Who's running your business? If not you, consider a photographers union.

Each of the stock photo companies are trying to get the most money they can in a very competitive market. They are in the business of selling something they don't own, your pictures. It has been working, get more, sell more, then sell more cheaply before the other guy. No stock can raise the cost of pictures while the other is going cheaper. Therefore, they can't pay us more and stay in business.

I really can't believe the end user of our photos know or cares whether a photo in their flyer was bought for $.50 or $50. What they want is a good product that tells their story. The end production cost would most likely be the same for them.

Now we've got three parts to the equation, photographer, stock seller, end user. The photographer wants more money and the end user wants to sell more of his products. The one regulating the price is the stock agency, and they're all in a race to be the cheapest.

The message needs to go out to all stock agencies. Raise your prices or the photographers will stop submitting new work. We need a stock photographers union to raise everyones income, including the stock agencies.

If anyone wants to copy and use or alter this idea to put on other stock sites you are welcome. Greg Pickens