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DPChallenge Forums >> Stock Photography >> macro and/or micro
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08/31/2007 06:16:31 AM · #1
Hi everyone,

I'm Niamh from England (living in Spain) and I'm new on this site. I have a question to ask.

I've been working with iStock and Shutterstock, as well as a couple of other microstock sites, since Feburary of this year. I now have a portfolio of around 200 images selling quite well.

I've also been accepted by Alamy but I wasn't sure about whether to use the same photos that I have on the microstock sites on Alamy. I've read a lot about this in various photographer forums but couldn't find a definite answer (some people say do it, others say no way) so I emailed Alamy about the micro/macro crossover and got this response:

"Alamy being non-exclusive means any images that you have with us can be sold elsewhere, either through your own ventures or other agencies. If you need to block certain usages (or territories) for the purposes of rights management we allow you to specify those usages as a restriction. This enables you to maintain the integrity of your image rights whilst exploring new sales opportunities with images that may have a good selling history elsewhere."

This seems to be a green light to upload my images from micro sites as long as they are sold royalty free on Alamy. However, I wondered if anyone else has been doing this (or otherwise) and whether they could share their experience of it.

I also wondered if anyone knows why Alamy wouldn't mind me doing this. Are micro and macro really totally different markets?

Thanks in advance.

Niamh
09/21/2007 02:41:31 PM · #2
I am far from an expert in this area, but I will reply for whatever it might be worth. I have done something similar to what you are asking about. i started with all micro, then I sent some of what I consider my best photos to Alamy as RM. So, micro and macro had different pictures. After waiting a long time on Alamy with no sales, I changed the pictures from RM to RF. Had some success, but still not what I considered reasonable. Next, I took the pictures I had on Alamy, which were now all RF, and downsized them from the Alamy required size (or went back to the original size before I upsized for Alamy) and posted them on micro. They are now some of my best sellers.

Does Alamy mind? They might not like it, but they are not exclusive,s o what can they say. Actually, i have heard some report that a RF license on Alamy gives you a lot more freedom with the picture than on micro, so in a way, a buyer pays more on Alamy, but they get more too. Also, for me, the Alamy pictures are a larger, so i figure I am offering something different to the Alamy buyer to justify the higher cost.

In conclusion, I would love to have some RM photos on Alamy do well and only be there and have different pictures on micro do well, but maybe I am just not good enough yet, but I do fine on micro and not so well on Alamy. I have heard the reverse in the forums too. I guess every person just needs to feel out for himself/herself what is the best model for them to follow.

Hope this helps a bit.
09/21/2007 03:02:21 PM · #3
It's generally considered "not good form" to put exactly the same pictures on both types of sites.

I'd consider putting photos from the same shoot -- but different compositions -- on both types of sites, the better photo as RM and the lesser one as microstock.
09/21/2007 03:29:00 PM · #4
Originally posted by Litl:

Does Alamy mind? They might not like it, but they are not exclusive,s o what can they say. Actually, i have heard some report that a RF license on Alamy gives you a lot more freedom with the picture than on micro, so in a way, a buyer pays more on Alamy, but they get more too. Also, for me, the Alamy pictures are a larger, so i figure I am offering something different to the Alamy buyer to justify the higher cost.


I dont think having the same pic on alamy and micro boils down to what alamy allows. For me it boils down to ethics and I know if I was a company that purchased images through alamy and found out that you were selling the same pics for a fraction of the price at micro I would refuse to buy any more of your pics from any location.
09/21/2007 04:36:49 PM · #5
Originally posted by Kaveran:

I know if I was a company that purchased images through alamy and found out that you were selling the same pics for a fraction of the price at micro I would refuse to buy any more of your pics from any location.


not to mention that i would be bitching HARD to Alamy.

many sites, such as Photographers Direct, explicitly disallow micro shooters. here's their explanation. i don't think Alamy is quite so strict, but i wouldn't go there myself.
09/21/2007 04:51:56 PM · #6
wouldn't go to alamy/PD?, or wouldn't go to posting pictures on both?

Message edited by author 2007-09-21 16:52:17.
09/26/2007 07:11:29 AM · #7
hi, sorry for the late reply. thanks a lot of for your responses to my post. you've given me some more food for thought. in the end, i decided to leave my micro portfolios as they were. with the new stuff that i shoot, i'm uploading my best shots as RM on macrostock and the remaining ones to microstock sites. let's see how it turns out...cheers.
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