The Truth About Stock Photography: Conclusions After 3 Years
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- čas přidán 4. 06. 2024
- After three years of stock photography here is the truth that I've learned about making money, earnings amounts, best agencies, the real investment, images that sell, acceptances and rejections and my biggest objection to everything. No holding back, here are the pros and cons and my conclusions about whether or not it’s worth it.
Table of Contents for this Video:
Investment - 00:48
Acceptances/Rejections - 02:16
Agencies - 04:03
Money - 06:21
My Biggest Objection - 09:16
Ideas & Tips - 13:07
Is it Worth It? - 15:35
Instagram & Upcoming Workshop! - 16:42
Don't forget to see your Instagram videos images at the end of this video… they are fantastic!! amazing! I love featuring your work. Tag your photos on Instagram #heyrachellerch. I'll be showing images every Sunday.
Coming up hopefully in June, a new workshop - two days in Niagara Falls! More to come!
This week’s Instagram Images (Congratulations on an incredible job!):
Jarle Løv-Kjeldås: / jlkfoto
Daniela: / lelainred
James Carro Snr: / james.carro
Anna Ojala Photography: / anna.ojala
Gilbert Hammond: / gilberttelevision
Sue Berry: / sueberry57
Nurzubesuch: / mein_deutschland_foto
William Henry Harris: / charlie_the_artist2007
Rommel De Castro: / spinnermel_decastro
Jaycohen13: / jaycohen13
My Stock & Landscape Photography Gear:
Lowepro Protactic 450 AW: geni.us/s0sJ
Sony a99ii: geni.us/hFKTAeF
Sony Zeiss 16-35 f2.8 SSM ZA: geni.us/ChypoL
Sony Zeiss 24-70 f2.8 SSM ZA: geni.us/OGDxAgP
Sony 70-300 f4.5-5.6 SSM G: geni.us/o5apBJ
Minolta 55mm Macro: geni.us/waAP
NiSi V5 Pro square filter system: geni.us/oJUEfA
NiSi 100x150mm 3 stop GND filter: geni.us/Wjuw
NiSi 100x100 7 stop ND filter: geni.us/lEHP3A
NiSi Circular UV Filter: geni.us/5wLa5s
NiSi Circular Polarizing Filter (included in filter kit)
Lowepro S&F Filter Pouch 100: geni.us/PdmsRjy
Manfrotto 190go! tripod: geni.us/TROWFqY
Lenspen Hurricane Blower
Lenspen - lens cleaner with dust removal brush
Video Gear:
Canon M50 - vlogging camera: geni.us/m94fw
Zhiyun Crane v2 - gimbal: geni.us/Nabn5Dh
Pergear gimbal tripod: geni.us/0oVr
Rode VideoMicro with wind muff: geni.us/X0Lg
Camera and Video gear links are Amazon Affiliate links. If you make a purchase using any link, I receive a small percentage.
Music:
Indie A Go Go 1 by David Björk
Indie A Go Go 2 by David Björk
Indie A Go Go 4 by David Björk
#stockphotography #photography
Believe it or not but she has saved me a 3 years of useless effort. :) Thank you Rachel for saving me the precious time.
:D You're welcome! Glad you found the video helpful!
I’ve heard very big CZcamsrs state that a single picture made them $13K in stock photography; however at the end of the day they admit that was 10 or 13 years ago when this business model was not so saturated.
Today there’s too much offer for the demand. You get paid peanuts as a seller because I can go online right now and buy stock pictures for $1 or $2.
Absolutely ismy, Rachel states it feel's great when you see you work used by these big companies that value your work.
Realy! they valued your work so much they sent you 25 cents, this is instead of hiring you as a photographer to do a shoot for them. I would say they have attributed a value of stuff all to your work. So just like ismy alak, thank you Rachel for laying it out for us. I'll just go and shoot my back yard cause I'll get paid the same :).
This is a fair comment. I agree that the value, the payment, that they give you is awful. But if you’re looking for feedback on whether your images are good... having a company use them means more than your mom saying they’re good because she has to. 😂 I’m sure there are many stock images taken in backyards! 👍
Me too! I was thinking to buy a DSLR . But not anymore!
That's the same reason I wont do it. These companies are robbing photographers. 33 cents for an image that cost the photographer a flight around the world, hiking 20 miles, having a good eye, knowing how to edit, and owning ten thousand dollars worth of gear. Good photos should sell for hundreds of dollars each.
