Category Archives: Stock Photography

How Does Payment from Stock Photography Work

I have written a series of posts on Beyond Here about stock photography, and specifically about micro stock photography. It has been exciting that readers of Beyond Here have opened micro stock photography accounts and are starting to earn an income from their images.

If you’d like to read those earlier posts, two of the most popular posts are here:

One common question from new stock photographers is ‘how does payment from stock photography work?’ My first advice to these photographers is not to worry about downloads and income in the early stages of their stock career, but to focus on building their portfolio. But I understand they still want to know how the payment function works. So here we go.

You need to meet the minimum payment level before requesting a payment

1, Minimum Payments. Each micro stock photography site has a minimum payment level. That is the minimum you need to exceed before you can request a payment. I assume this is so that the micro stock sites are not processing thousands and thousands of very small transactions.

I am an exclusive contributor at iStock where the minimum payment is USD$100. That means, when your balance from royalties from downloads of your images exceeds USD$100 you can request payment of those funds. Other micro stock sites may have different minimum payment levels. When I was contributing to Shutterstock in 2008 and 2009 the minimum was USD$70.

2. Payment Method. Again, the way that you get paid can vary slightly depending on which site you are using. Using iStock as the example you can currently choose between cheque, Paypal, Skrill, pre paid Mastercard, or direct deposit (for US account holders).

I live in Australia and have always used PayPal as my payment method. iStock has a published weekly payment schedule, and the funds appear in my PayPal account within 5 business days from that date. From there I transfer the funds from Paypal to a nominated bank account. It takes a few days to appear in the bank account, but it is a very simple transfer process.

3. Payment Frequency. iStock’s payment terms also outline that you can request only one payment per week. I assume this is so that they are not processing multiple payments to a single contributor. When you are starting out, the USD$100 minimum will seem a long way off. But with persistence it won’t be long until you are requesting a payment every week.

The payment process from micro stock sites is straightforward and they are processing thousands of payments each week. You will need to look into what are the payment methods your stock photography site offers, and then set up the appropriate account. For example, if you decide to use Paypal, you will need to set up a Paypal account and link a bank account to it. This is also a straightforward process which can be done online.

So if you are starting out in stock photography, don’t be anxious about the payment process – it’s easy. Instead focus on building a portfolio of quality stock images and trust that the downloads and royalties will come in time.

Thanks for reading ‘how does payment from stock photography work?’ I hope it has been useful for you.

Moving iStock Forward?

Last weekend iStock, one of the leading microstock photography agencies, implemented some significant changes in the pricing of their images. I outlined those changes in the post My Take On this Weeks iStock Announcements. So what has happened since then, and is it moving iStock forward?

The most significant change iStock introduced was to make files of all sizes the same price. Previously a small size image would be cheaper than a larger size. That meant that buyers who were using the image on the web only would buy the smallest size, and a buyer who was going to use the image in print would buy a larger sized image for a higher price. After the changes, all sizes are the same price.

Contributors will have to wait until subscription sales are reported to fully understand the impact of the changes

So what has been the impact on buyers and contributors? After less than a week of the ‘new iStock’ there is mixed reaction from buyers and contributors. Buyers who mainly purchased small size files for web use have been very vocal that the changes have resulted in a large price increase for them. And in effect, for this buying group, they have. These buyers have expressed their anger in iStock discussion forums and in social media. Many have said that they will use up their current credits and then move to other microstock agencies. To see some examples, check out the iStock facebook page. For me, as an exclusive iStock contributor, it’s pretty ugly reading.

What is unknown is the response from large buyers who mainly purchase larger sized files. For this group the changes are effectively a price decrease. So that should mean an increase in downloads.

The way the new pricing structure works, this group has an incentive to use the subscription program rather than make individual downloads. While individual sales are reported as they happen, subscription sales are only reported in the middle of the following month. So subscription sales being made in September will not be reported to contributors until the middle of October. It won’t be until then that contributors will know whether there has been a large increase in downloads from this buyer group.

What has the contributor response been to date? Well, it has been more balanced than the buyer response. Some are reporting an increase in sales, but many are reporting a decrease. Contributors with a lot of content in the Vetta collection seem particularly upset. These high priced files have become much more ‘affordable’. The price decrease also means a decrease in royalty per download for the contributor. To generate the same total royalty will need a large increase in volume which is not apparent yet. But in reality, contributors will not know the total impact until subscription sales are reported in the middle of October.

