Anyone make an decent money with stock photo agencies?

crystal wrote:

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.

I still like hearing about your gallery shows. Sales in the galleries up here have been very slow this summer. Let us know how it goes with yours. It's important to hear about all the different opportunities available ANd how people are doing..

Baydream wrote: I still like hearing about your gallery shows. Sales in the galleries up here have been very slow this summer. Let us know how it goes with yours. It's important to hear about all the different opportunities available ANd how people are doing..

Well since you put it that way, then, I just found out yesterday I sold two photos from the wellness center.

crystal wrote:

Baydream wrote: I still like hearing about your gallery shows. Sales in the galleries up here have been very slow this summer. Let us know how it goes with yours. It's important to hear about all the different opportunities available ANd how people are doing..

Well since you put it that way, then, I just found out yesterday I sold two photos from the wellness center.

Congrats, you make much from those photos?

crystal wrote:

Baydream wrote: I still like hearing about your gallery shows. Sales in the galleries up here have been very slow this summer. Let us know how it goes with yours. It's important to hear about all the different opportunities available ANd how people are doing..

Well since you put it that way, then, I just found out yesterday I sold two photos from the wellness center.

Congratulations. You are doing quite well. I am very happy for you so keep it up.

Number 7 wrote:

crystal wrote:

Baydream wrote: I still like hearing about your gallery shows. Sales in the galleries up here have been very slow this summer. Let us know how it goes with yours. It's important to hear about all the different opportunities available ANd how people are doing..

Well since you put it that way, then, I just found out yesterday I sold two photos from the wellness center.

Congrats, you make much from those photos?

Yea, enough to keep me happy, not enough to pay the bills. lol Basically because my work is being sold in cosignment stores and the owner takes 50%. I have to be careful how high I raise the sale, otherwise it won't sell at all. But I still need to make my profit.

crystal wrote:

Number 7 wrote:

crystal wrote:

Baydream wrote: I still like hearing about your gallery shows. Sales in the galleries up here have been very slow this summer. Let us know how it goes with yours. It's important to hear about all the different opportunities available ANd how people are doing..

Well since you put it that way, then, I just found out yesterday I sold two photos from the wellness center.

Congrats, you make much from those photos?

Yea, enough to keep me happy, not enough to pay the bills. lol Basically because my work is being sold in cosignment stores and the owner takes 50%. I have to be careful how high I raise the sale, otherwise it won't sell at all. But I still need to make my profit.

FYI - The % is not out of line for a gallery. The one I am in takes only 30% but the gallery is subsidized.

Baydream wrote:

crystal wrote:

Number 7 wrote:

crystal wrote:

Baydream wrote: I still like hearing about your gallery shows. Sales in the galleries up here have been very slow this summer. Let us know how it goes with yours. It's important to hear about all the different opportunities available ANd how people are doing..

Well since you put it that way, then, I just found out yesterday I sold two photos from the wellness center.

Congrats, you make much from those photos?

Yea, enough to keep me happy, not enough to pay the bills. lol Basically because my work is being sold in cosignment stores and the owner takes 50%. I have to be careful how high I raise the sale, otherwise it won't sell at all. But I still need to make my profit.

FYI - The % is not out of line for a gallery. The one I am in takes only 30% but the gallery is subsidized.

I know that. I am not complaining about the 50%, I am fine with it. I know the store owners need to make their $ too to keep their store going. The two cosignment stores I have my work in it's 50/50. The wellness center is 70/30 and the coming up gallery I get the full 100% plus there is no fee of any kind.