A better question might be, “What’s NOT up with stock photography?” Answer? Royalties, number of paid productions, royalty free and rights managed revenues and photographer satisfaction.
A few points on the graph are on the upswing: number of people submitting photos, number of photos being used, number of photos submitted, growth of the microstock agencies’ revenue and the quality of images available to buyers from microstock.
The scales are overloaded with bad news for professional photographers that have depended on stock sales as their major source of revenue over the past few decades. Hand wringing, doomsday predictions and misplaced insults only create the illusion that one is doing something about the situation.
It's not the end of the world, photographers! © Liliya Abdullina | Dreamstime.com
The industry has radically changed. It is not likely to ever return to its glory days. What to do about the current state of affairs?
1. If stock makes up your sole income and your work is so specialized that only a few could fill your niche; congratulations, you are safe for now.
2. If not, develop alternative income and soon. What can you do with your skill set outside of stock? The hard fact is that some of you will choose to leave the industry. You will trade places with the amateurs that left their day jobs to become serious about stock. Those of you who make that decision are not failing but growing.
3. Create innovative images that will satisfy the most discriminating art buyer and place them in rights managed collections. (The revenues may be in decline but millions are still generated with these licenses)
The recession has contributed something to the decline in stock photo reviews.© Stephen Vanhorn | Dreamstime.com
4. Shrink your overheads to match your declining stock revenues. You can do it; most of America has figured out how in the last two years. Start with reviewing renegotiating charges for insurance, products and services.
5. Develop as many revenue streams as possible. That will include participating in microstock for some.
6. Revitalize your assignment business. Only a few have the talent, equipment, business skills and eye to consistently bring back the money shot. Make certain that that person is you by constantly improving and updating your skills and business sense. You may be an artist but you must be a savvy business person to succeed.
Part II What’s up with microstock? To follow
This post first appeared in slightly different form on the ASMP Strictly Business Blog
Great observations Ellen and I have been movin my business along the same lines as you discuss. For us it has been a matter of diversification for the last 2 years.
Educational workshops now makeup better them 30% of my overall income with assimgment work now making up 30% and studio rental 22%
Where microstock once a counted for 85% of our business it now represents less then 8%
My last statement from Getty was for $60. That’s about a hundredth of what I used to make per month from stock back in the salad days of the late nineties, when I was with Photonica. I was able to transition back to assignment work earlier in the decade, so I feel safe there, but the widespread notion throughout my career that stock was a kind of retirement account is thoroughly demolished at this point.
Unfortunately the people that were counting on sitting back and living off their stock photo sales in retirement are now approaching that age. It makes me sad.
Thanks for blogging again Ellen. Just a post from an amateur. After reading this I am very happy to have a well paid job and doing stockphotography as my hobby. It seems to be very tough out there. But, for sure I will try to increase my sales by reading your book.
“Just an amateur” ? I don’t think any endeavor done with passion should be downplayed with the word “just” : ) Hope you enjoy the book and find it useful.