What’s my experience? My downloads and average $ per download have both decreased since the changes. That said, we are less than a week since the changes were made.

I am going to resist the urge to jump to any conclusions until we have more data. I’m sorry and disappointed that many buyers of small images are upset and are considering moving to competitors. But I don’t yet know the impact of larger buyers through the subscription program. I will wait to see those results before considering changing course.

I am hoping there has been a large increase in subscription sales. iStock and its owners, Getty Images, will be hoping so too. The direction they are taking iStock is very difficult to reverse, and the customers who leave will be nearly impossible to attract to return. Such a big move would not have been made without detailed research – now I hope the reality matches the research. Fingers crossed.

Are you an iStock buyer or contributor? Do you think the changes are moving iStock forward?

My Take on This Weeks iStock Announcements

Over the last 3 months I have written a series of posts on Beyond Here about stock photography. Several readers have since opened microstock photography accounts and become contributors. Many are turning their passion for photography into an income. Super.

In those posts I have shared my positive experiences with iStock, where I have been a contributor since 2008 and an exclusive contributor since 2010. This week iStock announced some significant changes that will come into effect on 15 September 2014. Here’s my take on this weeks iStock announcements.

First, some background. In April 2014, iStock introduced a subscription offering in addition to its normal offer. This allows high volume image buyers to purchase high volumes at a fixed price. This is an area where competitor site – Shutterstock – had been doing considerably better than iStock for many years. iStock’s subscription offer seemed to be a re-focus on the large volume buyer.

In this weeks announcement iStock states that ‘in only a few months, these subscriptions now represent a meaningful percentage of total iStock sales and materially increased spend per customer’.

It is the final part of this message which I find interesting – the ‘materially increased spend per customer’. In microstock photography there has long been an obsession with the calculation of dollars per download to assess value. The statement from iStock suggests their thinking has changed. If a customer is spending $1000 per month on images and buys 1 image from iStock for the month for $100, the revenue per download is $100. What that statistic overlooks is that the customer is spending $900 with competitors. The announcement suggests to me that iStock are refocussing to look at that remaining $900.

Unfortunately for the buyer, iStock’s highest quality content has previously been excluded from the subscription offer. That is about to change.

So, what’s changing?

iStock are taking several steps to ‘dramatically improve the simplicity of the iStock site, search and messaging’.

The key changes include:

Offering just one payment method – credits
Dividing the collection into 2 tiers
Implementing one price per file

What do the changes mean?

(1) Offering just one payment method – credits

iStock previously offered two ways to pay – the buyer could use credits, or they could use a credit card to pay for images directly. The credit method suited the regular buyer, the credit card method suited the occasional buyer.

Going forward buyers will only be able to use credits. Discussion in the iStock forums suggests that this change will simplify the coding on the site. It seems again, that iStock are focusing on the needs of the large volume buyer and are prepared to fore-go the needs of some smaller buyers. This seems a fair trade off, if the large buyers in the example above bring more of their monthly budget to iStock. I like this approach. It strikes me as another application of the 80/20 rule. I expect 80% of downloads come from 20% of buyers, and iStock seem to be tuning in to that 20% of buyers.

(2) Dividing the collection into 2 tiers

iStock’s collections were previously divided into 4 areas – Main, Signature, Signature+, and Vetta. From the middle of September that will be consolidated into 2 tiers – Essentials (standard content) and Signature (premium content). The old Main content will become the Essentials tier. The old Vetta, Signature+ and Signature collections will form the new Signature tier.

The big implication here is that Vetta and Signature+ content will become significantly cheaper – good for buyers, and potentially good for contributors only if an increase in downloads makes up for the reduction in royalty per image the contributor will receive (because of the lower price).

The second big implication here is that the best content on iStock (Vetta) will now be available to those buyers who have taken up the subscription offer. This will make the subscription offers more attractive.

(3) Implementing one price per file

Currently the price paid per file downloaded depends on which size the buyer wants. A small file suitable for web use only is cheaper than a large file suitable for printing. From the middle of September the price will be the same regardless of the size. This is a very big change for iStock. It will make life much simpler for buyers. It will be to the advantage of buyers needing large sized images and to the disadvantage of buyers only needing small sized images.

Again, this seems to support the view that iStock has asked and listened to what the high volume image buyers want. And they seem to want access to the best images in the subscription offer, simpler collection structures, lower pricing, and more transparent pricing.

