tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59375409202059999112024-03-13T11:52:29.992-07:00Until It ClicksMy journey to discover what clicks in the microstock business.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-20394038757285423022010-05-09T06:11:00.000-07:002010-05-09T06:16:49.604-07:00I'm Back!!!!!Hello! It's been awhile and for that I apologize. But, I have some new and exciting news! I started an Etsy page for some of my graphic design work. You can view it here: http://littlelilycreations.etsy.com. I also have a twitter account - LLilyCreations - Check me out!<br /><br />In microstock news, I have to compile my statistics for the last few months. If I had to guess, I'd say that I've been pretty consistent sales-wise. But I definitely need to get on the ball and upload more pictures. So, check back in a few days if you're interested in how much I was able to earn by doing absolutely nothing. :-)<br /><br />I'm nearing my first payout in SS and IS. $200 will be nice to have after taking pictures since October. I'm hoping to reach this milestone next month.<br /><br />I hope everyone is doing good! Happy Mother's Day!BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-69455547720557548712010-03-04T11:25:00.000-08:002010-03-04T11:34:03.584-08:00Swag BucksI hate promoting a lot of services, but this is one that I have personally had a great experience with...<br /><br />I know a lot of people out there use Amazon.com to buy their photography equipment. I have been able to snag a couple of free Amazon gift certificates by using the Swag Bucks system. It's a search engine that randomly awards "points" when you search. If those points add up enough, you can turn them in for gift certificates and other prizes. <br /><br />I just thought I would share. I do a lot of internet searches during the day, so at least now I have the chance to get something back.<br /><br />If you're interested in learning more, please click below. It's worth a shot - especially if you like free gift certificates!<br /><br /><a target="_top" href="http://swagbucks.com/refer/bjs317"><img alt="Search & Win" title="Search & Win" border="0" src="http://prodegebanners.sitegrip.com/images/swagbucks-200x200.jpg"></a>BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-52025260286768658362010-03-02T06:54:00.000-08:002010-03-02T06:57:34.845-08:00Feb 2010 Stock ResultsOkay, I have to admit that I didn't upload a single image this month (I know, shame on me). But it was my best month ever. <br /><br /><iframe width='500' height='300' frameborder='0' src='http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tO2jx12JRXjOk9JyWSfANLg&output=html&widget=true'></iframe><br /><br />Unfortunately, I'm not going to be available later this month through April, so I will try and post an update when I can. I don't see me really uploading a lot over these next few months, but I do plan on getting back into it when things calm down a bit. Good luck to you all!BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-9783890391142925652010-02-01T05:49:00.000-08:002010-02-01T05:49:45.125-08:00January Microstock ResultsHere are a few highlights from January:<br /><ul><li>First month at Shutterstock</li><li>First uploading milestone (100 images) at CSP, 123RF, and SXP</li><li>Best month ever overall in regards to sales!</li><li>Still no sales (ever) at CSP.</li></ul><br /><iframe src="http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tgen9kdF2t64zbwbm9LSLqQ&output=html&widget=true" frameborder="0" height="300" width="500"></iframe><br />The next few months are going to be pretty hectic for me so I'm hoping to upload 1-2 more shoots before March that will hopefully hold me over until I can get back into it again. I know I need to consistently upload to SS to keep up the momentum, so that is my motivation!BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-32945839176375749472010-01-15T06:30:00.000-08:002010-01-15T06:36:22.108-08:00New Sessions Up!I've added two sessions to my portfolio this week. The full sessions can be found at <a href="http://www.stockxpert.com//browse_image/profile/bsites/?ref=bsites">Stockxpert</a>.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.stockxpert.com/browse_image/view/56467541"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S1B8-KeEUtI/AAAAAAAAAEI/b_jHGKa6VlA/s320/56467541_28748497.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5426974958385648338" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.stockxpert.com/browse_image/view/56132821"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S1B9EJoN4vI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/g0mb0RoircU/s320/56132821_56082540.