I think most photographers overvalue their images. They feel special to the photographer but really there isn't much skill required to take stock photos. You're overthinking it
@@heavyglassglass it very much takes skill and an eye for composition, lighting, etc. . And color grading talent. Just to name a few
@@HollywoodConnection-JAST literally, being a good photographer takes long time to learn everything and master it
@@heavyglassglass fuck you dude, it takes a lot of effort. you know fucking nothing and are ignorant as fuck.
@@zacharydavis1137 oOOooOOoooo fuck meeeee from big Sackary struggling to sell his ppppprecious pppppictures that are sooooo hard to take. It takes sooooo much skiIiIiIillllll
I have made a total of probably $600 in the period of few years and that is when I realized that is not worth it. Photography is my passion and my hobby I want to keep it that way. If I want to make money, I will replace a ceiling fan or a light in your kitchen and make alot more money in just hours. Thank you for the video and the experience you are sharing with us. 👍
Thank you for your honesty! I haven’t uploaded to my stock account for years because the pay was so depressing. Then I would hear other photographers talk about making money on it so I’m happy to have come across your video because I was thinking of starting up again. You just saved my HOURS of work! I wish other photographers would be more open about the time and work it takes to make that 33 cents.
I'm an retired photography and have been through the mill when it comes to the photography business. I really appreciate your very honest evaluation of the stock photography business. I feel you hit the nail on the head in your statement that agencies are "stealing" images from photographers. Clearly, time and talent are not the issue as related to images generating income is concerned. Clearly good quality images are highly desirable in advertising, promotion, packaging and other commercial applications. Good images sell products or promote ideas and those images clearly do have tremendous value to those who buy and use them. From that point of view photographers are being ripped off. However, the trade off comes from having a legimate market which allows beginning photographers to get critical feedback on their work while also building a portfolio of commerically saleable images. The portfolio will become the photographers best sales tool when soliciting new clients, espeically for commercial accounts in the manufacturing or advertising segments of the market. Getting hired to be an account photographer for a specific assignment is no easy task. The portfolio is the single most important part of getting such jobs espeically if it demonstrates no only technical skill but also the ability to work out creative ideas. In some ways stock photography provides a valid reason to pursue, what might be called self assignments. Even when images sold to stock garner very small commissions they still have enormous value as providing an incentive to go out and shoot. Looking back at my career I wish now that I had sold more images as stock. I was a generalist and so covered a wide range of photographic catagories. In hindsight I might have used stock agencies to build a reputation for sepecific kinds of images and so have been able to focus (pun intended) on specialized areas, ie, food, architecture, landscape, executive portraits, glamour etc. I can see stock agencies as a value resource for any photographer who wants to build a portfolio around any specfic photography niche.
This is such an excellent comment... thank you for this. The learning and growth potential when pursuing this business is huge. Your point about a portfolio is extremely valid. I’ve also found that now that I’m in business for myself in other capacities I have my own library of images at my disposal for use. 👍
Well said. And to add to that, I know a few photographers in the LA area that use agencies to sell their images (mostly celebrity and high profile people) to publications around the world and some get paid thousands and thousands of dollars for one single image. Exclusive licensing even more. The agencies don't fool around.
They dont sell them to stock companies, that's kiddie stuff.
THANK YOU for being one of the rare youtubers who does the description with conviction. Not a beat skipped; you included time stamps, product links and music credits. Solid A+
Hey thanks!! I really appreciate that!
How beautiful and honest ! Thank Rachel for pointing out everything so clear.
TLDR: You'll make more money making a CZcams video about stock photography.
yeah if you lost 3 years using them
Blessings to you Angel!… You just Nailed it!
Rachel, this is extremely valuable information. Thank you for sharing it.
I spent most of my life trying to glean a living from photography, and now - in retirement, looking back over my life - I regret having done so. I would have been far better off to choose a field with a real paycheque attached to it, and kept photography as a hobby. And that would be my advice to anyone younger than I, and wondering what to do with their life. Look at the good paying professions, choose one that you don't totally hate, and do that.
My sister was an artist at heart; but she was also smart as a whip, and extremely practical. So instead of studying art, she studied medicine, graduated near the top of her class, became a doctor - and that afforded her the income to take classes from the very best artists in the field, and buy the very best paints and brushes and canvas. She became well known, and was represented by a few galleries. When I compare her approach to my own, in truth, she was far more successful than I.