What’s my take?

iStock’s moves are bold and have the potential to re-shape the microstock industry again. iStock has a reputation for having a high quality collection of images – and the Vetta collection is the jewel in that crown. There will be high volume, large budget buyers who are now considering switching to iStock. There will also be current iStock customers considering spending more of their total budget with iStock.

I expect these moves will generate a higher volume of downloads, at a lower average price per download. iStock will be counting on the volume increase to drive total revenue increases. Whether that happens will be known in a few weeks.

What’s the risk?

There is a lot at stake for iStock. Successful execution could see benefits for buyers, contributors, and iStock itself. Failure could see current customers move to competitors, and exclusive contributors looking for alternative sales avenues for their images.

Overall, I am very positive about the boldness of this strategy from iStock. I can see benefits for buyers and contributors. But having a good strategy is only half of the challenge – being able to execute it is another question. iStock’s record for implementing major change over the last 5 years is not great – I’m hoping this time it will be different.

iStock is making a big move in 2 weeks time that may re shape the stock photography industry. It seems to be focussing on the needs of the high volume, large budget buyer. I like the focus and the offer. As an exclusive contributor I just hope iStock execute this well.

That’s my take on this weeks iStock announcements. What’s yours?

Simple Stock Concepts

Earlier this week I wrote a post called Starting in Stock Photography. I have had several people contact me who, since reading that post, have opened microstock photography accounts and become approved contributors. How very cool! Within a week, they have gone from enthusiasts – to being able to generate an income from their images. This post looks at where to next, starting with simple stock concepts.

When your first become an approved microstock contributor there is a tendency to want to upload all the images that sit on your hard drive – pictures of flowers, trees, landscapes, and anything else you have. There is a perception that it will just be a matter of uploading those images and waiting for the money to roll in. Danger sign! While it can feel like progress to have images in your account, most contributors find that this burst of energy produces very few downloads.

So, what should you do?

Stock photography has a huge range of uses. Many of those are websites or print material which help to tell a story. Images which help to tell a story are going to do better than plain landscapes or pictures of flowers.

Let’s look at some simple stock concepts and images.

A simple stock concept, bullying

The first image is one which shows a concept of bullying. It was shot outdoor, on a cloudy day. This is a simple image of a much-talked-about topic. The subject is clear, and the message is clear. Some space around the subject also gives room for a graphic designer to crop the image or to add some text on the wall to the left. Don’t think that a successful stock image has to be a masterpiece, simple stock concepts executed well are the key. I have used this image on Beyond Here before. It is a good example of a simple stock concept. It was shot and uploaded in 2012 and has been downloaded more than 400 times.

Finance concept

In the second sample image – I chose to show an example which doesn’t involve a model. Stock images can be shot with household objects and simple lighting. This shot did use a studio soft box, but could have used a lamp or window to light the subject. It was shot with a macro lens, and with a black sheet as the background. Finance and business themed images are popular.

Concept – blue collar worker on strike

The third image is a more specific theme, a blue collar worker on strike. The models clothing has been themed appropriately. Again, this is a simple image which communicates a clear message. This style of image will be slightly more challenging for the beginner to achieve as it involves multiple light sources. When you are ready to move on to having different light sources, have a look at this post to learn how to shoot this image.

Household objects can be used to create stock images

The fourth image utilizes ‘props’ which you can find at home. This is a normal kitchen jar, some money, and a sticky note. The blue background is a poster size piece of paper. In this case the lighting comes from studio soft boxes, but a similar look can be achieved by placing the subject and background near a large window.

Rather than uploading all the old images sitting around on your computer, I recommend:

thinking up image concepts
research what is already available in image libraries
focus on shooting clear, simple images which tell a story
repeat this process!

If you have questions from this post, please leave a comment. If you would like to receive a weekly email from Beyond Here please sign up in the box at the top right of this page.

I’m excited that people who read last week’s post have taken action and set up their own microstock accounts. I hope this post helps them in the next step – building a portfolio and generating their first downloads. Good luck in shooting simple stock concepts!

Starting in Stock Photography

This weekend I commented on an interesting post in a Facebook group. This led to a series of private messages asking me about starting in stock photography. While earlier posts on Beyond Here have covered elements of stock photography, I haven’t written a post for people considering getting started. So here it is – starting in stock photography.

