stock agencies..any reccomendations?

I have about 300 images that I feel are good enough to sell. What is the best stock image library to approach? I know I'm not Comstock or Getty worthy right now but there must be someplace I can sell stock images.

I don't want to sell these for 25 cents each!

Thanks


Jeff

Sorry you have had no answers to date! hold on. We'll get this going. It's an important topic for everyone!

Asher

Hi Jeff
I've none to recommend but would like to point out that AFAIK they are some stock agencies that are specialized in kind of subjets (sports, casual etc.)
Sorry but I have none to mention, this may just help you in which direction to search...

Jeff, we're in similar boats here, I've tried a few online stock agencies, but had little luck. I do know of a UK outfit called PhotographersDirect, its relatively new. Their idea is for clients to place requests and photographers respond. One gets a daily email oulining client needs and you also have the ability to showcase your work. Their commission sits at 20% or a fixed annual fee. Pricing is typically based on use and negotiable at point of sale with the client.
I've had some interest but not sold any to date. They also like to vet you work e.g. see a website portfolio.
I've tried some other stock agencies, but its a steep hill to climb, good luck and let us know how you get on.

Jeff

I make my living,almost exclusively,from stock and have been for 25+ years.

I am represented by Masterfile (www.masterfile.com) as my principal agent(have been since day 1)
and have tried to market anything they are not interested in through my own small site,
www.marktomalty.com,which is hosted and powered by IPNstock in NYC.

To be frank,most of the major players in the industry will not likely give a low volume producer
much attention unless you have a body of work that is unique and is content that is at the top of
the demand heap. Model released people and lifestyel imagery would be at the very top while
scenic,travel,and nature would be near the bottom.

For someone like yourself,who seems to just be starting out down the stock road (apologies if
I am making an inaccurate assupmtion) I would look closely at Alamy (www.alamy.com)
They act more as a portal that an agency,in the traditional sense,and have a significant number
of different marketing/royalty split/distribution options.
They are regarded as one of the major players in the business,which is a good thing.
The downside is they host a massive inventory of images from 1000's of photographers but,
assuming your material is strong,a little perseverance could lead to a good start in the field.

I would also recommend that you go to Stockphoto.net and spend considerable time reading
back through their forum archives. You will likely find topical information on most aspects of
the stock industry and usefull feedback on many agencies you may eventually consider.

Self marketing ones work is very 'empowering' but is very time consuming and,for most out there
who don't have a high 'brand identity' attached to their work, largely unprofitable.

It's not that costly,or difficult,to set up a searchable website that visually is on the same footing
as an established agency. The difficulty is driving enough potential buyers to your site and here
the individual really has a challenge. That's not to say it's impossible but only that it will be an effort.

Another option to experiment with is a service called Photoshelter (www.photoshelter.com)
whereby you pay a fixed monthly hosting fee based on how much space you require and are
then able to have your images searched (assuming you've captioned and keyworded effectively)
by potential clients who then contact you to negociate terms,price,etc.
Again,a fair bit of hands on attention is required to make a go of it but the pricepoint at
Photoshelter is very appealing.

Mark

Welcome to OPF Mark, you bring a welcome new perspective to OPF. Go over and introduce yourself although I sure a lot of folks already know you from RG and LL.

- DL

Mark,

Some great ideas.

Many thanks for the info.

Jeff

PhotoShelter

I'm no expert in the field of selling stock, but Mark mentioned PhotoShelter and I wanted to comment on that a little bit. I've been using it now for about 8 months, and have found it to be a pretty good service. Not only does it act as an online archival service for your RAW / Tiff / Jpeg files, but you can create public (and private) galleries, add keywords and descriptions, and have it all searchable.

What makes it nice is that not only can you integrate photoshelter into your own site so that it shares a common look and feel, but you can also sell prints and rights managed licenses for your work directly from your site (new as of this month).

They've also integrated fotoQuote into the new rights managed service to help you determine the price for images based on industry data they've collected. You can alter this, or just go with the defaults, but it will quote the client what an image will cost based on it's type of use and circulation, and most anything you can think of is in there from small business brochures to editorial images for national magazines, and pretty much anything in between.

The downside is that you're responsible for doing your own marketing, and while PhotoShelter is growing, it's not Getty Images. It might however be a good place to start. I believe they offer a free 7 day trial.

Good luck mate.

A friend of mine has been with Photographers Direct for maybe just over a year, has about 1500 photos up. She has sold a few, generally for low prices but one at £200. One problem is trying to work out how much to charge, most buyers seem to be independent smaller businesses.

Good luck and if you find a good one let all of us know .

Charles

I'll second Photoshelter, I've used them and they offer alot of services for a great price. If you're starting out in the stock world, you might want to try deviantart.com, it's free and you control what you sell. I've used it and sold a few prints myself. I know it's not typical stock, but it might help you get started.

Hey mate,
theres a new australian site for anyone, no real stringent application process, there are curators however. You can host your images and people can purchase them. good way to share your photos with a wider audience. there base commision for photos is 25 dollars www.phartgallery.com