Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

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Mike Hoe
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p.1 #1 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

Hi Everyone :

I sell my photographs on my web site and mail the prints to customers directly. A reputable stock photo agency wants to represent (exclusive agreement) me and carry my photos. They requested a CD of 100 pics so they can pick the ones they want to feature on their site. Please advise me on the following questions :

1. What is there to stop someone from a reputable agency from downloading my images and sell them in photograph form on the side?

2. Am I correct to assume once the original images leave my computer, no amount of protection (copyright, watermark, digital signature, etc) can stop someone from selling the stolen images in photograph form?

3. What software do you recommend to put watermarks, signatures, etc. on images to 'protect' them?

I told the agency I may be sending 2 dozen of my best images and they can put them on their site for sale. They said their clients want to pick through a lot of images from one photographer before they decide to buy. I am not interested in a shotgun approach to my works. My answer was If I present my best images and their clients don't like them, then there is no mutual interest in continuing the relationship.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions and advice.

Aug 16, 2008 at 05:33 PM

Jonathan H
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p.1 #2 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

1 - Nothing. You have to hope the agency employs reputable and honest individuals.

2 - Pretty much, yup. A heavy, obtrusive watermark is your best bet, but that can also put off a potential customer. You need to find an appropriate middle ground.

3 - Photoshop... why look for alternatives?

I have to admit though, the whole agency approaching you and asking you to "send in a CD" seems a bit fishy - no stock agency I know of works like that. If they've already seen your work on your site, why do they need a CD with only 100 images? I would think that an offer like you've described, a proper agency would be asking you to send in a hard drive with your entire image library in TIFF.

I have no idea who you are, what level of photography you produce, etc - but exclusive representation agreements are either given by top agencies like Getty and Corbis only to the top 5% of photographers - OR - underhanded rights grabs from little agencies with shoddy business practices.

Aug 16, 2008 at 06:29 PM

shatterkiss
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p.1 #3 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

Getty still suggests photographers submit photos via CD, especially as they have several sidecar documents that need to accompany every submission (their keywording isn't done via a web interface but in document form).

Who is the agency in question here? That would go a long way towards answering some of these questions.

In short, you aren't going to be able to watermark or copy-protect images before sending them to the agency - you have to assume the agency will take the reasonable measures, as it protects their business as well. You're sending them print-quality images and they're dealing with the purchase fulfillment, not referring orders back to you. So they need the saleable product in their possession - putting watermarks on the images makes them unsaleable. I have yet to see the agency that will accept images with watermarks, copyright notices, signatures or Digimarc protection. You need to trust that they're reputable, otherwise you need to not do business with them.

I've never heard of an agency asking (or wanting) you to submit your entire library for perusal...they want you to make the first editing pass, then they'll make the second. Exclusive stock repping agreements aren't unusual at all, but they still want you to select only an appropriate handful of images from the masses you might shoot for sale...and then they'll select just the few from your selection that they actually want to sell.

You're looking at this as though it's a gallery arrangement...you decide which of your images you want to sell and the agency will happily sell them for you. That's not how it works. You decide which of your images you want to sell, the agency will decide which of them actually CAN sell, then they'll add them to their archive. Customers aren't browsing YOUR images, they're browsing every image in the archive and buying the ones that best fit their needs - which may or may not be yours. It's not you as a photographer that's being represented, it's your images...your identity will likely be totally irrelevant to the buyers. Stock isn't an ego thing, it's sheer pragmatism - it's a way for your library of images to make you some additional money without you having to do the sales work.

Aug 17, 2008 at 03:23 AM

Jonathan H
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p.1 #4 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

I wasn't quite as clear as I should have been... by "entire image library" I meant "all the images you wish to submit for potential inclusion in the agency's library."

Either way, I stand corrected. Thanks Simon!

Aug 17, 2008 at 06:36 AM

Deezie
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p.1 #5 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

Simon wrote:
Getty still suggests photographers submit photos via CD, especially as they have several sidecar documents that need to accompany every submission (their keywording isn't done via a web interface but in document form).

Actually, that changed recently and Getty only accepts submissions through internet uploads. I'm glad they caught up with the rest of the stock sites. It was a hassle to ship out a disc and wait 4-6 weeks to get your stuff posted. Below is the announcement that Getty has on their site:

"In June 2008 we launched a new online image upload ‘Portal’ for Creative Stills photographers, which enables you to:

- Upload images and releases via the internet
- Visually link images to releases
- Apply and edit your metadata
- Keep an online, visual history of your submissions and accepts / non-accepts.
- Get your correctly submitted images online significantly faster.

Because the Portal has such big benefits, we now ask all photographers to send us their submissions using the Portal and we no longer accept submissions by mail."

Aug 17, 2008 at 03:02 PM

Mike Hoe
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p.1 #6 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

Thanks for all the advice and info. Selling images on stock photo agencies sure are different from selling on one's web site. I am having second thoughts already. Anyone know how many hits these sites (say Getty or Corbis) get a day/week?

Aug 17, 2008 at 06:47 PM

Aidan Dunbar
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p.1 #7 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

Getty or Corbis would get thousands upon thousands of hits per day I should think...

Aug 17, 2008 at 07:13 PM

MiDu
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p.1 #8 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

Mike Hoe wrote:
Hi Everyone :

I sell my photographs on my web site and mail the prints to customers directly. A reputable stock photo agency wants to represent (exclusive agreement) me and carry my photos. They requested a CD of 100 pics so they can pick the ones they want to feature on their site. Please advise me on the following questions :

1. What is there to stop someone from a reputable agency from downloading my images and sell them in photograph form on the side?

2. Am I correct to assume once the original images leave my computer, no amount of protection (copyright, watermark, digital signature, etc) can stop someone from selling the stolen images in photograph form?

3. What software do you recommend to put watermarks, signatures, etc. on images to 'protect' them?

I told the agency I may be sending 2 dozen of my best images and they can put them on their site for sale. They said their clients want to pick through a lot of images from one photographer before they decide to buy. I am not interested in a shotgun approach to my works. My answer was If I present my best images and their clients don't like them, then there is no mutual interest in continuing the relationship.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions and advice.

I make a substantial amount of my living through Stock, and the relationship you have with your agency is critical. It is based mostly on trust.

In fact, I don't have an "agency" as much as I have an agent. He works as advocate for my work as well as the other photogs he represents.

You really should name the agency, as there are many that are barely surviving. If your agreement is exclusive, and they are absorbed into another agency, then your images could be in Limbo for years.

There are also many agencies that claim to be reputable, but are simply content mining. You would make very little from such an agency, but you would work hard to give them work.

On other hand, if you have superb content, then there are still really good agencies that do very well for their clients and their photographers. The competition is fierce to get in, but the rewards are considerable.

Michael Durham

Aug 17, 2008 at 07:58 PM

Sheila
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p.1 #9 · Your advice, please - Stock Photo Agency

Hi Mike

What you consider "best" may not be what the agency's clients have in mind for a certain project. Some of my "best" work (IMHO) has yet to sell but ones I consider somewhat mediocre have sold. Its all subjective. It is always risky sending one's images to agencies but it is certainly worth the risk.

Sheila

Aug 19, 2008 at 01:33 AM


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