The four key ingredients of successfully getting your photo submission approved by the stock agencies QC controllers are:
1. Technically good photographs
First, do not confuse this with having the most fancy camera you can buy, it’s NOT because you can simply get by with a cheap 6 Mega Pixel DSLR camera.
Taking good photos from a technical perspective is to 95% related to camera handling and photo editing and only 5% related to the camera you use.
Proof: Not many photographers come even close to Ansel Adams photographs despite he used a bulky old film camera compared to the technical marvels used today.
You need to make sure that you photos are correctly focused, use the right file format, is correctly exposed and doesn’t contain nasty color casts etc.
2. Commercially useful photos
The biggest mistake beginner stock photographers do is to first take images and then hope and pray someone will buy the images. BIG, BIG mistake.
It doesn’t matter how beautiful or artistic a photo is if it’s not commercially useful.
You must first find a good niche and then take and sell photos for that niche.
3. Legally correct photos
No one want’s trouble with the law and that is also true for stock agencies, publishers and photographers. You will have a hard time selling stock photos with big logos in them and images with no model release for commercials.
Be sure to know the law not only to stay out of trouble but also to sell much better.
4. Speed and accuracy of execution
Taking, preparing, submitting and getting image submissions approved is repetitive work and must be done in the right order. Messing up the order things are done will not only increase the risk for rejected submissions but will also cost valuable time and time is money as we all know.
To ensure you work effectively you need a checklist that ensure you make everything in the correct and most time effective way. Making sure you don’t forget to fix technical issues, avoid legal problems and only submit commercially useful photographs.
Download a free checklist from this link now.
