Author Topic: Microstock photographers and Stocksy application (Read 32203 times)

hjalmeida · « **Reply #25 on:** October 15, 2014, 08:46 »

Quote from: cobalt on October 15, 2014, 06:47

And the more artists join stocksy, the more the other agencies will have to treat people well, otherwise all the best work will "go stocksy".

Nice thought

... for me will work like that (if/when they accept me), I have an urgent need to release the other photographer inside me and a place to sell and be proud to belong.

cobalt · « **Reply #26 on:** October 15, 2014, 09:19 »

Well for me that is one of the biggest reasons to support an artist run coop. To show the stock world, that the modern artists are entrepreneurs who can take matters into their own hand if necessary.

I have often heard that "artists can´t do business", they don´t understand money and thus it is very easy to exploit them.

Of course some people really are not that good with business and need a "manager" who can handle the business side for them. And that of course needs to be paid.

But I think the online stock community in particular, is different. Many have online businesses or business experience anyway, they are not scared of money or working with customers.

So for stocksy to be an example of a successfully run and expanding business community as well as an art community is something I really appreciate.

It can really bring a lot of balance to the industry and of course the more artists can find a home there, the more powerful it will be.

But I understand that accepting artists must go hand in hand with growth, you have to be able to feed them if you take them in.

Deyan Georgiev Photography · « **Reply #27 on:** October 15, 2014, 09:38 »

Quote from: cobalt on October 15, 2014, 09:19

But I understand that accepting artists must go hand in hand with growth, you have to be able to feed them if you take them in.

I agree, but for sure there are a lot of lost sales, because in Stocksy have shortage of certain topics and images and this can be done from certain authors which have to be in Stocksy. I could be one of them

jen · « **Reply #28 on:** October 15, 2014, 09:54 »

Quote from: Nic99 on October 15, 2014, 04:04

Quote from: Magdalena on October 15, 2014, 02:22
colors, mood…
done in post with a filter. you can take any photo and make it look like that

haha

So that's my blog post and it's just 30 random images I personally liked out of the thousands of new images from ~500 new members. I don't expect everyone to have the same tastes as me. But to say that you can take any image and slap a filter on it to make it look like that - that it has nothing to do with styling, posing, mood, lighting, composition... well that's just funny. To each their own, I guess.

Photominer · « **Reply #29 on:** October 15, 2014, 10:37 »

I didn't get in either, but I kind of expected that. I learned to shoot in a different style than what they're after. So there's room for me to change and advance as a photographer if I want to apply again down the road.

hjalmeida · « **Reply #30 on:** October 15, 2014, 10:47 »

Quote from: jen on October 15, 2014, 09:54

... the thousands of new images from ~500 new members.

Do you know that the 500 photographers for 2014 have already been invited?

Bad news for me

Sean Locke Photography · « **Reply #31 on:** October 15, 2014, 10:54 »

There's still room to select from applications already in the queue.

Deyan Georgiev Photography · « **Reply #32 on:** October 15, 2014, 10:55 »

Quote from: Sean Locke Photography on October 15, 2014, 10:54

There's still room to select from applications already in the queue.

hjalmeida · « **Reply #33 on:** October 15, 2014, 10:57 »

Quote from: Sean Locke Photography on October 15, 2014, 10:54

There's still room to select from applications already in the queue.

You give me my live back

Joshwood · « **Reply #34 on:** October 15, 2014, 12:15 »

Quote from: Sean Locke Photography on October 15, 2014, 10:54

There's still room to select from applications already in the queue.

Yes, thank you Sean. I think that information is welcomed by many people who haven't heard back yet about their 2014 application.

Of course, no guarantees, but at least all hope is not lost for those who wait.

jen · « **Reply #35 on:** October 15, 2014, 12:49 »

Quote from: hjalmeida on October 15, 2014, 10:47

Quote from: jen on October 15, 2014, 09:54
... the thousands of new images from ~500 new members.