First, let me tell you about the Facebook group. I am not a big Facebook user – you can find me at Craig Dingle Photography Pty Ltd – but have recently joined a forum called Aussie Photography. It is very impressive for the quality of images posted, but more for the positive environment created by the members. It must be very well moderated to achieve such a positive, helpful group. I encourage you to check it out, whether or not you live in Australia.

In that group I commented on a post where the member was inquiring about how to deal with issues associated with client cancellations. The photographer was doing 5-7 shoots per week but seemed to be struggling with cash flow. I suggested stock as one way to generate a steady cashflow. That lead to a wave of private mail messages. They were mainly asking for more detail about stock photography and how to get started.

Simple concepts can do very well as stock images

How Does Stock Photography Work?

Stock photography works on the principal that it will be easier and more cost effective to buy an existing image than to get a photographer to shoot a new one. For example, if you need an image of a koala, you can buy one for less than $20. That is going to be cheaper and quicker than getting a photographer to shoot a new image for you.

From the photographers point of view, the stock photography model works on the basis of generating a high number of downloads (sales) for a relatively small amount per download. And again, in the case of the koala image, the photographer uploads the image to the stock photography site, and that image can be downloaded by multiple buyers. I have images dating back to 2008 in my stock portfolio. It seems amazing that images taken back then are still generating an income for me.

A significant income is possible through stock photography

How Much Income is Possible?

This was the most common question I received after the Facebook post. Of course, the answer is – the sky is the limit. There are people generating hundreds of thousands of dollars per annum via stock photography. They are in the minority. But it is a pity that most of the people I swapped messages with today had a view that you couldn’t make real money in stock photography. It is possible to make a significant income, but it will start out small, and it will require persistence. I have uploaded over 1000 images per year for 6 years now. I am not in the top echelon of stock photographers, but have generated an income well in excess of 5 figures per annum for the last 3 years. I expect to be able to maintain that level, as outlined in this post.

What Type of Images are Popular?

This was the second most asked question after my Facebook post. It is not an easy one to answer. If you look on a stock photography site, you can search nearly any subject and find images with hundreds of downloads. Try, diced tomatoes, for some really well lit and successful stock images. Pick another obscure subject and you will find the same.

That said, if you can shoot images with a clear theme they have a good chance to be downloaded. Again, search a stock site for ‘global warming’, or ‘workplace bullying’ or just ‘bullying’. You will find clearly themed, well executed images which have been downloaded many, many times. Nice.

What if you don’t want to shoot images like those? Well, study the type of images you do like to shoot, and see what sells. I can tell you in advance that simple, plain, uneventful landscapes will not be popular. There are just too many of them. But, if you have landscapes that are very well lit, or contain iconic content (like the Sydney Opera House), they have a good chance to do well. (The Sydney Opera House can only be used in editorial images – I will explain that in another post).

Sydney Opera House

When people are starting in stock photography – I encourage them to shoot the type of images they like. If they are wildlife shooters – shoot wildlife. If you like shooting architecture, shoot architecture. Got the idea? As your skill level and success grow you will find other areas of interest that have a market.

What’s My Story?

I got started in stock photography in 2008. At that time, I wasn’t very successful but I could see the power of being able to shoot an image once, and have it downloaded for years afterwards. In many ways, stock photography is a form of passive income. Make the effort to shoot the image once, and get paid multiple times.

Like many stock photographers, it took me a long time to come to grips with the quality standards and to understand what types of images would sell. I like to shoot wildlife and first came across some success when shooting images of flying foxes. They are popular in the lead up to Halloween each year. While it is a fairly small market, I was able to do well by shooting a wide range of flying fox images and uploading them in the weeks before Halloween. At that time, there wasn’t much competition either – that has changed now.

I have been successful with Flying Fox images at Halloween

Today I have over 6000 images available to be downloaded. My most successful files are of people doing something and with a clear theme. (I still shoot and upload wildlife images, mainly because I like to).

What Stock Sites Should You Consider?

There are a growing number of stock sites where you can upload your work. But I would suggest starting in stock photography with the largest and best known sites because they have the most buyers. I suggest Shutterstock, Dreamstime, and iStockphoto. (You can find a link to iStockphoto on the right hand side on each page of this blog).

Each of these sites have millions of files available. Do a search on a topic that interests you. What is there? How can you add different files? Is there something to learn from the files which are successful?

What About Model Releases?

