waiting, the better (the closer to getting in you are).
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The delay has been really variable. They are not processing applications in order or using a standard delay. So you can't estimate. You'll just have to wait. Best as I can tell, the longer you are waiting, the better (the closer to getting in you are).
Sorry about that. From my understanding, they decline applicants quickly whose work wouldn't fit right from first glance. People who would seem a better fit take longer because they look at portfolios and other work, and then get in contact. So it takes longer, and there's just a large amount of applicants.
"As it took two months to make a decision, a fuller response would have been helpful so that I would at least know whether the rejection was based on my photographic style rather than a property release issue. "
It wouldn't be for a release. We have to correct releases all the time. It's not a crime.
"Absolutely agree on this. It helps even if they do a small tutorial on the stocksy style, will help point people in the right direction and get a better base the next time "
There isn't really a "stocksy style". I mean you can look at the work on the site and make some deteminations, but that may just be because that "look" is a fit for whatever the subject is. I would just say looking at work similar to "yours" on the site gives a pretty good idea of what they like, although having your own unique or particular style is also a standout.
In general, I would say applications should show that you can shoot whatever you shoot in a consistent yet varied manner. ie, you shoot landscapes, but don't send 30 images of the same area, but have the same quality in a variety of areas.
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"As it took two months to make a decision, a fuller response would have been helpful so that I would at least know whether the rejection was based on my photographic style rather than a property release issue. "
It wouldn't be for a release. We have to correct releases all the time. It's not a crime.
I didn't have (and can't get) releases - that why I'm curious. Shutterstock would take them straight out, whereas Fotolia would reject them requesting a release. I don't know what Stocksy's position is on this, so I took a chance and uploaded, figuring someone would tell me if I got it wrong.
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It's almost three months since my submission email (September 15th) and still no news. Yesterday I just upload my 100th images and I cant upload more.
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I just got my rejection notice
Too bad
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Has anybody here gotten accepted already during this year's Call To Artists at all?
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I just got my rejection notice
Too bad
I'm sorry to hear that. Can you still open the image manager on stocksy after the rejection? Have you try upload new images and give it a second try?
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I just got my rejection notice
Too bad
I'm sorry to hear that. Can you still open the image manager on stocksy after the rejection? Have you try upload new images and give it a second try?
The image manager is unavailable
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I am starting to think that the conditions for applying and how the entry process is managed is not fair for the candidates.
They ask for exclusive photos upfront, and given the time they take to say yes or no to each candidate, those pictures cannot be used in other agencies in the meantime.
Wouldn't it have been better to just ask for a portfolio as a reference to assess style, and only after saying yes to ask for the first submission...?
I think that more than one month (some pleople are even saying they have not been noticed after near 3 months...) is a very long time, regardless of the number of applications.
I am tempted to delete all the pictures, but I am not doing it yet because I know some people that are current contributors at Stocksy, and they say they are happy.
I hope that once you are accepted, the relationship contributor-agency is good, but mi first impression has not been very good so far...
EDIT: I misunderstood/misread the conditions to apply, and they are allowing non exclusive content as well.
However, I still think more than one month to reply is a long long time.
Sorry for my previous message.
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I am starting to think that the conditions for applying and how the entry process is managed is not fair for the candidates.
They ask for exclusive photos upfront, and given the time they take to say yes or no to each candidate, those pictures cannot be used in other agencies in the meantime.
Wouldn't it have been better to just ask for a portfolio as a reference to assess style, and only after saying yes to ask for the first submission...?
I think that more than one month (some pleople are even saying they have not been noticed after near 3 months...) is a very long time, regardless of the number of applications.
I am tempted to delete all the pictures, but I am not doing it yet because I know some people that are current contributors at Stocksy, and they say they are happy.
I hope that once you are accepted, the relationship contributor-agency is good, but mi first impression has not been very good so far...
You might want to read their FAQ again.
Exclusive content isn’t required for the application.
https://blog.stocksy.com/cta-faq/
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I am starting to think that the conditions for applying and how the entry process is managed is not fair for the candidates.
They ask for exclusive photos upfront, and given the time they take to say yes or no to each candidate, those pictures cannot be used in other agencies in the meantime.
Wouldn't it have been better to just ask for a portfolio as a reference to assess style, and only after saying yes to ask for the first submission...?
I think that more than one month (some pleople are even saying they have not been noticed after near 3 months...) is a very long time, regardless of the number of applications.
I am tempted to delete all the pictures, but I am not doing it yet because I know some people that are current contributors at Stocksy, and they say they are happy.
I hope that once you are accepted, the relationship contributor-agency is good, but mi first impression has not been very good so far...
You might want to read their FAQ again.
Exclusive content isn’t required for the application.
https://blog.stocksy.com/cta-faq/
You are right! Thank you for pointing that out.
Sorry for the fuss, I don't know why, but I was convinced I read the pictures had to be exclusive. My bad.
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99 of the 100 assest I sent are exclusive. If they catch me i will start with a good portfolio, if they reject me those sessions can be hundreds of photos with which to start the year hard in another agency. There is no need to be impatient. Now there is no rush to upload photos to other agencies, the worst part of the year begins for any non-Christmas theme until January 6/7.
Anyway I do not understand so much waiting time, offset responds in less than a week, shutter in days ... the style is easily adaptable depending on which agency you think to guide a photo session, There are many traditional stock photographers who do well in Stocksy and they adapted their style ... and others who were admited after to do "rare and authentic" things with abandoned portfolios today ....
If I think about Shutter or fotolia I put people smiling at camera with crossed arms and I will process their face and teeth a lot, well now I do less. If I think of offset a sunset light and someone who seems not to know that it is photographed and I will make a subtle touch and cross fingers for take 20% of images, with more risky concepts. If I think of photographing for Istock, I photographmy children diapers...
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99 of the 100 assest I sent are exclusive. If they catch me i will start with a good portfolio, if they reject me those sessions can be hundreds of photos with which to start the year hard in another agency. There is no need to be impatient. Now there is no rush to upload photos to other agencies, the worst part of the year begins for any non-Christmas theme until January 6/7.
Anyway I do not understand so much waiting time, offset responds in less than a week, shutter in days ... I do not understand the obsession to investigate our style, the style is easily adaptable depending on which agency you think to guide a photo session, There are many traditional stock photographers who do well in Stocksy and they adapted their style ... and others who were admited after to do "rare and authentic" things with abandoned portfolios today ....
If I think about Shutter or fotolia I put people smiling at camera with crossed arms and I will process their face and teeth a lot, well now I do less. If I think of offset a sunset light and someone who seems not to know that it is photographed and I will make a subtle touch and cross fingers for take 20% of images, with more risky concepts. If I think of photographing for Istock, I photographmy children diapers...
i agree. 3 months is a lot of time. from one point of view i suspect is good to have this time of waiting, cause maybe they make steps of selection, so the more time the more chance, but 3 months wow.just wow.
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Last time after 4/5 months they rejected with a standar "friendzoned" message.
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99 of the 100 assest I sent are exclusive. If they catch me i will start with a good portfolio, if they reject me those sessions can be hundreds of photos with which to start the year hard in another agency. There is no need to be impatient. Now there is no rush to upload photos to other agencies, the worst part of the year begins for any non-Christmas theme until January 6/7.
Anyway I do not understand so much waiting time, offset responds in less than a week, shutter in days ... I do not understand the obsession to investigate our style, the style is easily adaptable depending on which agency you think to guide a photo session, There are many traditional stock photographers who do well in Stocksy and they adapted their style ... and others who were admited after to do "rare and authentic" things with abandoned portfolios today ....
If I think about Shutter or fotolia I put people smiling at camera with crossed arms and I will process their face and teeth a lot, well now I do less. If I think of offset a sunset light and someone who seems not to know that it is photographed and I will make a subtle touch and cross fingers for take 20% of images, with more risky concepts. If I think of photographing for Istock, I photographmy children diapers...
i agree. 3 months is a lot of time. from one point of view i suspect is good to have this time of waiting, cause maybe they make steps of selection, so the more time the more chance, but 3 months wow.just wow.
>1 month is disrespectful and shows complete lack of professional courtesy and > 2 months is an insult.
Also, no photographer should ever have to change their style in a bid to satisfy any agency. You either shoot what they are perceived to want in their collection or you don't.
If Stocksy is so "aware" then they should spot the talent they want immediately and not play this game of deliberation.
For me it is easy, I love the concept of Stocksy but I really don't think they are a fit for me.
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We know that stocksy receive a huge applicants and only so much quota left for contributors.
I understand they might need some time to sort things out.
But what I dont understand, if they find some shortlist/candidates who already submit, why do they still open the application. On the other hand, if they're still looking for the right contributors to fit their collections, why they dont reject the old applicant first?
I just edit my image submissions and change some images into Non Exclusive and send them to another agency. Because 3 months is a little too long for those images to wait.
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We know that stocksy receive a huge applicants and only so much quota left for contributors.
I understand they might need some time to sort things out.
But what I dont understand, if they find some shortlist/candidates who already submit, why do they still open the application. On the other hand, if they're still looking for the right contributors to fit their collections, why they dont reject the old applicant first?
I just edit my image submissions and change some images into Non Exclusive and send them to another agency. Because 3 months is a little too long for those images to wait.
Everyone keeps talking about pictures on hold. It is not what they ask for. We are free to use those images and sell them on other sites while we aren't part of Stocksy yet. All of us who applied should've known that it's a long wait, there are similar threads to this one for the applications before. Nothing weird and nothing new.
@selasasore, are you still waiting? It's been exactly 80 days from my application today, including weekends
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Hi Clair Voyant, I do not think it's a lack of respect. They already warn the applicants that it will take a long time. It is always like this every year. I offer images exclusively because I have a lot of content, dont worry about some files waiting
Regarding that you do not have to change the style ... the stock is a business and you have to adapt to the trends. Only that. If I see that a model fits more into "real people" or "traditional" agencies and depending on the location I direct the session in one way or another.
I know a lot of photographers that adapt to the agency that best treats them and gives them more money.
For example, when working with westend 61 that distributes to several agencies, I combine traditional posed photos looking at a smiling camera and more cliché than getty, Folio, Adobe ... with other more candid photos that like offset, dissolve and plainpicture and so each one selects what suits him... By the way, that stocksy accepts many portraits of people with crossed arms looking at camera with business in background... I think a los is the reviewer, model, location...
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Hi Clair Voyant, I do not think it's a lack of respect. They already warn the applicants that it will take a long time. It is always like this every year. I offer images exclusively because I have a lot of content, dont worry about some files waiting
Regarding that you do not have to change the style ... the stock is a business and you have to adapt to the trends. Only that. If I see that a model fits more into "real people" or "traditional" agencies and depending on the location I direct the session in one way or another.
I know a lot of photographers that adapt to the agency that best treats them and gives them more money.
For example, when working with westend 61 that distributes to several agencies, I combine traditional posed photos looking at a smiling camera and more cliché than getty, Folio, Adobe ... with other more candid photos that like offset, dissolve and plainpicture and so each one selects what suits him... By the way, that stocksy accepts many portraits of people with crossed arms looking at camera with business in background... I think a los is the reviewer, model, location...
In the grand scheme of things Stocksy is a very small boutique agency with a certain attempted style and/or look - cool, hipster, trendy, and current. This is great, I applaud them for this however it is limited in scope. Not all buyers want this look and/or style.
If buyers want that look/style that Stocksy offers buyers can readily find this by searching in any other agency as there is an oversupply of this style of photography as with all images. I don't think Stocksy is bringing anything overwhelmingly new to the industry image wise, it's all been pretty much done and is readily available at multiple agencies. I feel the only thing that truly separates Stocksy from the herd is the format which it is founded on. And that is not enough to consider mixing things up from what I am currently doing.
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Hi Clair Voyant, I do not think it's a lack of respect. They already warn the applicants that it will take a long time. It is always like this every year. I offer images exclusively because I have a lot of content, dont worry about some files waiting
Regarding that you do not have to change the style ... the stock is a business and you have to adapt to the trends. Only that. If I see that a model fits more into "real people" or "traditional" agencies and depending on the location I direct the session in one way or another.
I know a lot of photographers that adapt to the agency that best treats them and gives them more money.
For example, when working with westend 61 that distributes to several agencies, I combine traditional posed photos looking at a smiling camera and more cliché than getty, Folio, Adobe ... with other more candid photos that like offset, dissolve and plainpicture and so each one selects what suits him... By the way, that stocksy accepts many portraits of people with crossed arms looking at camera with business in background... I think a los is the reviewer, model, location...
In the grand scheme of things Stocksy is a very small boutique agency with a certain attempted style and/or look - cool, hipster, trendy, and current. This is great, I applaud them for this however it is limited in scope. Not all buyers want this look and/or style.
If buyers want that look/style that Stocksy offers buyers can readily find this by searching in any other agency as there is an oversupply of this style of photography as with all images. I don't think Stocksy is bringing anything overwhelmingly new to the industry image wise, it's all been pretty much done and is readily available at multiple agencies. I feel the only thing that truly separates Stocksy from the herd is the format which it is founded on. And that is not enough to consider mixing things up from what I am currently doing.
I'm sorry disagree completely. the level and quality of content in stocksy is years ahead micro stock. yes there are some contributor mimicking stocksy style but still the content lack that quality and spontaneity. i don't even consider food and still life category because there is simply not a competition. stocksy has a lot of artist in micro stock mostly are amateur , and even professional are more quantity producer than quality.
i have seen some concept and quality in stocksy that make me really wish to browse all collection. when i begin browsing the shuterstock collection i stop after the first page, so boring and low quality are the content,. even the best seller in food and still life are so boring i cannot describe.
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I'm sorry disagree completely. the level and quality of content in stocksy is years ahead micro stock.
[/quote]
For sure! But let's not forget they are only doing what was done before micro stock. They are screening applicants for consistency and also editing images from the accepted applicants. So in effect in this day and age of everyone gets a medal, they have really only gone retro just like the trads used to do when it was a "closed shop".
And for this I applaud them, it is long overdue in the industry, a thing of the past.
Don't misunderstand me, I have nothing against Stocksy, rather I like what they are doing, however I have been around long enough to know if I was to mix things up from what I am currently doing, Stocksy still would not be a contender for where I would place my work.
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We know that stocksy receive a huge applicants and only so much quota left for contributors.
I understand they might need some time to sort things out.
But what I dont understand, if they find some shortlist/candidates who already submit, why do they still open the application. On the other hand, if they're still looking for the right contributors to fit their collections, why they dont reject the old applicant first?
I just edit my image submissions and change some images into Non Exclusive and send them to another agency. Because 3 months is a little too long for those images to wait.
Everyone keeps talking about pictures on hold. It is not what they ask for. We are free to use those images and sell them on other sites while we aren't part of Stocksy yet. All of us who applied should've known that it's a long wait, there are similar threads to this one for the applications before. Nothing weird and nothing new.
@selasasore, are you still waiting? It's been exactly 80 days from my application today, including weekends
Today is 3 months because their email saying my application is completed was sent at September 18th.
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We know that stocksy receive a huge applicants and only so much quota left for contributors.
I understand they might need some time to sort things out.
But what I dont understand, if they find some shortlist/candidates who already submit, why do they still open the application. On the other hand, if they're still looking for the right contributors to fit their collections, why they dont reject the old applicant first?
I just edit my image submissions and change some images into Non Exclusive and send them to another agency. Because 3 months is a little too long for those images to wait.
Everyone keeps talking about pictures on hold. It is not what they ask for. We are free to use those images and sell them on other sites while we aren't part of Stocksy yet. All of us who applied should've known that it's a long wait, there are similar threads to this one for the applications before. Nothing weird and nothing new.
@selasasore, are you still waiting? It's been exactly 80 days from my application today, including weekends
Today is 3 months because their email saying my application is completed was sent at September 18th.
That's too much.
I don't know any other site, service or job that needs so long to answer for an application.
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I'm fine with waiting. They know what they are doing. I'm not submitting my application images to micro ...
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To everyone frustrated with the wait, I understand what you are saying. But, remember one thing. Stocksy is image exclusive so any image you may have there (and its similars) cannot be placed anywhere else. Stocksy wants to make sure that both parties benefit from an acceptance. In other words, they want you to sell. They are taking their time to make as certain as possible that you will have every chance possible to be successful there. It would be a disservice to you for them to take you on knowing that you may struggle there; to have your images gathering dust rather than working for you somewhere else. That evaluation can take time; give them all the time they need to make a careful decision...it's a win for you whether you are accepted, or not.
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To everyone frustrated with the wait, I understand what you are saying. But, remember one thing. Stocksy is image exclusive so any image you may have there (and its similars) cannot be placed anywhere else. Stocksy wants to make sure that both parties benefit from an acceptance. In other words, they want you to sell. They are taking their time to make as certain as possible that you will have every chance possible to be successful there. It would be a disservice to you for them to take you on knowing that you may struggle there; to have your images gathering dust rather than working for you somewhere else. That evaluation can take time; give them all the time they need to make a careful decision...it's a win for you whether you are accepted, or not.
Yes, true, it wouldn't help anybody if they accepted all applicants and most of them won't sell any images or worse if it drags down their image because people send in lots of crappy images as you find elsewhere... Nevertheless I think 3 months without any feedback is a very long time! Some sort of communication would have helped and it would still help to know when to expect a decision.
