The average annual income or a large group of photographers is pretty
meaningless. It depends greatly on how many images a photographer has in
a collection, generally how productive he is, the kind of imagery he
shoots, whether his work is represented by a single agency or many
agencies, which agencies in particular, and probably a number of other
factors.
In theory there should be a major growth in demand in the near future
for video. However, people have been making that prediction for more
than a decade and the demand still doesn’t seem to be taking off. In
fact, videographers who were among the leading sellers of video clips a
decade ago are now reporting that their sales are down 50% from what
they were just three or four years ago.
The 24th annual Graphic Design USA stock survey shows increasing use of microstock by professional graphic designers.
iStockphoto COO Kelly Thompson says the company cannot keep growing
profit at the old royalty rates, so they have to reduce what they are
paying suppliers. The problem is not that the company does not have
substantial profits. Rather, it is Getty Images’ arbitrary standard
for what the gross profit margin in the stock photo industry should be
that causes the problem.
Many who got into the photography business by shooting stock are
finding that relying on stock income alone is insufficient and
increasingly unpredictable. In looking for other ways to earn money
using their photographic skills, some are exploring the wedding
business.
I asked iStockphoto COO Kelly Thompson why the company choose to base
“redeemed credits,” the number that serves as the basis for the new
contributor royalties package, on the number of credits downloaded
rather than the monetary value of the credits.
Many who got into the photography business by shooting stock are
finding that relying on stock income alone is insufficient and
increasingly unpredictable. In looking for other ways to earn money
using their photographic skills, some are exploring the wedding
business.
Beginning in 2011, iStockphoto will implement major changes to how it
calculates photographer royalties. In addition, the company will soon
launch a small higher-priced Agency Collection containing images from
some of the major traditional royalty-free brands and invited iStock
contributors. Contributor reactions are predictably negative, but how will it shake out form a macro perspective?
iStockphoto has announced a major restructuring in how photographer
royalties will be calculated in 2011 and beyond. In addition, within the
next few weeks they will create a small, higher priced Agency
Collection with images from shooters from some of the major traditional
RF brands and selected iStock contributors who will be invited to submit
images to the Agency Collection.