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PhotoIndia.com – Contributor Photographer F A Q s
- Why do we insist on a five year contract?
- How to increase Sales in the age of Digital Photography?
- Can I depend on Stock Pictures for a livelihood or how much money will I make from my pictures?
- How will I know if my picture has been used and when will I be paid?
- Will you take a low-res image on submission and I will supply hi-res image when you need it?
- I used to sell my TPs in 70s and 80s for xyz – how much can I sell the same TP for now?
- I have 15000 pictures, can I start with 100 pictures and see how the sales happen and than I will submit more pictures?
Why do we insist on a five year contract?
- We do not work with thousands of photographers and we understand that it takes time to build relationships and above all, process the pictures, key-word them and get them into circulation.
- With us, you are not just another name or registered user, we frequently interact with our photographers and spend quality time with them to get better pictures.
- As the digital library requires a major investment in equipment and time, we require a commitment to represent selected photographs for a minimum of 5 years.
- We recommend that you submit all your relevant work in one go. (A first submission needs to consist of at least 200 photographs and thereafter it is expected that contracted photographers submit regularly.)
- It makes no sense for you or us to put only 50 / 100 pictures in circulation to begin with. Stock Photography is a numbers game unless your quality is absolutely world class and each one of your picture is a gem. (we find not more than 1-2 % of the photographers belong to this category.)
How to increase Sales in the age of Digital Photography?
We are looking for photographs that capture the diversity of India. From major tourist attractions to everyday scenes, from remote landscapes to the interiors of homes, from popular destinations to little known places off the beaten track. People, festivals, food, flora, wildlife, transport communications, art, architecture, portraits and landscapes are just some of the many subjects we are looking for.
As of now - this is the kind of imagery that is required by various clients - from Advertising Agencies to Publications of all shapes and sizes. In the absence of such images, publications often use photographs that have alien subjects in them (foreign faces, foreign locales etc.) taken from the foreign advertising agencies. Typical examples enlisted below are from the actual feedback that we get from our clients, some of these are from queries that are very recent:
The New India:
- The developing infrastructure of India – the high tech India showing new capacities in infrastructure sectors like power and industry.
- Modern Indian families, healthy and well dressed in various locations, moods and situations.
- Executive life style, going for a run, walking on a treadmill, working out in a state of the art gym.
- Executives (with a distinct Indian look but dressed in a contemporary style working in a modern office.
- Interiors of Call Centres, IT companies
- Internationally operating Indian companies, business/economics like stock exchange trade.
- Human Technology interface in rural / remote places.
- Internationally operating Indian companies, business/economics like stock exchange.
- High quality beautiful travel photographs which are more on the creative side rather than the editorial in approach
- Situational Pictures:
- Two or more people in discussions (should appear like a selling situation)
- Person making a presentation or writing on a whiteboard
- Executives shaking hands.
- People working on laptops at public places
- People in different corporate office settings - conference rooms, libraries, cafeterias etc. People on phones
- People walking smartly on the street (carrying documents, mobile phones, PDAs or a bag or a laptop)
- People smiling or gesturing (like they have just closed a deal)
- Situations like a salesperson, speaking to a family
Editorial Subjects:
- Social Affairs
- Work conditions
- Education
- Infrastructure
- Environmental issues
- We are also interested in high quality beautiful travel photography which would be more the creative rather than the editorial style of photography.
Creation of a new generation of photo-stock:
At any given point of time, certain pictures are always in short supply. Most of the available stock pictures are focused on the Indian exotica, rural India, colour people, street scenes, snake charmers and often clichéd subjects. In short, we do not have what the modern users of images require. We need to create the kind of Photo-Stock that is currently in demand in the country and which is not available with stock agencies. At PhotoIndia.com we are constantly in touch with photo buyers from India as well as abroad.
There is always a possibility of creating stock when you are travelling across the country without much of an effort. This stock could go a long way in creating a revenue stream for you in the years to come. We would keep you informed on a regular basis, what kind of pictures are in great demand and short supply so that you can focus your creative efforts in the right direction.
Can I depend on Stock Pictures for a livelihood or how much money will I make from my pictures?
This is a variable factor which cannot be predicted or written about. However, there is enough market and scope to sell your images provided the images adhere to our - submission guidelines & basically what is in demand today.
How will I know if my picture has been used and when will I be paid?
We email a sales sheet to the photographer when their picture gets selected and paid by the client. The sales sheet contains the following:
• Clients Name
• Thumbnail of the images used with dimensions
• Amount we charged from the client and the amount we will pay you
Payment shall be made by the Agency to the Photographer no later than ninety (90) days from the date the Agency receives payment from its client. A sales statement listing all collected sales with the appropriate sum in a Cheque will be mailed at the mailing address mentioned by the photographer.
Will you take a low-res image on submission and I will supply hi-res image when you need it?
We accept low-res images only for selection purposes and once a photographer has signed as a contributing photographer with PhotoIndia.com, they must submit hi-res images only. All low-res image submissions will be rejected.
I used to sell my TPs in 70s and 80s for xyz – how much can I sell the same TP for now?
It is time for me to address the questions that some of our senior photographers have been asking regarding the possibility of selling their pictures which were shot on transparencies over decades. The situation has changed drastically in the last few years and the quality and quantity of images being produced has increased drastically and the entry barriers demolished completely with the proliferation of the digital media. What took us three decades to produce, now it takes a committed fellow not more than two to three years to match the numbers and to top it up, they are able to offer drum scan quality images to the buyers! It was never easy selling stock images and it has become even more difficult today. Unless you have top quality transparencies of rare subjects, there is no demand for those pictures.
I have 15000 pictures, can I start with 100 pictures and see how the sales happen and than I will submit more pictures?
We recommend that you submit all your relevant work in one go. (A first submission needs to consist of at least 200 photographs and thereafter it is expected that contracted photographers submit regularly.)
It makes no sense for you or us to put only 50 / 100 pictures in circulation to begin with. Stock Photography is a numbers game unless your quality is absolutely world class and each one of your picture is a gem. (we find not more than 2 % of the photographers belong to this category.)
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