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5426975061238997746" border="0" /></a>BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-31196970740851867902010-01-09T06:09:00.001-08:002010-01-09T06:23:32.243-08:00Shutterstock Portfolio<div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery.mhtml?id=492787&rid=492787">My New Shutterstock Portfolio! (click)</a><br /></div><br /><br />For those of you who are interested, here are the lucky 8 that were initially accepted:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-44037514/stock-photo-national-cemetery-at-little-bighorn-battlefield.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S0iPBh8FCcI/AAAAAAAAADI/XhZbbQmykPE/s320/stock-photo-national-cemetery-at-little-bighorn-battlefield-44037514.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424743007620762050" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-44037538/stock-photo-blue-ball-of-light.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S0iQs5Qc1aI/AAAAAAAAAEA/vxxSUdQQBxQ/s320/stock-photo-blue-ball-of-light-44037538.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424744852126225826" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-44037535/stock-photo-christmas-cookies.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S0iQc_mCfpI/AAAAAAAAAD4/Gogxtbh_b1s/s320/stock-photo-christmas-cookies-44037535.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424744578949480082" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-44037529/stock-photo-brown-cowboy-hat.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S0iQOQPR8RI/AAAAAAAAADw/YNEFLPChFDk/s320/stock-photo-brown-cowboy-hat-44037529.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424744325719388434" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-44037526/stock-photo-cupped-hand.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S0iP_cJwzlI/AAAAAAAAADo/rCjavzAzdq8/s320/stock-photo-cupped-hand-44037526.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424744071219433042" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-44037523/stock-photo-ace-up-the-sleeve.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S0iPvpChdlI/AAAAAAAAADg/A5FfEEVCgCM/s320/stock-photo-ace-up-the-sleeve-44037523.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424743799800821330" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-44037520/stock-photo-happy-expression.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 204px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S0iPgxcFj5I/AAAAAAAAADY/ZrxUEIb_1QE/s320/stock-photo-happy-expression-44037520.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424743544357490578" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-44037517/stock-photo-meteor-crater.html"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/S0iPTibFe1I/AAAAAAAAADQ/HtHDjiz9Vm4/s320/stock-photo-meteor-crater-44037517.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424743316988459858" border="0" /></a><br />The approval times have been WONDERFUL!! I was accepted to SS AND had my entire portfolio reviewed within 1 day.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-84746328495613759642010-01-08T16:46:00.001-08:002010-01-08T16:55:23.080-08:00TonightTonight is going to be spent uploading most of my portfolio to Shutterstock so that I'm all caught up (their approval timeframe is amazing). <br /><br />Also, I was approved at DepositPhotos.com so I may check that out a little later. Are any of you getting sales yet on DP? I know it's a new company and it will probably take some time to get buyers on board, but I was wondering if anyone was having any success.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-42871771170724045052010-01-08T08:54:00.001-08:002010-01-08T08:57:36.356-08:00Shutterstock: Take 4....and I'm in! Woo hoo! 8/10!<br /><br />I'll post my portfolio link as soon as the images are available.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-32193628050672132812010-01-04T06:33:00.001-08:002010-01-04T06:34:41.961-08:00QuestionOn one of my microstock sites, I'm listed as having 3 downloads total in the earnings area. But when I look at my portfolio, it shows 4 downloads. Why am I not getting credit for all 4? Anyone experience this?BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-77206241361282077362010-01-03T10:51:00.000-08:002010-01-03T10:57:57.119-08:00December StatsHere's how it went for December:<br /><ul><li>BME for both sales and earnings at BSP</li><li>BME for # of sales only at SXP</li><li>Still no sales at CSP</li></ul>I didn't expect big sales because most people say that microstock slows down in December. So I'm still pretty pleased with my earnings, considering the fact that it was a slow month. Also, I only uploaded a few images.