You can still be an artist, using photography as the tool of expression. Just don't try to monetize it. >Charlie
I'm glad you're sharing your experience with us Charlie... it's so good to have information from people who have "been there done that" before we make decisions. Thank you!
Excellent advice.
that's a very honest story and thanks for your advise. I hope at least you loved your job so it hasn't felt like a job :)
I’ve been a pro photographer for 40 years. Never did a wedding, stock, or senior. Made $100k-$200k every year. I also did design work and billed $1,000,000/yr those years. YOU CAN MAKE MONEY IN ART AND PHOTO.
Well, Captain, perhaps you'd share your methods with us. Believe me, I'm interested. On my end, I ran my own portrait studio in a mall for 5 years. I've done hundreds of weddings, and many thousands of portraits. I've won my share of awards. And I've never made even 20% of the numbers you mention, nor do I know any other pro photographers who ever did. So please, share your story.
You nailed it, Rachel. It is so refreshing to hear such a frank and detailed appraisal of stock photography, as seen from our end of the camera, delivered with so much balance and open-mindedness. The stock agencies' loss is our gain.
Thanks Allan!! I really appreciate that!
The money in photography is in commissioned work such as weddings, corporate, etc.
You are correct, unfortunately those industries are also suffering. Lots of people love photography, fewer people value photography.
@@stopandthinkaboutit8636 yes, its a relatively easy job and fewer people get married and make it a big hutspa because its been recognized by more and more as just something vane or something you have to do to legalize your relationship... which by the way isnt true. Which is why people just register marriage without any ceremonies and go on with their lives.
Weddings are just arbitrary ceremonial cost to feed money to the church and government. A ransom for feeling you did something "the correct way". And it makes it feel less and less correct and more and more cynical and corrupt to many young couples.
Hello Rachel. Watching this video gives me the distinct impression that you're sad to let stock photography go, at least for a while. And I can clearly see that your decision is a sound economic one. The fact that you've clearly moved on to more lucrative and satisfying challenges is for us all to embrace and to congratulate. Well done! Can I take this opportunity to thank you for such an honest and frank critique of stock photography. Keep smiling. You're a star.
Thank you so much Daniel!! That means a lot to me. It’s true that I’m sad to let it go. I really enjoyed it.
Hello Rachel, I just found your channel and I've had the pleasure of watching a few of your videos. I really appreciate your willingness to share such vital information about the stock photography industry. I wish you the very best on all of your future endeavors... Be well and stay encouraged!
Thanks Jacob!! I really appreciate that! And nice to meet you!
This is the first video I have watched and its really insightful and beautiful. Subbed, you deserve more subscribers.
Aw thank you so much!!
Thanks you, Rachel! You’ve answered a lot of my questions about the ins and outs of stock photography.
That's great! I'm so glad!
Thanks Rachel, I'm more determined to NOT get on the bandwagon of stock photography no matter how rewarding it can be. I get more more satisfaction when I give a print to someone and see their eyes glowing. It make me more humble and appreciative of my craft and vision.
That’s an awesome feeling Bernard and I totally understand. Seeing people’s emotional reaction to your work is more than satisfying... it’s truly wonderful.
I'm treating my stock shots as a completely discipline to anything that I would want to put on a wall. It helps me not get too precious about the shots, but makes me go out and shoot.
Cool!
Wow!! I did not know so much effort is put for creating these images. I will remember this next time I search google images.
I am in stock photography...believe me She´s absolutely right!..I agree 200%..excellent ans very well explained.
Thank you, Rachel, for all your genuine, helpful comments and advice.
A great message. Don't sell your soul for pennies.
Thank you so much for your help, advice and honesty. 👍🏼. Excellent vlog!
Thanks Irene! So glad you liked it!
Thank you Rachel for a very open and candid conversation about your experiences. Stock video is also in the same category. Companies selling your videos are paying out minimal commissions. Thank you for this video.
Thank you for this video!
Everything is clear and short, and on topic!
Very valuable information ℹ️
Agree completely with your assessment Rachel - thanks for sharing. I have done some stock for about 18 months and I can't say that I've poured my heart & soul into it by any means, but I have made sales. I do agree that the few rejections here and there really make you assess your skills, or at least the amount of attention you pay to creating your images. That is a valuable lesson in discipline. But as a source of income the balance is severely flawed. We invest thousands of dollars in gear and equipment, we spend hours on making great images, we invest ourselves in terms of not only time and energy, but the learning and perfecting the craft, the passion, the dedication, the late nights at the computer editing, uploading, keywording...ughhh! And then you get paid 25 or 30 cents for an image. It's crazy! So if income is what people are after, then I would suggest look for other ways of monetizing your creations because stock is taking advantage of photographers in a massive way. The only people really making money from stock photography is stock photography companies.
