How to sell your photos and illustrations online
This article is written for those who are keen on photography and who want to use this hobby to make extra income. Also, artists who create vector art and want to sell their work may be interested. One of the possible ways to earn money using your own hobby is selling your own works at photobanks and photostocks on the internet.
We are interested in so-called photostocks, where pictures are sold for several dollars and the author gets anywhere from ten cents to 3 dollars per picture. But each picture can be sold many times and this will bring a considerable amount of income. A beginning photographer can earn several hundred dollars per month, as opposed to a professionals income, which can be up to several thousands of dollars. Everything depends on your fantasy, diligence and wish. A photostock keeps more than one million photographs and pictures. Some photobanks have several million artworks. And the number grows every day.
Photostock is an intermediary agent between photographers and customers. It is important to note that by giving your works to photobanks you do not necessarily give up your intellectual property rights.
There are several types of terms of work with photobanks.
1 Non-exclusive rights for sale. In this case you have the right to sell the same works at different photobanks.
2 Exclusive rights for images. You sell your exclusive rights for a picture to a photobank and cannot sell it at any other places. Royalties for such images is greater than others.
3 Full exclusiveness of author. In this case you give your exclusive rights to sell your pictures to the agency. As a rule you get more payments for royalty and other incentives as compared to non-exclusive authors, but you do not have the right to sell your works at other photobanks.
It is important to note that not all banks work with exclusiveness, but all banks work with non-exclusive sales.
There are different kinds of licenses for image customers:
1. Royalty Free. Most often customers buy images by this license. All the rights for the image belong to its author. A customer can use it only with respect to terms of the license. The content of the license can differ from bank to bank: for example, the number of products to be sold with the image can be different, etc. By this license your image can be sold infinitely many times.
2. Extended Royalty Free. This is an extended version of usual RF-license. It is used when the terms of RF license is not enough, for example, when printing a large number of copies or using in commercial project, where your image ensures income (calendars, cups, T-shirts, cards, etc.). This license costs more and accordingly payments to the author are more – usually not less than 10 dollars.
3. Exclusive Buyout. In this case all the rights for the image are sold, including the author’s right to sell or use this photo again. This license implicates costs up to several thousand dollars and is rarely used. Many photostocks do not sell pictures by this license.
There are other kinds of licenses, for example, Right Managed, however they are usually used by traditional protobanks but not photostocks.
There are certain requirements to photographs::
1. You have to be the author of the image!
2. Absence of technical defects: the correct white balance, the right exposition, no noise, focus in the right place.
3. Content: Everything that is used in advertisements, brochures, posters, magazines, etc., and also drafts for designers should be against white background. It is important to remember that before selling photographs with people on them, you have to get their permission to do so – so called Model Release. Every photobank has these available. Also when you take pictures of artworks, architecture or monuments a photobank may require permission – so-called Property Release. While taking photographs be sure that there are no logotypes, signs and other possibly copyrighted objects. Such photographs will never be accepted
4. While sending a photograph or a picture you are to think up a name and some keywords for it. Keywords guarantee successful sales, which is why you have to write as many of them as you can without spamming. Key words have to be precise and describe exactly what is displayed on the picture.
5. Demands for vector drawings are usually as follows: EPS8 format with closed path, not using automatic tracing .
After you have successfully registered and (in some cases) passed an exam you can submit your works to photobanks. But this does not mean that they will be accepted right away. All works are checked by inspectors for compliance with quality and only after that they will be offered for sale. Depending on bank and inspectors’ loading it can take from several hours to one or two weeks.
You can receive the earned money from photobanks using sites such as Moneybookers or PayPal. You can choose a system depending on the country you live in. For example Russian citizens can use only Moneybookers as PayPal does not work in Russia. If none of the payment systems works with your country, you will receive a bank check to get your money.
There are plenty of photostocks in the world, however we will mention only a few that have been checked and recommended.
Shutterstock is a bank that sells images only by subscription. This means that a customer pays a definite sum of money per month and can buy a definite number of any images. It is one of the most profitable banks at present. Its requirements are: an image should be not less than 4Mp. To start selling pictures you have to pass an exam: to send 10 of your works, 7 of which should be accepted. It is totally non-exclusive bank.
Your pay per download is determined by your total lifetime earnings:
Earnings per Download |
Lifetime Earnings |
|---|---|
| $0.25 | Less than $500 |
| $0.33 | $500 to $3,000 |
| $0.36 | $3,000 to $10,000 |
| $0.38 | Over $10,000 |
A photographer gets $28 per image sold by Extended RF. To register you have to send scanned ID (passport). You must have at least $75 dollars at your account to get your money. This bank also sells videos.
Istockphoto is also a profitable bank. It sells pictures individually and by subscription. You need to send 3 images for examination to be registered. Technical requirements for works are the strictest. Exams for photographs and vector drawings are different. You get from $0.20 to several dollars per photograph. An author can work with exclusive license. You must have at least $100 at your account to receive earned money.
StockXpert is a bank that sells pictures either individually or by subscription. The author receives $0.30 when an image is sold by subscription and from $0.50 to several dollars if an image is sold individually. You must send 5 of your works for examination and have at least $50 at your account to get your money.
Fotolia sells images individually and by subscription. There is no entrance examination. Author receives $0.30 when an image is sold by subscription and from $0.33 if an image is sold individually depending on his rank. The demands for the images are soft, but pictures are sold rarely, and you need to have big portfolio to have everyday sales. The bank accepts vector drawings in SVG format. It can make payments starting from $50.
Dreamstime sells pictures either by subscription, or individually. Author receives $0.30 when an image is sold by subscription and from $0.50 if an image is sold individually. You can sell exclusive pictures here. There is no examination. The bank makes payments starting from $100 by request.
© 2007 - 2010 NatUlrich.com All photographs from the website NatUlrich.com may not be used without the author’s written permission. You can buy them in the “Portfolio” section