<br /><br /><iframe src="http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tXDOPoNtCn17E1EE9AA0UCQ&output=html&widget=true" frameborder="0" height="300" width="500"></iframe><br /><br />Hope everyone has a happy new year!BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-52379371169728347272009-12-16T19:55:00.000-08:002009-12-16T20:02:47.892-08:00Slow MonthSo I just uploaded the few (and only) December images tonight. I doubt I'll get around to doing any more this year.<br /><br />In terms of sales, I'm doing decent. I've almost met my total downloads from November, but the numbers aren't as high due to a lot of my sales coming from non-iStock agencies. ($.30 per download instead of $1.50+) I'm happy that my other agencies are starting to pick up. Still nothing on CanStock, so we'll see how they do after the new year.<br /><br />How's your month going?BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-85062099466530412662009-12-09T16:00:00.001-08:002009-12-09T16:04:54.367-08:00Better luck next yearIt appears that Shutterstock is not in the cards for 2009. On the latest application, I got 6/10 again. One of the pics that was approved last time was rejected. Otherwise, that would have made 7.<br /><br />Well, I think my goal for this month was to apply, so goal accomplished! :-)<br /><br />On another note, I seem to be getting some sales this month. It probably won't be my best month, but at least some sales are going through. Now, I just have to get one more shoot in for the year...BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-44721045556388794662009-12-07T10:49:00.000-08:002009-12-07T10:54:33.125-08:00Slow...December is a difficult month. Not only am I busy with all of the holiday preparations, but I barely have time to shoot any new pictures. Sales have been slow as well (although this was expected since most people say that microstock slows down in December). So, I think I'm going to have only two goals for this month:<br /><br />1) Apply to Shutterstock<br />2) Take/upload one shoot to my portfolio<br /><br />Not the most ambitious goals, but it will have to do until 2010. I plan on doing some major thinking this month about my microstock future and determining what types of photographs I want to focus on. I hope that things will be back and running come January.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-15478454204931908412009-12-03T06:47:00.000-08:002009-12-03T07:00:21.599-08:00DecemberWell, I can already tell that this month is going to be really busy (with the holidays, not picture taking) so I'm going to try really hard to get a few good submissions in before it gets too crazy. But on the other hand, I've read that microstock is pretty quiet this month anyways.<br /><br />The one thing I'm really looking forward to is my next Shutterstock application (in 6 days). Hopefully this month is <span style="font-style: italic;">the</span> month, but if not, there's always next year! :-)<br /><br />I enjoy reading all of the other microstock blogs out there and some of you have come a long way in just a few short months. Certainly shows me that I have to really grow my portfolio (by about 1000 - haha)!<br /><br />Have a great week!<br /><br />P.S. For those photographers out there, when you do a model shoot, do you have one universal model release that you use for all of your agencies, or do you use a separate one for each agency? I see that Yuri Arcurs has a universal release on his site, but I have not used it yet. But it would be easier to use one form versus 6 or 7.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-29398210258416734862009-11-30T15:27:00.000-08:002009-12-01T06:43:37.381-08:00November 2009 Earnings aka "I love iStock"November has been an interesting month. It seems that my big earners for October were not even contenders this month. And all of the hard work on getting accepted to iStock has paid off! Only 12 uploaded files and 5 sales! I earned much more per image than all of the other sites combined.<br /><br />Now onto my goals. I didn't meet either one of them. I originally wanted to add 40 approved images to each site and make $20.00 overall. I'm finding that some of the agencies are a little more picky than the others, so it has made that goal pretty hard to attain. Also, with the holidays this month, things have been slightly hectic and I didn't get a chance to shoot as much as I normally would.<br /><br />Despite not meeting my first goal, I was very close to reaching my second goal. I was only a few short dollars away!