Change View Options:
B2B and Consumers
Getty Images makes it hard for some customers to purchase RM images. See what I learned when I tried to license usage of 4 images from Getty. We complain about the unauthorized use of images online and then we make it almost impossible for many potential image users to find out how to license images legitimately.
Last summer Getty Images launched an API initiative called Connect by Getty Images that made it possible for then to collect a share of the advertising revenue when an ad appears on a page where a Getty Image is shown. One of the first companies to use the API was Yahoo. In the February statements Getty is reporting royalties from some of the early pay-per-view deals. The numbers being reported have alarmed a number of Getty’s contributors.
PicScout has announced the launch of the ImageIRC Post-Usage-Billing Service designed to assure photographers and content licensors that their work will be properly acknowledged on social media platforms which embrace the ImageIRC Post Usage Billing solution.
In March 2011 we published
a brief story about how Noam Galai’s picture of his screaming face had been used extensively all over the world without his permission. The image has gained a reputation as the “Stolen Scream.” But, was it really stolen or did the photographer effectively allow the uses.
Bridgeman Art Library has introduced an iPad app called Bridgeman Art Doodle Live that is a fun way to introduce adults and children alike to the joys of art. The app is available at the
AppStore for £1.49.
Since the beginning of 2012 there has been an explosion of interest by
Venture Capitalists in investing in microstock companies. This article examines the implications.
If your goal is to earn a full-time living from photography -- and
particularly stock photography -- you need to read this series of 14
articles. They were originally written in the summer of 2010. Since then
the general state of the photographic industry has continued to go
downhill. These articles discuss key aspects of the business and issues
that those who want to earn their living taking pictures must consider.
A few years ago when a photographer wanted to make his images available as posters or fine art prints he usually searched for a publisher with access to a network of retail outlets. Assuming the publisher thought the image had market potential he would normally would pay a one-time fee for the rights to make several thousand lithographic copies of an image and through retail contacts make the product available for customers to purchase. The Internet and Print-On-Demand (POD) technology has dramatically changed this market.
ASMP’s “
The Future of Licensing” webinar with Frederic Haber, of the Copyright Clearance Center; Henry Oh, entrepreneur and digital content distributor; Eugene Mopsik, Executive Director of ASMP and Richard Kelly, moderator was held yesterday and can be downloaded here. Licensing was defined as a process that allows a customer to use something that is too expensive for them to own outright.
Getty Images, Inc. has announced the release of
Connect by Getty Images, an innovative new content distribution service. This powerful and flexible API is designed to give Web publishers built-in access within their publishing tools to Getty’s images, as well as the search metadata associated with them.
The photography business has changed dramatically -- and at a very rapid
pace. Kodak is near bankruptcy and trying to sell off its photographic
patents. Most of the photo labs that used to process film and make
prints have long since gone out of business. Locally, Penn Camera
Exchange the largest photo equipment supplier in the region is closing 5
out of its 8 stores. Professional photographers aren’t the only ones
who are hurting.
After the recent CEPIC conference in Istanbul my wife and I joined a
small group touring Turkey. The trip got me thinking about a potential
future markets for still photography. Are you prepared to deal with these markets? Are you willing to sell to these customers?
Creatives need to start exploring ways to deliver their products –
writing, photographs, illustration, video – to students, instructors and
educational institutions without the aid of educational publishers.This article goes into some of the reasons why and how it could be accomplished.
Given Internet capabilities, society is rapidly moving away from
Business to Business (BtoB) transactions and more toward transaction
where small Businesses sell all types of things direct to Consumer
(BtoC). Some images will continue to be used in major ad campaigns and
there will be other sales of stock photography at traditional prices,
but the number of such requests will decline. Meanwhile image use by small businesses and individuals will increase dramatically. Photographers need to start focusing on how they can prepare themselves for the new market.
HP and LicenseStream have launched
Snap Stock Images, a service of Snapfish and a new microstock photo licensing service featuring affordable images from photo enthusiasts and professional photographers. Currently, Snapfish has more than 100 million members in 22 countries. Professional image buyers, including small and midsize business owners, graphic designers, advertisers and marketers, will be able to access hundreds of thousands of images that are available on the site at launch. Many of the images were shot by amateurs, but images from Veer and LicenseStream are also available.
With the introduction of The Costco Art & Image Gallery, Corbis and Costco will sell individual prints and posters as retail products. The images offered are a select group of some 20,000 professional pieces of fine art, photography and illustration from the Corbis collection of more than 6 million images.
Veer has relaunched its Web site,
billing the new treatment as uncomplicated. While Veer still carries traditionally priced stills, it is certainly
catering to the no-hassle customer segment with simplified licensing
and prices that span the gamut—starting at $1.
Universal Images Group,
the distribution business unit of the Virtual Picture Desk, has been
awarded a contract by the Encyclopaedia Britannica to provide an
extensive online library of low-resolution (150 dpi) images suitable
for educational use. The images will be supplied by numerous producers around the world and, together with Britannica's wholly owned content, will become part of a new subscription service, Britannica Image
Explorer.
I
had already been a still photographer for over 20 years when I started
exploring digital video and the motion medium ten years ago. I had
built a successful career shooting editorially for magazines like
National Geographic Traveler, Smithsonian, Travel & Leisure to name
a few, as well as producing annual reports for major corporations.
When digital video hit the scene in the late ‘90’s, I was already
starting to feel a slight frustration in trying to tell certain stories
with a still camera. I was beginning to think and see in terms of
movement and sound. At the same time, technology was making it
possible and affordable with digital video cameras and non-linear
editing software for me to use this medium to tell my stories. The new
tools were a means to an end.
More and more still photographers are getting into video because of the
appeal of the hybrid still cameras that also shoot video.
Photographers love the visual coming out of these big chip cameras –
what’s not to love? But they quickly find out that if they aren’t just
going to be laying visuals down to a music track, they will need to
start thinking about their audio – specifically a narrative track or
one driven by sound bites from interviews. I work in the corporate
sector, as well as create documentaries, so I do a lot of interviews.
The interviews, along with a scripted voiceover comprise my audio track
and drive the story.
I was in Chicago a couple of weeks ago and stopped by
Zacuto.
Zacuto
is a business that has made outfitting DSLR cameras for video a
specialty. They have cleverly engineered an assortment of their party
add-ons that take these cameras to a higher level. They have also
provided solutions to overcome some of these cameras shortcomings.
Depending on the genre you are working in, documentary work, corporate,
indie films or photojournalism will ultimately determine which way
you’ll need to “trick” these cameras out.
In order to find a proxy for which seasonal holidays were important from a stock photography perspective, I decided to look at how many greeting cards were sent. Christmas & Valentine's Day were 1st and 2nd but I was surprised to find Mother's Day in 3rd place. This article goes into more detail about Mother's Day and also surveys stock photography search results associated with the term.
A friend who has been on the periphery of the photo industry for decades now works for a company that manages social media and search engine optimization for a variety of clients, including law firms. She said her office mates disagree on what they are allowed to do with pictures they find on news Web sites. She asked: "Are bloggers allowed to illustrate their blog entries with photos they find on news sites, such as a photo of a sinkhole? What are the rules about using editorial images in a blog post?"
In looking ahead to 2010, photographers should focus on how they will adapt to the new realities of the photography business.
Those selling images to big business at traditional prices must develop a different strategy for addressing the B2SB (small business) market. The strategy needs to embrace the idea of pricing based on value received, so big businesses that receive greater value from the images they purchase continue to pay reasonable fees for that value.