DPChallenge: A Digital Photography Contest You are not logged in. (log in or register
 

DPChallenge Forums >> Stock Photography >> stock photography & making money
Pages:   ...
Showing posts 126 - 150 of 351, (reverse)
AuthorThread
06/08/2005 09:37:30 AM · #126
Gotta agree with the faulty math, crazyrn. If it takes you 40 hours for 6 weeks to prep 5 photos, something's wrong.

Let's say I can shoot, edit, upload and keyword 15 images an hour to all 5 sites. Let's say I make 1 dollar per year per image at each site. These are reasonable numbers based on past performance of my images. Do that math. It takes me 10 hours to do 150 images and in a 40 hour week, I could do 600 images. Let's say that I get 450 approved.

Now, I'll get $450 over the next year x 5 sites. That's $2250 for 40 hours of work, or roughly $50 dollars per hour.

Next question?
06/30/2005 07:44:26 AM · #127
Wow, Dreamstime sites is really taking off! I am having my best month ever! Dreamstime Link

One person there made 75 download in one day yesterday! WOW!

Check it out

Melissa
06/30/2005 07:48:03 AM · #128
Originally posted by melking23:

Wow, Dreamstime sites is really taking off! I am having my best month ever!
Melissa


How good is that, if you don't mind me asking? I admire how hard you've worked at RF stock photography and am happy to see you doing well!
06/30/2005 08:04:02 AM · #129
Originally posted by 4N4M:

Originally posted by melking23:

Wow, Dreamstime sites is really taking off! I am having my best month ever!
Melissa


How good is that, if you don't mind me asking? I admire how hard you've worked at RF stock photography and am happy to see you doing well!


No I don't mind you asking at all! I had 150 downloads so far this month on Dreamstime with no uploads! I was gone on a hoilday this month and still made money!

On Holidays I took lots of photo and I will upload them and make more money
06/30/2005 10:21:24 AM · #130
Originally posted by Kavey:

As for the question asked above about whether one would sell a computer program for 20 cents, let me just do some hypothetical math here.

Let's say we're talking a pretty darn basic utility application… we're still talking a few days work minimum to spec it out, code it, test it and package it for sale. Assuming a rate of £200 a day (which is on the low side of what a contractor or self-employed software vendor might expect), we're looking at a minimum of £2000. So no, we wouldn't sell a computer program for 20 cents.

I was right with you up to this point ... if I could, for example, license my simple-but-handy utility to Steve Jobs or Bill Gates, I'd probably take $0.20/copy pre-installed on all new computers ...

In a more realistic view, such programs are usually sold as shareware for $5-20, although there's a tremendous amount of completely free software too -- I use free noise-reduction software, for example.

The other apt analogy is burgers -- you can sell 2 billion $0.89 burgers like McDonalds or 200 $6.00 burgers like a more upscale diner -- there seems to be room for both business models. You can denigrate McD for the "quality" of the product, but you can't deny they make money ...
06/30/2005 10:50:44 AM · #131
General, there aren't many software developers lucky enough to be working on the kind of app that Gates might be interested in but... of COURSE if I ever found myself in that situation, I'd agree to 20 cents a licence too! Gates wouldn't, however, so it's a bit of a moot point.

As for shareware, I've come across plenty that's sold for $5 and up but not really come across stuff that's sold for 20 cents. You also need to remember that shareware (and freeware too) are often the result of developers creating a tool to aid them in some task they want to do themselves and then, not being into marketing but realising others might find it useful to, they choose to either distribute freely or for a nomimal amount in the hope of making a little pocketmoney back. There are definitely sharewares that do make decent profits for their owners but... it's not the most reliable path to profit in the industry.

The point was that the maths put forward above - based on the hours put into an image and the hours put into creating an average computer programme - was simply not realistic. Especially when the 20 cents are cumulative rather than a one off payment.

My point was exactly that there is room for both models of stock photography AND, more importantly, different markets for both too.
06/30/2005 10:57:32 AM · #132
Originally posted by Kavey:

... shareware (and freeware too) are often the result of developers creating a tool to aid them in some task they want to do themselves and then, not being into marketing but realising others might find it useful to, they choose to either distribute freely or for a nomimal amount in the hope of making a little pocketmoney back ...

Kind of like walking around shooting pictures and ending up with some which you don't need for your own prints, but might be useful to someone else and earn a little pocket money through micro-stock.

