“Make tons of money from your photos”

Breaking new ground a handful of years ago, new stock photography agencies were formed on the internet, making promises like the above and delivering hope to countless wanna-be photographers. Hobbyists whose friends always admired their work, amateurs who wanted to build their portfolio and their business, and professionals who were not turned off by the new face of stock photography all enthusiastically joined the various start-up companies with dreams of dollar signs dancing in their heads.

So, what really happened – was it all true?

Well, first, we had to learn exactly what “microstock” meant. What we learned was that at no personal expense, we could find an outlet to present our images to potential buyers of stock photography at an outrageously affordable price to the buyers. Something that still has many traditional stock photographers angered by the new agencies, as the affordability of microstock lured many buyers away from the pricey, established suppliers of stock imagery. We also learned that the affordability to the buyer meant super low commissions to the photographers. This is another point that has angered traditionalists as they feel microstockers are “selling out” to the lowest bidder, thereby lowering the pricing level of the market in general. What we also learned is that certain microstock agencies had a huge draw to buyers and proved to be competitive with the traditional stock agencies in quality and provided their photographers with a substantial client base which meant that those small commissions could add up.

Then we had to learn what our rights were and how they were protected by microstock agencies. As we read the fine print, we found that the business model of microstock was vastly different from traditional stock in that the usage rights were pretty liberal and that our photos could be purchased again and again and again by different buyers. We also learned that because of the nature of the internet, it is pretty easy for our photos to be published outside the parameters of the terms of use of the microstock agencies. This is a fact that has caused many of us to re-think our participation in this type of business.

Since the earlier days, varying levels of usage rights have begun to be established, which are more costly to the buyer, and more profitable for the agencies and for the photographers, and has expanded the target market to buyers who would like to do more with the images they purchase than the standard RF (Royalty Free) licenses allow.

Then, once we understood how the game was played, we had to learn what stock photography was. We all had been swept away by the thought of making money by doing little or nothing as our beautiful photography was hungrily purchased again and again by buyers who were stunned by the marvel of our artistry. In actuality, stock photography is a vastly different approach to picture taking and image making and it was an adjustment for many of us to try to learn just what the buyers are looking for. We have discovered that it can be a constantly shifting process that we have to be able to adjust for in order to generate sales on any kind of a consistent basis. Many times, we have felt personally slighted when one agency or another has rejected our photos. We have felt confused by the standards of each agency, which are naturally unique to each agency, and that is as it should be.

But we did learn. And we did get better. And the agencies got stronger. Some photographers and agencies became super-stars, while others couldn’t compete and went by the wayside. To this day, new microstock agencies are still trying to start up, but that is becoming more and more difficult as the established agencies can now compete with the heavy hitting, traditional agencies.

So, back to the initial question – can you REALLY get rich with these agencies? In a word, yes. But it is not without work and perserverence and continuous effort to add quality images to your growing portfolio. There are those who started with virtually no experience, like Yuri Arcurs (considered by most to be the best in his field in the world), who have worked at this indescribably hard and developed a lucrative business from the ground up. There are established professionals that have supplemented their existing businesses nicely by continuing to apply their skills and morph with the shifting needs of the buyers.

I think, though, that there are a huge number of people who join these agencies with visions of grandeur that would answer “no” to the basic question. These are the people that take good pictures and have a few they think they could sell. But when faced with the reality of having to continue to shoot at a fairly brisk pace in order to generate any income that actually adds up, they become frustrated or bored and don’t stay in the game.

Then there are a lot like me. I get income every single month from my participation in the microstock agencies. I’d love to make more, but it is still way more than I’d dreamed of 3 or 4 years ago. I don’t have the imagination or the skill level (although I have slowly gotten better) to be able to generate the type of income I describe in the first set of people. But I do understand that the potential is there, and that if I continue to try to learn and develop my skill, I will continue to be able to generate income from my effort. It has given me motivation to develop my eye and my skill level. And it has given me the training and confidence to present myself to potential private customers as a legitimate photographer. I began to do that a little over a year ago and have been able to slowly build a customer base and fairly consistently generate revenue.

So, just like anything else in life, microstock photography will give you whatever you put into it. Nope, you’re not going to magically get rich on income from the shots of that trip to the Grand Canyon, or the pretty shots of your rose bush. But the potential is endless if your effort is as well!