Have you ever stopped to really think about who your buyers are? Well I have and guess what�they�re design geeks. Design geeks are a breed of their own. They care more than you can imagine about small details, and they love images with subtle messages that don�t bonk them over the head. If you can learn how to give design geeks what they want, microstock will be very kind to you.
I have a "test group" of some of my most prominent buyers. I often discuss specific shoots with them Chaussures TN and I sometimes like to pick their brains in general interviews. The info they give me is crucial and very very very (very) helpful. In this post I�ll give you an overview of things they�ve told me that initially came as a surprise.
1. Subtle is better then loud� (Yes�.we get it, alright!)
When Nike Tn it comes to a really great stock image, less is more. Let me just say that again: less is more. Really. Have you never done a shoot and thought, "I nailed it! This will sell like hotcakes," but when you got it online sales were dismal? In this case, maybe your images were too literal. Designers will often provide comments like: "no no no� this is too corny, too bold, or too straight forward." Translation: if you spell a concept out too plainly, your image has no magic. Subtlety equals sophistication.
Consider the shot to the right. We don�t need any more information to understand that this is two young people in love relaxing on the beach. Because the image is subtle, it appeals and actually speaks volumes. In it there hints of things we don�t see but are led to imagine, which is great.
You know how when you read a great book and then see the movie, it�s the movie that often disappoints? Well, why were you disappointed? Because the literal interpretation wasn�t anything like what your imagination could cook up. The subtle images I�m talking about are more like the intriguing book and less like the literal spell-it-out movie.
An image where less is more screams "fill in the missing slots yourself" and suddenly you�re involved and you love it�. Well no wonder! You designed it in your own imagination.
2. It�s about the story
In microstock everybody tries to make blockbuster superhit images (me included) but lately I�ve come to realize that if I want to be a step ahead I need to shift gears� downward. Today my shootplan is nearly empty. It contains hardly any pictures that I want to redo. What is does contain is a lot of text. Now in my planning, I focus on telling the story of a shot. How did the people get here? What are the still-life images in the environment that support the story? What are the props needed for making the shot look real? With this kind of planning I can shoot a concept and end up with many images that will convey a running story using the same subject matter.
Why do I do this? It�s because my buyers constantly keep saying the same thing: "when we find an image we like, we will most often need more then one image from that shoot and we often cannot find even the most simple images from such shoots." My
buyers say they will pass on a great image if the rest of the images from that shoot are missing or not usable for some reason. This is a problem for agencies like iStock, which have upload limits that force photographers to upload their best shots only and destroy the coherency of the shoot.
3. Be different or be dead
My buyers tell me they are simply sooooooo tired of seeing the same shots over and over again. They say microstock lacks creativity. I will rephrase this, because I personally don�t think microstock lacks creativity, however I do agree that it�s missing a certain something. That �something� is shots done outside the photographer�s comfort zone.
When big traditional agencies talk about the characteristics of great stock photographers, they don�t mention the ability to create stunning photos. They do mention the ability to create rare shots. If you want to stand out from the crowd instantly, execute shoots that are hard to plan, hard to shoot and hard to do.
Many microstock photographers have had their photographic self-esteem shoot through the roof over the last couple of years. They�ve jumped from amateur to pro, and they�ll often approach traditional agencies with gusto and then be baffled as to why their application was turned town.
Well, the bad news for these photographers is that the big agencies do not consider them to be true professionals. They are "comfort" shooters, and these are a dime a dozen. There will be very little room for comfort shooters in the future of microstock and I predict we will see a lot of forum whining as these kinds of shooters start losing income, fast. The good news is that if you�re willing to go the extra mile, you will be one of the few and you�ll face less competition.
4. The devil is in the details
Often, buyers say: "I was just about to download this perfect business shoot and when I looked closer, the girl had a freaking tattoo on her neck!" In a way we�ve never seen before, microstock is the "handyman, improvised, mixed together, do-it-yourself" of stock photography. Tennis socks showing under business suits, overt sexuality in the wrong context, inappropriately young businesspeople, weird looking clothes, weird looking models, weird location, weird haristyle. etc. are a huge turnoff to buyers. Be critical of your pictures. Scrutinize them and decide what does and doesn�t belong.
And speaking of leaving a little to the imagination�The biggest and most ironic error I see all the time is the cleavage mistake. While shooting serious subject matter a photographer gets carried away a little and thinks "well if I like what I�m seeing, chances are that other people will too!"� Um, NOOOOOOOO! They won�t! EVER! I have seen so many micro photographers� shoots start out really neat Tn Pas Cher and professional, and then step-by-step denigrate into what looks like a softporn covershoot. Sheesh. Keep it inside your pants and focus on what you�re doing!
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