Tips for Elevating Your Stock Business

Whether you’re new to stock, or you have been doing it for a while - there’s always space for improvement. From signing up with new agencies, to taking a few courses or buying new equipment. It’s important you always strive towards improving your skills, so you could ultimately boost your sales and earn more money.

So, let’s see what it is you can do to take your stock to the next level.

Don’t Forget That Stock Photography IS a Business

It might be a side gig for you, but it’s still a gig. Ultimately, almost every stock photographer wants to earn a lot of money from their business which is why you should treat it as such. Stay consistent, and on schedule at all times. Decide on a few days during the month (or week) when you’ll dedicate the time to your stock - whether it’s shooting, editing, uploading or marketing.

This time should always be used for stock, act as if you were working with one of your clients - they’ve booked you for three hours for Tuesday, so you must deliver. While the clients will pay you almost instantly, stock payments take a bit of time, which doesn’t mean you won’t be earning from them.

Try to Stand Out

When you’re making plans for your next photoshoot, do a search on the agencies where you plan to sell your photos. Try to look for images that portray what you’re planning to shoot. Let’s say you’re looking to do a photo shoot in the hospital, search for images of hospitals, doctors, patients, waiting rooms, etc. You’ll see what already exists on the website, and what you can add to the existing portfolio. Look for the images that are missing, and try to make them. Use different angles, different colors, anything that could make you stand out from the crowd. 

We’re all aware that there are hundreds of thousands of stock photos on each site, and standing out means you’ll get noticed more often, therefore you’ll sell and earn more.

Consistency is Key

The more images you have on an agency, the better the chance you’ll sell. However, you can’t upload 5000 images today and do nothing for the next two months. You must shoot, edit and upload on a regular basis.

We already talked about how you must create a schedule for your stock photography and stick to it, but you should also be ready to jump in and take photos when an opportunity presents itself. If you’re specializing in food or still life photography, we recommend that you have a dedicated place in your home for shooting. You can keep your backdrops and decor here and just jump to taking photos whenever you can. Additionally, when you’re travelling with your family or just spending a day in nature - take your equipment and take some photos - you might get your bestseller there.

Investigate Rejected Images, and Learn From Them

Many of your photos will be rejected by an agency, and reasons could be various. Usually, you won’t get any information on why the editors didn’t accept your work. The reasons could vary from technical issues, to aesthetics, or maybe the editors didn’t think that particular photo will sell.

You should go through rejected materials and try to find what’s common between those - did you have bad exposure, were they overedited, did you shoot a very common theme? Yes, it will take time to determine why your image was rejected, and you’ll never be truly sure that’s the real reason - but it can give you guidelines on what to avoid in the future.

It’s really important you’re aware of submission guidelines of every agency - that way you won’t waste anyone’s time by submitting material that won’t be accepted.

Submit All Usable Images

There will be times when you think an image will be among the bestsellers, but the editors reject it. It goes the other way as well - images you might think won’t do well will in fact be good sellers. Which is why it’s advisable to upload all images from the shoot that are usable. 

Editors look for images that sell, or those that are showing a unique perspective. The fact that you might not like an image you’re uploading, has nothing to do with the sales. 

Study the Market

We can’t stress this enough. You can’t just randomly take photos and upload them to stock websites. Well, you can… But it won’t get you very far.

Stock agencies are businesses, which means it’s in their best interest to sell the photos published on their website. They need the images that will look good on corporate websites, social channels, blogs and magazines, meaning they must have commercial appeal.

Do your research, visit stock websites and see what kind of images are usually accepted. Pay attention to the setting, colours, people, and even the smaller details. All these can help you create a story for your photoshoot.

Consider Premium Stock

Premium stock websites have more rigorous submission standards. They demand the highest quality, and you’ll definitely sell fewer photos than you would on a microstock site. But, the payouts are much higher.

Some of the most popular agencies have premium divisions, so you should definitely check that out. Images that don’t satisfy commercial and aesthetic standards of the agency will be rejected, thus you should be mindful when uploading. Take time to set up your subjects the right way, be mindful of the lighting and editing. Explore other premium images to get the general idea of what type of content is usually accepted. 

Final Thoughts

Whether you want to admit it or not - stock photography is a job. It’s a business and you should treat it as such. Dedicate your time, make sure you keep working on your technical and creative skills. Train your brain to notice situations which would be good for stock photos, and try to recreate them in your photoshoots. Invest in better equipment, and don’t stop researching new ways to take your stock business to the next level.