Is The Stock Photo Industry A Train Wreck In Progress?

 

 Is the stock photo industry moving full-steam ahead, or is it a train wreck about to happen?

 

A Train Wreck About To Happen?

A lot of photographers see the stock photo industry as a train wreck in progress. They blame everything from the emergence of microstock to the ease of digital to the evil empires of Getty and Corbis. But is the industry really headed for disaster? Certainly the rampant change is enough to make any of jump the tracks. But there are opportunities…and I for one wouldn’t want to go back to the way it was (if it meant giving up digital capture, Photoshop and the Internet)!

Assessing Reality, Adapting To Change And Elbow Grease

Certainly a lot of barriers to entry have fallen away, an endless supply of images has brought the price points down and the competition is fierce. But from where I stand there is still ample room for images that can stand out from the crowd, though getting them seen is an ever-increasing challenge.  To compete successfully in this new arena requires a willingness to assess reality, adaptability to change, and one heck of a lot of elbow grease. It requires getting out of the caboose and into the engine…and not a steam locomotive but more of a modern bullet train (sorry about all the train references, but it is kind of fun seeing how many I can work in for SEO purposes).

Images That Are Needed And Stand Out

Right now (and this is subject to change) my approach is to create as many images as I comfortably can, that are clearly needed in the marketplace, and that stand out from their competition.  I then do my best to distribute those photos in ways that both offer me what I hope is protection from the relentless changes that are sweeping through the industry and the maximizing of revenue from that imagery. Of course, the whole undertaking gets ever more complex when trying to decide whether to shoot RF or RM, whether to pull into the microstock station, which agencies to distribute through, and whether to offer direct sales.

Blend Images, Getty, And Direct Sales

At this point I send the majority of my photography to Blend Images, an aggregator that offers great distribution including ever more penetration into the microstock audience (though at traditional pricing), gives me protection from relying on any one large stock agency, and provides much more support than I can get from other agencies. Disclaimer here…I am a part owner of Blend Images.  I can honestly say, though, that if I were not an owner I would still be distributing through Blend.  I am also continuing to submit to Getty, which is the 900-pound gorilla after all. Finally, though I have very few images that are not with agencies, I do make some direct sales, and stoke the fires of my agency sales, by getting my stock pictures up on my own site and linking them to the agencies that handle the images. I do see a significant number of people finding my images online and then following the links to the agencies…though it is very difficult to track the ultimate results.

Full Steam Ahead!

Do I think the stock photo industry is headed full-steam down the wrong track (have to keep getting those train references in…)?  No…because the reality is that the industry is headed wherever it is regardless of whether we view it as right or wrong. Our job is to keep an eye on it and switch our own track (did it again!) when appropriate. We need to use our creativity and critical thinking not just to make cool images, but also to understand and flow with the realities of our industry and continue full-steam ahead.

A Runaway Freight Train And A Successful Career

I can share this bit of positive anecdotal evidence. I do know one shooter who switched agencies from one of the “traditional” ones to Blend a little over four years ago and who is now making over $5000.00 a month in royalties from the new images submitted over those last four plus years. Her income is continuing to increase with almost each quarter…testimony that it is possible to carve out a successful career in stock photography even with the industry barreling along seemingly out of control like a runaway freight train and the economy having such trouble getting back on track.

The Challenge Of Getting Photos Seen

 

Who would ever think to search for a gorilla standing behind the help desk? 

Pigs Flying, Stampeding Longhorns, and Fire Breathing Dragons

Way back, over twenty years ago, when I first started making stock photos using Photoshop, pictures of pigs flying, stampeding longhorn cattle and fire breathing dragons, stock photos were marketed in catalogs. If your image made it into the catalog it got seen and it sold. My biggest fear when the industry began to transition out of catalogs and onto the Internet was that if my pictures weren’t seen they wouldn’t be licensed…and who would search for flying pigs? Especially twenty years ago when Photoshop was still new. 

Gorillas In The Office

That fear is still with me…and possibly still legitimate. When I created this Gorilla picture it brought that concern back to me. Out of curiosity I did a little keyword research. Do you know how many searches there are for “Gorilla in the office”? None.  Uh, who is going to search for “Gorilla at the help desk”? Or, “gorilla symbolizing poor service”? You see my problem. I have that issue with many of my images…maybe most of them! Frankly, sometimes I am surprised I make any sales at all!

Images That Depart From The Norm

Luckily people do search for “service desk” and  “help desk”, so it is important to make sure those keywords are emphasized on my website page that features that image. Of course, what is far more important for my own situation is getting images into the appropriate stock agencies. In the case of images that are a departure from the norm, and that may be difficult to find when searching for, it can be very important to have an agency with a sales staff that is familiar with their images and can help direct clients to my images…er I mean the appropriate imagery.

