How one can become a stock photographer in Malaysia
Stock images are licensed photos which can be bought and redistributed for commercial uses. Stock photography has seen tremendous growth because webmasters, bloggers, and businesses use images for their websites and promotional materials. As a freelance photographer, there are various options to trade photos on the web. It is an excellent way for a stock photographer in Malaysia to create passive income while concentrating on other activities.
What photos should you capture?
The world of stock photography is like a delicate ecosystem. You not only have to take photos that appeal to the mass, but they also have to be unique. As a stock photographer in Malaysia, you have to make sure that your photos will be wanted and needed.
Most sites have a guideline for the type of photos they prefer for their database. Make an impact in stock photography by concentrating on a niche instead of taking many pictures. You will be more successful in focus on one subject or style. Avoid several mediocre or average quality photos of different items.
Stock websites are specific about their needs, offer them various photos that fill in the gaps rather than re-submitting images that have been successful before.
Other than image subject rules, stock websites also have quality rules. To better your chances as a stock photographer in Malaysia, limit the edits on an image. Avoid excessive cropping, high contrasts, lens flares and anything else that weakens from the theme of the image.
Currently, bloggers and website owners are the biggest clients of a stock photographer in Malaysia. All content made from blog posts and social media updates require an appealing image. Below are what these sites are looking for:
- Corporate images and current businesses
- Food and Beverages especially global cuisines
- Concepts and Visual Metaphors to explain something in a unique way
- Groups of people working together
- Seasonal Themes including local festivals and customs
- Non-Business Jobs such as mechanics, gardeners, and farmers
- People Intermingling
- Religion and Spirituality
- Science and Technology
- Social Issues
- Sports and team sports
To get an idea of what’s hot, browse through the most popular images in each category on the sites on which you intend to list your photos.
Create the Best Images Possible
If your photos are not appealing to the eye, they won’t sell. Capture appealing moments with the right equipment.
Marketing and Selling
The use of tags and keywords is preferred to assist buyers better find your available images. Social networks, guest posting on photography and being an active participant in photography forums is also encouraged.
Stock photography is a quick, economical solution to fundamental image-based problems, which is why it has recently exploded as a field. Becoming a successful stock photographer in Malaysia is an art form, and you have to know how to sell your images.
Ensure your photos searchable
To ensure that your picture is visible to buyers, confirm that it is easily searchable- a compelling title, appropriate keywords, and tags are necessary. Do not use vague or irrelevant keywords.
Tagging your images is an essential part of driving traffic to your image, so consider tagging your photos not just for their literal meanings.
Be aware of the main categories on where you want to sell your images. These sections are usually promoted on the homepage of the site and get more traffic.
Places to sell your stock images
Below is an overview of where you can submit your pictures. These are among the best-paying stock images sites. There are lots of photographers submitting their photographs, so ensure yours is unique, of exceptional quality and follows the set guidelines.
Shutterstock:
Shutterstock primarily allows its contributors to get $0.25 for each download of any image submitted. The more you earn more from your pictures, you rise into sets of payments per download going up to $0.38 each download.
iStockphoto:
Contributors may receive an initial royalty of 15% for image downloaded. Exclusive contributors earn up to 45%. These rates increase due to the number of copies you upload and the popularity of your portfolio on the site.
Dreamstime
Dreamstime allows you to submit your images either as a non-exclusive contributor or as an exclusive contributor. As a non-exclusive contributor, you may also choose to submit exclusive images for a percentage of the downloads’ net sales.
Stocksy: Stocksy is an exclusive partnership where contributors have to be approved depending on the quality of the work submitted. However, Stocksy pays its contributors 50% per image download and also shares 90% of its profits with its contributing photographers annually.
Veer: Submissions on Veer can earn you as little as $0.35 per image download, or as much as $7 depending on image size.
Fotolia: You will earn a royalty based on image downloads and also according to your portfolio’s site ranking. These can get you between 20 – 63% for each image download.
Who should you shoot?
Stock photography is an essential part of the photo industry. It yields quick returns for the buyer and costs them less than what organizing and shooting on their own might cost. Much like survival in the competitive photo market, the trick for a stock photographer in Malaysia is to stay on top of supply and demand. When shooting and submitting your work, think of the kind photos have yet to have been shot, and more importantly, those that have already been entirely exhausted by other photographers.
Photography isn’t about the numbers. It’s also about aesthetics, subject matter, and technique. There could be a million photographs, but the world would never have enough. As trends come and pass, image buyers will still look for images that reach out to their audiences.
Stock photography is a viable source of income for a technically-inclined stock photographer in Malaysia, such as those who are open to investing the time to create and market a quality product for any potential client. For photographers who have made it through stock photography check out Jack Hollingsworth and Brooke Becker.
