Possible benefits of making art photo

[lindakene]

Hi,

I found interesting read for those who want to make money selling pictures online. Good and deep enough introduction to microstock.

"Microstock ABC. Guide to sell your pictures online." by Lev Dolgachov.
http://dolgachov.com/microstock_abc.html

What do you think, is it possible to get any benefits from selling art of it is waste of time?

[djwixx]

It may be a quick way to make a buck or two but I'm guessing many photographers (and I'm not one - photographer I mean) would argue that microstock reduces the value of quality work that has a much higher value. Why pay for quality work when something from a microstock agency at a fraction of the cost could serve the purpose?

[csavery]

Sure you can make money selling microstock. I did an analysis of some of the top sellers on some sites and some people are doing very well.

But two things:

1 - I don't call it art. The idea of taking photos for the express purpose of advertising is just too repugnant to me. I experimented with it briefly to see how I really felt about it. Travel shots as editorial material is not so bad but I found it really doesn't sell even a fraction as well.

2 - You need to be very, very dedicated. The competition is fierce and you need to think entirely about what buyers need. If you are thinking you can just dump a bunch of your snapshots onto the micro sites and be on the gravy train then just forget it. Looking at any of the shooters who I said were doing well I realized that they spent huge amounts of time preparing and shooting subjects of absolutely no interest except as fodder for advertising.

I really think there are much easier ways to make similar money today. But not with a camera. I decided that the enjoyment of using my camera for things that I really want to shoot is more important. But I am aware that everybody has different ideas.