PHOTOGRAPHY

We often think of stock photos as being in those frames you see in department stores or on new wallets, and they can sometimes have a negative connotation.  Yeah, those images were from a stock photography library, but there's a lot more to stock photography than that.

You can put a lot of creative energy into building a solid stock photography library that will attract customers who need these images and like your creative eye.  You know, when you think about it, stock photography is pretty similar to doing a shoot for a customer.  You just take the photos before you find the customer, and you can sell the same stock photo loads of times.  And that's the best part - running a stock photography service can make you a lot of money.

People are always going to need photos for their projects, and the demand is only going to keep on growing.  But in the economic "model" of any marketplace, supply is as important as demand.  If you want to compete for business, you need to have a good, diverse supply.  So, if you want to build a stock photography business, you need to start by building the "stock".  In this situation, it's all about the numbers.

When you start entertaining customers, you want to show them a strong catalogue not only of loads of genres of stock photos, but also a good variety of photos for each genre.  So, if the buyer is after floral shots, you don't just have three or four stock photos in that category.  You should have plenty for them to choose from.  If you build a big collection, you'll be way more likely to make a sale with each customer.

Just because you're taking stock photos doesn't mean you can't be creative.  Actually, the opposite is true.  Great stock photos can really convey a sense of personality, even if they're just a bunch of flowers.  The buyer's after a photo with a story, you know, something that'll grab your attention and make you think about what it means.

Doesn't sound like art photography to me.  Well, sort of.  Just because you're selling the photo as part of your stock collection doesn't mean it's any less artistic.  And if your art is going out the door to be used by a customer, it's still being seen by people who'll reflect on what you're trying to say with that photo.  So, as a photographer, you get to do what you love and you get paid for it too.

Try to build a strong portfolio of quality pictures of each category, and make your categories as diverse as possible.  Take a look at other stock collections and get some ideas for the genres they've included and the diversity of shots and settings they've got.  You're not plagiarising if you're letting other photographers' work inspire you to do your best.

A good way to build your stock photography gallery is to set aside a day each week to focus on creating one category of photos.  So you might be doing floral shots one week, car photos the next, and pictures of college students the week after that.

And if you're using human subjects, don't forget to get their releases signed.  You could even get by just hanging around on a college campus and persuading students to pose for stock photos.  Just make sure you pay them for their work and get a release.  So, if their picture ends up in a public place because of how a customer uses it, you're covered if they come back with their palm up, wanting more.

At the end of the day, trust your instincts on what to include in your gallery.  Your sense of style is probably pretty reliable and will reflect what interests your customers.  Once the gallery's up and running, you can start putting together a physical catalogue to sell.  And don't forget the option of setting up an online gallery to sell from.  You'll need some technical help to get your site up and running, and to learn how to sell from it and collect money that way.  But this could be a great way to expand your successful stock photography business.