Do you know that the 500 photographers for 2014 have already been invited?

Bad news for me

No, I don't know how many spots are left. That's what the tilde was for ("approximately" 500)

Joshwood · « **Reply #36 on:** October 15, 2014, 14:31 »

Quote from: jen on October 15, 2014, 12:49

Quote from: hjalmeida on October 15, 2014, 10:47
Quote from: jen on October 15, 2014, 09:54
... the thousands of new images from ~500 new members.

Do you know that the 500 photographers for 2014 have already been invited?

Bad news for me
No, I don't know how many spots are left. That's what the tilde was for ("approximately" 500)

There are still only 580 photographers in total listed in Stocksy's Artist Directory, an increase of 6 from a week ago. I can't find any one who has submitted photos to the site that aren't listed in the directory.

Mark Windom Photography · « **Reply #37 on:** October 15, 2014, 14:42 »

^ You aren't listed in the Artist Directory until you have uploaded and had at least one image accepted. I would imagine there are a number of recently accepted contributors who haven't yet gotten around to getting images approved for the catalog.

Joshwood · « **Reply #38 on:** October 15, 2014, 14:53 »

Ah... good point. That explains a lot.

Thanks for the info.

jefftakespics2 · « **Reply #39 on:** October 15, 2014, 15:08 »

I believe you are not listed in the directory until you make a sale which makes you an official co-op member.

stocked · « **Reply #40 on:** October 15, 2014, 15:23 »

Quote from: jrwasserman on October 15, 2014, 15:08

I believe you are not listed in the directory until you make a sale which makes you an official co-op member.

exactly! and if I remember right it costs you a Dollar well worth it though!

Elenathewise · « **Reply #41 on:** October 15, 2014, 16:08 »

I think each photographer has unique style that's most dear to them. If you're a pro stock photographer you probably can shoot any style, but you will still love only certain style or subject most, and that will show in the final quality of your images. Knowing what you love and knowing what are the most appropriate places to sell your work is a formula for success. If you don't get excited by Stocksy's style, not on the real "omg, this is me!" level, why waste time applying? Some other venues will bring you much more satisfaction and money...

MichaelJayFoto · « **Reply #42 on:** October 16, 2014, 04:12 »

Quote from: stocked on October 15, 2014, 15:23

exactly! and if I remember right it costs you a Dollar well worth it though!

Nope. It does not "cost" you a dollar. You buy a share in the co-op for a dollar. So technically, if you'd ever leave the co-op, you should get that money back.

dirkr · « **Reply #43 on:** October 16, 2014, 04:47 »

Quote from: cobalt on October 15, 2014, 06:47

I am very sorry for those who didn´t get in and all those that are still waiting. I sincerly hope that stocksy grows their business by 10 000% so they can include many more artists. There are so many talented people in the community.

And the more artists join stocksy, the more the other agencies will have to treat people well, otherwise all the best work will "go stocksy".

I don't expect that to happen...

One of the reasons that allowed microstock to steal so much market share from traditional agencies was their open door approach - everybody could come and upload, no matter what level of experience, size of portfolio, specific style he/she had.

To really put pressure on the existing microstock agencies a competitor needs to be open to all of their contributors. Maybe with a Stocksy-like model (CoOp, image exclusive, fair pay...), but less restrictive in their acceptance criteria.

That being said, I believe Stocksy is doing the right thing for their commercial success (and the success of their contributors) by limiting the number of contributors and concentrating on a specific style.

But they are not the white knight saving us all from the evils of the microstock business...

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #44 on:** October 16, 2014, 07:05 »

Quote from: cobalt on October 15, 2014, 06:47

And the more artists join stocksy, the more the other agencies will have to treat people well, otherwise all the best work will "go stocksy".

Isn't Stocksy just a totally different market? Microstock was always meant to be for the rather ordinary useful images, not for some kind of artistic work.