Where ever a stock image contains recognizable people, it will require a model release to be accepted by the stock library. A model release is a document that provides permission to use the person’s image. Model release templates are available from all the major stock photography sites. You simply download, complete, sign, and upload the release with your image. They are not hard – and once you are familiar with them they are straightforward.

Is Stock Photography Easy?

Starting in stock photography is easy. You just go to a stock photography site and open an account. Try, you will have it done in just a few minutes. But succeeding in stock photography is not easy. There is lots of competition and you need a large number of downloads to generate a meaningful income. That generally means you need a large number of files, and that takes time, skill, and persistence.

Can Anyone do It?

I believe anyone can succeed in stock photography (I can hear people criticizing that statement already!) One thing all successful stock photographers have in common is persistence. They research image concepts, shoot quality images, and repeat the process. They keep at it. Over time they build a large and diversified portfolio. They don’t give up. Persistence is the key.

Where to From Here?

I’ve tried to keep this post simple. If you have questions, please add a comment to this post. I will do my best to answer them for you. If you would like to receive a weekly update of popular posts on Beyond Here, please go to the top right of this page and sign up.

Give Me More!

If you are ready to get cracking, consider this ebook called Build a Five Figure Income in Your Spare Time through microstock photography. It is available to download for $5.

Thanks for reading this post. I wish you success as you are starting in stock photography!!

Featured Photographer Rob Mattingley

Welcome to a new section on Beyond Here – where we meet featured photographers from around the world. First is Rob Mattingley from Canada.

Rob is a stock photographer based in South West Ontario, Canada. He supplies images exclusively to one of the world’s best known microstock agencies (iStockphoto). He is also one of their discussion forum moderators. In his early microstock days, Rob was known for his friendly, helpful approach to other contributors, and for modelling in own stock images.

Rob, tell us about Rob Mattingley Photography and the type of images you make.

Family Portrait. Copyright Rob Mattingley

Hi Craig – thanks for having me! I am based just outside Toronto, Ontario, Canada and primarily focus on stock photography. Occasionally I am asked to help out taking photos for a variety of events, but most of the time I’m shooting stock (when not taking photos of my family). A good chunk of my stock photography came from two events I attended over the past few years, but I also have a bunch that were taken closer to home. I try to get as many “people images” as I can – but I also created a bunch of “child like drawing” images over the years which have proved to be successful.

In the early days of your microstock photography career you regularly featured as a model in your own images. How did you manage being on both sides of the camera?

It definitely takes a lot of trial and error when trying to take these kinds of self portraits, that is for sure! I often find myself too far on the side of the image and then need to adjust myself in the next shot. It is a lot of fun though as you can go for as long as you want – and the model doesn’t cost you any money!

Angry Painter. Copyright Rob Mattingley

Beyond Here is going to call these “stock selfies”. Where have some of your stock selfies appeared in use?

I am a big fan of the Google Image Search for finding my photos in use. Some of my stock selfies have shown up on websites either to sell a product or to help tell a story. A friend in England found a photo of me on a bank billboard which I thought was pretty cool. My favorite find though had to be when one of my self portraits ended up on the American television program TMZ. I’ve managed to sell quite a few of my stock selfies and my most downloaded image is one of me as a construction worker – I guess I look the part!

Construction worker. Copyright Rob Mattingley

You have been an active contributor to microstock forums and are now a forum moderator. What is it about the interaction with clients and contributors that you enjoy?

Honestly, I just like helping others whenever I can! As an iStock moderator, it allows me to be able to point people in the right direction to get the answers they need. For a lot of people iStock is their main income so I want to help make sure that they can quickly find what they are looking for and get back to taking photos. I remember when I first started, I saw a lot of new contributors asking the same questions, so I decided to put together a FAQ for “newbies” so that they could find everything they needed in one place. It was great that so many people found it useful.

Rob, you have attended organised stock photography events with other microstock photographers. Can you tell us about them, and how they have benefited your photography?

Line of scrimmage. Copyright Rob Mattingley

I have been lucky enough to attend two fantastic events through iStock. The first one I attended was in Utah in 2011, hosted by Rich Legg. We had a 3 day shoot with 12 different “stations” where we had the ability to take photos of things such as indoor rock climbing, auto mechanics, police officers, a yoga class, and a backyard pool to name a few. The second was in Texas in September 2013, hosted by Steve Debenport. We had a 2 day shoot that was made up of various business scenarios on the first day and American football on the second day. Both of these events were very well organised and had lots of models to work with. I met some fantastic photographers who were willing to help me learn. I was able to add 250 images from each event which really helped build my portfolio. Definitely a great experience each time!

