Interviewing Photographers, CEO's of stock agencies, industry pundits and others.

Jack Hollingsworth     

One of the most well known names in stock photography. 

Marc Romanelli

Marc Romanelli has been shooting stock photography for over twenty years.  He has crafted an enviable life style of shooting what he wants when he wants and living where he wants (Santa Fe, New Mexico).  Marc has also been successful at adding  motion to his repertoire.  In this interview he shares his experience with us and how he plans on dealing with this changing market.

 

The industry has made the mistake of creating too many of the same images over and over again. This is because instead of nurturing the photographers who have vision to combine both art and commerce to produce unique images within the standard salable subjects, they let creative decisions be driven by previous sales results and creative research based all on the same sources.

Colin Anderson

I can get ideas from anywhere. I might be walking through Target and see something that jump-starts a concept. Movies and TV are also a big source of ideas as are locations. Finding an unusual or cool prop can always open up a range of ideas and clothing is also a big source of inspiration.

Jonathan Ross

Blend was really the birth of community stock photography. Similar to what Micro has become today, just on a much larger scale. Before that stock was a very private business.

Rick Becker-Leckrone

Shalom Ormsby

What I strive to do with my work is to “vision the invisible” – to use the physical, material expressions of people, animals, plants, and places to reveal whatever mystery it is that animates them, that gives them life, vitality, and character. I’m not referring to an effort to see something that’s beyond appearances, but rather, to reveal what’s within appearances.

Tom Joyce

Lanny Ziering

 My generation was shaped by TV, but every major event in our lifetime is defined by a still image. When people think of the Vietnam War they think about the image of the man being shot in the head by the guy in the short sleeve shirt or the napalm-scarred girl running down the road. When we think of the student revolution on Tiananmen Square it’s the image of the guy with the plastic shopping bags in front of the tank.

Trevor Lush

Every shoot brings its own set of challenges and unique energy.  I think that's what I love about a career in photography - the variety!  I love being in the middle of a huge production with lots of locations, models, and crew!  At the same time, it can be equally rewarding to be shooting food with my wife on our kitchen table.  Plus there's always something around the corner that will test me in new ways, like photographing a surgery for a healthcare client or winter camping for a book publisher.

Patty Meyers

Probably the biggest change has been the advent of the digital age and Photoshop as a staple of the production process.   Once the Web replaced the stock catalogues as the major source of visual content, search engines greatly streamlined the process.  And after Photoshop, it became more about finding elements, rather than finding the perfect shot. 

Inti St. Clair

My main agencies are Getty and Blend Images. I’m also with Jupiter, Cultura, Danita Delimont, and Uppercut. I don’t do any direct sales. The whole direct sales thing intrigues me, but I can’t imagine trying to take that on without having some sort of staff. At this point, I’m a one-woman show, and work way too much as it is!

Tom Grill

For micro to survive successfully it will have to raise prices substantially.  Their further success will depend upon their ability to attract a higher quality of material.  This means images with higher production value.  The value cannot be put in by photographers if they don’t receive the financial returns from their efforts.  It simply doesn’t make sense as a business model.

 
Lance Lee

I see myself as a jack of all trades and a master of one – photography. I enjoy learning new things and I’m glad that they contribute to my growth as a photographer. For example, learning hairstyling and makeup helps in my work in fashion. Even learning dances like Tango and Salsa got me to be more sensitive to body language such that I was surprised I became better at directing models in posing.

Dan Heller

Consumers look for anything and everything. It doesn’t matter. Once decision-making leaves “skilled designers and marketing directors” and is left in the hands of the consumer, all rules about “what sells” go out the window.

Consumers (that is, people who “consume” images without having anything to do with traditional media commerce) often have extremely poor taste, poor design skills, and inconsistent purchasing patterns.

Sarah Fix

In 1993 I applied to an ad in the LA Times for a sales position at Westlight, a stock photography agency on the West Coast that was acquired by Corbis in 1998. I was an account executive for 3 years before moving into the editing department.   

This was a great introduction into stock photography.  It gave me the ability to visit clients in the major U.S. markets and gain an understanding of what sells and to whom.

Jeremy Woodhouse

Most of my stock sales are through Getty, Masterfile and Blend Images of which I am an owner along with 22 other photographers. I do work directly with a couple of magazine editors but often it is more hassle that it’s worth. 

Jon  Feingersh

I am a partner in Blend, so most of my efforts go there.  I contribute a particular style of imagery to Getty which I feel needs their worldwide distribution.  I had a large quantity of legacy Stock Market and Zefa material which until recently had been at Corbis.

Charlie Holland

Sarah Golonka

I have been involved professionally with stock photography for over 7 years now, entering  the field shortly after graduating from collage at Purdue University, in West Lafayette, IN,  where I studied fine art photography & psychology.

Don Farrall