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To everyone frustrated with the wait, I understand what you are saying. But, remember one thing. Stocksy is image exclusive so any image you may have there (and its similars) cannot be placed anywhere else. Stocksy wants to make sure that both parties benefit from an acceptance. In other words, they want you to sell. They are taking their time to make as certain as possible that you will have every chance possible to be successful there. It would be a disservice to you for them to take you on knowing that you may struggle there; to have your images gathering dust rather than working for you somewhere else. That evaluation can take time; give them all the time they need to make a careful decision...it's a win for you whether you are accepted, or not.
Yes, true, it wouldn't help anybody if they accepted all applicants and most of them won't sell any images or worse if it drags down their image because people send in lots of crappy images as you find elsewhere... Nevertheless I think 3 months without any feedback is a very long time! Some sort of communication would have helped and it would still help to know when to expect a decision.
Exactly. I think there is no excuse.
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There is no disrespect to applying photographers intended at Stocksy ... it is simply that there is a small, very diligent and hardworking editing team that take a lot of time to review a large number of applications thoroughly. Since there is a limited membership base, it is a tough process to select new members.
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There is no disrespect to applying photographers intended at Stocksy ... it is simply that there is a small, very diligent and hardworking editing team that take a lot of time to review a large number of applications thoroughly. Since there is a limited membership base, it is a tough process to select new members.
I appreciate that and am aware that this is what their success is based on but a simple "Thank you for your application, we're getting back to you in about 2 weeks/2 months/2 years!" wouldn't have left the applications feeling like being up in the air...
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Anyone has any news or new information?
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I applied to Stocksy a month ago when I first saw the call for artists and am still waiting for a response. Does anyone know how long the application process takes? I think it said two weeks when I submitted? Do they just not follow up if you're rejected?
I was also recently accepted to Cavan images where I did submit my editorial images with them. I also want to submit my commercial images to Cavan but can't yet because most of them are sitting waiting for a response from Stocksy.
Does anyone know if Stocksy has a time limit for removal of images after acceptance? I think Alamy has 60 days for example. I just don't want my images to be crossing paths between to exclusive sites if I am accepted to Stocksy!
I'm curious, a hi res image at Cavan is selling for $500, and hi res at Stocksy is $125, and they both offer 50% royalty to the photographer. Considering you're putting the same effort toward your shoot, what would be the advantage to join Stocksy?
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I applied to Stocksy a month ago when I first saw the call for artists and am still waiting for a response. Does anyone know how long the application process takes? I think it said two weeks when I submitted? Do they just not follow up if you're rejected?
I was also recently accepted to Cavan images where I did submit my editorial images with them. I also want to submit my commercial images to Cavan but can't yet because most of them are sitting waiting for a response from Stocksy.
Does anyone know if Stocksy has a time limit for removal of images after acceptance? I think Alamy has 60 days for example. I just don't want my images to be crossing paths between to exclusive sites if I am accepted to Stocksy!
I'm curious, a hi res image at Cavan is selling for $500, and hi res at Stocksy is $125, and they both offer 50% royalty to the photographer. Considering you're putting the same effort toward your shoot, what would be the advantage to join Stocksy?
what the advantage to join the Cavan?
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I've read that Cavan owns copyright of your photos once they are sold. Is this true?
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things are two
1- they have at least 200.000 request...contrary is impossible to wait so long.
2- they not accept many not to hurt holiday sales for existing contributors.
other way i cannot understand what' happen. how long u take to see if a portfolio fi or not?
a skilled editor need probably less than a minute. considering the well oriented style of stocksy.
maybe they first eliminate all portfolio they not need and now they are selecting just some between the leftovers?
maybe there is step approach to accepting, first some ditori choose than a group of established contiorboutos decide about who is in or out.
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I've read that Cavan owns copyright of your photos once they are sold. Is this true?
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The photographer owns the copyright.
what the advantage to join the Cavan?
[/quote]
Hi res image at Cavan = $500 each. Hi res image at Stocksy = $125, that's 4 times more per image!
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I've read that Cavan owns copyright of your photos once they are sold. Is this true?
The photographer owns the copyright.
what the advantage to join the Cavan?
Hi res image at Cavan = $500 each. Hi res image at Stocksy = $125, that's 4 times more per image!
What about sellings? I’ve heard that Stocksy has huge client base and contributors sell images regularly. Is Cavan good alternative to Stocksy?
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things are two
1- they have at least 200.000 request...contrary is impossible to wait so long.
2- they not accept many not to hurt holiday sales for existing contributors.
other way i cannot understand what' happen. how long u take to see if a portfolio fi or not?
a skilled editor need probably less than a minute. considering the well oriented style of stocksy.
maybe they first eliminate all portfolio they not need and now they are selecting just some between the leftovers?
maybe there is step approach to accepting, first some ditori choose than a group of established contiorboutos decide about who is in or out.
I just read their contributor agreement and it is $100.
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things are two
1- they have at least 200.000 request...contrary is impossible to wait so long.
2- they not accept many not to hurt holiday sales for existing contributors.
other way i cannot understand what' happen. how long u take to see if a portfolio fi or not?
a skilled editor need probably less than a minute. considering the well oriented style of stocksy.
maybe they first eliminate all portfolio they not need and now they are selecting just some between the leftovers?
maybe there is step approach to accepting, first some ditori choose than a group of established contiorboutos decide about who is in or out.
I just read their contributor agreement and it is $100.
what?!
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I'm curious, a hi res image at Cavan is selling for $500, and hi res at Stocksy is $125, and they both offer 50% royalty to the photographer. Considering you're putting the same effort toward your shoot, what would be the advantage to join Stocksy?
The price is not the only issue, Lilulila has a good point, client base is also important. I know we are all contributors here so it may sound tempting to sell one picture for $500 but look at it from the buyers perspective. It would be useful to know this info from someone who's part of Cavan. It may be good alternative but pumping prices doesn't need to work. Cavan seems to know this as they have pricey pics and awarded artists, but also Cavan social category up to $100
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Hi res image at Cavan = $500 each. Hi res image at Stocksy = $125, that's 4 times more per image!
So now I'm going to start a new agency, with hi res image at $1000 each.
WOW
It's useless to look at prices if you have not buyer. Comparing prices between agencies is a simple joke
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haha! you can send your port or in the old days a z-card to half a million clients/companies and after you can say you have a base of half a million clients. Dont mean crap! dont mean that all these actually use you or even buy from you!
Obviously any agency with an RM/RF policy only, then have a much smaller number of buying clients
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Hi res image at Cavan = $500 each. Hi res image at Stocksy = $125, that's 4 times more per image!
So now I'm going to start a new agency, with hi res image at $1000 each.
WOW
It's useless to look at prices if you have not buyer. Comparing prices between agencies is a simple joke
I don't know if you looked at the images between the 2 sites, but I think both Cavan and Stocksy has very good images, hence same quality of work selling at different price.
Agreed that it would great to hear from contributors here that shoots with both agencies (or with Offset and Stocksy) and their take.
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It's really weird, I couldn't find anything about Cavan here on forum. So I applied few days ago out of curiosity. Got accepted in 24 hours, lol. Just to remind, still waiting for Stocksy reply, it's been more than 3 months now. Well, happy New Year ;D
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It's really weird, I couldn't find anything about Cavan here on forum. So I applied few days ago out of curiosity. Got accepted in 24 hours, lol. Just to remind, still waiting for Stocksy reply, it's been more than 3 months now. Well, happy New Year ;D
Happy New Year! And yay!!! Keep us updated about any sales!
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It's really weird, I couldn't find anything about Cavan here on forum. So I applied few days ago out of curiosity. Got accepted in 24 hours, lol. Just to remind, still waiting for Stocksy reply, it's been more than 3 months now. Well, happy New Year ;D
Congrats! Could you show us a link to your portfolio? Thank you very much!
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Congrats! Could you show us a link to your portfolio? Thank you very much!
Chandra, check your inbox ;)
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Congrats! Could you show us a link to your portfolio? Thank you very much!
Chandra, check your inbox ;)
Thank you so much, Cersei! I sent you a message too :)
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I'm sorry disagree completely. the level and quality of content in stocksy is years ahead micro stock.
For sure! But let's not forget they are only doing what was done before micro stock. They are screening applicants for consistency and also editing images from the accepted applicants. So in effect in this day and age of everyone gets a medal, they have really only gone retro just like the trads used to do when it was a "closed shop".
And for this I applaud them, it is long overdue in the industry, a thing of the past.
Don't misunderstand me, I have nothing against Stocksy, rather I like what they are doing, however I have been around long enough to know if I was to mix things up from what I am currently doing, Stocksy still would not be a contender for where I would place my work.
[/quote]
Best quote in this whole thread!! " But let's not forget they are only doing what was done before micro stock. " so true! and that is years ahead of micro!
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I'm sorry disagree completely. the level and quality of content in stocksy is years ahead micro stock.
For sure! But let's not forget they are only doing what was done before micro stock. They are screening applicants for consistency and also editing images from the accepted applicants. So in effect in this day and age of everyone gets a medal, they have really only gone retro just like the trads used to do when it was a "closed shop".
And for this I applaud them, it is long overdue in the industry, a thing of the past.
Don't misunderstand me, I have nothing against Stocksy, rather I like what they are doing, however I have been around long enough to know if I was to mix things up from what I am currently doing, Stocksy still would not be a contender for where I would place my work.
Best quote in this whole thread!! " But let's not forget they are only doing what was done before micro stock. " so true! and that is years ahead of micro!
[/quote] How can something that was done years ago be years ahead? If it was such a great business model why was Mstock not strangled at birth?
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Congrats! Could you show us a link to your portfolio? Thank you very much!
Chandra, check your inbox ;)
Now I'm curious, too! :)
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How can something that was done years ago be years ahead? If it was such a great business model why was Mstock not strangled at birth?
I think what derek meant to say is that microstock once was similar to macros today: more picky. You didn't need to search for hours to find the image you were looking for. That's not the case today. There are too many pictures and almost none quality control. You can still find really nice photos and great artists there but you will need to scroll a lot. And in today's world where everything needs to be done yesterday, it is almost impossible to think twice about paying more and saving your time. Since my first stock photo purchase on Corbis in 2003., the industry changed a lot. It's not the same and never will be. Let's just hope this time it's on the right path!
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Is it difficult to get in Cavan images? Just because I was accapted less than 24 hours..
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How can something that was done years ago be years ahead? If it was such a great business model why was Mstock not strangled at birth?
I think what derek meant to say is that microstock once was similar to macros today: more picky. You didn't need to search for hours to find the image you were looking for. That's not the case today. There are too many pictures and almost none quality control. You can still find really nice photos and great artists there but you will need to scroll a lot. And in today's world where everything needs to be done yesterday, it is almost impossible to think twice about paying more and saving your time. Since my first stock photo purchase on Corbis in 2003., the industry changed a lot. It's not the same and never will be. Let's just hope this time it's on the right path!
I think the step into the future that will make a difference is curation by artificial intelligence its just too expensive for humans to do it in the current environment and they are not very good at it
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Is it difficult to get in Cavan images? Just because I was accapted less than 24 hours..
Allright guys. Now I'm curious about cavan images. Would yoi mind share your portfolio for us to see the kind of images they need?
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I think the step into the future that will make a difference is curation by artificial intelligence its just too expensive for humans to do it in the current environment and they are not very good at it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzlsvFN_5HI&feature=share (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzlsvFN_5HI&feature=share)
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I think the step into the future that will make a difference is curation by artificial intelligence its just too expensive for humans to do it in the current environment and they are not very good at it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzlsvFN_5HI&feature=share (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzlsvFN_5HI&feature=share)
Yes probably where we are now despite claims made about current search engines ;-)
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Is it difficult to get in Cavan images? Just because I was accapted less than 24 hours..
Looks like Cavan heard we're still waiting for Stocksy and threw a bone ;D We're a bit offtopic here but why isn't there anything about Cavan here on forum? Like it doesn't exist at all
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Is it difficult to get in Cavan images? Just because I was accapted less than 24 hours..
b.smith, check your inbox, please.
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It's really weird, I couldn't find anything about Cavan here on forum. So I applied few days ago out of curiosity. Got accepted in 24 hours, lol. Just to remind, still waiting for Stocksy reply, it's been more than 3 months now. Well, happy New Year ;D
Isn't it time to start a separate Cavan thread.
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Hey people, 3 thoughts
1-. Cavan is not "EL DORADO". Cavan distribute to sites like offset, Plainpicture, Adobe Premiun... and sell a little by their own web but... If you don't have premium lifestyle you will earn more in microstock. A hipster looking a smartphone or a girl walking in city is not enough today in macro to compete.
2-. Why stocksy sell more??I think first is prices-quality... Offer/demand curve, good marketing and social networking popularity. Contributor fidelity and happiness is important for they see this first site for upload best stuff
3-. Yes, still waiting, because this... Stocksy threat is too boring...
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For Cavan, I'm in but I don't submit after reading the faqs:
Similar Content, even if not selected, may not be shared with other agencies.
Paypal payments incur a 2.9% + .30 cents charge!
Weird upload process, you have to zip files together, adobeAdobe RGB (1998) Colorspace... but no need to keywording.
Too much work.
For Stocky, 3 months wait and I'm refused...
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We have a new Cavan thread in general discussion now... Sorry everyone for this offtopic mess!
http://www.microstockgroup.com/general-stock-discussion/cavan-images-30975/new/#new (http://www.microstockgroup.com/general-stock-discussion/cavan-images-30975/new/#new)
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For Cavan, I'm in but I don't submit after reading the faqs:
Similar Content, even if not selected, may not be shared with other agencies.
If I'm not mistaken about Stocksy, they have the same requirement for the similar content.
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cavan looks the same as stocksy.
i don't see particularly complex lifestyle in both agency, sure not a girl on the street only but they are mostly shooting who cost nothing or near.
the only agency who complex shooting in stocksy i see is lumina, and 2 3 other, i mean shooting that involve lot of model location scouting and rental, supply of food etc.
cavan is series exclusivity. well i don't know if it's worth. i understand image exclusivity. but seres. ok if you not pay nothing just have a friend and shoot one day for fun,. is okay.
anyway it must beset how much cavan sell.
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Stocksy threat is too boring...
We could officialy call it a Stocksy Yawn.
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For Cavan, I'm in but I don't submit after reading the faqs:
Similar Content, even if not selected, may not be shared with other agencies.
If I'm not mistaken about Stocksy, they have the same requirement for the similar content.
Series exclusivity is normal in macrostock. They all have the same requirement, getty,westend,stocksy.
It is also true that stocksy is normal traditional macrostock, so that really isn’t the revolution.
I anyway don’t understand why people compare it to Shutterstock and co, stocksy is targeting macrostock customers, it has nothing to do with micro.
The „revolution“ comes in the form of being a coowner.
stocksy can never be sold to an outsider, the artists are not just suppliers, they are the agency.
There are many small macrostock agencies that you can supply to and they will sell direct and also distribute, but only on stocksy do you hold a piece of the pie.
Plus the very supportive management, you can talk to the editors directly and also get shooting tips from experienced art directors.
If you only want a macrostock portal, there are many places you can apply to. Nothing wrong with being a part of several places, also because stocksy wants a very specific style...so all the content you shoot that is not their style...you still need a sales outlet for that.
So good luck to all that applied :)
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For Cavan, I'm in but I don't submit after reading the faqs:
Similar Content, even if not selected, may not be shared with other agencies.
If I'm not mistaken about Stocksy, they have the same requirement for the similar content.
Series exclusivity is normal in macrostock. They all have the same requirement, getty,westend,stocksy.
It is also true that stocksy is normal traditional macrostock, so that really isn’t the revolution.
I anyway don’t understand why people compare it to Shutterstock and co, stocksy is targeting macrostock customers, it has nothing to do with micro.
The „revolution“ comes in the form of being a coowner.
stocksy can never be sold to an outsider, the artists are not just suppliers, they are the agency.
There are many small macrostock agencies that you can supply to and they will sell direct and also distribute, but only on stocksy do you hold a piece of the pie.
Plus the very supportive management, you can talk to the editors directly and also get shooting tips from experienced art directors.
If you only want a macrostock portal, there are many places you can apply to. Nothing wrong with being a part of several places, also because stocksy wants a very specific style...so all the content you shoot that is not their style...you still need a sales outlet for that.
So good luck to all that applied :)
because Royalty Free imagery is associated with microstock?
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Royalty free existed before the micros and 90% of sales on macro is RF.
So no, that can‘t be the connection.
I think it might be because so many who only do micros are not even aware of the macrostock industry and how large it is and how much money is earned there.
But maybe there is another explanation, but I don’t get it.
stocksy content is like cavan,offset,getty,corbis (nowgone), arcangel,westend and hundreds of other macro agencies. Some of these have a typical „look“ to set them apart, while others are generalists and have several artistically styled collections. But it is all traditional macrostock.
But in all these places the artists are just suppliers, not co owners.
At least for me that is the main difference.
ETA: stocksy was founded by Bruce and Brianna and Bruce was the founder of istock, the first microstock agency and got the whole thing rolling. Maybe that is where the comparison with the micros comes from. "The micro guy now doing expensive" or something like that.
But microstock and especially istock was always a lot more than a price point, it was a plattform that allowed talent to rise without interference from the manangement and without all the schmoozing you need in small, restricted places to get in.
The micros are self organizing, successful artists are entrepreneurial, they do their own market research and over time become really, really good in supplying their niche.