I'm agreeing with you overall. My favorite licensing story is Robert Aplanalp -- as I heard it, he agreed to a royalty of ONE CENT ... for each little spray-button on top of an aerosol can of paint or hairspray or whatever -- made him a multi-billionaire back when a billion dollars was "real money."

Message edited by author 2005-06-30 10:58:39.
06/30/2005 11:13:44 AM · #133
Originally posted by GeneralE:

Originally posted by Kavey:

... shareware (and freeware too) are often the result of developers creating a tool to aid them in some task they want to do themselves and then, not being into marketing but realising others might find it useful to, they choose to either distribute freely or for a nomimal amount in the hope of making a little pocketmoney back ...

Kind of like walking around shooting pictures and ending up with some which you don't need for your own prints, but might be useful to someone else and earn a little pocket money through micro-stock.

Yep! Exactly! (And yes, I know you were generally in agreement... I just thought it interesting to explore the analogy. :o)

The shareware analogy fits well as a comparison to the micro-stock approach. My argument was that the idea of selling a regular computer program for 20 cents didn't fit well as a comparison generally as generally speaking, one puts more hours into such and normally gets paid much more too.
I keep trying to think of that little thing, that wee invention, something so simple yet something the world can't live without - paperclip, aerosol cap or whatever - to make my fortune so I can travel the world without having to interrupt myself so often to do this pesky thing called earning a living.

Not that I've been doing any earning today. Been playing with pictures of elephant seals in Photoshop!

Message edited by author 2005-06-30 11:16:21.
06/30/2005 11:16:42 AM · #134
Originally posted by Kavey:

I keep trying to think of that little thing, that wee invention, something so simple yet something the world can't live without - paperclip, aerosol cap or whatever - to make my fortune so I can travel the world without having to interrupt myself so often to do this pesky thing called earning a living.

Not that I've been doing any earning today. Been playing with pictures of elephant seals in Photoshop!

That might be earning something. There's a radio commercial playing around here which starts out somethng like:

"Invent pizza -- you can retire and travel the world. Otherwise ..."
06/30/2005 11:20:00 AM · #135
Well, I will be loading these onto Alamy but... it's self-indulgent to spend the day this way today - I was supposed to be working on development of a Dreamweaver Training course as the sooner I have finished it the sooner I can start selling it...
06/30/2005 11:41:16 AM · #136
I find this thread inspiring and I'm contemplating shooting stock myself, but may I ask where you stock photographers get your subjects ?
I can't imagine you have a house full of attractive subjects like cellulars, padlocks, lenses, keyboards etc ???
06/30/2005 11:52:55 AM · #137
Originally posted by Tom_Robbrecht:

I can't imagine you have a house full of attractive subjects like cellulars, padlocks, lenses, keyboards etc ???

You just need to expand the limits of your imagination ... : )

I don't shoot "that kind" of stock that often, but many times all you have to do is ask. I wanted to shoot a skeleton key, so I went to a local locksmith and they let me borrow this blank ($15.95 before cutting) for a few minutes and shoot a few pictures on their counter.



Likewise, the manager at a vegetable market said it was OK to take pictures of some of there unusual fruits, like these lychees, which actually has been downloaded from Shutterstock.

06/30/2005 11:55:16 AM · #138
i've had a nice start ... i've had 98 DLs on shutterstock since May 21st ... and i have 85 images up ... i'm just starting out ... but yes ... just use what ever you have in your house ... everday items .. just make sure the shots dont have noise and they are sharp in focus ... you have to think of what people would need for an advertisement ... i'm having fun with it .. and somewhere down the road i'll submit to the bigger companies ... i consider it a good practice for photography while earning a little extra money too

06/30/2005 11:55:31 AM · #139
Originally posted by Tom_Robbrecht:

I find this thread inspiring and I'm contemplating shooting stock myself, but may I ask where you stock photographers get your subjects ?
I can't imagine you have a house full of attractive subjects like cellulars, padlocks, lenses, keyboards etc ???


Yes I do...hehe and somtimes I go to the store and just buy things to shoot stock with!
06/30/2005 12:03:10 PM · #140
Originally posted by Tom_Robbrecht:

I find this thread inspiring and I'm contemplating shooting stock myself, but may I ask where you stock photographers get your subjects ?
I can't imagine you have a house full of attractive subjects like cellulars, padlocks, lenses, keyboards etc ???