Looking at the work in the link Sean posted, I'm very impressed. It's the sort of stuff I hoped to get into before microstock came along and channeled me into becoming a hack. I doubt if much of the Stocksy work would be worth creating if it were selling at 38c a pop on IS, it lacks the sort of generic appeal that will generate a good volume of sales. In other words, it's going back to the old idea of trad agencies selling high quality at high prices... perhaps it is the reincarnation of the still-born iStockpro, which was where iStock was meant to lead.

cobalt · « **Reply #45 on:** October 16, 2014, 08:16 »

I was just referring to the stocksy origin as described by Thomas Hawk in his famous letter to Getty.

http://thomashawk.com/2013/03/why-i-quit-getty-images-and-why-im-moving-my-stock-photography-sales-to-stocksy.html

stocksy as a place run by artist to represent themselves and be free of the people that try to take advantage of you.

With 50% and 100% on extended licenses and being a coop, it is unique.

Of course they have great editors and they encourage you to do your best.

The content they have is very desired by others, so I do believe they can help to bring balance.

stocked · « **Reply #46 on:** October 16, 2014, 10:35 »

Quote from: MichaelJayFoto on October 16, 2014, 04:12

Quote from: stocked on October 15, 2014, 15:23
exactly! and if I remember right it costs you a Dollar well worth it though!

Nope. It does not "cost" you a dollar. You buy a share in the co-op for a dollar. So technically, if you'd ever leave the co-op, you should get that money back.

okay okay wrong word but that was I meant.

stocked · « **Reply #47 on:** October 16, 2014, 10:37 »

Quote from: dirkr on October 16, 2014, 04:47

Quote from: cobalt on October 15, 2014, 06:47
I am very sorry for those who didn´t get in and all those that are still waiting. I sincerly hope that stocksy grows their business by 10 000% so they can include many more artists. There are so many talented people in the community.

And the more artists join stocksy, the more the other agencies will have to treat people well, otherwise all the best work will "go stocksy".

I don't expect that to happen...

One of the reasons that allowed microstock to steal so much market share from traditional agencies was their open door approach - everybody could come and upload, no matter what level of experience, size of portfolio, specific style he/she had.

To really put pressure on the existing microstock agencies a competitor needs to be open to all of their contributors. Maybe with a Stocksy-like model (CoOp, image exclusive, fair pay...), but less restrictive in their acceptance criteria.

That being said, I believe Stocksy is doing the right thing for their commercial success (and the success of their contributors) by limiting the number of contributors and concentrating on a specific style.

But they are not the white knight saving us all from the evils of the microstock business...

You missed the point that iStock 'stole' the 20% share from Getty.

jen · « **Reply #48 on:** October 16, 2014, 11:26 »

Quote from: Mark Windom Photography on October 15, 2014, 14:42

^ You aren't listed in the Artist Directory until you have uploaded and had at least one image accepted. I would imagine there are a number of recently accepted contributors who haven't yet gotten around to getting images approved for the catalog.

Yes, when I was browsing the "hello new members" thread in the contributor forums, there were many people who introduced themselves but had empty portfolios. I really have absolutely no idea how many members we actually have.

sketchyt · « **Reply #49 on:** October 16, 2014, 17:39 »

Empty portfolios? How long does it take to get your images accepted into the catalog?

MicrostockGroup Sponsors

Author Topic: Microstock photographers and Stocksy application (Read 32203 times)

hjalmeida

cobalt

Deyan Georgiev Photography

jen

Photominer

hjalmeida

Sean Locke Photography

Deyan Georgiev Photography

hjalmeida

Joshwood

jen

Joshwood

Mark Windom Photography

Joshwood

jefftakespics2

stocked

Elenathewise

MichaelJayFoto

dirkr

BaldricksTrousers

cobalt

stocked

stocked

jen

sketchyt

Related Topics

Sponsors

Microstock Poll Results

Sponsors