Micros also have a much wider mix of talent, a very large number come from non art backgrounds, they are engineers, nurses, IT people, school teachers...i.e. the real world. They might need some help to improve their photo skills, but they knew their professions and subjects very well.
But from the outside, most people didn´t understand how crowd sourcing works.
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I just the expected generic rejection. Oh well... ::)
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Sorry to hear that.
Maybe explore some other macrostock agency. It really is a very, very big world.
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stocksy content is like cavan,offset,getty,corbis (nowgone), arcangel,westend and hundreds of other macro agencies. Some of these have a typical „look“ to set them apart, while others are generalists and have several artistically styled collections. But it is all traditional macrostock.
Thanks for the all information you provided, very useful. What can you tell about Getty compare to Stocksy? Can you tell about sellings and content needs if it's possible :)
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I just the expected generic rejection. Oh well... ::)
that's sad ((((
I'm still waiting and in fear :-[
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stocksy content is like cavan,offset,getty,corbis (nowgone), arcangel,westend and hundreds of other macro agencies. Some of these have a typical „look“ to set them apart, while others are generalists and have several artistically styled collections. But it is all traditional macrostock.
Thanks for the all information you provided, very useful. What can you tell about Getty compare to Stocksy? Can you tell about sellings and content needs if it's possible :)
gettyimages is a one stop shop for literally EVERYTHING. Any kind of style, any kind of content. And apparently their best customers also have access to all the istock content as well from the inside. That is why on istock you sometimes see a Getty sale.
It is like Amazon or ebay.
But the customer has to then go through millions and millions of files. They do offer a large variety of themed "collections" and their customer service will also put together a lightbox if you tell them what you need. This personal service is basically what you are paying for.
Together with their editorial content they must have several hundred million files and are the largest database of the industry. They have over 200 partners that feed them content, it´s a huge place. They used to have sales offices across the globe as well, not sure how many they have now and they used to have thousands of employees, again not sure how many survived the various restructurings they did.
Stocksy is one of many small agencies with a certain "look" and often a certain type of content. The advantage is that you can freely mix and match any file from stocksy with others from the collection. To a certain extent it feels like it was all done by one studio or one just one art director. This saves the customer A LOT of time.
In my opinion stocksy is excellent at ethical people stock. Gay lifestyle, minority communities, lots of very, very interesting character faces. Lots of other beautiful stuff course, food, travel...
But it is not a one stop shop. If you need some design elements, backgrounds, objects on white...not there. Overfiltered crazy images...not there...The stereotypical "thumbs up" people grinning design element...not there...and also what is very trendy in other places "ugly realism", i.e. images in the visual language of "normal people"...not there...every image on stocksy is extremly professional and many images would easily win competitions.
It is stunningly beautiful collection, very carefully curated.
But if you look at all the things you can do and sell in the world of stock, I would say it is 1% of what you can do. But that 1%, they do that exceptionally well.
Other places like Offset or Westend61, Arcangel, Tetra, Plainpictures also have a very distinctive "look". But very different from stocksy.
All of them are high quality macrostock.
So as a customer if you have a project, you will probably look at Getty first and then depending on the style and the look you need you can browse these "themed" high quality agencies.
Some agencies specialize in a certain content - only medical images, only food (stockfood), only images from a certain country or region, only images and videos done with drones etc...
There are hundreds and hundreds of these small agencies.
But looking from outside you cannot really tell how much money you can make. Just like the list price on getty doesn´t tell you that they sell their 600 dollar files for 60 cents or less to high volume customers.
stocksy is a coop, artist are coowners. they are very fair trade pay out 50% plus bonuses and have a very welcoming and loving vibe from the inside.
But they get tons of applications and only a small number of places are open every year.
However, they are not the only Macrostock agency or Macro portal. There really are a lot of places.
But getting accepted in macro is one challenge, then getting files accepted the next, because the editors edit for "artistic style" to make it fit the "theme" of their agency and then...you have to wait to see sales. In the macrostock world it is very common that customers only pay every three months or even later. Many images are returned and then suddenly money is deducted and if you are working with a distributor then it might take 18 months or longer for the first sales to appear in your account.
Macro is a very slow world, individual sales can be a lot higher but can also be lower than on microstock...2 cents...or several hundred dollars up to thousands of dollars for special licenses.
And since you first have to heavily self edit a series and then the editors might cut that in half...it is very hard to predict if you make more money on macro than non exclusively on micro.
But personally I believe it is good to have exposure to all worlds, in themes, in style and in customer groups.
However Gettyimages is facing stiff competition from Shutterstock and Adobe. Fotolia has always had a large macrostock section, but the micro artist usually don´t have access to that. Now with the money from Adobe I would expect them to grow that very strongly, especially if they start adding Editorial.
Shutterstock has Offset which looks like a small collection, but apparently they have in house solutions where customers get a macro style service and also pay much more for the files. We see that when we suddenly get 120 dollars for a file that usually sells for 30 cents.
But I don´t know if they are planning to expand their premium section or if they just want to focus on normal Shutterstock.
So most likely the macro world in the future will not be just getty (very large) and hundreds of smaller places, but there will be a few more large players.
Sorry for the long rant, maybe it is useful to some of you.
I like Macro, they take a lot of files normal micros would never accept and the beautiful collections are great for visual inspiration as well.
But you need a lot of patience and unfortunately nobody can tell you in advance which agency will work best for you.
So if stocksy doesn´t take you, maybe have a look at a few others if you are interested in macro. And you can always apply again next year.
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" What can you tell about Getty compare to Stocksy?"
Also, Getty requires perpetual and undying loyalty exclusivity. Meaning everything you submit there is exclusive (and the whole series) until the end of time, unless you completely quit your contract. Problem is, you don't know what they'll take until they review it. You submit 100 images from a shoot and they take 5, you just wasted your time, and you can't do anything else with that content.
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Very important point! You cannot deactivate files or a series from getty if it doesn´t sell.
On istock the same, no deactivation of individual files unless you end the contract and delete everything. But if you are non exclusive with istock, at least you can sell your content elsewhere.
Once you give them content...it is theirs...
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" What can you tell about Getty compare to Stocksy?"
Also, Getty requires perpetual and undying loyalty exclusivity. Meaning everything you submit there is exclusive (and the whole series) until the end of time, unless you completely quit your contract. Problem is, you don't know what they'll take until they review it. You submit 100 images from a shoot and they take 5, you just wasted your time, and you can't do anything else with that content.
If you must remain bitter after all this time, please, please, please stop spreading misinformation. The above statement is not true at all Sean.
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Can you deactivate individual files and series from Gettyimages?
When did that change happen?
That would be a very drastic change. I have many friends with content that is not selling and they canˋt take it down and sell it elsewhere.
I mean, trying to figure out which content sells best where is a bigger challenge than shooting.
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" What can you tell about Getty compare to Stocksy?"
Also, Getty requires perpetual and undying loyalty exclusivity. Meaning everything you submit there is exclusive (and the whole series) until the end of time, unless you completely quit your contract. Problem is, you don't know what they'll take until they review it. You submit 100 images from a shoot and they take 5, you just wasted your time, and you can't do anything else with that content.
If you must remain bitter after all this time, please, please, please stop spreading misinformation. The above statement is not true at all Sean.
I would love to hear what part is misinformation. Please, clue us all in. BTW, I can be bitter, but that's the same thing I would have said five years ago.
Also, btw, don't accuse me of lying about something knowingly. I'll appreciate your apology on that, and then for contradicting ( I think ) my information unless you have proof.
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" What can you tell about Getty compare to Stocksy?"
Also, Getty requires perpetual and undying loyalty exclusivity. Meaning everything you submit there is exclusive (and the whole series) until the end of time, unless you completely quit your contract. Problem is, you don't know what they'll take until they review it. You submit 100 images from a shoot and they take 5, you just wasted your time, and you can't do anything else with that content.
If you must remain bitter after all this time, please, please, please stop spreading misinformation. The above statement is not true at all Sean.
I would love to hear what part is misinformation. Please, clue us all in. BTW, I can be bitter, but that's the same thing I would have said five years ago.
Not sure what kind of contract you have/had with Getty, but they only require image exclusive and don't want similars sent elsewhere. It's always been that way. I have a Getty contract and send my work to a few agencies.
Is Stocksy not the same? My understanding is that Stocksy wants series exclusive and you can't submit elsewhere from that series. Correct me if I am wrong on that.
The way you worded it sounds like submitting to Getty is tantamount to servitude.
Now if you were meaning Istock, then yes it is rather a unilateral arrangement whereas all RF is in a strangle hold for all agencies. That works for me sort of... I get enough on S+ which equates more or less double dipping... my better work gets mirrored over and my lesser work stays at Istock.
I also think Getty and Istock are less tolerant to the frequent emotional mood swings of the activate-deactivate-activate-deactivate hissy fit crowd so common in microstock.
I was not implying your were lying, you don't seem the type, quite the opposite actually.
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"Not sure what kind of contract you have/had with Getty, but they only require image exclusive and don't want similars sent elsewhere. It's always been that way."
That's exactly what I said.
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"Not sure what kind of contract you have/had with Getty, but they only require image exclusive and don't want similars sent elsewhere. It's always been that way."
That's exactly what I said.
"Getty requires perpetual and undying loyalty exclusivity." is what you said. And I have never seen a Getty contract like that.
I noticed you did not reply to my understanding of Stocksy having a similar requirement "series exclusive". How is that any different from Getty?
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Clair you implied that content on Getty can be deactivated. It can‘t.
So if your series doesn‘t sell on Getty it is dead. The only way to remove anything is to remove the entire portfolio and end the istock or getty contracts.
I have a lot of content that was on either istock and getty that never sold that now has become bestsellers elsewhere.
On stocksy, like on nearly every other agency you can deactivate a series if you want to. They don‘t tie you down.
If you enjoy having files that don‘t sell and don’t mind losing money, well that is your choice. What percentage of your port is not selling? 30%? 50? How many are dead files?
Other artist prefer to maximise their income.
I also don‘t understand why you are so aggressive and insulting, both to Sean and other stock artists, calling them an overemotional crowd? To me it sounds like you are jealous that you can‘t make money of what is not selling in your port and try to distract yourself by blaming other people.
Anyway, if you are an istock exclusive and happy, what do you care about stocksy?
Our files never show up on Getty through a distribution deal, so these files never compete with yours.
Shutterstock and Adobe have a strong effect on the sales of istock and getty, but stocksy and all the other small macrostock agencies are irrelevant.
Organic food stores don‘t affect walmarts or whatever is the large store in your area.
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"Also, Getty requires perpetual and undying loyalty exclusivity. Meaning everything you submit there is exclusive (and the whole series) until the end of time"
In the context of the second sentence I thought it was clear I was talking of image/series exclusivity, but I can see where it might be read as artist exclusivity. Sorry.
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stocksy content is like cavan,offset,getty,corbis (nowgone), arcangel,westend and hundreds of other macro agencies. Some of these have a typical „look“ to set them apart, while others are generalists and have several artistically styled collections. But it is all traditional macrostock.
Thanks for the all information you provided, very useful. What can you tell about Getty compare to Stocksy? Can you tell about sellings and content needs if it's possible :)
gettyimages is a one stop shop for literally EVERYTHING. Any kind of style, any kind of content. And apparently their best customers also have access to all the istock content as well from the inside. That is why on istock you sometimes see a Getty sale.
It is like Amazon or ebay.
But the customer has to then go through millions and millions of files. They do offer a large variety of themed "collections" and their customer service will also put together a lightbox if you tell them what you need. This personal service is basically what you are paying for.
Together with their editorial content they must have several hundred million files and are the largest database of the industry. They have over 200 partners that feed them content, it´s a huge place. They used to have sales offices across the globe as well, not sure how many they have now and they used to have thousands of employees, again not sure how many survived the various restructurings they did.
Stocksy is one of many small agencies with a certain "look" and often a certain type of content. The advantage is that you can freely mix and match any file from stocksy with others from the collection. To a certain extent it feels like it was all done by one studio or one just one art director. This saves the customer A LOT of time.
In my opinion stocksy is excellent at ethical people stock. Gay lifestyle, minority communities, lots of very, very interesting character faces. Lots of other beautiful stuff course, food, travel...
But it is not a one stop shop. If you need some design elements, backgrounds, objects on white...not there. Overfiltered crazy images...not there...The stereotypical "thumbs up" people grinning design element...not there...and also what is very trendy in other places "ugly realism", i.e. images in the visual language of "normal people"...not there...every image on stocksy is extremly professional and many images would easily win competitions.
It is stunningly beautiful collection, very carefully curated.
But if you look at all the things you can do and sell in the world of stock, I would say it is 1% of what you can do. But that 1%, they do that exceptionally well.
Other places like Offset or Westend61, Arcangel, Tetra, Plainpictures also have a very distinctive "look". But very different from stocksy.
All of them are high quality macrostock.
So as a customer if you have a project, you will probably look at Getty first and then depending on the style and the look you need you can browse these "themed" high quality agencies.
Some agencies specialize in a certain content - only medical images, only food (stockfood), only images from a certain country or region, only images and videos done with drones etc...
There are hundreds and hundreds of these small agencies.
But looking from outside you cannot really tell how much money you can make. Just like the list price on getty doesn´t tell you that they sell their 600 dollar files for 60 cents or less to high volume customers.
stocksy is a coop, artist are coowners. they are very fair trade pay out 50% plus bonuses and have a very welcoming and loving vibe from the inside.
But they get tons of applications and only a small number of places are open every year.
However, they are not the only Macrostock agency or Macro portal. There really are a lot of places.
But getting accepted in macro is one challenge, then getting files accepted the next, because the editors edit for "artistic style" to make it fit the "theme" of their agency and then...you have to wait to see sales. In the macrostock world it is very common that customers only pay every three months or even later. Many images are returned and then suddenly money is deducted and if you are working with a distributor then it might take 18 months or longer for the first sales to appear in your account.
Macro is a very slow world, individual sales can be a lot higher but can also be lower than on microstock...2 cents...or several hundred dollars up to thousands of dollars for special licenses.
And since you first have to heavily self edit a series and then the editors might cut that in half...it is very hard to predict if you make more money on macro than non exclusively on micro.
But personally I believe it is good to have exposure to all worlds, in themes, in style and in customer groups.
However Gettyimages is facing stiff competition from Shutterstock and Adobe. Fotolia has always had a large macrostock section, but the micro artist usually don´t have access to that. Now with the money from Adobe I would expect them to grow that very strongly, especially if they start adding Editorial.
Shutterstock has Offset which looks like a small collection, but apparently they have in house solutions where customers get a macro style service and also pay much more for the files. We see that when we suddenly get 120 dollars for a file that usually sells for 30 cents.
But I don´t know if they are planning to expand their premium section or if they just want to focus on normal Shutterstock.
So most likely the macro world in the future will not be just getty (very large) and hundreds of smaller places, but there will be a few more large players.
Sorry for the long rant, maybe it is useful to some of you.
I like Macro, they take a lot of files normal micros would never accept and the beautiful collections are great for visual inspiration as well.
But you need a lot of patience and unfortunately nobody can tell you in advance which agency will work best for you.
So if stocksy doesn´t take you, maybe have a look at a few others if you are interested in macro. And you can always apply again next year.
Thank you very much for such detailed post, i need time to think about everything you told.
But this "I like Macro, they take a lot of files normal micros would never accept and the beautiful collections are great for visual inspiration as well" is strange, I have noticed it too. Why macro sites acceptance is much easier than micros?
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Because traditionally a macrostock picture would not be heavily edited in photoshop, they might add text, but usually it would be used as is in prints. The way it was done before digital existed.
But the files that graphic designers buy on microstock are often used in a large Photoshop file together with many other images, backgrounds, then it gets compressed, filtered etc...the files have to be able to hold up to quite a bit of digital abuse.
That is why from a technical quality perspective, the inspections were more stringent on micro than on Macrostock.
Especially in the beginning when digital was new and files were anyway quite small.
Today if you have a 40Mp file and if it is not that perfect at 100% it doesn´t matter, you can always downsize it to get a higher quality if you really need it.
To make money on the micros with the cheap prices, artists favored very generic images that could be sold 50 000 times, over artsy, highly specific images that might only find a buyer once every 10 years.
That is why you find more artsy content on the macros, the higher price is supposed to help the artist survive the often very long wait to get a sale.
But today it all doesn´t matter. the macros sell images for as low as 2 cents and the micros can surprise you with sales of 200 dollars for a normal photo.
The Micros also now have a very large reserve of beautiful artistic content and the Macros now have a ton of ugly looking amateur stock and also a lot of generic micro style images.
The lines have been very blurred.
Which means, you really have to try it to learn what sells. And maybe in your personal case artsy finds a lot of fans on Shutterstock, but never gets a sale on the macros.
Personally, I think your sales depend a lot on your upload volume. A lot more than on what you shoot. Because most agencies will favor the regular uploader and sending up files every week is usually the best you can do to help your portfolio.
ETA:
"Why macro sites acceptance is much easier than micros?"
Please keep in mind: they don´t accept more files, they might very drastically cut into your files and just accept 2 files instead of the 8 you sent in. The other 6 can´t be sent elsewhere, neither can the rest of the content from the shoot that is maybe just second best, so you didn´t upload it, but if the series was indie you could wring every last cent out of it, any way you like.