Policewoman. Copyright Rob Mattingley

For Beyond Here readers starting in microstock today, what are your tips for success?

It is definitely getting harder to make a name for yourself in stock photography these days as there is so much competition. I would suggest that if you want to be successful the first tip would be to take it seriously! Obvious I know, but so many people don’t do that. You need to do some research to see what makes a good stock shot and how to make it possible. You typically need to have models “doing something” – but that doesn’t mean you can’t use friends and family members (or yourself, if you are like me!). Most sites have millions of images so you need to make sure that you always upload your best work and keyword it properly or else it won’t be found. I started roughly five and a half years ago and I definitely learned a lot in my time at iStock and look forward to what the future brings!

Thank you to Rob for being Beyond Here’s very first featured photographer.To connect with Rob Mattingley, look for the Rob Mattingley Photography facebook page or follow his work through his istockphoto portfolio.

Making Unique Portraits

In this post we look at an example of making unique portraits without spending hours in post production.

For this stock photography shoot, the model had very long red hair. We decided to make a feature of her long hair, to make an interesting and unique series of images.

A unique portrait created using fishing line and parental support

How did we set about making these unique portraits? For the first portrait, we took her plaited hair and attached several pieces of fishing line at different intervals along the length of her hair. Her parents stood on each side of her, holding the fishing line. Then it was a matter of raising or lowering the different sections to achieve the wavy pattern. The total time to shoot this image was about 15 minutes. That consisted of preparing the fishing line, attaching it, and then taking a series of images to get the right look. What about post production? There were small parts of the fishing line visible in her hair and against the white background. These took about 5 minutes to remove in post production. There you have it, making unique portraits version one.

For the second image, the idea was similar, but the execution was different.

Unique portrait created using a coat hangar threaded through her hair

In this case, we unwound a wire coat hanger, and threaded it through the models hair. This time, her hair was in a single plait. This made it possible to create more solid shapes out of her hair – in this case a large question mark. Once the shape was formed in the hair, again a parent held the coat hanger – which protruded from her hair. This one took longer to make. The coat hangar had to be threaded through the models hair, then shaped appropriately, and then the images taken. This took approximately 30 minutes and I was grateful for a very patient model. Again, about 5 minutes was required in post production to remove the coat hanger and parents hand which were visible in the corner of the shot.

There you go, making unique portraits without spending hours in post production.

If you have found this interesting, you may be interested in these related posts:

Do you have a story to share about creating unique portraits? Please add a comment to this post.

My Take On Microstock Photography

The microstock photography industry is going through a period of change. This post is my take on microstock – and whether it is still possible to make a financial return through microstock.

I have been actively contributing to microstock photography sites since 2008. This was firstly through sites including Shutterstock and Dreamstime, and since 2010 as an exclusive contributor to istock (owned by Getty Images)

In 2008 the istock discussion forums were very active. Contributors were reporting strong growth in download numbers. It seemed that every day there were people posting they had “ditched the day job and were now full time istockers!”

Those times have changed. Today the istock forums are not as active, and there is almost no-one reporting increases in download numbers.

Challenging times for microstock contributors

So what’s changed?

istock and other microstock sites have increased prices. It is no longer “cheap” to buy good quality stock images.
there are more competitors. The number of stock photography sites has increased and continues to increase.
there are a lot more contributors
there are even more images

My average royalties per download have increased fourfold over the last 3 years. On the surface, that sounds great. But the trade-off has been a reduction in the number of downloads. Overall my total monthly royalties have remained steady, despite an increase in portfolio size.

The total market has seen a very significant increase in the supply of stock images, without the same growth in demand.

What does the future hold?

If you are a customer looking for stock images, the growing supply of images is going to give you a huge range of images to choose from. Given the very competitive nature of the market, you should be able to get these at fair prices.

For contributors, I see it being very difficult to make a full time income from microstock photography in the future. That said, microstock continues to generate a significant supplementary income for me and many others. I expect to be able to continue to build my portfolio and maintain the current level of income. It is a very worthwhile part of my photography income and I encourage others to commit to microstock.

Are you a contributor to microstock? What is your experience? What are your expectations?