Shutterstock Photographer Forum :: View topic

jeffbanke · Posted: Sun Feb 12, 2012 10:06 pm

I would post here, but I am not qualified ;-)

tfoxfoto · Joined: 30 Oct 2009 Posts: 259

I am no longer a newbie as I have been here 2 years now, but I can tell you that with hard work, constant submits you can do well here. In those two years I have increased my post to over 2300 images, reached the 36 cent mark, and havent had a 0 sales day in quite awile. YOU CAN DO IT!!! You have to stay with it, and improve all the time. GOOD LUCK TO ALL.

Tracy

alexis84 · Joined: 03 Nov 2009 Posts: 990 Location: Serbia

kenny123 · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2012 4:45 am

marcusvdt · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2012 6:30 am

Hi!
Less than 300 images in my port, so I'm qualified.

Started here in 2009 with images I had in my hard drive. Been approved on the second try, getting 6 images from the first try plus 4 others from the hard drive. Kept uploading only hobbyst photos with very bad approval ratio until july/2010.
In 2010, entire year, I uploaded only 28 photos, all of them hobbyst photos.

In 2011, I started to upload more photos, but still less than the minimum desired. There are people here who uploads more than 20 a week. Total uploads in the year, 122. 90% of them were not made specifically for stock and I never invest more than a few minutes in post processing for stock. Most times I make the photos for other purposes and sometimes for fun. If those photos fit stock I upload them. Approval ratio increased to an average of 95%.

In 2012, I'm planning to increase my upload quantity and variety, going back to photograph nature, landscape, sports, DPChallenge, etc and offering my standard clients the option to have their photos available on SS.

Achievements:
In december/2011 I bought a Canon 5D mkII with 50% of the money from SS and the other part from other photography work.

Conclusion: I still don't want to work hard for stock but I know I could make more money here with more investment in time. Anyway, I like SS and I would recommend it to my friends. I'm approved on other stock agencies, but I don't upload to them. If SS offered an exclusive plan, I'd surely join.

Hope it helps!

Jennifer, I suggest you change the first rule, allowing the veterans to post their stories. Would be more motivational for sure...

ruxpriencdiam · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2012 8:05 am

marcusvdt · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2012 8:10 am

jhuls · Joined: 02 Jan 2012 Posts: 1047

Thanks for all the great posts and encouragement. I am excited today because I am seeing a pick up in my uploads. Still nothing too fabulous, but as long as my uploads increase with the amount of photos I put in my portfolio I will be happy.

I like the advice about shooting stuff in your own backyard/home I think it is true. But I still have fun making the more complicated stuff whether it sells or not. I guess as long as its fun I'll keep doing it. But 90% of my photos are going to be the simple stuff.

I still have a long list of ideas, but sometimes I wonder at what point do you think, I just can't think of another idea. It has to happen sometimes.

jhuls · Joined: 02 Jan 2012 Posts: 1047

okay one thing I am frustrated about today which I would like to see some discussion on is other stock companies.

I submit to around 8 different companies and so far have only had 0 to 3 downloads on each site in about a month of submitting. It makes me wonder if I should even bother. So much work for either absolutely no return to so little it is almost laughable. Is this something that I need to have patience with and keep at it or is is just never going to amount to anything and is just a big waste of time.

On another side note, I still have not been accepted to I***** I can't figure it out I was accepted so easily to the other sites. I've got two accepted but I just can't seem to make them happy with a third. And every time I try again it takes a week for them to review just 1 photo. Starting to get fed up with them I have heard bad things about them anyway and I am wondering if it is even worth it. At this point I would have to go back and submit 100 photos to them to get caught up and they seem so picky about everything it almost seems ridiculous.

ruxpriencdiam · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2012 10:33 am

Give it time and enlarge you port and in the long run it will even out i think about 99.9% of everyone here submits to more then 1 site.

As for IS i tried two times and never made it and with all of the crap i have read about, why worry about them at all.

That's my take on it.

lmel900 · Joined: 13 Mar 2011 Posts: 4961

I upload to 12 sites, and it takes time to get downloads , it is very very slow for me on the other 11. After 9 months , I have 42 dls at DT, 39 at FT, 38 at DP, 10 at 123, 1 at BS, 1 at CS, and all others a big zero lol. I never got accepted at IS, but I'm not planning to upload over there.

woodyone · Joined: 24 Sep 2009 Posts: 431 Location: Here

Unqualified also (just about over a year & just about over the 300). IS is a strange one for me as they are sooo picky about 3D but per image I make about 4 times as much there as on SS - possibly because their pickyness discourages folks who do it well so not much competition.

aldegonde · Joined: 28 Apr 2009 Posts: 430

i'm here since 2009, have nearly 1800 images in my port.
Sales doesn't seem to expand a lot as images are added.

But i still continue because, I like the challenge of getting approved. It gives me a goal. And I learned a lot since 2009.

jhuls · Joined: 02 Jan 2012 Posts: 1047