My favorite stock photography sites

ST8photography.com (http://www.str8photography.com/str8photography/Stock_Photography_-_Best_Microstock_Agencies.html) has a page on his favorite Stock (Microstock) photography sites.  So I thought I would add my two cents.

I mostly agree with his list, but he left out www.istockphoto.com.  This is my fav, because this is where I have had the most sales. Partially due to the fact that it is the first site I started using 3 years ago, but also because on a monthly basis it usually beats the other sites I have uploaded to.  Though some months www.fotolia.com out shines istock.

I think when you are starting out its good to upload to multiple sites, it a great way to learn, since we typically learn from our failure.  You will need a thick skin initially since the getting the hang of stock photography (I’m no expert) will generate a lot of rejection.  On the bright site you will learn quickly from this rejection, and the terse reasons you get from the reviewers.  Also if you upload to multiple sites you will also see that sites have different rules, standards and some subjectivity.

For example here is the list of sites I use in the order of sales

1. www.istockphoto.com
2. www.fotolia.com
3. www.dreamstime.com
4. www.bigstockphoto.com
5. www.stockxpert.com

I have uploaded the same photos to each of these site.  I upload to istock first then if they sell I upload to the other sites.  I use to try and upload to all the sites at the same time, but even with plugins and ftp, it is a pain to upload batches of photo, and sine istock is also the toughest (usually) site, I use it as the gate keeper.  Of course there are exceptions.  I have applied at www.shutterstock.com twice and was rejected twice, the second time I upload my biggest sellers on istock and they still were not interested in me.  Go figure.

The other thing that you have to learn quickly are the rules. My all time biggest seller is a photo of a cruise ship.  I photoshopped out all the lettering and identifiable marks, so its a very generic looking ship. I uploaded it to all the site and I get sales every month.  Then a couple of months ago www.stockxpert.com removed the file because I did not have a property release for it.  If a person is identifiable or a structure you need a release.  The need for property releases seems to be on the rise.

Like I said earlier, I am no expert, but I can say this.  Selling photos on MicroStock sites will make you a more thoughtful photographer, and making sales is fun.  One word of warning.  Don’t let it take over your photography. For a couple of years after I made my initial sales I use to judge the photos I was taking on weather they would sell, or if there was  person in them then I’d need to either photoshop them out of get a model release.  I actually started taking fewer pictures, and I would take pictures that were derivative of photos I had sold.

These days I am mostly shooting, Events, Sports Portraits, Landscapes, Nature and doing some photojournalism.  If at the end of the day I see something that came of of my camera that could be stock I uploaded.

The Micro Stock sites all have lots of information on stock photography and would recommend them as the best place to start and learn about stock photography.