An Australian company called
ImageBrief, has developed a way for buyers to submit briefs directly to photographers for the images they need. This cuts out the stock agency middle men, and eliminates the need for buyers to wade through massive online databases of images.
To participate photographers sign up and indicates up to three areas of specialty. Whenever a buyer, anywhere in the world, requests an image that falls into the photographer’s general category of work the photographer receives an email. Included in the email is a description of what the buyer needs, the budget and the timeframe. The minimum budget accepted is $200 and the minimum time frame is 24 hours from the time the email is sent.
If the photographer has images on the subject, he uploads them for consideration. If the buyer eventually decides to use one of the photographer’s images the photographer receives 70% of the fee quoted on the original request.
Chances are the subjects requested will be specific, hard to find images. If a lot of people shoot the same general subject the photographer may spend a lot of time uploading before someone actually uses one of his images. Chances are that photographers who photograph unique, hard to find subjects will achieve greater success that those who photography common subjects in a unique way. ImageBrief is looking for stock and not asking anyone to shoot images. However, if the request is very specific, the photographer is reasonably sure no one else has access to the subject matter and the price and deadline are right the image may be worth shooting in some cases.
On the other hand, many photographers who shoot more common subjects have discovered that their great images often get buried in today’s massive databases. If buyers will brief such requests the site may offer a way for photographers to get their images seen.
ImageBrief has recently expanded its operations to London and Capetown, South Africa and will officially launch into the US later this month at the
New York Photo Festival.
The company’s pitch to buyers is that ImageBrief makes finding the right shot far easier than searching through massive online databases and gives the buyer greater budget control. “Gone are the days of struggling to refine search criteria to find the right shot,” they claim.
"Our agency and publishing customers love the ease of licensing images via ImageBrief," said CEO Simon Moss. "Less than a month after expanding into London, we're finding creatives in one of the world's most heralded creative cities are embracing the model over the traditional stock libraries, and have started briefing in their image needs via ImageBrief".
"They're finding fresh, unique shots which haven't been seen before, and because they can define their budget and usage terms up-front, they are in complete control of the process."
Photographers are accepted by ImageBrief based on the strength of their portfolio, ensuring a high standard of imagery is available. With a global network of more than 2600 photographers now accepted and many more requests flooding in, the content available to buyers is exceptional. Publishers including ACP Magazines, Australia's leading magazine publishing house, are also contributing their range of high quality images to meet briefs, meaning ImageBrief customers have access to a wider-range of high-quality relevant shots.
ImageBrief has contributing photographers from 102 countries. Customer briefs are coming in from across the globe as creatives discover there is an easier way to get the shot they need on brief, on budget and on time.