Comments on: Building a Microstock Portfolio

By: rasmus

rasmus — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:41:00 +0000

Gabby : Color is probably the most common for stock. Some subjects simply render themselves better as black and white, and in that case, go ahead and upload it as such, but in general, remember that it’s very easy for a designer to make any image black and white, but it sure is hard to add color.

By: Gabby

Gabby — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 09:20:41 +0000

Thanks to your article I’m having a second go at stock photography and have been reading all of your articles with keen interest.

I have a quick question though – I love black and white photography. Do stock companies want black and white images or do they prefer colour?

By: 5 Sessions to Get Started on Microstock at Rasmus Rasmussen dot com

5 Sessions to Get Started on Microstock at Rasmus Rasmussen dot com — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 23:28:36 +0000

[...] Microstock Photographer’s Guide « Building a Microstock Portfolio [...]

By: rasmus

rasmus — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 21:34:33 +0000

Did I say, that you can go exclusive and get a 5% raise at 500 downloads? That was the old days. In fact, it’s at 250 downloads. Much nicer.

By: What Should I do to Start a Successful Photogrpahy Business? - Part II

What Should I do to Start a Successful Photogrpahy Business? - Part II — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 13:17:10 +0000

[...] the Internet (flickr, deviantart, etc.) in order to make a brand for people to recognize you. Then, Building a Microstock Portfolio – is another thing to do. Fotolia offers the possibility to find affiliates (if you want to know [...]

By: … nachbelichtet » Wie baue ich ein Microstock Portolio auf?

… nachbelichtet » Wie baue ich ein Microstock Portolio auf? — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 10:07:53 +0000

[...] Zu dieser Frage und anderen Themen rund um Microstocks, schildert Rasmus Rasmussen sehr interessant und ausführlich seine Erfahrungen in einer mehrteiligen Artikelserie. Diese Icons verzweigen auf soziale Netzwerke bei denen Nutzer neue Inhalte finden und mit anderen teilen können. [...]

By: Thomas

Thomas — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 08:00:25 +0000

Thinking about the price tag of Microstock I’m feeling always a bit like “flogging off” my images. Maybe I should give it a try, but for sure not under my real name. If a client can find me on microstock this would ruin my RM images…

By: rasmus

rasmus — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 07:39:40 +0000

Thomas: Good question.

You can get a DSLR for about $700 these days. Add to that another $300 for basic accessories to get you started (such as a speedlight and bounce or an extra lens). Cameras often come with software such as Photoshop Elements, which is fine, and I am not going to count the cost of a new computer, since that’s not strictly a photo tool and it’s reasonable to assume that you already have one. In other words: $1000 is right around your minimum investment.

Since your income from stock depends on things like whether or not you’re exclusive, it’s hard to say exactly how many sales you’d need. At iStock, you can go exclusive at 500 sales, after which your royalties go from 20% to 25%. Later they go up again until they reach 40% at 25,000 sold images.

I do not recommend that you quit your dayjob for microstock alone. It can, however, be a nice supplement to other photo assignments or a way to make your hobby pay a little back. If you upload a lot of quality stuff, you will make more sales faster. I’d say you could make a grand in the first year, if you work hard and go exclusive.

By: Thomas

Thomas — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 06:55:30 +0000

Fine article, thanks.
It would be interesting to calculate the costs of all the hardware (DSLR, lights, computer etc.) and software you need, your expenses etc. and how much microstock you have to sell in order to make a decent living.

By: zulkhas

zulkhas — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 05:38:12 +0000

Thanks for your time, this really help me strengthen my passion towards photography.