I have to agree Kevin. Wholeheartedly!
Marvelous: clear, truthful and to the point. Many thanks!
Thanks Warren!
Thanks for sharing this, Rachel! I've found that doing product photography for specific businesses works best for me. Selling photos is awesome because it's just pure profit for the time invested.
I think a lot of us who did stock photography came to this same conclusion. I do it for the fun, and..it's somehow less rewarding hearing someone say that you made a beautiful photo then someone who will actually pull his wallet and pay for it, even if it's only 33 cents. Thank you Rachel for putting my thoughts into words!
Å
How can it be "rewarding" to get ripped off?
I am doing stock photography for 2 years and its really worth in terms of learning and exploring new ideas. It gives you confidence and courage for exploring more unique ideas and concepts to shoot and learn.
& what about the $$$ ?
A great truthful down to earth assessment of stock photography. Thanks for sharing your insights!!
Thanks Tim! I appreciate that. Glad you liked!
Thank you for your honesty Rachel, you’ve saved me a lot of time, energy, and heartache
Glad the video was helpful Emily!
Just found you!! Subbing!!
Wonderful! I have have a lot to learn. Thank you for sharing!
Also, to all the people that had featured photos in this video ... Absolutely fantastic!! Beautiful ... and the first one was breath taking!!
♥️🎞
Hey thanks so much!! So nice to meet you!
Hello Rachel, nice informative video ....
I do appreciate your honesty ... , and thank you
Thanks Libor!!
Love your honesty. Time is money and if your return is not enough then so be it. Great video, great advice.
Thanks Henry!
100% right!!! I feel the exact same like you. Each of one who is thinking of joining this, ask themselves if they join a business that give them $2 an hour and sometimes even much less.
After 10 years in the industry, I came to the exact conclusions like you. Like you, I love photographing and will continue doing that and will look for a better way to make some money with it.
Thanks for your great video.
Great vlog Rachel! Awesome insight into the stock photo world!
Thanks Garrick!
Rachel, you have been a candid and truthful vlogger with a positive outlook on life. You will be successful in anything you choose to tackle. Best wishes always.
Aw thank you very much!
The big companies don't care about our opinions because of the millions of photographers out there, there's always someone who will work for next to nothing. But the learning part you talked about is probably more valuable than the money part, isn't it. Thanks for the video!
I agree Ron!
I was thinking of giving my body of work to a stock photo company, but after hearing this, I don't think I will. Thanks Rachel. xx
This was so timely for me and incredibly helpful. Thank you 😘
Oh I’m so glad! You’re welcome!
Great vid Rachel: eloquently put and exactly how it is. When and if I get on Instagram then I'll look you up!
Thanks Paul! 😊
Yo fuck instagrams
Thank you. I couldn’t get past the rejections. Glad I didn’t persist. I think you were being very kind in your feelings about money earned. The money you’ve mentioned wouldn’t come close to compensating for a fraction of the camera gear used.
Thanks Joe... that's so true. Money-wise - it was not a great investment! LOL
Fantastic video! Many thanks for taking the time to make it, and for comprehensively and honestly revealing all the details!
Glad you liked it! Thank you!
This assessment is spot on with my assessment of stock photography. I have been doing it for 4 years and In the end, we are getting robbed. The winners are the end customer and the big stock agencies. Stock agencies make your hard work into a commodity. Actually most commodities make more (eg Coke). Sadly, it is actually getting worse by the year, because the rejection rate is so low now, they are getting flooded with bad images. That is why you have to constantly upload to remain relevant in the search. Back in the late 90s stock photographers used to make a ton of money, but you had to be good at what you do.
You are very amazing! Glad to see your YT Video.
Aw thank you!
Robbery is the right word. Thank you for posting.
I'm so glad you made this video, really appreciate the info, but MOST OF ALL the MESSAGE at the end. I am so happy you called it what it is and stood up and said enough is enough. Thank you for this.
Thank you!! I really appreciate this!