<br /><br />Before getting to my numbers, I thought I would give my thoughts on the agencies so far, now that I've had a few months to get familiar with them:<br /><br />ISTOCK: I LOVE ISTOCK! It took me a few tries to get accepted, but now that I'm in, I'm getting a great amount of sales for such a small portfolio. I must admit that I was a bit skeptical of the new keywording requirements (since I was cutting out the majority of keywords to get my images approved), but I'm continually getting views and sales. Couldn't be happier. The only downside would be the monotonous uploading process, but if you download the free DeepMeta, that takes care of that problem.<br /><br />FOTOLIA: This is by far the hardest agency for me to get images approved. As you can see in my stats, my portfolio is still really small (even though I submitted the same number of images as the others). The upside is that I'm having a few steady sales, so I definitely see the potential. Also, FT has the fastest review time (at least for me). So that's always good!<br /><br />DREAMSTIME: DT is another one of those agencies that has surprised me. I have a smaller portfolio, but I seem to get consistent sales. This shocks me since I heard that DT will put your images at the end of the search queue if your approval rating is low (which mine is). From now on, I will be submitting my images to other websites first to get a feel for what is getting accepted before submitting to DT. Hopefully this will help raise my rating. But so far, so good! The only downside would be the review time. It usually takes about a week to get images approved.<br /><br />BIGSTOCK: I don't really have much to say about BSP. I received my first sales this month and they seem to be making a decent amount of money, so again - I see the potential. My approval rating has gotten better over the last month and their review time is usually pretty good - a few days at most.<br /><br />STOCKXPERT: This was a huge earner for me in October, but not so much this month. Last month I also noticed that I was getting regular views. I can't say the same for November. Perhaps November isn't the best month for buyers. I'm hoping this will pick back up.<br /><br />123RF: I just recently had my first sales at 123. I was starting to think that it would never happen! My earnings have been decent compared to other sites, so hopefully I'll start to see more activity. They seem to approve most of my submissions, so I have my largest portfolio on this site.<br /><br />CANSTOCK: So far, I'm not impressed. This website also has my largest portfolio, but I rarely get any views and haven't yet made a sale. I will continue uploading until I hit the 6 month mark and then decide if it's worth the time. I keep telling myself that I'm still new at this, so maybe it will pick up in the next few months. I'd like to at least report something each month!<br /><br />So here are my numbers:<br /><br /><iframe src="http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=t4V05PZ30AaPrw_IOQbwtug&output=html&widget=true" frameborder="0" height="300" width="500"></iframe><br /><br />Hope everyone had a good month!BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-31440627147093216852009-11-23T07:12:00.000-08:002009-11-23T07:45:50.862-08:00Quick UpdateNovember has been pretty good so far. According to the <a href="http://www.arcurs.com/new-tool-projected-monthly-income-calculator?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+YuriArcurs+%28Yuri+Arcurs%29">Yuri Arcurs Projected Monthly Income Calculator</a>, I'm on track to meet my $20.00 goal (if my sales continue through the end of the month, of course).<br /><br />The front runners for this month have been surprising. iStock has dominated my sales, followed by Fotolia, BigStock, and Dreamstime. Last month, the big site for me was Stockxpert. I have yet to get any sales at SXP this month. So it's interesting how things are flopping back and forth between the agencies.<br /><br />I am in love with iStock. I have made 4 sales totalling $7.44 (my portfolio only has 10 images). My views seem to be consistent (even though I drastically cut down my keywords) and my commissions have been outstanding - even on subscriptions. Granted, it's a little tough to get images approved through them, but once they're in, they do seem to sell. I hope the trend continues.<br /><br />Also, I downloaded DeepMeta last week for my iStock uploads. I highly recommend this program to anyone that uploads to IS. As you already know, after uploading your images, you have to go back in so that you can clarify keywords, select categories, etc. DeepMeta allows you to do this for your entire batch of photos at one time so that when you click submit, you're done. You don't have to follow through with the extra steps. They also have great reporting features that allows you to check all of your sales, approval ratios, lightbox additions, etc. And it's free, so that's always a plus :-) One downside, though, is that I can't seem to opt-in to the partner program through DM. I have to go back in and do it through the IS website. Does anyone else have that problem?