G'Day Guys,

Just discovered the world of micostock photography and am now extremley keen to get into it. So far I've only attempted to join IStockPhoto.com which has failed as I havn't been able to have my photo's accepted for the application ( :oops: ). After doing abit of reading it appears the IStock is one of the harder sites to become successful in so looks like I'll have to try my hand at a few others sites first. Can anyone reccomend 1 or 2 sites to start off with ? I was thinking Shutterstock first up but, since it's a subscription site, does this mean I will need to pay to become a member if I am only selling my photo's not buying ? and secondly, if you want to remove a photo are there any delays or are they removed instantlly ?

I would really like to become successful with this sort of photography but it looks like its going to be a long journey.

Cheers,
Exist

Hi, first it won't cost you anything to sign up as a photographer for shutterstock. You only have to pay the monthly membership if you are a buyer. Istock is fairly tough to get accepted to and shutterstock is as well, however it is well worth sticking to it, because they are two of the best earners. I created a website that you may want to take a look at, it has all the basic information for people interested in microstock. It includes some tips on what it takes to get accepted at the various microstock websites. If you find any of the information useful, please use the links to sign up, so I get a referall. Whatever you do, keep at it, once you get signed up it is really fun. Always exciting to see what has sold and it is a constant learning experience. Just remember to never get discouraged, there were a ton of times that I thought to myself, "I'm not good enough" or "this isn't going to work out," but I stuck with it and I am so glad. Learn from all rejections and improve.

http://www.sprintingturtles.info

One other thing. When I started out I first uploaded to some of the smaller sites that don't require an image test to get accepted. Then you can see what gets accepted and what doesn't. Helped for deciding what best to submit to the bigger stock sites for my application. My website includes these smaller sites and statistics so you can see a comparison of how they do. Just keep it up, you will do great.

Happy Downloads!

Thank you very much for the help, I've decided to sign up to one of the smaller sites just to get my pictures out there first up and continue on with the larger sites later on. One other quick question, I no you can use Photoshop for removing noise, adjusting sharpness, contrast, exposure etc and still sell them but what about, say, removing an object that you do not want there, removing a logo or brand name or adding a white background to images ? (speaking of that, are you allowed to post photos for sale with items aslong as there in not logo or brand name visable on them ?)

Thanks for the help,
Exist

No problem. Once you get your feet wet, then move on to the tougher to get accepted ones. Sounds like you have the drive, if you keep at it you will soon be submitting to all the sites.

As to your photoshop question, yes, definitely. I almost always use photoshop to remove some items in a photo. Whether it is a logo or a distracting item. Just be meticulous about it, because you don't want the removal to be noticeable. The rubberstamp tool is great for doing this. The pen tool is great for doing white backgrounds. Takes a bit to get the hang of it, but once you do isolations are easy. For the most part items in photos are fine with no brand name/logo. There are some weird exceptions to this. One example is Crayons. The Crayola brand crayon trademarked/copyrighted the wavy lines that are on the paper on each crayon, so this can't be displayed in a photograph you sell without a release from Crayola. Istock recently made a new rule on submissions that show a car, since cars are so easily recognizable. My best advice is to read through the faq's and tutorials on each site you upload to. They will help give you a good idea of what can and can't be accepted. When in doubt, submit to one of the critique forums and ask members what they think. Many sites have members that are very knowledgeable and helpful.

Happy Downloads!
http://www.sprintingturtles.info