Yep, you shoot what you have. If you see things interesting at work you shoot them.
I guess if you are realy into it, then you buy all sorts of junk, photograph it, then take it back the next day & say you don't need it.
I have to admit I did that with my Tap I used in the Metal challenge, however I bought other stuff as well & have spent $1000ds at that store, but it would be a possibility for a serious stocker.
06/30/2005 12:05:38 PM · #141
Originally posted by aKiwi:

Originally posted by Tom_Robbrecht:

I find this thread inspiring and I'm contemplating shooting stock myself, but may I ask where you stock photographers get your subjects ?
I can't imagine you have a house full of attractive subjects like cellulars, padlocks, lenses, keyboards etc ???

Yep, you shoot what you have. If you see things interesting at work you shoot them.
I guess if you are realy into it, then you buy all sorts of junk, photograph it, then take it back the next day ...

Thrift/secondhand stores ...
06/30/2005 12:10:38 PM · #142
Dollar Tree and other "Dollar stores" are great!! and garage and yard sales
06/30/2005 04:47:21 PM · #143
Originally posted by Tom_Robbrecht:

I find this thread inspiring and I'm contemplating shooting stock myself, but may I ask where you stock photographers get your subjects ?
I can't imagine you have a house full of attractive subjects like cellulars, padlocks, lenses, keyboards etc ???


My question for you serious stock shooters is similar to Tom's: do you submit many people shots, and if you do, do you hire models, or impose on family and friends, or is there some other method that you use? It looks to me like those with the most downloads have lots of people photos uploaded, and although I want to try my hand at that, I'm yet to figure out how I'm going to go about it.

Message edited by author 2005-06-30 16:50:27.
06/30/2005 04:53:33 PM · #144
Originally posted by 4N4M:

Originally posted by Tom_Robbrecht:

I find this thread inspiring and I'm contemplating shooting stock myself, but may I ask where you stock photographers get your subjects ?
I can't imagine you have a house full of attractive subjects like cellulars, padlocks, lenses, keyboards etc ???


My question for you serious stock shooters is similar to Tom's: do you submit many people shots, and if you do, do you hire models, or impose on family and friends, or is there some other method that you use? It looks to me like those with the most downloads have lots of people photos uploaded, and although I want to try my hand at that, I'm yet to figure out how I'm going to go about it.


People stocks are probably the most downloaded ones, but the toughest to get. Most people will hire models, but some will provide a service as in portfolio help so many will exchange services for stocks.
06/30/2005 04:58:29 PM · #145
this might be a stupid question - but can you sell the same stock phot on various sites? Or does each photo have to be exculisive to that stock site?
06/30/2005 05:04:57 PM · #146
Originally posted by mesmeraj:

this might be a stupid question - but can you sell the same stock phot on various sites? Or does each photo have to be exculisive to that stock site?


if the site or image is royalty free (which it is on dreamstime, istock, shutterstock, and canstock) you can sell them on all the sites... unless there is an exception (like you signed up saying you were exclusive istock photographer, or clicked the button that said, that a certain image was exclusive to canstock for example)
06/30/2005 05:06:01 PM · #147
Originally posted by mesmeraj:

this might be a stupid question - but can you sell the same stock phot on various sites? Or does each photo have to be exculisive to that stock site?


I have the same images at various stock sites. Some sites will give you more for going exclusive. Read the FAQ section of the particular site that you plan on submitting to before agreeing to upload your photos to them.
06/30/2005 05:22:20 PM · #148
Originally posted by mesmeraj:

this might be a stupid question - but can you sell the same stock phot on various sites? Or does each photo have to be exculisive to that stock site?


I have the same photos on all the stock sites

07/04/2005 01:07:38 AM · #149
Jist like to say I like the way mavrik does math in his last post here. Makes the whole idea sound more lucrative.Tee hee. Melking you are the "Queen of Stock"!
07/04/2005 06:58:56 AM · #150
Originally posted by pixieland:

Jist like to say I like the way mavrik does math in his last post here. Makes the whole idea sound more lucrative.Tee hee. Melking you are the "Queen of Stock"!


Hehe that is funny, but thanks!

Melissa
Pages:   ...
Current Server Time: 03/29/2024 02:25:02 AM

Please log in or register to post to the forums.


Home - Challenges - Community - League - Photos - Cameras - Lenses - Learn - Prints! - Help - Terms of Use - Privacy - Top ^
DPChallenge, and website content and design, Copyright © 2001-2024 Challenging Technologies, LLC.
All digital photo copyrights belong to the photographers and may not be used without permission.
Current Server Time: 03/29/2024 02:25:02 AM EDT.