"Stock photographs and illustrations showcase specific objects, themes, or concepts and can be used broadly by different people working on a wide variety of projects. In the case of royalty-free stock, the images are licensed over and over again, with the creator earning a royalty commission for every sale. Stock has always been a reliable source of income for artists."- The Guardian Website.
The above definition is a good summary of what a stock photographer is and it gives an overview of how licences of images can be given over and over again.
Yesterday someone mentioned a website that I had heard about before, called Alamy, this made me intrigued to see what this respected company was about. Alamy is basically an online stock photography website where photographers can upload images into their system. People looking for images for advertising and such things then look onto alamy and other stock websites in order to obtain the suitable images. All of the images on the website are of a professional quality (a standard of which alamy monitors) and are all categorised.
In my eyes, alamy is a great way to make some extra money if I have the time. I have many images which would be suitable to upload onto alamy, and I am sure that many people make a living out of stock photography. I think that this line of work isn't something that I can see myself doing full time but I will defiantly try and spend some time uploading images to alamy in the future for some extra money after university.
Getty is another well known and respected stock imagery website, similar to the above alamy. Getty is probably the most well known of all of the stock photo libraries. They host not only images but also video footage and music and they are proud to have been the very first company to licence imagery online.
Magnum: "Magnum is a community of thought, a shared human quality, a curiosity about what is going on in the world, a respect for what is going on and a desire to transcribe it visually." – Henri Cartier-Bresson. Magnum is not a stereotypical image library, it is much more than that. The Magnum photographers are respected practitioners as well as past photographers who have contributed to the organisation. Magnums photo-library comprises most of the worlds major events, personalities and happenings. It encapsulates photographers daily updated profiles from almost every country in the world.
"The Magnum Photos library reflects all aspects of life throughout the world and the unparalleled sense of vision, imagination and brilliance of the greatest collective of documentary photographers. In short, when you picture an iconic image, but can't think who took it or where it can be found, it probably came from Magnum."- Magnum website.
Featured on the Magnum website are such great photographers as Martin Parr, Robert Capa, Jim Goldberg, Philip Jones Griffiths and Peter Marlow to name but a few of those that stood out. Some truly amazing work on the website from the magnum photographers.
As life as a freelance photographer can be challenging and hard sometimes, I will keep in mind that there is always some other possibilities for my career.
Millenium images is another similar website, although not a stock library as such, it is more well known for its quality portfolio reviews within contemporary photography.
Below is an example of a stock photography search engine, I searched some random subjects and there is something for every entry. I can never see myself buying anything from a stock library, the idea of me being a contributing photographer seems interesting. A very basic interface, easy to use with tick boxes for different types of images, ones with model releases and property releases etc.
Below is a fairly in-depth look at how magnum want to see a portfolio for possible submission and how they go about looking at the portfolio. It is interesting how magnum says that for most of the submission that they are only accepting electronic/ digital portfolios, this just shows me how technical based this world is becoming. Maybe an actual print portfolio is becoming some what extinct?
I found that after looking at the below text that they are very very specific about what they want and if one was to bend the rules then their work would be dismissed and their portfolio returned, leading to no magnum advance. I suppose this is the first test to learn about each submitting photographer and weather they would be suitable to produce work from Magnum. I have highlighted the text to differentiate it from my own words.
Magnum Photos is a co-operative owned and run by its members/photographers. They meet once a year during the last weekend in June to discuss the organisation's affairs. One day of the meeting is set aside for looking at and voting on potential new members' portfolios.
Successful applicants will be invited to become a "Nominee Member", a category of membership which presents an opportunity for Magnum and the individual to get to know each other. At this stage there are no binding commitments on either side. In 2007 three new nominee members were accepted.
Photographers based in the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth, Africa, South East Asia and the Middle East who wish to be considered should send their portfolios to Magnum Photos' London office. Please email london@magnumphotos.com if you have any further questions. Please note that Magnum London is only considering digital submissions.
Those residing in the Americas should send their portfolios to our New York office. Please emailsubmissions@magnumphotos.com if you have any further questions. Please note that Magnum New York is only considering digital submissions.
Photographers within Europe (excluding the United Kingdom) must submit portfolios to our Paris office. Please email magnum@magnumphotos.fr if you have any further questions.
Applicants must make their own arrangements to deliver and collect their portfolios if required. Magnum Photos cannot take responsibility for any portfolios sent by the post. Please make sure that all material is clearly labelled with contact details, content and the specific format. All portfolios will be ready for collection in July.
Please note that these are provisional details and are liable to change. Please phone or e-mail Magnum offices closer to the time to check dates.
We regret that due to confidentiality reasons, Magnum cannot give out personal information regarding our photographers, nor can we enter into correspondence regarding any decision made about Nomineeship.
Form of Submission:
If your portfolio does not meet these requirements, it will not be considered.
There are no such restrictions for submitting books, photographs or portfolios. However, your editing skills will be deemed as important as your ability to photograph so please bear this in mind when refining your submission.
Submissions should be sent to your nearest Magnum office:
Submissions are now open for 2012 and are being accepted until June 8th.
(Please note that Magnum New York and Magnum London ONLY consider digital submissions)
Magnum Photos Inc./ Portfolio Review
151 West 25th Street 5th Floor
New York, NY 10001
USA
Magnum Photos Inc./ Portfolio Review
63 Gee Street
London EC1V 3RS
United Kingdom
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