Getting Started with Microstock Photography

Getting Started with (Micro-) Stock Photography

Making money by selling photos online can seem like a difficult task if you are not sure where to begin. One of your first choices will be where to sell your photos.

Stock photography covers the widest possible area of photography, from everyday objects, places, people and models to almost anything you can imagine. It represents photography that has commercial value and can be sold with a license for specific use.

The buyers are often marketing and design agencies, magazines, news and press houses, web & graphic designers and also individuals who look for quality and aesthetic photos. You might find your photos in magazines, newspapers, tourist brochures, billboard advertising, book covers, web ads, websites, or even on t-shirts and merchandising items.

Where to Sell: Microstock or Macrostock?

When selling photos in “stock”, you are selling a license to use the photo, not the photo itself.

Microstock (Royalty-Free): Images are offered at cheap prices multiple times and all buyers have the rights to use the photo. Best photos in microstock can sell several times a day and keep selling for years, making high earnings over time.

Macrostock (Rights Managed): The buyer gets exclusive rights to use the image for a specified time. These images are sold for higher prices (starting with three-digit numbers in dollars). Macrostock requires high quality images, often on very specific topics, and production costs can be high.

The Approval Exam

To start selling photos online, you usually need to pass an agency’s approval test. You are typically asked to submit 5-10 photos and answer questions regarding copyrights, model releases and licenses.

The higher the barrier of entrance, the more likely the agency has a good reputation, which means higher prices and more sales.

Popular Agencies

Microstock: Shutterstock, Adobe Stock, iStockPhoto, 123rf, Stocksy, Pond5, Envato (Photodune), Dreamstime

Macrostock: Alamy, Getty Images, Superstock

Getting Paid

All agencies take a cut — some more, some less — and contributors get a percentage of sales. As a new contributor you start at the bottom and slowly climb up with the number of sales.

• Commission rates range from 15% to 50%+ depending on the agency
• You can earn $0.25 per sale up to $100+ for special license terms
• Payouts typically happen when you reach an earnings threshold (commonly $50 or $100)