How does StockPhotoRequest.com work?

1. As a subscriber, you receive emails with image requests from advertising and editorial Photo Buyers.

2. You can go to the site to upload images to one common light table per request. (Each uploaded image has links to your contact info next to it, so even if they don't use your image, you are advertising your work to your specific target market. You can see what other photographers are submitting as well and what the photo buyer has saved or deleted.)

3. Photo buyers contact you directly to license image. You pay NO commissions on sales.

4. You have your own Photographer Profile Page on the site, with a bio and small portfolio of images. When we market our service to photo buyers we also market individual photographers.

5. Subscribers can contribute images to our Searchable Image Collection. Photo buyers are able to search through images and license them directly from you. As with all your work at StockPhotoRequest.com, you keep 100% of your sales.

6. The annual subscription fee for individual photographers is $400.

Does StockPhotoRequest.com take a commission on the sales I make?

ABSOLUTELY NOT. There is a one time subscription fee of $400 for one year of service (you could easily make that fee back with one sale!) You can opt to pay for additional images to be placed in our searchable Image Collection at $2/image, but there are no hidden charges or fees.

I'm worried that if I subscribe, I may not make any sales.

Hopefully, you will make sales. But there are lots of other benefits of subscribing to StockPhotoRequest.com.

1. Every time you upload an image to a requesters light table, that image will appear with your name directly under it, as well as a link to your e-mail address and web site. Even if the photo buyer doesn't select your image this time, they will be seeing your name and great picture. In this way, YOU ARE ADVERTISING YOUR BUSINESS EVERY TIME YOU UPLOAD AN IMAGE. Marketing experts tell us that it's important for your target audience to see your name repeatedly. The next time that photo buyer sees your name, they have the feeling that they know you and your work.

2. Get NEW MARKETING CONTACTS. Find out who the new art buyer or photo editor is at your favorite client's. Or what new magazine or book is being published that is the perfect match for your stock.

3. Have you ever received returns from a submission with a "sorry we didn't use these" letter and had no idea what the editor thought of your work? When you upload images to a requester's light table, you can see which images the photo buyer deleted and FIND OUT WHICH OF YOUR IMAGES ARE CONSIDERED SELECTS.

4. When you upload images, you can see what other photo sources are posting as well. You can KNOW WHAT YOUR COMPETITION IS OFFERING.

5. You can SEE WHAT PHOTO BUYERS ARE LOOKING FOR, just by reading requests. It's a good way to learn about current trends in the industry.

Why StockPhotoRequest.com instead of other search services or stock agencies?

1. On other request services, the most frequent complaint from photo buyers and photographers alike is that the images posted are of poor quality. Subscribers to StockPhotoRequest.com are very carefully screened. ONLY THE BEST PHOTOGRAPHERS are able to subscribe to this service.

2. StockPhotoRequest.com takes NO COMMISSION from the licensing of your work. YOU TAKE HOME 100% OF YOUR SALES.

3. You have YOUR NAME AND LINK ON EVERY IMAGE, we don’t stick our name on your pictures.

4. We offer ONLY ONE SERVICE: connecting photo buyers and photographers. Because that’s all we do, we can FOCUS ON FINDING YOU NEW CLIENTS.

5. StockPhotoRequest.com caters to BOTH ADVERTISING AND EDITORIAL CLIENTS.

6. Photographers post their images to ONE common LIGHT TABLE PER REQUEST and it’s EASY TO USE. Photo buyers save time because they don’t need to go to several URLs or open multiple e-mails to see the results of their search.

7. StockPhotoRequest.com ONLY offers RIGHTS PROTECTED images. No royalty free here.

8. StockPhotoRequest.com is focused on higher paying NORTH AMERICAN clients.

9. StockPhotoRequest.com has a MINIMUM BUDGET REQUIREMENT of $125.

10. STOCK AGENCIES ARE TAKING A BIGGER AND BIGGER CUT of photographers’ sales and the contracts are getting worse and worse. You probably have a lot of images collecting dust in your files that your stock agent(s) didn’t select. We do the marketing so you can EARN INCOME FROM MORE OF YOUR WORK.

Is there a charge to upload my images to a photo buyers light table?

Nope. That is included in the annual subscription fee.

How do I know if my image is selected for use?

The photo buyer will contact you directly. Your information will be linked to each of your images when they are posted to the photo buyers light table. If the photo buyer asks that photographers contact them to submit images instead of uploading images to a light table, they will also contact you directly to discuss licensing the image(s).

How do I get paid for my sales?

YOU NEGOTIATE YOUR OWN FEES DIRECTLY with the photo buyer. They list their budget in the request, but you can often negotiate that fee when you license your work.

How do the photo buyers know about this service?

We are marketing to thousands of top image buyers by DIRECT MAIL, E-MAIL MARKETING and by TELEMARKETING. The service is free to photo buyers, so they risk nothing in using our service.

I have a minimum fee for any use. Can I skip the lower budget requests?

Yes. Just state your preferences when you subscribe. There is also a $125 minimum budget for any image request.

I don’t have a scanner. How can I use this service?

Some photo buyers prefer to see originals. There are also numerous photo labs and graphics houses that can scan your images for this kind of low res application for a minimal fee. Photo buyers have made it clear that digital scans of images are the format of the future. This may be a way to archive your images digitally in batches as you go, instead of the intimidating task of scanning your whole collection at once.

Why do you screen photographers before they can subscribe?

Photo sources and photographers alike have complained that bad images are often submitted on other search services. We hope to achieve a higher quality of service so that photo buyers come here first.

What are the qualifying criteria to be eligible for subscription?

You must be a professional photographer with at least five years of experience, list 10 recent publication credits and must have a stock file that is not overly represented in the existing subscribers. (For example: If you only photograph cats, and we have subscribers that have that covered, you may not qualify for membership.) We also review samples of every subscription applicant's work, usually on their web site.

I know my contact information will appear next to my image ... should I also place my © on the image?

We leave that to your discretion. Some photographers think it compromises the viewablilty of their work, others want to make sure that their image cannot be "stolen." However, occasionally, a photo buyer makes a copy of an image for their files and loses track of where the image came from when it comes time to license it. For this reason, you are welcome to place your own copyright (i.e. "©Jennifer Lee Photography") on the image.

Can my stock agency subscribe?

At this time, very small, specialized stock agencies can apply for subscription. The annual subscription fee is $600 per year. Please send us an e-mail at info@stockphotorequest.com for details on stock agency subscription criteria.