A Strong Brand And People Searching The Internet

Establishing a strong brand could possibly help, but again, with my core collection of only a thousand images the odds of my having the right image for any one client are pretty small. Further, the vast, vast majority of people searching for images on the Internet will never be aware of a given photographer’s “brand”. I believe the best strategy for increasing my sales is still getting the rankings high for each individual image on my site and hope for as much exposure as possible. If enough people see the image there will be a small percentage that will license it. Indeed, that does appear to happening.

Generating Traffic Through Relevant Keywords

In terms of getting the most visibility for my individual photos, SEO for Google search still appears to be the best route to go. I can see how social media such as facebook can work well for portrait or wedding photographers, but who searches for stock photos on facebook or twitter? Of course “likes”, “Tweets”, “Pins” and “+1”s can, at least in theory, add to the rankings of a page or site, but when I look at my analytics none of my top ranking pages, in terms of traffic generation, have any significant number of “likes” and such. Most have none.  I do engage in a smattering of social media efforts to keep my foot in the door, but IMHO there isn’t any better way of generating traffic for stock sales than through lots of relevant keywords worked into the text of an image page.

Do The Hard Work And Keep The Faith

Where was I…oh yeah, gorillas behind the help counter. Anyway, there doesn’t seem to be a perfect solution…heck, even decent solution.  And yet some of these “hard to search for” images are my best sellers. Despite all my misgivings people are finding them and are licensing them. If there is a moral here it is to do the hard work and keep the faith.

A Cannibal Cow And A Rights Managed Image

 

 This is not an easy image to use, probably won't generate frequent sales, and as such is better suited to a Rights Managed licensing model.

 

Cannibal Cows

A cannibal cow? This humorous Holstein could be saying “It’s an acquired taste…”, or “Chicken or Fish?”. Whatever the caption, I just love the image (of course, it could be that I am just too “close” to the image to get an accurate take on it). It did take me two days of Photoshop to complete, which is a lot longer than I am used to. Cows are hard!

A Rights Managed Image

This is one of those images that has been on my mind to do for some time…like about two years. It isn’t one that I have an easy time figuring out who could use it and for what. I do feel confident that creative art directors and designers will find a way to use it. But again, it probably isn’t going to be the kind of image that generates a lot of sales, and with a lot of production involved, I will be submitting this as a Rights Managed image.

Shooting The Components

As for shooting the components, I originally photographed the Holstein dairy cow for a humorous greeting card image.  I no longer remember when or why I shot the grass. The sky I shot in New Mexico for my archives, the grill fork I manufactured from a carving fork I had in my prop collection and the barbecue normally sits in my side yard at home but got a good cleaning for this shoot.

Cropping Formats, Copy Space And Extra Cows

In an attempt to make the image as easy to use as possible for potential users I composed it to work with any cropping format and included plenty of copy space. I felt like placing the two cows in the background added a sense of depth and a little complexity. The risk is that someone might want to use the image without them. I tried to place the cows where they could be cropped out for a vertical use of the image, say for a magazine cover.  I also had mixed emotions about the cloudy sky. The clouds make it more difficult to read any type that might be placed over the image, but every sky I tried without clouds just lacked pizzazz.

Digital Composites, Change, And Breathing

By the way, as much as I like this image, it may yet change. One of the good things, and the bad things, about digital composites is that you can keep changing them forever. As a matter of fact, I have found that anybody I ask about my images can almost always find something to change…that old “yes but…” thing. So if I get enough negative feedback I may modify it again. With that in mind I wont rush to get the image in to an agency…I’ll give it a little time to “breathe”, which is actually a good policy in general.

Shooting Stock For Your Book

 

If I had a portfolio I would have shot this speeding convertible sports car image for it! Since I only shoot stock I don't have to worry about a book. Getty rejected this image because it "looks like a product shot". Blend did accept it and it will be interesting to see if I am right in my expectation that it will sell well.

 

 Shooting For Your Book

As a professional photographer, or as an aspiring pro photographer, shooting for your book is a given. Eager assistant, working commercial photographer, or living legend, all photographers shoot for their “books”. What I have always found to be strange is that most photographers don’t consider the images they shoot for their portfolios to be stock photo material.

 A Fast Road To Nowhere

The same ingredients that go into a portfolio shot ( passion, production value, creativity and so forth), are the ingredients that make great stock photos. I think where a lot of shooters go wrong is in thinking that stock images should look like, well, stock images. In reality, shooting stock photos that look like what we all think stock photos look like is a fast road to nowhere.  In a market suffocating in sameness the images that stand out are the ones that have the best chance of earning significant revenue.