<br /><br />Finally, I'd like to voice my disappointment over one of my agencies, CanStock. I hardly get any views and have yet to make a single sale. They seem to approve pretty much all of my submissions, so I wonder if they're just overloaded with images and the buyer can't locate my contributions. Or maybe there are no buyers. I've decided to give them 6 months. If I don't see an increase, I'll probably drop them.<br /><br />People have often said that if I like iStock, then I will love Shutterstock. My next application is coming up in a few short weeks, so hopefully I'll have some good news to report!<br /><br />Here are the links to my current portfolios:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/brandysites">iStockPhoto</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.fotolia.com/p/201348631/partner/201348631">Fotolia</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.dreamstime.com/resp1674533-free-images">Dreamstime</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.bigstockphoto.com/account/jDMVm9XKaY?refid=jDMVm9XKaY">BigStockPhoto</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.stockxpert.com/browse_image/profile/bsites/?ref=bsites">Stockxpert</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.123rf.com/src_bsites/portfolio_bsites">123RF<br /><br /></a><a href="http://www.canstockphoto.com/search.php?mem=52213&r=52213">CanStockPhoto</a>BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-26853685006781110732009-11-18T06:52:00.001-08:002009-11-18T06:53:13.066-08:00New tool – projected monthly income calculator | Yuri Arcurs<a href="http://www.arcurs.com/new-tool-projected-monthly-income-calculator?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:" yuriarcurs="" yuri="">New tool – projected monthly income calculator | Yuri Arcurs</a><br /><br />Posted using <a href="http://sharethis.com/">ShareThis</a>BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-7890163611979693572009-11-15T07:04:00.001-08:002009-11-15T07:11:44.346-08:00New Image SetLast week I uploaded my ball of light photo series. To create these images, I used Photoshop along with an image that I shot earlier in the week. I had fun trying out a few new PS techniques. Hope you enjoy!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.bigstockphoto.com/photo/view/6283263/?refid=jDMVm9XKaY"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/SwAYv38KoCI/AAAAAAAAADA/DQf12Wy2z7Y/s320/red+ball+of+light.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404346763593818146" border="0" /></a><br />This image is available in red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, and white. You can access these images <a href="http://www.bigstockphoto.com/core.php?infoac=jDMVm9XKaY&you=1">HERE</a>.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-26792730211456469142009-11-13T14:55:00.001-08:002009-11-13T15:02:20.960-08:00First iStock sale!As of right now, I only have one image approved on iStock. And today it sold for $1.68 (after only being up for a few days)!!!<br /><br />It's an image that you've seen many times on my blog:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.istockphoto.com/stock-photo-11045493-cowboy-hat.php"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_o6oiuVBo-Ho/Sv3lCw1-_oI/AAAAAAAAAC4/GUUc6_44qk0/s320/ist2_11045493-cowboy-hat.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403726963548290690" border="0" /></a>BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-66784905182606391942009-11-13T10:31:00.000-08:002009-11-13T10:34:51.563-08:00Keyword - Epic FailSo earlier this week, one of my images was rejected on a site (not going to say who) due to insufficient keywording. They told me that I should remove certain keywords - one being "otoscope."<br /><br />.....The picture was of an otoscope. Don't you think that having that word as a keyword is pretty important?<br /><br />I resubmitted it with the word left in. Maybe the reviewer didn't know what an otoscope was?<br /><br />Anyways, I thought that was humorous.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-51955524373991731022009-11-10T06:37:00.001-08:002009-11-10T06:39:41.820-08:00Shutterstock UpdateI was declined again. I had 6/10 approved. Only one more and I would've made it!BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-76186291992677779842009-11-09T18:07:00.000-08:002009-11-09T18:43:13.299-08:00iSyndica ReviewA few days ago, I finally tested out iSyndica. For those of you who are not familiar with this website, here is what they have to say about it:<br /><br /><blockquote>"iSyndica eliminates the need for you to upload your files to several sites. You upload with us, we store it, we distribute it and we provide you with statistics. All in one place!"