Alamy , Getty etc

[AndyKH]

Hi guys, i'm thinking of starting up an account with a stock photgraphy site. I was just about to use Alamy but thought i'd ask the question on here first.
Who do you use?

[CVP]

I use Alamy. My earnings are never going to let me stop doing my ordinary day job, in fact this year so far has only seen sales of $300 (net to me)but it is my first year and I'm building up my stock base from my archives

Getting the initial approval was relatively quick but sometimes QC can take some time (3 days or so sometimes) which can impact sales if you have something more newsworthy

I think a lot of your selection / earnings depends on what you want to achieve. For me I didsn't want my images on microstock but did want the opportunity to sell and Alamy provided the right platform for me.

Getty may have a more recognised brand name but the comission they take is larger. I recall I get 65% but if I went to Getty I'd only get 45%. Getty also demand exclusivity whereas Alamy do not but they do ask that you don't have the same image or very similar image on sale rights-free one place and licenced on another which seems sensible to me.

Chris

[Ed_P]

I use Alamy (fairly new there), Shutterstock, iStockphoto, Fotolia, Dreamstime and a few of the smaller ones (BigStockPhoto, 123 Royalty Free and StockXpert). I have several hundred images on most of them and make around $2,500 per annum in total. Unless you concentrate primarily on stock photography, it's difficult to make a living from it. It can be a nice little supplementary earner though. The secret with some sites is to keep adding a steady stream of new images.