Portfolio Shots As Stock Photos

I believe that adding stock photography to ones photography business is a no brainer, and a great way to incorporate effective stock photography can be based around shooting for one’s book. It can be as simple as submitting that portfolio shot to an agency, or using the portfolio shoot as a springboard for stock. Once that portfolio image is captured a few additional variations, perhaps with a bit more obvious commercial application, can be added. It is almost like getting free images for your stock collection.

Fashion Magazines And Stock Photos

If you think your portfolio images are too “sophisticated” or abstract to make great stock images…think again. One good example to show how “out there” imagery can make for great stock can be seen in the work of  Elena Vizerskaya.  Elena’s work is about as “out there” as you can get. It is the kind of work you would expect to see in high end, cutting edge fashion magazines rather than in stock collections. Yet she is doing very well in stock…microstock no less!

Images That Stand Out From The Crowd

It makes sense though…with every passing day, and thousands of new uploaded pictures, it becomes increasingly important to produce photos that stand out from the crowd…images that can stop a viewer and compel them to read the advertisers message. Pictures like the ones we make for our portfolios.

Whatever It Takes

Next time you shoot for your book it might not be a bad idea to think of stock. And the next stock production you undertake, you might want to think a bit about your portfolio as well.  In either case doing whatever it takes to create images that you can truly be proud of is vital to success.

The Age of Instagram And Stock Photography

This "suspicious cat" (he knows me too well) is the type of picture I end up with when shooting with my iPhone! Oh well....

Cell Phones And Stock Photography 

The hot ticket these days seems to be image captured via phones through apps such as Instagram, Hipstamatic, and God knows how many more piling on by the second. There are stories of advertisers hiring Instagram shooters to shoot campaigns. Stock agencies are starting to have iPhone photo collections. Heck, there is even a new app that IS a stock agency for selling iPhone pictures http://foap.com/! Hey, remember when cell phones were in the picture…not taking them!

A Conundrum

Part of me is pretty excited about the rise of cell phone photography. I have always thought it would be the ultimate to have a pocket-sized camera that I could shoot stock with…a camera I could have with me all of the time. The conundrum comes about, for me, in that I don’t actually like taking pictures with my iPhone.

Cell Phone Cameras And Commercial Opportunities

My old eyes have a lot of trouble seeing what I am doing when trying to shoot with my iPhone; pressing the button at the right moment to make the capture is an elusive talent for me, and the opportunities to capture truly worthwhile imagery, in a commercial sense, seem far fewer than I would have imagined. While that may or may not be true for others, in my case my sense of what is “commercial” is severely restricted by my industry experience. For me a successful commercial image is one that commands numerous repeat licenses over a lengthy period of time. I just don’t seem to be seeing those opportunities as I walk around with my iPhone.

A Passion For Shooting (Not)

You can probably tell from what I am writing that I don’t have passion for shooting with a camera phone. Keep in mind that just about every successful photographer stresses the importance of passion in photographic achievement. Further, though the “Instagram Look” is the hot thing right now, that too will pass.

Embracing New Styles

Photography embraces new styles and looks, absorbs them, expands its repertoire and moves on.  I remember in the 90’s when the leading agency of the time, Tony Stone Images (now Getty Images), would stress the importance of new looks such as cross-processing, shallow depth of field, and a host of other looks.  The “Instagram Look” will doubtless hang around, and some may even do quite well with it. But I believe that, for me, it is only a distraction from what I do well and what I do with passion and what will keep me earning a good living producing stock photos.

A Camera With Me All The time

There is no doubt that having a camera with me all the time, one that is capable of producing images that the agencies handle, can be of benefit.  I am, reluctantly I admit, committed to learning to use my iphone camera. But that is more a belief in embracing change than in expectation that the iPhono will replace my dslr or even supplement it in any significant way. Of course, how many of us scoffed at the idea that pixels would replace film?

Shoot More Pictures!

I do hope that a ton of photographers embrace cell phone photography, particularly professionals engaged in creating stock images. The more of my competition that is spending their time shooting on cell phones the more my own work will stand out. So quite reading this, grab your cell phone, and go out and shoot some pictures!

Five Ways To Succeed In Photography

 

Reaching the heights of success in the photography world can be achieved in a number of ways. Simply strap a large rocket to your back....

