Anyone make an decent money with stock photo agencies?

Any good checks received from selling your photos as stock images? I'm just thinking about making some extra cash and wondering if these stock photo companies are just over saturated making it impossible to make any good money?

You've asked the right man! I publish my results from selling photos each month

I've been doing this for just almost 4 years now, and the photos I upload this month do sell, so I don't think it is just a case of the old timers making money but it is too hard for newcomers.

If you have the time and willingness to work hard at it, it is still worthwhile, in my view.

Of course, I also have a book telling you how to do it....

Steve

Well most of the main sites are more difficult to make money on to tell you the truth. One of the better sites is www.photographersdirect.com/ they are basically middlemen who set a system where you and the purchaser make the deal through their system. You they get 20% of the agreed price. This is one of the best arrangements for stock photos I have seen. Where you can make money there is when requests are made for a certain type of photo. Im still going through my photos so I can cover a wide range of subjects for listing there. That will give you the best chances of making money.

Joves - do you know anyone who is making money from Photographers Direct? I see they have two different plans - a commission plan limited to 200 images, and a subscription plan where you can upload 800.

This is a new one to me, and would be interested in some feedback on success before digging into it further.

I do sell on Alamy, which pays higher fees per image, but the sales are few and far between. I did get a $120 sale in July, but that is the first for a few months. I currently sell 20+ a day on Shutterstock, so it is a choice between feeling good about the price you get for an image and actually selling in quantity.

Steve

steveheap wrote: You've asked the right man! I publish my results from selling photos each month

I've been doing this for just almost 4 years now, and the photos I upload this month do sell, so I don't think it is just a case of the old timers making money but it is too hard for newcomers.

If you have the time and willingness to work hard at it, it is still worthwhile, in my view.

Of course, I also have a book telling you how to do it....

Steve

That was some interesting graphs. How many photos do you have live on these sites?

steveheap wrote: Joves - do you know anyone who is making money from Photographers Direct? I see they have two different plans - a commission plan limited to 200 images, and a subscription plan where you can upload 800.

This is a new one to me, and would be interested in some feedback on success before digging into it further.

I do sell on Alamy, which pays higher fees per image, but the sales are few and far between. I did get a $120 sale in July, but that is the first for a few months. I currently sell 20+ a day on Shutterstock, so it is a choice between feeling good about the price you get for an image and actually selling in quantity.

Steve

No not yet but their plan is one of the better I have seen. Like I said Im making up a file of photos I plan on submitting. I like their approach to it as far as the sales, Im going with the commission plan. Since it is free that way I wont have to pay till I make a sale. They supposedly have a lot of advertising businesses that use them.

Not bad cash per month, I too would be curious on how many photos you have posted up on these sites.

Eddy wrote: Not bad cash per month, I too would be curious on how many photos you have posted up on these sites.

This is not an ad but a personal recommendation. Consider buying Steve Heap's ebook (about $5). He details the value of various sites and the "how to" to get our work there. It is a lot of work. Steve did a good job of putting it in basic terms. Check hie web site.

Baydream wrote:

Eddy wrote: Not bad cash per month, I too would be curious on how many photos you have posted up on these sites.

This is not an ad but a personal recommendation. Consider buying Steve Heap's ebook (about $5). He details the value of various sites and the "how to" to get our work there. It is a lot of work. Steve did a good job of putting it in basic terms. Check hie web site.

Yea and there are plenty of FREE resources people can find to help their way into selling on stock sites. People can read/ask questions on the forums to these stock sites.
Anyone who is interested in selling stock on such sites like shutterstock for instance. Sign up, read the terms etc.. join the forum and read, learn before you submit. So many people want to sell stock, which is fine, but what you do not realize there are strict guidelines for a photo to be accepted. You can't just upload any snapshot. Read the forums, ask questions find out information. Also browse the photos that are currently on the stock sites. If you have the photo quality that is there, then upload. If you don't (be honest with yourself), then get that quality. Because you can upload all the photos you want, but if it's not up to the standards, it will not be allowed on the stock's site.

Also you need to ask yourself, are you ok with earning pennies/dollars for one image/per download? Stock sites pay very little per download. You also need to market yourself. Yes buyers go to stock sites searching for that right image, but it helps to market yourself. Just like what Steve Heap does. He is marketing himself on this forum to gain more $ on his sales (via stock images and his book).

That was some interesting graphs. How many photos do you have live on these sites?

Here is my graph of files on each of the sites:



The average is currently around 1600, I think.

Steve

Also you need to ask yourself, are you ok with earning pennies/dollars for one image/per download? Stock sites pay very little per download. You also need to market yourself. Yes buyers go to stock sites searching for that right image, but it helps to market yourself. Just like what Steve Heap does. He is marketing himself on this forum to gain more $ on his sales (via stock images and his book).