But they are more open with technical imperfections. If it is not fully in focus, if it has some camera shake, if it has some grain or artifacts, if the visual message of the image works, technicals are secondary.
Again the most important: you will not earn more money by sending files exclusively to a macro.
You might make a lot less. Simply because if you are independent and have a large series, you can gradually release it, sometimes over several years over many different agencies. You can also process a series with a new style to bring it back to life, the way many people are now reprocessing files with lensflare filters or mobile stock apps to give them a modern vibe. You can also upload your content to any new agency that comes along.
But for some people having an exclusive partner is the easiest thing for them, they just take pictures and let someone else do the rest. For series exclusivity that can be a good deal, because then you can still work with many places and have just some of your content exclusive somewhere.
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one question i understand stocksy is exclusive photos , but what means series...
i mean for travel photography an entire trip is exclusive? or for food a complete food setup?
i have for example took photos of a group of animal in antartica...i think most are normal but 2 standout, i left them apart for a good macro agency. the rest of the day of shooting i can upload to micro or other macro agency?
i understand for a model shooting all the shooting must be sold only through stocksy...
what confuse me is for other theme. considering i have seen a portfolio of an artist in stocksy and in shutter stock, and while i not see any identical photos, she's clearly sending to micro similar images shot with the same setup.
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Usually a shooting would be what you do in one day at one location. A group of people cooking together in the kitchen. If you then do another shooting the next day with the same people, but in different clothes in an office, that would be another shoot.
I am not sure how series exclusivity works with travel or landscape imagery. But on stocksy that is easy to solve, you just send the editing team a link with everything from the trip and ask them to help you divide it into a proper series and they will tell you what to do if you are unsure. You don´t need to process all the files first.
This is the advantage if working with a small community. And then gradually you will understand what they want and then you can do it yourself.
On other agencies that don't offer personal support, you can ask the community or forums or in their facebook groups for advice.
The important thing about series exclusivity is that the customer should not get upset when he/she find "the rest of the series" on another plattform. They are making their buying decision in good faith that this is the complete series that they can chose from.
Obviously exclusivity of landmarks like the Eiffel Tower etc...are difficult. You can try doing something visually different for an exclusive agency.
On the micros (and now eyeem) I have this image of Cologne cathedral, nothing special about it:
https://www.eyeem.com/p/82783951 (https://www.eyeem.com/p/82783951)
On stocksy I have this:
https://www.stocksy.com/65815 (https://www.stocksy.com/65815)
On eyeem I have this (from the time when eyeem was exclusive):
https://www.eyeem.com/p/69701912 (https://www.eyeem.com/p/69701912)
or this
https://www.eyeem.com/p/87221017, (https://www.eyeem.com/p/87221017,) both with filter effects.
etc...
So there are many ways to make the same location, situation etc visually different and thus non-similar.
If in doubt, ask around.
ETA: one thing to keep in mind is that stocksy is very interested in your ability to tell a story with your series
A group of people meets up at the camp site, they set up their gear, have a coffee together and look at the map and the trail where they want to go hiking in the afternoon. Maybe they change their clothes, grab a backpack, put on mountain shoes, then they go hiking, at various locations they stop to admire the scenery, a couple in the group will have a private moment, they reach the summit, small celebration...then as it gets dark, they move back down, sit by the fireplace cook and eat, go to bed...
It´s a cliche story, but along that idea you can organize a shooting over a week end, which elements do you need to tell your story, is it more about the individual characters or the specialiy of the location, which time of year, is there a special environmental angle (they don´t use plastic and collect their trash), is there a romantic story, a family story...etc...
On the basis of these stories, it becomes clear what is essential for your series. And also how to use the same location and the same group of people to tell different stories and series which would then be non exclusive.
Again, just to develop a story like this on stocksy you can ask the art directors to help you develop a mood board. And of course you can ask the community for help when you are preparing a shooting.
And maybe that is one more difference between macro and micro, you will find more people who design a shooting along a story on the macros than on the micros, because you have more professionally trained photographers there. But this concept also works on the micros. If you have a story in your series, it is more valuable for the customer.
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Thanks Cobalt.
We need more posts like yours in this community, happy to see a not complain, repeated question, sarcastic or crying post.
By the way, I think you must try upload more photos to Stocksy. I try upload photos to all agencies I am... but sometimes is difficult choice where put images.
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I was waiting for them to open the video section, my videos are much weaker than my photos, so there is no point in uploading the photos to later discover they won´t take the videos. And in 2017 i did a lot with friend that could have maybe worked for stocksy - seniors, groups with up to 12 different ethnicities...but unfortunately she didn´t get in :( . However, no problem for her though, she has now found another solution. And for video we can still work together.
It´s just what we did is now for other places.
For video and people shootings I like to work with a partner, so this year I want to try and find people who are on stocksy and are interested in doing video.
I should probably also upload just normal photos, but my photo production has dropped a lot and what i do is usually "ugly realism" which is the opposite of the polished stocksy style.
But yes, I certainly want to grow my portfolio.
In video there is so much to learn, though, it will take quite a bit of time before I reach a video level that works for them. But I love video, I won´t give up :)
ETA: for interested parties reading...I still have some projects in the summer where I will also take photos...so I have no plans to only torture you with my amateur videos :)
It´s just see stocksys biggest strength in the ethical people stock. That is why I would go there as a customer. But it is not something I shoot every day, I have to build up a network of suitable models first.
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I just the expected generic rejection. Oh well... ::)
Rejection arrived here too :(
cobalt, greats posts, love the micro-macro differences part!
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I just the expected generic rejection. Oh well... ::)
Rejection arrived here too :(
cobalt, greats posts, love the micro-macro differences part!
Are you kidding? :-\ I love your work and I could totally see it on Stocksy...I don't really get what they are looking for! One day (I think) I can see the typical Stocksy-style but then I discover some work on their site that doesn't look like their style AT ALL!
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I just the expected generic rejection. Oh well... ::)
Rejection arrived here too :(
cobalt, greats posts, love the micro-macro differences part!
when you applied for stocksy? the date of application ?
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Thank you!
I am developing a new workshop that can be attended by anyone in Cologne, instead of just the students of Fotoakademie.
So the questions here are helping me a lot with preparing the workshop.
:)
If you are in Germany, it will be a two day workshop focussing on finding a very personal strategy in micro/macrostock. Trying to find a path in all the very confusing options.
I´ll show real results from my own sales, explain the differences of macro and micro, explain current trends and themes and will try to give a very realistic idea of how much time you need to invest to establish a reliable income.
When you start out in stock there is so much to learn, but the situation of the professional photographer who wants to do stock between assignments is very different from the amateur who likes to go on holidays and wants some money for gear. or maybe a pensioner who loves photography and wants to build up a steady income stream and then pass along the portfolios to the family. Build up passive income. Or the creative artist who is looking for additional income instead of only print and gallery sales.
The confusion about how the stock market works is extremly frustrating. So I hope I can help with that.
(ETA: sorry for the little self promo )
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but then I discover some work on their site that doesn't look like their style AT ALL!
Which is probably why they got in. Just because stocksy has a certain look, doesn´t mean that is all they do. It is a living, breathing agency and they will expand and adapt to meet customer needs.
maybe by now they have enough people their standard look.
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Are you kidding? :-\ I love your work and I could totally see it on Stocksy...I don't really get what they are looking for! One day (I think) I can see the typical Stocksy-style but then I discover some work on their site that doesn't look like their style AT ALL!
I think my portfolio problem was obvious, no people in it lol! Just kidding. It would be really nice to get some kind of feedback, but i understand they have too many applications to go through and it would take their time away.
But it's been almost 3,5 months so the waiting got me a bit excited too early ;D corinna, I hope you didn't get the rejection yet. It would be nice to have someone from forum get in! ;)
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Are you kidding? :-\ I love your work and I could totally see it on Stocksy...I don't really get what they are looking for! One day (I think) I can see the typical Stocksy-style but then I discover some work on their site that doesn't look like their style AT ALL!
I think my portfolio problem was obvious, no people in it lol! Just kidding. It would be really nice to get some kind of feedback, but i understand they have too many applications to go through and it would take their time away.
But it's been almost 3,5 months so the waiting got me a bit excited too early ;D corinna, I hope you didn't get the rejection yet. It would be nice to have someone from forum get in! ;)
so when exactly?
half october?
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Thank you!
I am developing a new workshop that can be attended by anyone in Cologne, instead of just the students of Fotoakademie.
So the questions here are helping me a lot with preparing the workshop.
:)
If you are in Germany, it will be a two day workshop focussing on finding a very personal strategy in micro/macrostock. Trying to find a path in all the very confusing options.
I´ll show real results from my own sales, explain the differences of macro and micro, explain current trends and themes and will try to give a very realistic idea of how much time you need to invest to establish a reliable income.
When you start out in stock there is so much to learn, but the situation of the professional photographer who wants to do stock between assignments is very different from the amateur who likes to go on holidays and wants some money for gear. or maybe a pensioner who loves photography and wants to build up a steady income stream and then pass along the portfolios to the family. Build up passive income. Or the creative artist who is looking for additional income instead of print and gallery sales.
The confusion about how the stock market works is extremly frustrating. So I hope I can help with that.
(ETA: sorry for the little self promo )
Wow, this sounds interesting. Confusing me every day when I see which photos were sold. Some of them were predictable, but some are really crazy. How can I find out more details about this? Please make a new thread so I don't have to bother you with pm :D
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so when exactly?
half october?
My application was complete on September 29th. Got rejected on Thursday, four days ago
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so when exactly?
half october?
My application was complete on September 29th. Got rejected on Thursday, four days ago
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so when exactly?
half october?
My application was complete on September 29th. Got rejected on Thursday, four days ago
ok my is 30th september so i think i'm near.
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Well my application was complete Sept 21 and still no word.
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maybe by now they have enough people their standard look.
[/quote]
Yes, true. Still wondering what they are looking for then... ;)
Many of the Stocksy photographers having not that distinctive Stocksy look have a more pleasing look - well, at least to me - so it makes me wonder why it takes so long to accept new members then. But well, I should probably just stop thinking about it completely. But I put a lot of effort in choosing the right images for my application so of course it matters to me. And makes me reconsider my selection ::)
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Well my application was complete Sept 21 and still no word.
No rules. Some applied after me, got rejected before. Waiting can go from a month, two, three.. But as long as you wait, that's a good sign! ;)
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How can I find out more details about this? Please make a new thread so I don't have to bother you with pm :D
I´ll open a thread when there is a date. The workshop is in German, but if enough people are interested, we can do an additional one in English.
I have no idea how many people will show up, but I think it is a useful thing to do. And hopefully the group can connect and maybe a few shooting partnerships can be established. The journey is more fun if you walk it together.
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Yes, true. Still wondering what they are looking for then... ;)
Many of the Stocksy photographers having not that distinctive Stocksy look have a more pleasing look - well, at least to me - so it makes me wonder why it takes so long to accept new members then. But well, I should probably just stop thinking about it completely. But I put a lot of effort in choosing the right images for my application so of course it matters to me. And makes me reconsider my selection ::)
I am thinking about that too. Picking images for the application is the most important part. And I think it is changing over the years, just like cobalt mentioned. You have to be one step in front of most of the others and it's hard when there aren't many places left to fill in.
I believe Stocksy has the leading role here. They know their market so good, it feels like they dictate it for other macro agencies. At least that's what I would say as a buyer searching through their and others' collections.
It will be interesting to see the work of accepted contributors in this round
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Cobalt your advice is amazing and spot on. I tried clicking on your stocksy link and it doesn't work for some reason (just the load bar) ... Thanks for your words of wisdom! Wishing everyone luck on those who are waiting.
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Cobalt your advice is amazing and spot on. I tried clicking on your stocksy link and it doesn't work for some reason (just the load bar) ...
I had the same problem with cobalt stocksy profile
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Can you see my profile?
https://www.stocksy.com/cobaltstock (https://www.stocksy.com/cobaltstock)
Sorry that the link doesn´t work, it works for me, i´ve tried it on several gadgets and the computer.
Again this is the picture:
https://www.stocksy.com/65815 (https://www.stocksy.com/65815)
It´s nothing special, just a different twist on the standard cologne cathedral images.
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Can you see my profile?
https://www.stocksy.com/cobaltstock (https://www.stocksy.com/cobaltstock)
Sorry that the link doesn´t work, it works for me, i´ve tried it on several gadgets and the computer.
Again this is the picture:
https://www.stocksy.com/65815 (https://www.stocksy.com/65815)
It´s nothing special, just a different twist on the standard cologne cathedral images.
The link works fine. However, using IE, it shows the header but doesn't load the images. On Chrome all is fine.
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Thank you!
I use safari, so it is a browser issue.
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Thank you!
I use safari, so it is a browser issue.
It is a Stocksy's issue. I can see no pictures on the entire website using Internet Explorer.
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Uh!! :(
Then let´s hope they fix that soon!
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Uh!! :(
Then let´s hope they fix that soon!
Both links work fine for me (Chrome/Mac)...
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Uh!! :(
Then let´s hope they fix that soon!
now i can see your beautiful photos :)
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I got the PFO letter today (application denied). I finished my application Oct 11, 2017. I can't say it was a great surprise after all the other rejections, but it would have been nice.
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Just got my rejection, too :(
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My application was completed on 29th September. Got my rejection notice today. :(
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By the way does anyone know how to remove your photos from Stocksy after receiving a rejection notice ? Logging in and returning to the CTA does nothing but open a new application, the original portfolio isn't accessible.
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.
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I just got my rejection email. Wishing everyone luck who is still waiting.
*, i'm sorry, Angela. :(
Would you consider trying out Trevillion?
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I'm feeling a bit down after waiting so many months. I heard trevillion doesn't accept many contributors (like stocksy). I may need a month to recover my spirits before I apply to another agency... Rejection hurts.
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I'm really sorry to hear that. Wish you success in other agencies. Me, I applied September 18 and still waiting for the news.
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I'm feeling a bit down after waiting so many months. I heard trevillion doesn't accept many contributors (like stocksy). I may need a month to recover my spirits before I apply to another agency... Rejection hurts.
Sorry to hear, Angela :( I wish I knew what they didn't like about my photos...style, subject, editing...or what they are looking in general for...
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I'm really sorry to hear that. Wish you success in other agencies. Me, I applied September 18 and still waiting for the news.
Keep us posted :) I'm hoping one of our fellow microstockgroupers gets in this time around. Cheers!
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So after a four month wait - rejected.
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Sorry to hear PhotoBomb. I waited 4 months too. Has anyone made it yet?
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>:(
I sent November 11, 2017
I do not understand the concept of this agency.
It is an extreme disrespect to the contributor, for waiting 4 months to receive a rejection.
I'm still waiting ...
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I'm fine with waiting. They know what they are doing. I'm not submitting my application images to micro ...
Thanks, because I have no idea what they doing, yes no micro but low price anyway :(
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I'm fine with waiting. They know what they are doing. I'm not submitting my application images to micro ...
Thanks, because I have no idea what they doing, yes no micro but low price anyway :(
Haha - thanks for the quote. I still agree that they know what they are doing. It still breaks my heart to wait 4 months and then get a generic email. I still love the agency though.
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Sorry to hear PhotoBomb. I waited 4 months too. Has anyone made it yet?
I am disappointed, naturally. But I never actually expected I would get picked.
I’m not young and hip, and I have no social media presence to speak of.
I’m just not their demographic, and frankly haven’t been anyones demographic for some time.
Never-the-less I thought I sent them some very good images created just for this submission,
along with some eclectic urban street stuff I thought might get their interest.
I hoped getting in might just spark the creative juices that stock photography seems
to have sucked out of me these past few years.
I understand not being selected but I do think that their process is flawed.
Spending the time to actually upload to the site. And for many submitters
who gave them new / exclusive images it kept them off the market all this time.
(Yes, I know it didn’t have to be).
Four months is too long to wait. If they are going to be that selective they should
be by invitation only. Their committee should be browsing the web for the kind of content
they want and invite those artists to join. Opening it up to everybody obviously overwhelms the
selection committee. Not to mention the timing.
Why start the process at the busiest time for the industry?
But regarless they do what they do and I’ll do what I do - the work will sell elsewhere.
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Sorry for the rejections, but thank you for taking them in pretty good spirits. Our open spaces are at a minimum right now, so they're definitely looking for specific things (I have no hand in the process).
Here's a post about what positive things you can take from the process: https://dszweduik.wordpress.com/2018/01/17/stocksy-united-rejected-me-what-i-learned-from-the-experience/
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I just have my rejection email too :-[
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Sorry for the rejections, but thank you for taking them in pretty good spirits. Our open spaces are at a minimum right now, so they're definitely looking for specific things (I have no hand in the process).
Here's a post about what positive things you can take from the process: https://dszweduik.wordpress.com/2018/01/17/stocksy-united-rejected-me-what-i-learned-from-the-experience/
That is an excellent article. I got my (expected) rejection recently but no hard feelings. I knew my best work would be a long shot. Time to regroup and rediscover the creativity I once had before I started churning out volume. Maybe next time. :)
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Good article and it is true we need to push ourselves more and more everyday.
But I couldn't help but notice the editor had told him why he was rejected in a "follow up" email:
"That follow up email she sent became the final lessons I learned in this process. ... she was able to give me some great feedback about why I was rejected and you know what? It wasn’t because I sucked as a photographer or had submitted horrible images. ... They just had too much of the subject matter I had submitted and encouraged me to re-submit, PLUS they showed me that I already have the style of work they are looking for on my own website!"
