It really doesn’t seem like it’s been over a month since I posted anything on this blog. Well, in some ways it feels like forever. My mindset has been elsewhere lately. I’ve been taking stock.
That term can mean that I’ve been spending time reviewing my life, a personal inventory of sorts, if you will. But that’s not the case here.
I’ve been taking stock . . . . photography.
I have been trying to get into stock and magazine photography for years now. Though I do enjoy photographing people’s portraits, it’s not my true photographic love. I like the shots that tell a story about a place. I get into the details of the inside of a flower. I like the things that make the view want to be or do or taste or smell.
So what I did was try again. Getting photos accepted at stock photography agencies can be a frustrating experience. You decide which images. You edit them. You upload. You title, describe, and keyword. And you submit.
Then you wait. Wait to see if the agency accepts it, and you.
For the past few years, as I’ve researched advertising and magazine photography, I’ve found that very few publishers will assign you the work. Everyone uses stock. And there are plenty of agencies out there to choose from. The concept is that instead of getting $100 for a photo that’s used once, you get $1.00 and hope to sell it a hundred times. It’s sold royalty free. They don’t have to give you any credit or even acknowledge that they’re using someone’s work.
People do make money doing this. That’s what I’ve read anyway. What I’m finding is that it takes a lot of work to get images out there. Don’t get me wrong, I’m certainly not opposed to hard work. It is time consuming work though, even when uploading existing files. Shooting stock, too, takes a different mindset and vision. Each agency seems to have its own style and criteria. Shots that are accepted at some sites are rejected at others.
So after a few weeks of doing this, I’ve got a few dozen shots out there that have been accepted and actually sold some. That was kind of exciting until you realize that your cut is 36 cents or so. But the idea is volume. So we’ll see.
Consider this my excuse and apology for not posting in so long. In the coming weeks I will be writing about some new travel experiences I’ve had in the past few months. I’ve got some stories to tell.
Here’s a link to my Stock Photography Page: Celeste Cota Stock Photography
I’d love to get some feedback from you!