Absolutely right about the pennies per image. Most files on Shutterstock sell for 33 - 38c (but I sell 25 a day) and there are occasional $28 sales. Other sites are more per image, but fewer sales per day. You don't have to market yourself though. I am on this forum because I like photography. There is no marketing here that makes any difference whatsoever to stock sales (or sales of prints), but I do market my book from time to time. As Crystal rightly says, you can go on the forums of each site (as I did for a year) and pick up the tips and approaches, or you can spend $4.99! (Marketing finished, now!)

Steve

crystal wrote:

Baydream wrote:

Eddy wrote: Not bad cash per month, I too would be curious on how many photos you have posted up on these sites.

This is not an ad but a personal recommendation. Consider buying Steve Heap's ebook (about $5). He details the value of various sites and the "how to" to get our work there. It is a lot of work. Steve did a good job of putting it in basic terms. Check hie web site.

Yea and there are plenty of FREE resources people can find to help their way into selling on stock sites. People can read/ask questions on the forums to these stock sites.
Anyone who is interested in selling stock on such sites like shutterstock for instance. Sign up, read the terms etc.. join the forum and read, learn before you submit. So many people want to sell stock, which is fine, but what you do not realize there are strict guidelines for a photo to be accepted. You can't just upload any snapshot. Read the forums, ask questions find out information. Also browse the photos that are currently on the stock sites. If you have the photo quality that is there, then upload. If you don't (be honest with yourself), then get that quality. Because you can upload all the photos you want, but if it's not up to the standards, it will not be allowed on the stock's site.

Also you need to ask yourself, are you ok with earning pennies/dollars for one image/per download? Stock sites pay very little per download. You also need to market yourself. Yes buyers go to stock sites searching for that right image, but it helps to market yourself. Just like what Steve Heap does. He is marketing himself on this forum to gain more $ on his sales (via stock images and his book).

I have read many sources of info on stock sales including those in the Articles section of PT. Yes, in most cases, you do earn pennies each on stock sales but they can add up. An articles in Outdoor Photographer said the same thing. Steve's answering question (with VERY subtle promotion) is no different than other photographers listing their web sites or giving their input on how they got a "gallery show" or how they sold a photo.

Baydream wrote:

crystal wrote:

Baydream wrote:

Eddy wrote: Not bad cash per month, I too would be curious on how many photos you have posted up on these sites.

This is not an ad but a personal recommendation. Consider buying Steve Heap's ebook (about $5). He details the value of various sites and the "how to" to get our work there. It is a lot of work. Steve did a good job of putting it in basic terms. Check hie web site.

Yea and there are plenty of FREE resources people can find to help their way into selling on stock sites. People can read/ask questions on the forums to these stock sites.
Anyone who is interested in selling stock on such sites like shutterstock for instance. Sign up, read the terms etc.. join the forum and read, learn before you submit. So many people want to sell stock, which is fine, but what you do not realize there are strict guidelines for a photo to be accepted. You can't just upload any snapshot. Read the forums, ask questions find out information. Also browse the photos that are currently on the stock sites. If you have the photo quality that is there, then upload. If you don't (be honest with yourself), then get that quality. Because you can upload all the photos you want, but if it's not up to the standards, it will not be allowed on the stock's site.

Also you need to ask yourself, are you ok with earning pennies/dollars for one image/per download? Stock sites pay very little per download. You also need to market yourself. Yes buyers go to stock sites searching for that right image, but it helps to market yourself. Just like what Steve Heap does. He is marketing himself on this forum to gain more $ on his sales (via stock images and his book).

I have read many sources of info on stock sales including those in the Articles section of PT. Yes, in most cases, you do earn pennies each on stock sales but they can add up. An articles in Outdoor Photographer said the same thing. Steve's answering question (with VERY subtle promotion) is no different than other photographers listing their web sites or giving their input on how they got a "gallery show" or how they sold a photo.

Oh, what a polite way for putting me in my place. I can respond to this, but I will keep my mouth shut and go back to working.

steveheap wrote:

That was some interesting graphs. How many photos do you have live on these sites?

Here is my graph of files on each of the sites:

The average is currently around 1600, I think.

Steve

So you have been busy, what types of photos do you post in most cases? Do you have a studio?

I would say that 70% of my images are travel and location shots. I have taken pictures from Hawaii to Estonia on my various travels. Then 20% are of objects, pets and macro shots taken at home and 10% are of people - almost always members of my family as I have never have bothered with real models. Even old geezers like me sell!

My best selling images differ very much depending on site. A picture of a swimming pool works well on iStock, an isolated picture of one of our Bengal Kittens works well on Shutterstock etc. Here is my portfolio on Shutterstock - and no, this isn't part of marketing...

Many microstock photographers go for the happy bunch of young adults - I believe you should take what you enjoy and see if you can make money from that!

Steve