I wish we could all get that kind of feedback ... I don't want to waste their time in the future with another application.
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How each application i was rejected with a standard mail. Fortunate is the one that receives feedback, they have never given it to me and the last two times I have asked what has failed, never response.
Maybe a while ago I could have entered... It is a job to upload 100 pics, 14 model and propertty releases, kwords and reserve those photos...
The idea of a cooperative fascinates me, the upload and catalog manager web is better than all i see before... but...im out... stock continues in other sites and is video time...!!
The positive part is that the web i created work for be recently admitted in premium adobe...
No social media presence or interest
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Good article and it is true we need to push ourselves more and more everyday.
But I couldn't help but notice the editor had told him why he was rejected in a "follow up" email:
"That follow up email she sent became the final lessons I learned in this process. ... she was able to give me some great feedback about why I was rejected and you know what? It wasn’t because I sucked as a photographer or had submitted horrible images. ... They just had too much of the subject matter I had submitted and encouraged me to re-submit, PLUS they showed me that I already have the style of work they are looking for on my own website!"
I wish we could all get that kind of feedback ... I don't want to waste their time in the future with another application.
What? If they liked the work on his website, why not accept him, reject the specific images he'd submitted, then ask him to submit the work on his website or similar work? Instead they reject him and suggest he re-apply (when? Five years from now?) and now he's written a blog post telling everyone what Stocksy's looking for, so their current photographers can fill up the site with that work and he can be rejected again.
If Stocksy is looking for specific things (as Sean has stated), why not just come out and say it, instead of opening the floodgates once every few years and making people wait four months to be rejected?
Reading this thread, I just find them to be unnecessarily cruel (as iStock has always been).
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How each application i was rejected with a standard mail. Fortunate is the one that receives feedback, they have never given it to me and the last two times I have asked what has failed, never response.
Maybe a while ago I could have entered... It is a job to upload 100 pics, 14 model and propertty releases, kwords and reserve those photos...
The idea of a cooperative fascinates me, the upload and catalog manager web is better than all i see before... but...im out... stock continues in other sites and is video time...!!
The positive part is that the web i created work for be recently admitted in premium adobe...
No social media presence or interest
how did u apply in adobe premium?
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Writing by support, showing my web and all my work
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Not my sorta thing anyway...applied nevertheless.....got rejected as expected.....just too old to figure out what they want and too near death to bring some new life into my work. Ah well...SS gets 4-months of stored up work that they never deserved in the first place. Back to being a micropayment peasant again; an illusion poorer. ;D
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Sorry for the rejections, but thank you for taking them in pretty good spirits. Our open spaces are at a minimum right now, so they're definitely looking for specific things (I have no hand in the process).
Here's a post about what positive things you can take from the process: https://dszweduik.wordpress.com/2018/01/17/stocksy-united-rejected-me-what-i-learned-from-the-experience/
Thanks for the link.
The process is really far too slow though, as I'm sure you're aware by now. After my rejection letter I sent an email with a couple of questions to Trevillion (which they encourage you to do on their site) before submitting an application, I included a link to my repository on SmugMug. I had a reply within 24 hours saying : Unfortunately, I regret to inform you that we do not feel that your submission is quite right for our Library at this time. However, if you want to submit any of your future work, we would gladly consider it.
I didn't think my style would suit, landscapes and travel in mostly Asia, and I had noticed a distinct lack of Asian locations in their library and a very pastel palette to their landscapes too. However the speed of their response was exemplary.
A question Sean: what happens to the photos I uploaded to Stocksy ? Obviously I want them removed but I've had no response to the email I sent enquiring after this and I can no longer access my application to remove them myself.
Cheers
Kevin
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Good article and it is true we need to push ourselves more and more everyday.
But I couldn't help but notice the editor had told him why he was rejected in a "follow up" email:
"That follow up email she sent became the final lessons I learned in this process. ... she was able to give me some great feedback about why I was rejected and you know what? It wasn’t because I sucked as a photographer or had submitted horrible images. ... They just had too much of the subject matter I had submitted and encouraged me to re-submit, PLUS they showed me that I already have the style of work they are looking for on my own website!"
I wish we could all get that kind of feedback ... I don't want to waste their time in the future with another application.
Having read through the article .... just a thought. The editor that 'replied', in effect, to his tweet says the rejection was not based on his tweet. However clearly they are monitoring social media activity, so I wonder if that is a contributory selection factor ? Since 4 months seems to be the 'standard' waiting time it could be they are also monitoring, and viewing positively, social media activity ? One way of deciding between multiple artists that would otherwise all 'qualify' based on their work alone ? Wild left field theory perhaps :D
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I didn't think my style would suit, landscapes and travel in mostly Asia, and I had noticed a distinct lack of Asian locations in their library and a very pastel palette to their landscapes too. However the speed of their response was exemplary.
Did you get a chance to apply to Robert Harding and/or 4Corners? I would recommend them for your types of images.
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I didn't think my style would suit, landscapes and travel in mostly Asia, and I had noticed a distinct lack of Asian locations in their library and a very pastel palette to their landscapes too. However the speed of their response was exemplary.
Did you get a chance to apply to Robert Harding and/or 4Corners? I would recommend them for your types of images.
Thanks ! I did look at them but didn't apply - I will do now, I was sort of waiting on Stocksy since they require exclusivity. I have a ton of new photos from the Tibetan Plateau this past December and will be hiking Kyrgyzstan for a month this late Spring.
Cheers !
Kevin
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Got rejection too. And yes, it hurts!
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Actually I don't understand their call for artists, why are they doing it, when 99.9% of the photographers are going to be rejected?
I believe that their "call for artists" is made only for making the people believe that their content is something really extraordinary, giving them aura of being something special, or out of this world. I can not find out any other reason except spreading the story among photographers about their magic.
Because, if they need only like 10 photographers, they could have found them without any call for artists. They cold have simply sent them an email, without all this fuss. And this is absolutely not fair that people are left waiting 3 months without any answer.
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I agree 100%.
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Agreed. That blog post was very telling about how Stocksy operates...and not in a good way.
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Rejected after 4 month waiting. What they are doing is totally disrespectful to photographers.
A trained editor's look at a portfolio is enough to know whether fit or not.
Anyway, I have no idea what they are looking for or what they want, but they do not seem to know.
For me, this company is a huge disappointment, especially its disrespectful behavior.
I uploaded 100 pictures, a lot of work went into it. Yes, WORK. And get a kick after 4 month waiting. This is not a professional behavior. Speak to the community!
Tell them what you are looking for! What type of content? Believe me, you will spare yourself a lot of unnecessary entries, and we would not have fun with each other's time and nerves! This is so catastrophic.
Anyway, if someone is curious about my refused portfolio is here: https://500px.com/basilsmith
Best to all
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Love your work Smith!
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Clearly the rejections have absolutely nothing to do with quality. They don't want any competition for their current photographers (understandable), but they do want everyone to think they're a super exclusive club that's very hard to get into. Otherwise they could simply invite people who fill their open niches, as mentioned earlier.
You guys are super talented and deserve much more respectful treatment.
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It seems that they're not sure what they're looking for. A trained editor would have known if the applicant have portolio that fit with stocksy within minutes, so why wait for four months for rejection? If the seat is limited, and the applicant is huge, why are they still open the application?
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Plenty of applicants have portolios that fit with stocksy, the question that took so long to answer was is the applicant a good fit with Stocksy?
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Plenty of applicants have portolios that fit with stocksy, the question that took so long to answer was is the applicant a good fit with Stocksy?
It all seems a bit too pompous for me.
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Next year: "Rejection of artist is open, if you are from Mongolia, have a million of followers in istagram, a great Beard with tattoos (don't worry if you are a bearded girl) and have real lifestyle with real people that are models with last on fashion trends you can try"
Hahahaha..Well, the joke is done...
Anyway I do not see disrespectful to make us wait, patience is very important when selling photos
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I didn't think my style would suit, landscapes and travel in mostly Asia, and I had noticed a distinct lack of Asian locations in their library and a very pastel palette to their landscapes too. However the speed of their response was exemplary.
Did you get a chance to apply to Robert Harding and/or 4Corners? I would recommend them for your types of images.
I've gone over their sites again and they both look like very good matches for my work - very good advice, thanks ! However since both require exclusivity would you have any advice as to who to apply to first (in terms of monetary returns / reputation / size of agency etc.) ? RH pay out 30% and 4C pay 50% however obviously if RH are much larger (and I notice they now also supply to Adobe Premium) then more sales would be preferable to a higher commission.
Cheers !
Kevin
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^^^
I'm not sure about 4C since I decided to join RH and never looked back. They have a large distribution channel (80 or so), much bigger than 4C, even if would get much higher commissions.
Following is my experience with RH after about a year.
Pros:
- large distribution channel (see above)
- personalized blog posts about travels. I've had one post about my trip to UAE and numerous cover features. Obviously doesn't be guarantee sales but certainly helps.
- more visibility, such as when new images are accepted bio appears on main contributor page
- submission is painless and no need for keywording, Just caption and location.
- you can choose to license all RM if u wish
- they accept editorials
- tight edits (80% rejection rate on average) so they obviously only letting premium images in which is a plus
- one to one with photo editor. I've got many tips.
Cons:
- low commission at 30%, same as Alamy via distribution. I feel that for exclusivity this is too low.
- takes ages to get sales reports from distributors (I'm waiting for 7 images which I've spotted via google reverse)
- exclusivity (the biggest downside imo). This includes "similars".
----
Hope that's helpful.
Alex
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^^^
I'm not sure about 4C since I decided to join RH and never looked back. They have a large distribution channel (80 or so), much bigger than 4C, even if would get much higher commissions.
Following is my experience with RH after about a year.
Pros:
- large distribution channel (see above)
- personalized blog posts about travels. I've had one post about my trip to UAE and numerous cover features. Obviously doesn't be guarantee sales but certainly helps.
- more visibility, such as when new images are accepted bio appears on main contributor page
- submission is painless and no need for keywording, Just caption and location.
- you can choose to license all RM if u wish
- they accept editorials
- tight edits (80% rejection rate on average) so they obviously only letting premium images in which is a plus
- one to one with photo editor. I've got many tips.
Cons:
- low commission at 30%, same as Alamy via distribution. I feel that for exclusivity this is too low.
- takes ages to get sales reports from distributors (I'm waiting for 7 images which I've spotted via google reverse)
- exclusivity (the biggest downside imo). This includes "similars".
----
Hope that's helpful.
Alex
Thanks a lot Alex ! I'm in touch with RH so fingers crossed :D
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Just wondering if anyone from this group is still waiting for their response? And did anyone here get accepted at this year's CTA?
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Just wondering if anyone from this group is still waiting for their response? And did anyone here get accepted at this year's CTA?
I'm still waiting. Fingers crossed ;)
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Just wondering if anyone from this group is still waiting for their response? And did anyone here get accepted at this year's CTA?
I'm still waiting. Fingers crossed ;)
Hope you make it!
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Just wondering if anyone from this group is still waiting for their response? And did anyone here get accepted at this year's CTA?
I'm still waiting. Fingers crossed ;)
Hope you make it!
Thank you! :)
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guys I don't know the numbers, but I believe it's in the THOUSANDS that apply to Stocksy. How long do you want them to look at your application and look at you as an artist? 5 mins? or perhaps a few hours? It's a small team at Stocksy and I'm guessing that if they look at a few applicants each day then it's going to take 100 days (plus the 2-3 over xmas when there was a skeleton staff), for you to hear back. It's a co-op so you as a person are joining a team; it's not a faceless company like the others, so I guess they spend a little more time than just perusing your set of images, and perhaps also looking at "you". You don't have to be super sweet, we've got some prickly pears too, but you are expected to be interested and active. Perhaps they also look at your SM accounts? I've no idea. But like any role you apply for, surely you've got all that looking its best?
I don't know anything about the CTA process, and i'm so very grateful I got in earlier, but Stocksy is worth it, both in sales and being part of the community, as well as improving as an artist. Good luck to those who choose to apply again in the near future.
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Anyway, if someone is curious about my refused portfolio is here: https://500px.com/basilsmith
Best to all
I had a look, lovely work but I think I can have a guess. I don't think they need more "pretty woman standing in field" type images. They are beautiful images but perhaps if she were engaged in an activity.... "real people doing real things". Trust me, we all get these rejections on portraits and perhaps they are hoping to onboard new people who are great storytellers? I'm only guessing, as I said, i've no idea how CTA works and I was lucky to go through a less stringent process 4 years ago.
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guys I don't know the numbers, but I believe it's in the THOUSANDS that apply to Stocksy. How long do you want them to look at your application and look at you as an artist? 5 mins? or perhaps a few hours? It's a small team at Stocksy and I'm guessing that if they look at a few applicants each day then it's going to take 100 days (plus the 2-3 over xmas when there was a skeleton staff), for you to hear back. It's a co-op so you as a person are joining a team; it's not a faceless company like the others, so I guess they spend a little more time than just perusing your set of images, and perhaps also looking at "you". You don't have to be super sweet, we've got some prickly pears too, but you are expected to be interested and active. Perhaps they also look at your SM accounts? I've no idea. But like any role you apply for, surely you've got all that looking its best?
I don't know anything about the CTA process, and i'm so very grateful I got in earlier, but Stocksy is worth it, both in sales and being part of the community, as well as improving as an artist. Good luck to those who choose to apply again in the near future.
What bothered me was not the long wait but the lack of communication. I appreciate that they take time to go over portfolios in detail...but really, if you look at a portfolio for an hour or even just half an hour, how long would it take to make the effort to send out somewhat personalized emails...? I'm not talking about an extensive feedback, but it would help to know if your general photography style, your editing, the colors, your subject, too commercial, too artsy? etc. was the reason why they rejected you. Is it worth to re-apply? What to submit when re-applying? What are they looking for? I have no idea because I didn't get any feedback...
It takes about an hour to set up a few different email templates and almost no time to pick one of them instead of sending a standard rejection...
I'm pretty sure, too, that they receive thousands of applications but I'm also sure there's a pretty high percentage of applications where only one look at the images is sufficient to know that they are no fit.
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What might indeed help is they gave out some guidelines - we need people who like to shoot large groups of families with children in their daily life, we need people who shoot seniors with medical needs and care facilities, we need modern photography of business owners, especially women, minorities and seniors making a second start in life.
Or maybe creative black and white or film photography.
Otherwise a lot of people will just put togeter portfolios with content that stocksy already has in abundance.
Unless they do need more of that, I don‘t know.
So I can understand the frustration.
All I can recommend to do is spend the waiting time also exploring other specialized agencies, stocksy is by far not the only one.
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What bugged me about the blog post is that it showed Stocksy is willing to do a fair bit of hand holding and ruffled feather soothing if you have a popular blog or Twitter account, but they'll dismiss everyone else with a standard form email and no other feedback...after they've been kept hanging for four months.
It was clear the instant rejection after the tweet, the quick ego-soothing followup email, the chirpy, friendly comments on the blog post by Stocksy members and the sharing of the blog here were all meant to keep that photographer saying positive things about Stocksy, while also giving all other rejected photographers a condescending lesson about how they "should" react after being rejected in a much less personal way.
Icky.
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None of that is true, but ok.
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At this point I think it is safe to say that everyone who applied and was not accepted thinks the process was BS.
And those of you who have been ‘in’ for a while disagree.
But it’s probably time for the ‘ins’, who according to their own words have nothing to do with the CTA, to refrain from posting thoughts on the process.
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Thanks, but when something is patently untrue like the allegations above, I'll respond.
It's true that we had thousands of applicants. Our staff is small. It's also true that we currently have a very limited number of open slots. It is what it is.
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At this point I think it is safe to say that everyone who applied and was not accepted thinks the process was BS.
And those of you who have been ‘in’ for a while disagree.
But it’s probably time for the ‘ins’, who according to their own words have nothing to do with the CTA, to refrain from posting thoughts on the process.
ouch. I'm sorry the process is taking so long, and I agree it's ridiculously long, so it's not unreasonable to grumble about that. Surely you realise that although we aren't part of the CTA process, we are privvy to more info than you about what Stocksy wants? Frankly, i'm not sure I should even have to spell that much out... ok, do it your way. this chocolate is getting back into the box. All the best.
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I - for my part - am very happy and grateful that experienced Stocksy members like Sean, Gillian and Cobalt chime in and are trying to give us some insights. And I hope they continue to do so!
Sure, many are frustrated that they get rejected and not happy about the process - just as I am - but why all the hate? First and foremost I am here trying to get some further information what Stocksy is looking for and how I can improve my work for a re-application. Even if I won’t get accepted for a 2nd or 3rd time there might be new things to learn or things to differently...not necessarily to get in but to take better pictures in general...
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I - for my part - am very happy and grateful that experienced Stocksy members like Sean, Gillian and Cobalt chime in and are trying to give us some insights. And I hope they continue to do so!
Sure, many are frustrated that they get rejected and not happy about the process - just as I am - but why all the hate? First and foremost I am here trying to get some further information what Stocksy is looking for and how I can improve my work for a re-application. Even if I won’t get accepted for a 2nd or 3rd time there might be new things to learn or things to differently...not necessarily to get in but to take better pictures in general...