I have been debating about uploading pictures and you have just helped me make up my mind. Thank you ! :)
Thank you for the insights. After 54 years of photography, including stints as a "professional" photographer, I had thought of going the stock route with the hundreds of thousands of images I have accumulated (or millions), but now I know it is just not worth it. When you got to the money segment, I thought you were going to describe numbers 10 times higher. It is good to get a reality check regarding the stock business and have expectations set accordingly. Good video.
Glad you liked the video! It really is a tough market for stock photography these days.
But those photos will just sleep
Doing stock photography for the last 6 months I come to the same conclusions. Thanks for the honest video.
You're welcome!
What an honest review, it heartwarming to find someone that tells it as it is, thank you 🙏
thank you for this video! Great insight and what to expect!
When Shutterstock opened they destroyed the profits for photogs, there was a heated debate about that. But now that everyone can snap with automated cell phones, no film costs, no darkroom costs or skills...there's a glut of images and no one wants to pay what they cost to make, for a working photog.
True
I’d never do stock fotog - my work, my effort, someone else’s profit...
Thank you Rachel, this video provided information I have always been curious about.
Cool! I’m so glad! 😊👍
Thanks Rachel for sharing your experience, it helps a lot !
You are welcome! :)
Thanks for this! I am a newly retiree who is a web/graphic designer. I have been developing my camera skills recently while honing my post processing expertise in Adobe Lightroom, On1 and Luminar 3. Retiring is a potentially ominous thing, no more reliable income. Would love to develop my photography to at least bring in a modest income. Again my appreciation for your input here.
You’re welcome Steven! I can really appreciate your position. One nice thing about stock is that once the images are uploaded, it’s a completely passive income.
I was only ever innit for the money and the money was good in the years 2012- 2017 at SS. Paid for all my gear 3X over with stock income since 2012. Now it's no longer worth the effort. Far too many competitors. Far too many images for the number of customers. Everyone with a smartphone/camera is encouraged to upload to stock and submission review standards have deteriorated so much that even if you have good stuff, it will be buried under a mountain of lesser stuff and will never be seen... let alone sell! Now it's all crowdfunding and the only winner is the big corporation that organizes it......you're the slave labor! Do it for fun,kicks and pocket money but not for serious (dependable) income to pay your mortgage and put food on your family.
Agreed. The stock market is over saturated!
Cynical. Rather than be overwhelmed by competition, try harder. Don't give up so easy
@@jmourgos55 keep the hamsterwheel running.... Adobe will love it...
For the Creatives is a complete sell out and canibalism.
For the most part that is true. You can still stand out with good photography. However, SS is not my best earner currently. Since the onset of AI they are far too picky and reject for no good reason which discourages me from uploading regularly.
Why are you putting food on your family? ;)
Great video!!! Just when I want to get into stock images. Thank you! and the pics at end were great!
Thanks!! Glad it was helpful!!
I loved your honesty so much I had to subscribe! p.s. the images were beautiful, I would have had a very difficult time choosing between them all!
Thank you!! And it was SO difficult!! Even more so this week because there are so many more images! And so beautiful.
Thank you very much for these great insights!👍🏻
You’re welcome... thanks for watching!
Good video Rachel, and yes I agree, photographers are being robbed. After joining Shutterstock last year I spent some time on the contributor forums there and there was a lot of anger, especially from videographers who had invested a lot of time and money to make stock videos. Their videos were being sold for around 15 bucks and the contributors were earning peanuts in commission. Shutterstock makes a nice profit for not creating anything, apart from a website, but the people creating the content earn virtually nothing. The stock market is also oversaturated these days with millions of photos being uploaded every week. Yes, it does give your ego a little boost if someone actually pays money for your work (even if you do only get 25 cents per image) and yes, it does force you to hone your photography and post-processing skills, but as a way to make a passive income it is a complete waste of time for most people.
I have to agree with you Phil
Thanks for taking the time to offer your honest insight Rachel. You are a great communicator and your kindness shines. I wish you the best in your endeavors and may you continue to impact people with your guidance and genuine spirit.
Aw thank you very much Karlee. That is so lovely and encouraging. I really appreciate it I wish you the best too!!
Man, I am so happy for the end of this video!! Stock photography sites like these devalues the entire industry. Im glad your awesome photography is no longer being used for pennies on the dollar and hope you've found more lucrative, satisfying ways to make it. Great, honest video!