<br /><br /></blockquote>They have different subscription levels, depending on how many uploads you do each month. Right now, I am testing out their free subscription, which gives me 100 credits per month.<br /><br />How do these credits work? Well, each time iSyndica sends my image to a microstock agency, it costs me 1 credit. I happen to upload to 6 agencies, so I spend 6 credits for each image that I submit.<br /><br />Another feature is the analysis section. There you will find charts and graphs of your microstock agencies and how well you are doing. You can see your revenue, projected earnings, and number of downloads for each agency.<br /><br />Now here's my review:<br /><br />I've uploaded to microstock agencies via HTTP, FTP, and Java and the iSyndica process is much faster than any of those other methods. As soon as my images upload to the website, they are sent to all of my stock agencies within a minute or two. Since I'm now utilizing IPTC data, this makes for fast, easy submissions. After the images are uploaded, I just go to each of my stock agencies, select my categories, and submit. Very easy.<br /><br />Personally, I think the analysis tools are interesting, but the whole reason for me trying iSyndica was to help save me time in the uploading process. I currently use the PicNiche Firefox add-on to manage my current earnings, so whether it's through PicNiche or iSyndica, I have constant real-time access to my earnings.<br /><br />The only downside I see to iSyndica is that it doesn't seem to work well with Shutterstock. Since I haven't been accepted yet, I really haven't had to deal with that. But I did a quick Google search and it seems that there are ways around it. I've yet to try that out, though.<br /><br />So, to wrap it up, I think it's well worth it to test out iSyndica....especially if you are uploading to multiple agencies like myself. With their free subscription, you really have nothing to lose.<br /><br />More info can be found at:<br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="http://vds.isyndica.com/Affiliate/bsites" title="Upload once - Sell everywhere! iSyndica, the web distributor"><img src="http://www.isyndica.com/storage/adcontent/banner468.gif" alt="Upload once - Sell everywhere! iSyndica, the web distributor" /></a></span><br /></div>BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-16526890460432287092009-11-09T10:31:00.000-08:002009-11-09T10:39:10.309-08:00November Stats So FarNovember is off to a great start. I've had 7 sales so far (compared to 11 for the entire month of October) and I've already earned 25% toward my monthly revenue goal. Fotolia is my #1 earner for this month, which is a bit surprising. Following closely behind is BigStockPhoto and Dreamstime. I'm hoping Stockxpert picks up, since they were my #1 agency last month.<br /><br />I recently submitted a batch of images that includes a little of my Photoshop work, so as soon as they are approved, I will share them.<br /><br />Finally, I'm waiting on my first batch of iStock images to be approved. And my Shutterstock application is pending, of course.<br /><br />So far, so good!BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-32175099610812032692009-11-09T10:23:00.000-08:002009-11-09T10:31:09.284-08:00Shutterstock: Take 2Well, it's been 30 days and I'm able to apply to Shutterstock again! And let me just say....WOW. In my opinion, the quality of my images has really improved in the last 30 days. I guess that's what happens when you start learning about what's accepted/purchased in the microstock world. Now, is it good enough for Shutterstock? We'll find out soon enough! :crosses fingers:<br /><br />Even if I don't get accepted, I'm still impressed with my growth as a photographer. I'm still proud of my iStock approval, so I would say that this month has been a success so far. I'm sure Shutterstock will happen in due time.BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5937540920205999911.post-76525463913622923552009-11-09T08:20:00.000-08:002009-11-09T08:24:02.666-08:00QuestionThe last time I applied to Shutterstock, I had 3 images that said "Not Approved", but the reason was, "7 of 10 must be approved." So does that mean that they would've been approved if I met the 7 approval goal?? The rest of the rejections had detailed reasons.<br /><br />So my other question is, can I re-submit those 3 images in my new batch? Or do they want to see 10 brand new images?BJShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16077996193704422279noreply@blogger.com2