If all you want is a critique of your portfolio the last thing you should do is apply to Stocksy as would have been apparent if you had followed previous Calls to Artists. Just to put it into perspective we know from previous calls that around 5,000 apply and 100 are accepted, maybe less this time as they had reached their cap of 1,000 artists. Feedback to 4,900 plus artists, are you serious?
A lot of artists would be producing work acceptable to Stocksy, but the 2% or less of the chosen ones will have been producing quality work new to Stocksy and uploading it week after week, month on month during their four month assessment. If you held back uploading during this process how would they know if you can do that, you need to be uploading at least as much as their average member, probably more. They don't need any more slack members, they may well have culled some to make way for new dynamic members, otherwise they would be on a slippery slope producing less images every year.
As a tie breaker after the treadmill of production and uploading you also need to be promoting your work, if they can't see it you'r not doing it.
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I never said I am expecting Stocksy go critique my photos...I was taking about the exchange here with Sticksy members which I find helpful and appreciate - obviously in contrary to other members here.
I don’t understand what you mean by I have to upload as least as much images during the process than the average member? The average member has how many images with them? 500? 1000?
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I never said I am expecting Stocksy go critique my photos...I was taking about the exchange here with Sticksy members which I find helpful and appreciate - obviously in contrary to other members here.
I don’t understand what you mean by I have to upload as least as much images during the process than the average member? The average member has how many images with them? 500? 1000?
Sorry I thought you said that you wanted to know how to improve your work.
Stocksy is the most transparent agency there is, if those members have not told you what you need to know it's because they have agreed among themselves not to, or they are not as transparent as they claim.
You need to be uploading as many images if not more as members upload. It's likely to be a bit of a treadmill that you are not allowed to get off. It's not about taking artistic photos it's about taking quality stock photos in abundance.
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I never said I am expecting Stocksy go critique my photos...I was taking about the exchange here with Sticksy members which I find helpful and appreciate - obviously in contrary to other members here.
I don’t understand what you mean by I have to upload as least as much images during the process than the average member? The average member has how many images with them? 500? 1000?
Sorry I thought you said that you wanted to know how to improve your work.
Stocksy is the most transparent agency there is, if those members have not told you what you need to know it's because they have agreed among themselves not to, or they are not as transparent as they claim.
You need to be uploading as many images if not more as members upload. It's likely to be a bit of a treadmill that you are not allowed to get off. It's not about taking artistic photos it's about taking quality stock photos in abundance.
You can’t upload more than 100 photos in your application...
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You can’t upload more than 100 photos in your application...
Are you not uploading elsewhere?
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You can’t upload more than 100 photos in your application...
Are you not uploading elsewhere?
I am but I don’t understand what this has to do with my stocksy application?
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You can’t upload more than 100 photos in your application...
Are you not uploading elsewhere?
I am but I don’t understand what this has to do with my stocksy application?
Ask yourself how they would know if you can upload good work week after week month on month without assessing that over a 3-4 month period. They need to know that new members are going to be productive, or else they have to do the whole thing again.
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Ask yourself how they would know if you can upload good work week after week month on month without assessing that over a 3-4 month period. They need to know that new members are going to be productive, or else they have to do the whole thing again.
[/quote]
I’m pretty sure if they were interested in your other stock photo accounts they’d ask for the user names/URLs...do you really think they take the time to find them and monitor them? To see what? That you are able to produce tons of stock photos in a completely different style (like many stocksy member do für Shutterstock and such, too)? How would that help?
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Ask yourself how they would know if you can upload good work week after week month on month without assessing that over a 3-4 month period. They need to know that new members are going to be productive, or else they have to do the whole thing again.
I’m pretty sure if they were interested in your other stock photo accounts they’d ask for the user names/URLs...do you really think they take the time to find them and monitor them? To see what? That you are able to produce tons of stock photos in a completely different style (like many stocksy member do für Shutterstock and such, too)? How would that help?
[/quote]
I think it may help you if you reflected on those questions and try to come up with your own answers.
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Ask yourself how they would know if you can upload good work week after week month on month without assessing that over a 3-4 month period. They need to know that new members are going to be productive, or else they have to do the whole thing again.
I’m pretty sure if they were interested in your other stock photo accounts they’d ask for the user names/URLs...do you really think they take the time to find them and monitor them? To see what? That you are able to produce tons of stock photos in a completely different style (like many stocksy member do für Shutterstock and such, too)? How would that help?
I think it may help you if you reflected on those questions and try to come up with your own answers.
[/quote]
Well, you were the one coming up with these assumptions not I...but, ok, you obviously don’t want to explain any further why you assume so...
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You can’t upload more than 100 photos in your application...
Are you not uploading elsewhere?
I am but I don’t understand what this has to do with my stocksy application?
Ask yourself how they would know if you can upload good work week after week month on month without assessing that over a 3-4 month period. They need to know that new members are going to be productive, or else they have to do the whole thing again.
I left some of the information blank on the beginnning, thinking I could fill them later. But no, there's no way to edit the profile. I cant enter my instagram name and other social media later. Surely after wait for almost five months I was thinking maybe I was on their shortlist. But no, they dont explain anything when they reject me. Was it because my images sucks or because the absence of social media, there's no way to know.
Most of us who apply and report in this forum have no hate toward stocksy. We just simply confuse, and looking for some information, what is really needed to be accepted. Because we want to be in, and hoping that some people who are already in, would bring some insider information.
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You can’t upload more than 100 photos in your application...
Are you not uploading elsewhere?
I am but I don’t understand what this has to do with my stocksy application?
Ask yourself how they would know if you can upload good work week after week month on month without assessing that over a 3-4 month period. They need to know that new members are going to be productive, or else they have to do the whole thing again.
I left some of the information blank on the beginnning, thinking I could fill them later. But no, there's no way to edit the profile. I cant enter my instagram name and other social media later. Surely after wait for almost five months I was thinking maybe I was on their shortlist. But no, they dont explain anything when they reject me. Was it because my images sucks or because the absence of social media, there's no way to know.
Most of us who apply and report in this forum have no hate toward stocksy. We just simply confuse, and looking for some information, what is really needed to be accepted. Because we want to be in, and hoping that some people who are already in, would bring some insider information.
I was curious.
Where is my SNS account entry location?
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You can’t upload more than 100 photos in your application...
Are you not uploading elsewhere?
I am but I don’t understand what this has to do with my stocksy application?
Ask yourself how they would know if you can upload good work week after week month on month without assessing that over a 3-4 month period. They need to know that new members are going to be productive, or else they have to do the whole thing again.
If this is true, why didn't they say it? Do we need to look in this forum posts to find that out? Second, why would we spend time uploading and go through their painful keywording process when we still don't know if we are accepted?
Also, I have like 100 pics already prepared, so I can upload them all with some pace like 10 per week, so I should qualify by your standards. But, does that mean that I will do the same if I'm accepted?
The other thing is: If they need so much "social presence", then the photographers that they are looking for should be pretty much visible. If they need only like 10 photographers who are socially active, they are easily spotted without any "call for artists".
It just does not make any sense and all that shows lack of respect to photographers.
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I have to say that reading all the frustration here makes me very sad. And I do agree if they were only looking for 5 new photographers it seems like a disproportional effort for everyone involved, both the people applying and the team that goes through the thousands of applications.
I do hope that for the future that something can be done to better manage expectations.
There is always something that can be improved, I am sure there are enough people involved also reading here.
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Thanks for your words Cobalt.
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here are some people probably accepted in this wave of call to artist.
https://www.stocksy.com/artjazz (https://www.stocksy.com/artjazz)
https://www.stocksy.com/villadsendiane (https://www.stocksy.com/villadsendiane)
https://www.stocksy.com/jamiegrillphotography (https://www.stocksy.com/jamiegrillphotography)
https://www.stocksy.com/davemills (https://www.stocksy.com/davemills)
https://www.stocksy.com/paulagfurio (https://www.stocksy.com/paulagfurio)
i suspect they have been accepted due to few images all uploaded in the last months from september.
just to have an idea of what they look for.
high leve of work or very niche work like fire photography.
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Or shooting things on pink. ;D
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i love this color graph composition. anyway for me this is a level very high. sure years ahead anything you see in micro stock.
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94 days since my application, and no news so far...
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Well done for those who got in.
At least my application made me think about improving the quality of my images which in hindsight were probably not strong enough as a set.
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I sent the photos on November 12, 2017.
I am still waiting...
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Actually I don't understand their call for artists, why are they doing it, when 99.9% of the photographers are going to be rejected?
I believe that their "call for artists" is made only for making the people believe that their content is something really extraordinary, giving them aura of being something special, or out of this world. I can not find out any other reason except spreading the story among photographers about their magic.
Because, if they need only like 10 photographers, they could have found them without any call for artists. They cold have simply sent them an email, without all this fuss. And this is absolutely not fair that people are left waiting 3 months without any answer.
... just like istock many years ago, but than IS was a big player! Can any stocksy contributor confirm that the earnings are near Shutterstock, AdobeStock or Pond5 ... or better?
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Just got my rejection yesterday.
I sent my application on november 2nd.
It took them more than 4 months...
Here you can see a gallery with both the pictures I submit and other pictures I showed them from my portfolio:
https://manufrommadrid.wixsite.com/myportfolio/gallery
Good luck to those who do not have a reply yet.
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I'm so sorry to hear.
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Just got my rejection yesterday.
I sent my application on november 2nd.
It took them more than 4 months...
Here you can see a gallery with both the pictures I submit and other pictures I showed them from my portfolio:
https://manufrommadrid.wixsite.com/myportfolio/gallery
Good luck to those who do not have a reply yet.
Sorry to hear your news. You've got some nice imagery there!
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Just got my rejection yesterday.
I sent my application on november 2nd.
It took them more than 4 months...
Here you can see a gallery with both the pictures I submit and other pictures I showed them from my portfolio:
https://manufrommadrid.wixsite.com/myportfolio/gallery
Good luck to those who do not have a reply yet.
Sorry to hear your news. You've got some nice imagery there!
i agree is the best application i see so far and in my opinion they only discard not to hit the earning of current contributor.
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You have a very stocksy style... time ago you will be in. Best luck next time...
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Just got my rejection yesterday.
I sent my application on november 2nd.
It took them more than 4 months...
Here you can see a gallery with both the pictures I submit and other pictures I showed them from my portfolio:
https://manufrommadrid.wixsite.com/myportfolio/gallery
Good luck to those who do not have a reply yet.
I received an email that was rejected today. I feel depressed all day long.
It takes 2 months to get rejected
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Actually I don't understand their call for artists, why are they doing it, when 99.9% of the photographers are going to be rejected?
I believe that their "call for artists" is made only for making the people believe that their content is something really extraordinary, giving them aura of being something special, or out of this world. I can not find out any other reason except spreading the story among photographers about their magic.
Because, if they need only like 10 photographers, they could have found them without any call for artists. They cold have simply sent them an email, without all this fuss. And this is absolutely not fair that people are left waiting 3 months without any answer.
... just like istock many years ago, but than IS was a big player! Can any stocksy contributor confirm that the earnings are near Shutterstock, AdobeStock or Pond5 ... or better?
Yes Fritz!! first intelligent question here! I am already under RM contract so I wouldnt be able to join! but its intresting to see that people are killing themselves to join an outfit and not even once bar you is anybody asking? " is is worth it"??...it reminds me of Lemmings throwing themselves off a cliff!...joking a bit of course but me personally would want to see a vast improvement of earnings over lets say microstock before I even contemplated on joining an RM/RF agency nowadays!...Stocksy is an OK agency but I would want to know earnings potentials for sure! :)
I feel truly sorry for the ones rejected in spite of some good ports and after such a long wait!
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Odd how there are so many complaints about sites accepting everyone/everything.....then when a site sets its own criteria so many complaints. ;-).
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Probably because the big sites (SS and Adobe) punish contributors with excellent work who reach a high level of success by giving their work less exposure, and Stocksy rejects those same people. So folks who are very talented may feel they're not really welcome anywhere.
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Probably because the big sites (SS and Adobe) punish contributors with excellent work who reach a high level of success by giving their work less exposure, and Stocksy rejects those same people. So folks who are very talented may feel they're not really welcome anywhere.
Stock agencies are not limited to Shutterstock and Stocksy. Very talented folks with excellent work will surely find another agency to work with.
But I agree that there is an "over-fuss" about Stocksy, they surely have excellent portfolios but certainly aren't the last agency on planet Earth. Each contributor has to find which agency fits their work best and that is a learning process; in my own case it involved trial and error, but you learn along the way.
What I don't get is why everybody is so willing to be accepted by Stocksy but then concerning other agencies complain that they will never agree to series exclusivity.
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"What I don't get is why everybody is so willing to be accepted by Stocksy..."
Most likely because Stocksy is the only agency that consistently announces their calls for artists here, leading to mass applications and then public complaints about their rejection of almost all of the very people they invite.
They dangle the carrot and snatch it away, publicly and repeatedly.
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99% of people who apply should watch obj. their portfolio, their application and the level of stocksy file and simply don't apply...of all the application posted here only the last was at stocksy level, the rest was not fit for style technique and color palette. 5 minutes obj. honest analysis of their application should have revelaled this to 99% of photographer.
that's why stocksy has overabundance of application..
i actually like their mentality. back to professionality.
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"What I don't get is why everybody is so willing to be accepted by Stocksy..."
Most likely because Stocksy is the only agency that consistently announces their calls for artists here, leading to mass applications and then public complaints about their rejection of almost all of the very people they invite.
They dangle the carrot and snatch it away, publicly and repeatedly.
My complete sentence has a meaning. Just part of it doesn't, you shouldn't just quote part. Doesn't make sense what you answered, it wasn't what I asked.
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"What I don't get is why everybody is so willing to be accepted by Stocksy..."
Most likely because Stocksy is the only agency that consistently announces their calls for artists here, leading to mass applications and then public complaints about their rejection of almost all of the very people they invite.
They dangle the carrot and snatch it away, publicly and repeatedly.
My complete sentence has a meaning. Just part of it doesn't, you shouldn't just quote part. Doesn't make sense what you answered, it wasn't what I asked.
I think I answered your question. Stocksy has set up a dangling carrot that they bring out on Microstock group every so often to tempt people. So people are drooling to get that carrot. They temporarily forget their concerns about series exclusivity for a chance to be one of the cool kids. It reminds me of fraternities and sororities in college. For what other college group would you endure physical punishment (hazing) in order to get in? None.
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"What I don't get is why everybody is so willing to be accepted by Stocksy..."
Most likely because Stocksy is the only agency that consistently announces their calls for artists here, leading to mass applications and then public complaints about their rejection of almost all of the very people they invite.
They dangle the carrot and snatch it away, publicly and repeatedly.
My complete sentence has a meaning. Just part of it doesn't, you shouldn't just quote part. Doesn't make sense what you answered, it wasn't what I asked.
I think I answered your question. Stocksy has set up a dangling carrot that they bring out on Microstock group every so often to tempt people. So people are drooling to get that carrot. They temporarily forget their concerns about series exclusivity for a chance to be one of the cool kids. It reminds me of fraternities and sororities in college. For what other college group would you endure physical punishment (hazing) in order to get in? None.
I didn't understand the first time you answered, now your answer makes senses. :)
Not my cup of tea, concerning my photography, I'd rather be paid than be cool. And for what it's worth, there are a lot of cool agencies out there, much easier to reach than Stocksy and that can get your images to cool places.
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"What I don't get is why everybody is so willing to be accepted by Stocksy..."
Most likely because Stocksy is the only agency that consistently announces their calls for artists here, leading to mass applications and then public complaints about their rejection of almost all of the very people they invite.
They dangle the carrot and snatch it away, publicly and repeatedly.
My complete sentence has a meaning. Just part of it doesn't, you shouldn't just quote part. Doesn't make sense what you answered, it wasn't what I asked.
I think I answered your question. Stocksy has set up a dangling carrot that they bring out on Microstock group every so often to tempt people. So people are drooling to get that carrot. They temporarily forget their concerns about series exclusivity for a chance to be one of the cool kids. It reminds me of fraternities and sororities in college. For what other college group would you endure physical punishment (hazing) in order to get in? None.
Alamy do the same, touting photographers in the hope of finding one in a thousand!. I doubt very much that any serious photographer would in front of a whole gallery like this want to flaunt their application let alone being rejected!! just weird!
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if people were honest with their folio stocksy would have received 1% of application and close the question in a month....people simply want live out of photography with mediocre skills....that's why stocksy out there telling those people the truth in their face.
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Probably because the big sites (SS and Adobe) punish contributors with excellent work who reach a high level of success by giving their work less exposure, and Stocksy rejects those same people. So folks who are very talented may feel they're not really welcome anywhere.
I feel I'm in this middle group with no place to go... I'm hoping there will be some hope in the future for us. SS is just going down the drain for me.
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Probably because the big sites (SS and Adobe) punish contributors with excellent work who reach a high level of success by giving their work less exposure, and Stocksy rejects those same people. So folks who are very talented may feel they're not really welcome anywhere.
I feel I'm in this middle group with no place to go... I'm hoping there will be some hope in the future for us. SS is just going down the drain for me.
It's a shame you feel that way. Your work is beautiful.
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Can any stocksy contributor confirm that the earnings are near Shutterstock, AdobeStock or Pond5 ... or better?
Well, you'll just have to take my word for it but my SS earnings (I left 3 yrs ago) never came close to what I am earning at Stocksy.