As a graphic designer i know how important it is to get the right photo for the design...i really didnt know they paid so less to the photographers
Stock photography would be much better if these big companies are not so greedy. Photographers deserve much more, at least 50% of the sale.
I agree that percentage of sale should be higher. 15% is not enough.
@@RachelLerch Alamy pay 50% for exclusive images, and 40% for non exclusive images.
So join Alamy.
A very good and comprehensive explanation of the gross imbalance between most
agencies and most photographers looking for a fair return for their time and skills.
Thank you so much for this post. A realty check from the hype of other videos on this topic.
Very valuable info. Thank you!
You’re welcome and thanks!!
Hi Rachel, I just came across this video. Great job at confirming what I've always felt since the 90s. I'm much older than you but can tell you that photo fees back in the day was between $2000 and $3000 per day. Now photographers are a dime a dozen and so undervalued that it almost doesn't pay being a photographer. Rates have come down dramatically but expenses have gone up dramatically. ROI for stock doesn't pay anymore. Great job and keep up the good work.
It’s sad but true. Thanks Evan
You are so honest. I will count your advice in my future stock photography uploads
Thanks! :)
Thank you for being 100% honest when it comes to Stock Photography. Great video with fantastic advice!
Thank you!! I’m so glad it’s helpful!
Thank you for your total honesty, yes I agree with you completely, photographers are being completely ripped of, love taking photos, and mine are not snaps as they say, I always think the image through. 0.33cents for an image that a company can use to make them heaps of money, is a total insult to the photographer.
Yeah, I agree. They get a lot from the image... the photographer should too.
Thanks for doing this, rabbit hole avoided :-)
😄👍
Well done Rachel. Lots of good information for stock photographers.
Thanks Maureen!
Thank you so much, Rachel! I just started stock a few month ago and sticking to very little income. So it is valuable for me to see, where it can go to. I also love the community, the learning possibilities and I am happy each time one item gets licenced. As you say, the learning is quick and satisfactory. So thanks again!
Hi. You should register with this website. You can earn great money, but everything depends on you. submit.shutterstock.com?rid=3890936 i wish you all the best!😊😊
@@angelablacksmith9653 Thank you, Angela :) I tried Shutterstock. But they not allways accept latin names for plants. I cant work with this, my customers are looking for rare species by surching the latin names. And then they changed their payment to only 15 % (10 Cents) per download for the first 100 a year. I am a small contributor. So having to hand in items several times to be rejected for using latin words and than getting 10 Cents per download is not what I am looking for ;)
You should show a few pics that was rejected, but later accepted.
Rachel's message is truly prescient. She posted this over a year ago. It was true then and it's astounding in it's accuracy today.
With Shutterstock now paying 10 cents a picture photographers have a sure fire recipe for starvation.
Planning to start stock photography and questions in my mind were all answered by this video. And reading the comments, I think it's not worth trying. Thanks for uploading Rachel!
You are very welcome!! Thanks for watching!
I totally agree with you. So much time and effort for so little financial return. I really enjoyed your video ... Thank you!
Thanks! Yes, it's a really tough way to try and make money!
Well, people upload photos every day to instagram and receive nothen in exchange, but likes and prestige. So uploading to stock can actually be a little more rewarding.
I can’t argue with that. :)
@@RachelLerch :)
This was my reason for looking into this. What's a like on Insta when I can make something potentially off my pictures. I have hundreds saved that I'm rediting. I just started training for a job editing copywriting work and I'm getting more of an eye for what sells due to this, I recently started an Ebay store to sell vintage clothing. If all three can give me some income then I'll take that seeing as other than the freelance editing job I am currently unemployed lol
Very cool!!!
Good point. I have lots of photos I took for fun, on my hard drive which no one ever sees. Perhaps I should take the time one weekend to upload them and see if I can get some money to buy a bag of crisps. :D
Fantastic quality presentation, far better technically than anything else I've seen on CZcams.
Thanks Jerry!
Hi there Rachel......Honesty seems to be the recurring theme in many of the comments your latest Video has inspired. So I'll join the chorus and add my appreciation for such an honest and realistic view from your perspective, thank you.
Thanks so much Geoffrey! I appreciate that!
Thank you for your candid, open presentation. Truly appreciated snd highly informative.
good evening thank you for sharing with us your experience of one year on different platforms .. and it's been a long time since I wait for this video of you .. and I have the same problem that you a lot of images and less money . the problem is that we chose to do the pictures of landscapes and longexpo .. so we have to change a bit like for example photographs the events the evenings .. of all .. editorial and commercial.
