Pretty much everyone today knows the answer to that I think, but most don't really understand it. Stock photography came about as a means for businesses and individuals to get quality photography without having to hire a photographer to shoot it. Stock photography is the supply of images for licensing to fulfill the needs that companies and individuals have for their creative assignments, whether online or in print.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
This RF image is available for licensing at iStock here.
There are two main ways that stock is “sold” (licensed actually) RIGHTS MANAGED (RM) and ROYALTY FREE (RF.) Some images are free to use. They are COPYRIGHT FREE images.
1 - There is great confusion on Steemit about the term RF or ROYALTY FREE! The most important thing you should know is that ROYALTY FREE images are not free images! (COPYRIGHT FREE images are the free ones!) RF images are not images to be copied and used at will on Steemit or anywhere, without first paying a license. When someone pays a license for ROYALTY FREE images, it usually means that licensee is FREE to use the images in multiply ways without having to pay for an another license (hence the term ROYALTY FREE.) The contributor is paid royalties only once when the image is licensed by a client. There are still restrictions about the use of such images though, and sometimes usage is limited to a certain number of times. Many people could be licensing the image at the same time, and there are no restrictions about that.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
This RF image is available for licensing at Getty Images here
2 - RIGHTS MANAGED or RM images on the other hand have many different restrictions and uses depending in the amount of the license paid. With an RM image, the contributor is paid royalties each time the image used in a different way by a client. A RIGHTS MANAGED license is a custom made license for each client's needs. The license covers only the specific use or uses granted, and in order to use the image in a different way, a new license would need to be purchased. For example, an RM license can include how long an image can be used, where the image can be used (book cover or inside etc.) , number of times it can be printed, which countries may use the image, and whether the license is EXCLUSIVE to the company purchasing the license. That would mean that the company is paying for the assurance that NO OTHER INDIVIDUAL WOULD BE USING THE IMAGE DURING A PREDETERMINED TIME! (This is only one reason that it is very wrong to take images from the web to use on Steemit! You have no idea if someone has paid for an exclusive right to use that image! The only way you would know, would be by going directly to the agency to purchase a license.)
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
This RM license is available for licensing at Age Fotostockhere
There are also two different types of stock agencies, TRADITIONAL STOCK AGENCIES and MICROSTOCK agencies (or MICROS.)
1 - TRADITIONAL STOCK AGENCIES usually command far higher license payments than the MICROS, and they offer RM as well as RF licenses. Getty accepts images only on an exclusive basis, which means that you cannot offer the images on other websites. Getty actually posts the images on other sites for you. Most other sites like Alamy are non-exclusive, which means you are free to offer your work through other agencies.
I have a contract with the following agencies and you can view my portfolios here: Getty, Alamy and Age Fotostock. On Alamy, I also have a Stockimo collection here.
2 - MICROSTOCK agencies usually license only RF imagery at a fraction of the cost of TRADITIONAL STOCK, with the contributor often earning only a few cents per download. With the right images, you can have multiple downloads of the same images daily, thus making up for the very low royalty fees. The MICROS that I am now with are, iStock, Shutterstock, Fotolia (Adobe Stock), Dreamstime and Depositphotos. You can check out my portfolios with them here: iStock, Shutterstock, Adobe Stock, Dreamstime and Depositphotos.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
This RF image is available for licensing at Shutterstock here
I hope this helps you to understand the basic workings of stock photography. In posts to follow, I will write about which types of images to shoot for stock and why. In the meantime, if you have questions, please feel free to ask.
Don't compare yourself with other photographers.
Love what you do.
Experiment with different styles of photography.
Shoot what's in your neighborhood
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Thanks for taking the time to read this! I appreciate it.