Stock is a roller coaster ride, some months are (much) better than others.
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^^ thats because your content is no way near micro-stock photography not commercial as such. Its a special portfolio very suitable for RM/RF and typical of what creative buyers are looking for!
OTOH I know an extremely well known interior/architect photographer who is earning next to nothing.
I suppose in the end what it boils down to is horses for courses. Some years back I placed 1800 completely different images from micro-stock with one of the bigger, specialized Boutique agencies and every month it brings in way past a four figure amount. You can never tell can you!
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Thank you for your comments, guys.
It's pointless to feel depressed for the rejection, especially when we do not even know the criteria to be accepted.
:)
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Thank you for your comments, guys.
It's pointless to feel depressed for the rejection, especially when we do not even know the criteria to be accepted.
:)
Exactly!! you win some you lose some and in the end it breaks even!!.....I think you want to have a look at an agency called "Trevillion"...its supposed to be the toughest one to get into of them all but your port is very special and they like that sort of content!
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well after exactly 6 months i received a negative answer
some consideration
1- personally considering the work i saw in stocksy i think they lose more than i do.
2- i appreciate they gave me an explanation for this and they said my application was too staged shot while they loved my instagram feed much more for originality...they wanted more my feed in instagram but not my application...well my insta is more editorial and unreleased photos and also a lot of photos i consider more snapshot....they told me they wanted more unstated shot, but i think any shot is somehow staged... also shutter stock custom and offset contact me through insta and want my work. so let's see. i thin i will try gallery stock if not i will upload all in offset.
3- i'm sad cause i think my application was superior and more oriented toward different style than many people accepted in the last period, all with the same insta feed and similar genre.
. thy ask to candidate again in 6 months but i doubt. ok wait but 6 months is tons of time,
4- well i must admit that after long time i was near probably through last step and their word make me feel better causee at least they appreciate my work....in instagram they could see some work who win important award and i sell through gallery, i doubt they have a lot of photographer with the level of award i won in the last years. it could have been for me good for the,m more than me.
anyway some samples after all these words. i feel they lose more than me, and i won't apply anymore because 6 months are 6 months.
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some more
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some more
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last 4 batch....i apply 95 images...a mix as you can see...already available more than 4000 images never sold with the same quality.
well time to decide what to do. offset i can apply they told me but i am not sure if they are selling a lot.
canva i like but is like stocksy, maybe i would like gallery stock but again are they selling?
in the end it seems to me the one who really sell are adobe shutter and eps.
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well after exactly 6 months i received a negative answer
some consideration
1- personally considering the work i saw in stocksy i think they lose more than i do.
2- i appreciate they gave me an explanation for this and they said my application was too staged shot while they loved my instagram feed much more for originality...they wanted more my feed in instagram but not my application...well my insta is more editorial and unreleased photos and also a lot of photos i consider more snapshot....they told me they wanted more unstated shot, but i think any shot is somehow staged... also shutter stock custom and offset contact me through insta and want my work. so let's see. i thin i will try gallery stock if not i will upload all in offset.
3- i'm sad cause i think my application was superior and more oriented toward different style than many people accepted in the last period, all with the same insta feed and similar genre.
. thy ask to candidate again in 6 months but i doubt. ok wait but 6 months is tons of time,
4- well i must admit that after long time i was near probably through last step and their word make me feel better causee at least they appreciate my work....in instagram they could see some work who win important award and i sell through gallery, i doubt they have a lot of photographer with the level of award i won in the last years. it could have been for me good for the,m more than me.
anyway some samples after all these words. i feel they lose more than me, and i won't apply anymore because 6 months are 6 months.
Get over Stocksy and get over yourself... in no particular order.
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well after exactly 6 months i received a negative answer
some consideration
1- personally considering the work i saw in stocksy i think they lose more than i do.
2- i appreciate they gave me an explanation for this and they said my application was too staged shot while they loved my instagram feed much more for originality...they wanted more my feed in instagram but not my application...well my insta is more editorial and unreleased photos and also a lot of photos i consider more snapshot....they told me they wanted more unstated shot, but i think any shot is somehow staged... also shutter stock custom and offset contact me through insta and want my work. so let's see. i thin i will try gallery stock if not i will upload all in offset.
3- i'm sad cause i think my application was superior and more oriented toward different style than many people accepted in the last period, all with the same insta feed and similar genre.
. thy ask to candidate again in 6 months but i doubt. ok wait but 6 months is tons of time,
4- well i must admit that after long time i was near probably through last step and their word make me feel better causee at least they appreciate my work....in instagram they could see some work who win important award and i sell through gallery, i doubt they have a lot of photographer with the level of award i won in the last years. it could have been for me good for the,m more than me.
anyway some samples after all these words. i feel they lose more than me, and i won't apply anymore because 6 months are 6 months.
Get over Stocksy and get over yourself... in no particular order.
well for sure. is not the end of the world...and i appreciate they give a good feedback.
i disagree with their choice actually especially after seeing s3 4 profile accepted with the same stuff already present in the stocksy collection.
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well after exactly 6 months i received a negative answer
some consideration
1- personally considering the work i saw in stocksy i think they lose more than i do.
2- i appreciate they gave me an explanation for this and they said my application was too staged shot while they loved my instagram feed much more for originality...they wanted more my feed in instagram but not my application...well my insta is more editorial and unreleased photos and also a lot of photos i consider more snapshot....they told me they wanted more unstated shot, but i think any shot is somehow staged... also shutter stock custom and offset contact me through insta and want my work. so let's see. i thin i will try gallery stock if not i will upload all in offset.
3- i'm sad cause i think my application was superior and more oriented toward different style than many people accepted in the last period, all with the same insta feed and similar genre.
. thy ask to candidate again in 6 months but i doubt. ok wait but 6 months is tons of time,
4- well i must admit that after long time i was near probably through last step and their word make me feel better causee at least they appreciate my work....in instagram they could see some work who win important award and i sell through gallery, i doubt they have a lot of photographer with the level of award i won in the last years. it could have been for me good for the,m more than me.
anyway some samples after all these words. i feel they lose more than me, and i won't apply anymore because 6 months are 6 months.
Get over Stocksy and get over yourself... in no particular order.
well for sure. is not the end of the world...and i appreciate they give a good feedback.
i disagree with their choice actually especially after seeing s3 4 profile accepted with the same stuff already present in the stocksy collection.
Your work is very nice! Place it where it is appreciated. Work like yours is in demand and if you get it into an agency that has traffic you will do very well. Love the concept of Stocksy very much, but apart from that it is much ado about nuthin.
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well after exactly 6 months i received a negative answer
some consideration
1- personally considering the work i saw in stocksy i think they lose more than i do.
2- i appreciate they gave me an explanation for this and they said my application was too staged shot while they loved my instagram feed much more for originality...they wanted more my feed in instagram but not my application...well my insta is more editorial and unreleased photos and also a lot of photos i consider more snapshot....they told me they wanted more unstated shot, but i think any shot is somehow staged... also shutter stock custom and offset contact me through insta and want my work. so let's see. i thin i will try gallery stock if not i will upload all in offset.
3- i'm sad cause i think my application was superior and more oriented toward different style than many people accepted in the last period, all with the same insta feed and similar genre.
. thy ask to candidate again in 6 months but i doubt. ok wait but 6 months is tons of time,
4- well i must admit that after long time i was near probably through last step and their word make me feel better causee at least they appreciate my work....in instagram they could see some work who win important award and i sell through gallery, i doubt they have a lot of photographer with the level of award i won in the last years. it could have been for me good for the,m more than me.
anyway some samples after all these words. i feel they lose more than me, and i won't apply anymore because 6 months are 6 months.
Get over Stocksy and get over yourself... in no particular order.
well for sure. is not the end of the world...and i appreciate they give a good feedback.
i disagree with their choice actually especially after seeing s3 4 profile accepted with the same stuff already present in the stocksy collection.
Your work is very nice! Place it where it is appreciated. Work like yours is in demand and if you get it into an agency that has traffic you will do very well. Love the concept of Stocksy very much, but apart from that it is much ado about nuthin.
well i like stocksy cause they gear towards quality and i really tend to struggle to upload my quality work in micro,..i didn't in many years and probably i lost thousand of dollars but i would have like to find a place like stocksy...especailly i'm oriented towards quality food photography in last period...and this struggle in micro stock cause there are literally millions of poor shot, while stocksy has a very good offer of food photos. i also send them some as part of my application..
if i can find some suggestion for stocky
1- don't send them many genre. they want specialization more than people with many photo interest.
2- send few files not 100...most of people who have been accepted has small application from what i can see.
3-clean style
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As a Stocksy member I am sorry to hear all the frustration and anger expressed in the forum. As Sean or Gillian said earlier there are only a limited number of spots and the small editing team works on the applications while doing there normal editing jobs. It's a lot of work for them and they are diligent about being thorough. I also have no inside insights, but I know they are looking for photographers that bring something new to the coop and are not duplicating what other members are already shooting. Getting rejected is not a necessarily a commentary on the quality of work being submitted but often the type and style of the portfolio.
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I'm sorry to hear. At least you got feedback though.
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As a Stocksy member I am sorry to hear all the frustration and anger expressed in the forum. As Sean or Gillian said earlier there are only a limited number of spots and the small editing team works on the applications while doing there normal editing jobs. It's a lot of work for them and they are diligent about being thorough. I also have no inside insights, but I know they are looking for photographers that bring something new to the coop and are not duplicating what other members are already shooting. Getting rejected is not a necessarily a commentary on the quality of work being submitted but often the type and style of the portfolio.
As mentioned before, seems like it might take less of their time to do some scouting on a couple sites, then just invite those whose ports match exactly what stocksy is looking for, as opposed to putting out a mass call and taking 6 months to give an answer. Or maybe stocksy’s method is just designed to hype the stocksy “mystique”.
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As a Stocksy member I am sorry to hear all the frustration and anger expressed in the forum. As Sean or Gillian said earlier there are only a limited number of spots and the small editing team works on the applications while doing there normal editing jobs. It's a lot of work for them and they are diligent about being thorough. I also have no inside insights, but I know they are looking for photographers that bring something new to the coop and are not duplicating what other members are already shooting. Getting rejected is not a necessarily a commentary on the quality of work being submitted but often the type and style of the portfolio.
well my folio has tons of photos u cannot find in stocksy..the aerial series of beach is not present...contrary they accepted mostly the same instgram style stuff...i looked 4 5 profile recently accepted with 50-70 images...and sincerely they are all the same. in my opinion they simply not accept something who can hurt the sales of stablished contributor.
at the end stocksy two years ago give 4 million of commission....considering 4000 contributor it means that if somebody means good money many earn practically zero. anyway even if 6 months are too long i appreciate they give a nice feedback.
and probably having had this feedback before i would have changed my application.
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I'm sorry to hear. At least you got feedback though.
I don't blame you for not wanting to re-apply. Who wants to go through that all over again. I think they have what they need and the current contributors don't want anymore competition that will affect their sales. I get it ... They have something special and we missed the boat to get on early. It is just too late for us now to hop on.
if i would have time i will apply. i have tons of photos and style probably would have i applied my insta photos i would have been accepted.
who knows. time to move on. i will join offset soon. let's see how they sell. probably
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Why they dont close the "Rejection of artist" and just invite photographers they want??
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what surprise me is that i send a graphic tries of perfectly aerial of beach...a series made with dslr not phantom small camera...a series who could have sold a lot especially in summer, and who they not have in their portfolio....only for that series they should have accepted me:)....contrary they accepted 3 4 instagram photographer with the same theme already present in the collection.
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Have you ever considered you may not be the most objective judge of your own work?
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Have you ever considered you may not be the most objective judge of your own work?
maybe yes.
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Have you ever considered you may not be the most objective judge of your own work?
so considering your comment you could add some of your work. because i suspect your comment is more bitter than objective.
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Have you ever considered you may not be the most objective judge of your own work?
by the way i'm the most critic of my work don't worry. the fact they appreciate my instagram and probably would have accepted me on the basis of it but rejected me for my application simply tells i choose the wrong images. probably i agree with them, after reading their feedback i suspect my application was more oriented towards offset than them.
" We've reviewed your images and portfolio and your work came close, but ultimately we felt there wasn’t a fit at this time.
We loved looking through your Instagram account, but we didn't feel that the work submitted in your application set the right mood that we are seeking in our collection"
just to say. maybe is a standard message send to any body i don't know, it would be nice to hear from other if it's a standard answer or they take time to give everybody a personal feedback.
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It's been 6 months... Can we close this thread? Such a pathetic attempt to get attention.
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Have you ever considered you may not be the most objective judge of your own work?
so considering your comment you could add some of your work. because i suspect your comment is more bitter than objective.
I could but I'm not going to the only opinion of my work I'm interested in is the market's and I've never commented on the quality of anyone else's work and fwiw I think mine is average at best.
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It's been 6 months... Can we close this thread? Such a pathetic attempt to get attention.
An attempt by whom?
People are obviously finding useful to have a thread to post in. If you dont like it, hide it.
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It's been 6 months... Can we close this thread? Such a pathetic attempt to get attention.
An attempt by whom?
People are obviously finding useful to have a thread to post in. If you dont like it, hide it.
And this is the “go to” thread for people to report whether they are in or out. Makes sense to keep it all in one thread, rather than a bunch of threads.
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just to say...applied to cavan images at 3 o'clock they send me acceptance mail after 2 hours and contract.
i know cavan images is not as successful or looked for by photographers as stocksy but if thy can in 2 hours..
let's upload something there and see if they sell something.
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well my folio has tons of photos u cannot find in stocksy..the aerial series of beach is not present...contrary they accepted mostly the same instgram style stuff...i looked 4 5 profile recently accepted with 50-70 images...and sincerely they are all the same.
Do you want to tell us which profiles or ‘instagram syzle’ you are referring to?
and probably having had this feedback before i would have changed my application.
Oh yes! Me too! I submitted too many photos of too many subjects! Had I known that they are looking for photographers specializing in one subject I would have omitted many of my photos...I wish they had written this information in their CTA page...it would have saved lots of time selecting what I thought was my best work for stocksy and I could have spend more time focusing on selecting photos of my main subject...
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You guys should stop beating yourselves up about what you submitted. They put out a call for artists and got thousands of submissions and chose a couple of people who shoot on pink backgrounds and one guy who shoots dangerous fires. How could anyone have possibly known that's what they were looking for?
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well my folio has tons of photos u cannot find in stocksy..the aerial series of beach is not present...contrary they accepted mostly the same instgram style stuff...i looked 4 5 profile recently accepted with 50-70 images...and sincerely they are all the same.
Do you want to tell us which profiles or ‘instagram syzle’ you are referring to?
and probably having had this feedback before i would have changed my application.
Oh yes! Me too! I submitted too many photos of too many subjects! Had I known that they are looking for photographers specializing in one subject I would have omitted many of my photos...I wish they had written this information in their CTA page...it would have saved lots of time selecting what I thought was my best work for stocksy and I could have spend more time focusing on selecting photos of my main subject...
it's easy go to to curator and find some file uploaded by people with 30 to 100 images they are mostly new contributor.
personally i! saw 4 5 profile new...and they have the same stuff...some lifestyle with palette tone...similar food images or still life shot with natural light...there is a surfer photographer with 10 images, as i said few files and specialization pays,, and nothing really new.. in my opinion especially with my application they saw more an internal competition than new content, while probably my instagram feed was more new content for the,. they simply don't want to hurt established contributor.
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You guys should stop beating yourselves up about what you submitted. They put out a call for artists and got thousands of submissions and chose a couple of people who shoot on pink backgrounds and one guy who shoots dangerous fires. How could anyone have possibly known that's what they were looking for?
well also a surfer with a portfolio of 10 images....i have probably 1000 surfers shot, but i don't consider them as having big market..especially i don't understand they point in adding somebody on the basis of 10 images...i have a portfolio of thousand of unsold images, not one or two ready available. if i were accepted by stocksy i would have submitted thousand images in the first month, while i see those accepted still having 30 40 images....as i said they looked for images and photographer who don't compete with established contributor. as i said...5 millions of commission and 4000 contributor already....math is not an opinion. but how many can earn in stocksy 50 60 thousand dollar year...
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You guys should stop beating yourselves up about what you submitted. They put out a call for artists and got thousands of submissions and chose a couple of people who shoot on pink backgrounds and one guy who shoots dangerous fires. How could anyone have possibly known that's what they were looking for?
I know I should stop thinking about but I don’t get it. And I kind of have a problem of letting things go that I don’t understand ;) I’m not bitter or anything...just trying to get behind it...
That guy with the fire shots is a good example! I totally see that these are photos that might be successful. Thed’d probably sell well at most stock agencies. Do they have the stocksy style? Not for me. Do they say anything about the photographer being an outstanding artist that can always provide this level of photos? Well, please don’t get me wrong, I do not mean to criticize this photographer nor do I want to say these are bad photos, but I do think a lot of people being at the right time at the right place and being capable of taking good photos could have taken these. Unless he is a fire fighter this is probably not something he can provide constantly...
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just to say...applied to cavan images at 3 o'clock they send me acceptance mail after 2 hours and contract.
i know cavan images is not as successful or looked for by photographers as stocksy but if thy can in 2 hours..
let's upload something there and see if they sell something.
