Submitting to Stock Agencies

[tina g.]

Can anyone refer me to some stock agencies that I can make submissions to? Any ones

that you recommend? Or where I could get this information?

 

Thanks in advance!

[streetlevel]

Photographers Market (updated yearly) in fine bookstores nationwide. :)

 

Many stock agencies have sections on their websites for photographer submissions with

their process and workflow.

 

Check out Alamy as a for instance.

[serge_kozak]

Try: (Alot of info you are looking for)

 

www.stockphoto.net

www.stockartistsalliance.org

 

-Serge

[d.j._werner]

Tina-

 

send a query with sample/clips to this address-

they are looking for new talent: send SASE with query-

 

Down East Artisans Guild

 

Stock Photo Div.

 

JM Philman

 

PO BOX 798

 

Beaufort by the Sea

 

NC 28516

 

they are expanding, so don't let the "stock photo div" or D.E.A.G. throw you-

 

do not send portfolio- they will request it -if interested

 

it is a colleage of mine- I doubled checked before posting this info- and have permission to pass along the address-/info

 

DJ

[mikael_karlsson]

Tina:

 

You should NEVER sign up with a "stock agency" without checking them out first. Treat it like entering into a business contract because that's what it is. Read contracts very carefully and understand what you're signing.

 

The first thing to do is to determine if the agency represent the type of images you shoot. If you shoot exclusively flowers and landscapes it makes no sense going with an agency specializing in movie star portraits...

 

When I look at an agency I ask for photographer references. If the agency is slow/unwilling to give those I cross that agency off my list right away.

 

Third, if it's a smaller agency, I ask for financial info. Do they have a good cash-flow? Would they be willing to let me examine the books if I wanted to? Do they have enough money to advertise? What is their market and what are typical licensing fees they are getting?

 

Fourth, I look at what they have planned for the future as far as going after new clients/markets go. I ask and check where they advertise, how they advertise, what clients they're trying to get etc. Again, it comes down to compatibility - if the agency is marketing to low end editorial buyers and you shoot really expensive studio set-ups with professional models it probably isn't a good match...

 

Many photographers take this "signing up with an agency" entirely too lightly. Yes, there's some home-work required but you're protecting yourself.

 

I suggest that you search for images of the type you shoot. Look in magazines, books, newspapers and look at the bylines to see who the images are credited to. This often quickly reveals a pattern and you'll see a few agencies surfacing more often than others. Contact those agencies and take it from there.

[david_henderson]

Whilst I agree with Mr Karlsson's advice it starts from the position that you are choosing an agency. The harsh reality is that unless you are extremely talented or very fortunate, its a tough competitive world and its a question of which will accept you, not which will you accept.

 

Stock libraries already have more photographs in many categories- particularly scenics, than they will ever need. Getting into the library is hard enough- getting your work in front of potential buyers is something else.

 

If you do have a specialism at which you're very good, and which knits with the orientation of a particular library, then that's a good place to start. Otherwise its a bit of a numbers game I'm afraid - making lots of submissions to the companies you'll find in the sources indicated above until you find an editor who happens to believe your work will sell, or fills a gap in their portfolio. As I say unless you are either very good indeed or very fortunate, you must be prepared to accept a lot of polite rejection. There's a lot of very good photographers that don't have a stock agency, and that isn't always because they don't want one.

[qtluong]

Both David and Mikael are right. There are a lot of dubious agencies (esp. those cheap online agencies) these days, so you'd better watch out. On the other hand, it's

quite difficult to get into a good one. So maybe the criterion for chosing one is that they would reject you :-)

 

On one professionally-oriented

discussion board, someone mentioned that even after Corbis has accepted you, they'll send back 95-99% of the material you submit to them. Besides being phenomenally talented, the most

sure way to get into a <a href = "http://www.terragalleria.com/stock-photography.html">good stock photo agency</a> is to open you own. I'm serious.