 

Be The First
Way back in 1990 I was one of the very first photographers to truly and wholeheartedly embrace Photoshop. It paid off for me in a big way and all these years later is still paying off. Being the first to do something, whether it is in the adoption of new techniques and tools or styles or markets is quite often a key to tremendous success. Vincent La Foret (http://vincentlaforet.com) is a great example. He was one of the first, if not the first, to jump into DSLR motion and it has served him very well. But it is important to remember that being the first alone is not enough…it requires tremendous effort, follow-through, and persistence. I suppose a little talent helps as well!  One of the great things about all the change that is happening in our industry right now is that the opportunity to be among the first seems to be ever expanding.

Be different

In a world that is drowning in images, and in photographers, doing more of what is already out there is a self-defeating effort. Shoot what others aren’t shooting, shoot in a way that others aren’t. If you can do that while still creating images that effectively communicate then there is ample opportunity to reach the top.

Be the best

Of course, this kind of goes with out saying, and yet there are many ways to be the best, and if you can nail one of them then success is waiting for you. The best might mean having the best client service, or the flawless execution of a given style, or even running your photography business in a truly business like fashion. A photographer I know is not particularly creative. His imagery is fine…just not cutting edge or, at least in my opinion, inspired. But he runs his business like a business with good customer service, a thorough understanding of what his clients want, and a dedication to giving it to them. This photographer knows how much he has to earn each month and what he has to do to reach his goals. He does quite well.

Be yourself

The only way, IMO, one can succeed in the viciously competitive world of photography is to harness a true passion for the business.  Most of us cannot sustain passion for something when we are trying to be something we are not. That isn’t the same as becoming something different…which is very difficult but certainly achievable. Success as a photographer requires a truly long-term commitment and copious amounts time and effort…a combination that can only be sustained through passion…or I suppose…desperation. That last motivating factor, I have to admit, has propelled me forward a time or two (and was a big part of what got me into Photoshop in the first place)!

Be Noticed   

This may be last on this little list, but is certainly not least because it is important to all of the above. If you are the best and nobody knows about you…oh well. However, even if you are decidedly mediocre but you are well known, you will benefit from that “notoriety”. As they say,  “Just spell my name right baby!” Just as getting noticed is important to the success of all the above approaches, being first, being different, being the best and being yourself are all important to be noticed.

Not Rocket Science 

Okay, none of this is rocket science. But it is good to remind ourselves of these things from time to time. Just writing this blog has helped to both reminded me, and motivated me, to revisit my own business plan, to update it and review it with the above points in mind.  Hmmm, when was the last time you reviewed your business plan?

Hackers, Web Sites And Stock Photography

 

  I've been hacked...and not for the first time either! Hey, maybe I should make cyber crime images!

 

I’ve Been Hacked!

Something weird happened on my website today.  All of the file names on my site, all 6,000 plus of them, suddenly are the same: Hacked By Wosera.  My webmaster (actually my twin brother) spent a good number of hours trying to figure out how we were being hacked. We have been hacked before several times and it has been a major pain in the butt. At any rate, my brother is currently working on the problem. In the meantime, thank god our hosting company backs our site up every day. Just an aside, cyber crime is going to be an increasingly important stock photo subject!

Hackers, Google “Tweaks” and Ground Zero

However, this latest little hiccup got me thinking. The amount of time and effort that has gone into my web site I still find a bit staggering. You put all of this work into something so important and in an instant a hacker, a change in Google’s algorithm, who knows what…and its back to ground zero!

Time, Resources And Good Returns

Don’t get me wrong, I still believe in getting one’s work up on the net and building traffic. My efforts in doing that have certainly earned me some good returns, but at this point the return on my Internet investment could not possibly have matched what I would have earned if I had put all of those time and resources into creating more images.

Selling Your Own Stock

That brings me to another point. I know that there are photographers who do well selling their own stock.  In my own case though, I can’t imagine trying to deal with the volume of sales I get through agencies. There is simply no way I could negotiate, track the rights, deliver the files and do all the other functions that the agencies do for me. I wouldn’t have time to create images…heck, I might not even have time to sleep!  As it is, if I didn’t have my twin brother working on my site almost for free I’d be tearing my hair out…oh wait, I’m already bald!

Time, Resources And A Web Presence

I guess what I am trying to say is that I believe it is important for stock photographers to have a web presence, but at the same time it is really important to understand how your web site is going to work for you, and how much of your time and resources are going to be needed to maintain it. In my experience my web site, blogging, and social media require far more time than I ever imagined. Heck, it even requires time and energy to try and maintain a reasonable balance between my online efforts and my production of stock photos.

Kicking Back On The Couch

Right now, however, I have to end this blog post and kick back on the couch, watch a little mindless TV, and not think about stock photography, facebook, twitter, tumblr or blogging.