As I understand Cavan, they are just going to distribute your files on other agencies, dramatically reducing your earnings - why would anyone do that? Hardly comparable to Stocksy.
Please correct me, if I am wrong.
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as i said...5 millions of commission and 4000 contributor already....math is not an opinion. but how many can earn in stocksy 50 60 thousand dollar year...
Where are you coming up with the 4,000 contributor figure? Stocksy is closing in on 1,000 contributors, FYI. Or am I misunderstanding what you are saying?
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Is the response time any better now? I've sent in an application with new photos yesterday and I'm wondering if I am going to have to wait for their response for another 5 months :(
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.
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Is the response time any better now? I've sent in an application with new photos yesterday and I'm wondering if I am going to have to wait for their response for another 5 months :(
Yes, it should be a lot quicker these days.
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Stocksy replied to our application with 48 hours this time 8)
And finally we are on board ;D So thrilled - These guys rock! It a completely other experience :)
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Congrats and welcome to the clan!
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Stocksy replied to our application with 48 hours this time 8)
And finally we are on board ;D So thrilled - These guys rock! It a completely other experience :)
That is so awesome, congrats!! :D
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Thanks Sean and visualhr :)
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Congrats! I'm so happy for you. So glad someone from the forum got through.
Wishing you lots of success in the next couple of busy months :)
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Congrats! I'm so happy for you. So glad someone from the forum got through.
Wishing you lots of success in the next couple of busy months :)
Thanks you, means a lot :-)
I can remember that you also applied before! In hindsight I can only say this, to people want to get in.
- Take the advice/critique they give you seriously
- Accept the critique and improve ( Improvement is a LOT easier when critique is accepted)
- Be extremely picky when editing the selects for application
And thats really it I guess :)
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You got a critique from them? I think most people got a generic 1 sentence email.
It would have been nice to get some kind of feedback.
Your port is amazing! Very high quality work :) Cheers!
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Congrats! I'm so happy for you. So glad someone from the forum got through.
Wishing you lots of success in the next couple of busy months :)
Thanks you, means a lot :-)
I can remember that you also applied before! In hindsight I can only say this, to people want to get in.
- Take the advice/critique they give you seriously
- Accept the critique and improve ( Improvement is a LOT easier when critique is accepted)
- Be extremely picky when editing the selects for application
And thats really it I guess :)
I only got generic response the first time.
So this was your second time applying?
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First time I applied was 4 years ago! That time it was just a "Thanks but no thanks" - I can see why today! Our portfolio was not what Stocksy wanted - Even though it already had high value (Dollars).
This year we applied around jan/feb with what I thought was some REALLY good images.
This time we was given critique with the rejection! So we took the critique seriously, and applied again.
Rejected again, but now with only one critique point left.
Spend a couple months shooting with all the critique in mind!
And then we got accepted.
Oh and thanks AngelaWaye :)
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Well, i applied.
I don't have any lifestyle stuff, so probably won't get in, but recently applied to two other agencies I wasn't expecting to get into, but did.
They aren't micro, and was really surprised to be accepted by the one in particular.
I'm generally avoiding micro - I still don't really put stocksy in with other ms agencies in my head.
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Thats good for you Chris :-)
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Well, I didn't get accepted, but wasn't really expecting to.
Still, I have the ball rolling at my three other agencies.
I am still considering trying to find a fourth, but want another mid/macro, rather than micro.
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Well, i applied.
I don't have any lifestyle stuff, so probably won't get in, but recently applied to two other agencies I wasn't expecting to get into, but did.
They aren't micro, and was really surprised to be accepted by the one in particular.
I'm generally avoiding micro - I still don't really put stocksy in with other ms agencies in my head.
is Cavan one of them? They are taking on so many "new" stock photographers lately.
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Yes they do, at the beginning the apply process I would say it was pretty much harder
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Hi I've been reading across all these pages in this thread and got a bittersweet flavor about facing the challenge to apply to Stocksy. I've been working hard for micros and now have a 50k portfolio with a worst income than 5-6 years ago with less than the half size portfolio. I reach a point where depresses me to dedicate so much time producing images for micros that will never again return benefits proportional to the energy and all the illusion that I have invested in creating them.
I apply for Cavan at the very beginning where they test me along 3-4 weeks , and finally got accepted, nothing similar at today's day accepting process based in what I did read here. I feel a medium level photographer but with energy to work and the ability of keep growing my skills, but scares so much being rejected by Stocksy, it would be like a huge kick right there !
Since here there are contributors that have been accepted in Stocksy I would like them to upgrade if anything has change since the first conversations in this thread compared to today's days requirements or whatever info or feedback that could help me to get more probabilities to be unsuccessful with my test there.
I have some few images in Cavan and I should say that at the beginning of mi collaboration there I did hav good sales, but when the agency began to grow my 2 last submissions did not got any sales or maybe one. do you think this kind of imagery would be interesting for Stocksy or should be more risky? I link you to my portfolio in Cavan:
https://www.cavanimages.com/contributor/2530/gallery?p=1 (https://www.cavanimages.com/contributor/2530/gallery?p=1)
Thanks in advance for any replies
i think yes and no..they are good but they compete with present content in stocksy...i was rejected uploading mostly food photos and was rejected, but i think my content are up to the best i saw in stocksy about food and creativity, for me they want added something who is not in the collection....in addiction i think following some profile and seller that the level of there contribution is getting much lower in the last years...some big production are slowing down the processiong of creation of content....if they sold like hell why slow down the production? simply they probably are getting less money, stocksy is getting a bigger collection and like micro and alamy the bigger the collection the ess you earn.
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finally I will not apply more to stocksy this year and probably never. I have nothing new to offer nor a lot of desire to take pictures. They always rejected me and the numbers of people i know in saids that they are suffering like the whole market. For me it is sad to see that I gain more with microstock (shutterstock, fotolia, eyeem ...) than with macrostock (w61, offset, adobe premium) and the main reason is that to sell in macrostock you have to try harder with premium models, style and sites and and I no longer have time or motivation to spend a lot of money in shottings.
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i think yes and no..they are good but they compete with present content in stocksy...i was rejected uploading mostly food photos and was rejected, but i think my content are up to the best i saw in stocksy about food and creativity, for me they want added something who is not in the collection....in addiction i think following some profile and seller that the level of there contribution is getting much lower in the last years...some big production are slowing down the processiong of creation of content....if they sold like hell why slow down the production? simply they probably are getting less money, stocksy is getting a bigger collection and like micro and alamy the bigger the collection the ess you earn.
Jonbull are you talking about Cavan or Stocksy? I minsunderstand some phrases of your answer due I'm not sure who are you talking about
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finally I will not apply more to stocksy this year and probably never. I have nothing new to offer nor a lot of desire to take pictures. They always rejected me and the numbers of people i know in saids that they are suffering like the whole market. For me it is sad to see that I gain more with microstock (shutterstock, fotolia, eyeem ...) than with macrostock (w61, offset, adobe premium) and the main reason is that to sell in macrostock you have to try harder with premium models, style and sites and and I no longer have time or motivation to spend a lot of money in shottings.
MxR I'm exactly 100% at the same point as you. Somehow the right question that I should have ask here should have been: "With 100 images in Cavanimages and same/similar amount portfolio in Stocksy does sales revenue are pretty much superior in any of both?"
Because if all the effort to Apply, and squeeze my mind finding new amazing ideas to offer to these medium stock agencies does not worth... plus the bigger production costs paying better models and renting indoor locations, stylist... and all so that.... at the end of the story.... are you getting the profit that the extra effort worths?
I perfectly understand you when you talk about dont having the desite of taking pictures or offering new breathtaking images if your returns would not be according to your invested energy. Somehow the age of the photographer has something to be here, when you are young or at lears young in this industry and want to eat the world you squeeze your brain to get that challenges, when you are 3 decades in the industry, these challenges sometimes are a heavy load that you can put aside of your preferences line. I really invested my best in my first contributions to Cavan, when it was not so crowded and they were a challenge, after reaching these targets and do not having the expected reward, there is a lack of energy to focus again in this sort of challenges. You can do it, but it has to worth the extra effort to do not focus again in micros as a shelter.....
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i think yes and no..they are good but they compete with present content in stocksy...i was rejected uploading mostly food photos and was rejected, but i think my content are up to the best i saw in stocksy about food and creativity, for me they want added something who is not in the collection....in addiction i think following some profile and seller that the level of there contribution is getting much lower in the last years...some big production are slowing down the processiong of creation of content....if they sold like hell why slow down the production? simply they probably are getting less money, stocksy is getting a bigger collection and like micro and alamy the bigger the collection the ess you earn.
Jonbull are you talking about Cavan or Stocksy? I minsunderstand some phrases of your answer due I'm not sure who are you talking about
stocksy.
i m food documentary travel and sometimes should lifestyle but usr began...i had a strong library of creative images, who has nothing less than their database quality but got rejected, t this point i will upload eery thin in micro, i won't bother anymore to find any rm agency o...my main photo are assignment, selling print in gallery, cperonal project...stock is the way to finance other project...at this point i only will upload my backlog and produce minimal content. as far as lifestyle living in western hemisphere is a problem, we can't compete with cost of production of russian seres, who have thousand of people ready to be photographed for penny or zero dollar, just tfp, personally i find the model in russia a bit boring for stock , without that looks who sells great in my opinion, but they are a lot and producing is a breeze, studio model cost nothing. for me jacob lund is a very good quality of photos fro stock, is model are great, but he produce in south africa and i'm sure eery shoot is more than some thousand dollar, those are model of big agency in cape town, and they cost a lot of money, plus permission and all...is it worth nowadays to spend so much?
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in cavan i have only 15 images but sold nothing, the problem is that i m scared to upload there good images because i have the impression that they sell mostly lifestyle.
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...
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in cavan i have only 15 images but sold nothing, the problem is that i m scared to upload there good images because i have the impression that they sell mostly lifestyle.
Do you want to share your Cavan Portfolio with us?
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in cavan i have only 15 images but sold nothing, the problem is that i m scared to upload there good images because i have the impression that they sell mostly lifestyle.
Do you want to share your Cavan Portfolio with us?
unfortunately i use my real name nd could be easily found y micro stock and i don't want mix both.
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i can share some files of my stocksy application...files i would like to upload to cavan images but still don't know. i see them sell lifestyle stocksy style but travel and food not a lot.
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Thanks
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Actually I have not received yet any feedback about the link to my Cavan portfolio. As I told before I want to have some feedback about contributors with more experience or even those that have been accepted in Stocksy, to know your opinion about if these kind of imagery will be interesting for Stocksy or I need to create more risky ones. I understand these lifestyle samples are not in the edge of any sort of risky concepts, but wanted to have some feedback starting from this samples as a starting point.
i told you...they re good for cavan images or westend in my opinion but nt for stocksy...stocksy right now dd only something that is not in the collection, they protect the contributor they have right now.
but in my opinion is not a big loss. ..if stocksy sold like hot cakes people like ja lund would have uploaded only 5 600 files or 20000...ask this to yourself. right now everywhere is over saturated...stocksy has a lot of files already and adding everyday. i love some contributor , take inspiration and checking their folio i saw aa strong slowdown on their uploading...
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can i ask you with portfolio how much you earned in cavan? more or less than 5000 dollar?
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I wouldn't be sure since it was some years ago that I submitted there at only got success for the first months.
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I wouldn't be sure since it was some years ago that I submitted there at only got success for the first months, but i would say that for sure less. Actually from the last 2 shootings got 1 or no sales, don't remember. You know how hard and expensive is to do each lifestyle shooting, in my country is not like in eastern Europe as you mentioned, here models are not so easy to find for few cents, you have to pay if you want quality ones.
know and the same for me...i went to eastern europe for magazine but didn't do any lifestyle in the first 5 6 trip then i did in the last two trip and i shoot probably 8 9 days out of 15 , i use both model from agency friends, people stopped in the street and every people was like having trained in front of the camera since they were born natural, but in eastern europe is pretty difficult to find that western looks that sell, cue town is the place to go, medium price compared to big cities but again price are not cheap at all, i live at seaside also and rally it's impossible to find any girl part some agency with medium quality and super prices. but again lifestyle is still over covered in any field in my opinion...andeveryday there are thousand of people from russia and especially ukraine where minimum salary is kinda 150 dollar at the moment joining the company.
when i started i felt that working for my territory was cheaper and less important compared to micro and a worldwide exposure, in these days i find myself working much more for people and company near my territory, especially summer i work for rich tourist and earn much much more than any micro macro agency.
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I wouldn't be sure since it was some years ago that I submitted there at only got success for the first months, but i would say that for sure less. Actually from the last 2 shootings got 1 or no sales, don't remember. You know how hard and expensive is to do each lifestyle shooting, in my country is not like in eastern Europe as you mentioned, here models are not so easy to find for few cents, you have to pay if you want quality ones.
in addiction there is zero hate towards photo in eastern europe...i can walk in the street of moscow and stop 100 girl sk if they want a portrait 99 accept without hesitation...where i live if i walk with a camera in the beach people think am a pedhophile or a paparazzi..ahaha...that's why everybody seems joining the micro industry in russia.....everybody has at least 5 10 girlfriend model like who love to pose, spend hours in front of the mirror, even when they are young their mother teach them very hard how to pose even for a simple snapshots at sea.
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Well there are as always easier and more difficult scenarios for our work, I love to see mor positive and get the best of what I have nearby. Actually where are you from?
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Well there are as always easier and more difficult scenarios for our work, I love to see mor positive and get the best of what I have nearby. Actually where are you from?
italy...sure.
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Wow Italy, is an opportunity land for Italian cuisine and all the amazing architecture heritage, I would be happy to live in a place like yours. Cheers
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I applied again last month. Today is exactly one month since the email that said my application is complete. Still no news from them.
Below is a screenshot of my application pages. Constructive feedback would be appreciated.
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I applied again last month. Today is exactly one month since the email that said my application is complete. Still no news from them.
Below is a screenshot of my application pages. Constructive feedback would be appreciated.
the diversity angle is good. they have a couple of guys shooting like you, I can't speak for Stocksy as to what they are looking for, but all the best!
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Thanks Gillian
Anyway, I thought the review process is shorter after reading a few comments here. Guess I need to be more patience.
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I applied again last month. Today is exactly one month since the email that said my application is complete. Still no news from them.
Below is a screenshot of my application pages. Constructive feedback would be appreciated.
the diversity angle is good. they have a couple of guys shooting like you, I can't speak for Stocksy as to what they are looking for, but all the best!
They are very diverse and candid photos. Today stocksy is very exquisite, but at another time you would be accepted without problems
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The email just in. It's a big no. Bu at least this time they gave explanation. They felt my images are a little much like a stock. They also say I should improve my white balance and post process. They want most accurate possible skin tone. Fair enough I guess, cause I'm color blind. I should buy those grey card soon.
Good luck to anyone here still wait for response.
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The email just in. It's a big no. Bu at least this time they gave explanation. They felt my images are a little much like a stock. They also say I should improve my white balance and post process. They want most accurate possible skin tone. Fair enough I guess, cause I'm color blind. I should buy those grey card soon.
Good luck to anyone here still wait for response.
sorry, Stocksy is very elitist and knows that the stability of his collaborators is to admit few people and photos.Sites slike Offset and deparatments such as premium adobe and infinite fotolia have lost their sales because they admit many photos and contributors.
Anyway, stocksy is not what it used to be either.
...im blind color too
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They felt my images are a little much like a stock.
At least you are stock mainstream I guess. Well, that answer was less frustrating that those "no aesthetic (or commercial) appeal' rejections I got in Adobestock!
:D :D :D
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Today has been declined from stocksy. Here you are my photos in application. Weird for me
Don't know how to put Image here so here you are the link to my flickr photo
https://flickr.com/photos/zhenikeyev/49031813972
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Today has been declined from stocksy. Here you are my photos in application. Weird for me
Don't know how to put Image here so here you are the link to my flickr photo
https://flickr.com/photos/zhenikeyev/49031813972
Did they explain why exactly?
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No. Just "Your photos do not fit". It's just subjective judgement. So you can't suggest what will they like today and tomorrow
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Hey Novic,
I think the team is very objective and professional at Stocksy. We got rejected 3/4 times ourself and I remember clearly the first time I was like " Ah they don't know better". The other rejections was supplemented with explanations ( I guess we was close ) And I can honestly say that that process made me look with fresh eyes on our production and push more towards what we wanted Stocksy to be for our portfolio.
Just keep grinding and push yourself to produce better products! Either go the commercial way or the artsy way - And commit to it.
Its worth the effort for sure!
Best of luck Novic.
Stefan
Flamingo Images
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Thank you Stefan! I mean it's quite hard to understand what do they need. Some guy was rejected with lifestyle, I was rejected with commerical and art. While most of my photos are winners of interntational contests and wide exhibited. Will try to show them lifestyle. Some people say just show them your best, other people say just show them 1-2 series and not single photos. Someone says you need to have website, otherones - no you don't need, just insta. Some accepted authors have simple photos of their family, another ones were rejected with almost the same style of family photos.
For example, Offset wants authentic lifestyle photos especially family photos. And you know what to choose for application.
Will think)
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Hi, Sean,
can you tell me if Stocksy also accepts"cinemagraph" video loops ? And if so, where can I find the technicals specs
Thank you and happy holidays to all of you :)
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I did a search on the term and some videos did come up, so I'd say yes. They're pretty cool.
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Thank for the answer