That’s true. The genre of photography can make a difference!
I think different person has different mindset. For me, I just do stock photography as a side job. I have a lot of photos from my traveling (more than 100 GB in total, almost all of them in raw), and rather than sitting collecting dust in my hard drive, I upload them to Shutterstock. No matter how little money I get, I consider that a win (any small amount is better than zero). Also, I don't spend too much time editing my photos, because even if you spend a lot of time perfecting it, it still might not get sold.
Hani Santosa 👍
What about all the time you spent on uploading, writing description, tags...
@@Vladimiradventurephotography I admit the time spent doing those will be wasted if your images are not sold. Well we can't win everything can we? LOL. I think that's the only cons of doing SS with "side job" mindset.
There is no free lunch...
Thank you. I was looking on the tube to check this out. You gave me a lot to think about.
Great info and thank you so very much for the HONESTY about the different sites!!!
Thank you Rachel. Really the right clip for the right time. I still started to upload on 2 agencies after photographing for 20 years now. I have learned, that my own build private stockarchiv based on Creative Commons licenses with 2000+ pics brought me more jobs/workshops that Shutterstock will ever do. Happy easter!
That’s really interesting Maik! Wow. Happy Easter to you too!
Also one has to remember that the odd stock sites are linked to other sites, I also signed up on many stock image sites now I upload to just afew due to lack of or no sales, I can upload an image to say shutterstock and it's accepted then I upload that same image to another and it's not and vise versa.
Your not going to be rich over night so don't give up your day job, I have approx. 300 images on an average I would earn $50us per month, most I've sold an image for is $72us and I sold 3 image that same day for $72 each, I haven't uploaded any new images for maybe a year.
Thank you for sharing! I've been doing photography for years and there are times I wonder if going stock photography route is good. Awesome video.
Thank you!
Thanks Rachel to sharing your opinion about the world of stock
Thanks for watching Harold!
Thank you so much for the honesty. I appreciate it. I started stock photography as a therapeutic coping mechanism against stress. I'm not after the money but seeing my images get approved is rewarding in itself.
P. S. If I can't make much money out of my images, might as well use it some other way. 😆
Same with me🙏🏻At least i've something to distract my mind with.
But honestly all stock photography agencies are really2 leeching from us. I still remember when i worked as a graphic designer, our studio had to pay LOTS of money for the visuals that we bought for our clients to create the advertising design.
At that time i haven't involved in stock photography and had no idea that they paid unbelievably little comission for each visual/image sold.
yes you are very correct .. Photographers are being Robbed ... % of commission is very less .. it should be Opposite Ex. 60% Photographer and 40 % to seller.. This is my opinion..
Thank you so much for such a wealth of information, well explained. Very, very valuable. Best wishes to you, Rachel!
Thanks John! Best wishes to you too!
Thank u so much for giving the insightfull knowledge of this industry. Keep Making such. Thank you. 😁👍🏻
I totally agree, Stock Photography is DEAD, not worth my precious time.
Nice video, Congrats.
Thanks!
Keep thinking that way and I will make more money. But I do agree we are being robbed.
India is saturating the industry for tiny-stack-able small amount licensing in Wal-Mart theory is one of the main reasons for the decline.
Agree.......
I have sold images through flickr.com in the past, 2007-2012 via Getty Images. But the last sale was seven years ago. I’m not sure Getty is still in business. I have had images stolen though. Not worth the trouble.
I agree with stock photography... I've been doing it since 2011... I started doing stock video you still get robbed with it... but more than photo for sure...
👍👍
Hi Rachel, I really enjoyed watching this. It is packed with useful information and really made me think if it's worth getting into stock photography. I take your point though, about what you can learn about your own photography during the submission process. So thanks for doing this as it was so helpful. I see you have a Thomas Heaton calendar on the wall - I have one too! ;-)
Thanks Rob! I'm glad you liked the video! Yes, I do! :) It's a really nice calendar!
Hi Rachel, thank you for this video. With this, you are confirming what I was thinking for about 3 years. Long story short, here is my balance: Dreamstime: 3 years, total income: about 43$, Shutterstock: 8 months, total income: about 6$. So I can totaly confirm that uploading to stock agencies in a long term perspective is not worth it! But I recommend to do this for all beginners because of the learning effect, as Rachel mentioned it in the video.