An Online Guide to Stock Photography

Sunday July 6, 2008

What is Stock Photography?

My latest stock photos on Dreamstime

Stock photography is simply photography that can be used in a variety of ways. It's usually shot on "spec", meaning the photographer is not on an assignment when they take the stock pictures. Instead, the photographer takes pictures of subjects and concepts they choose.

Stock photography is commonly used by graphic designers to create advertisements, websites, brochures and other creative for their company's promotions. There are many other uses as well though. Sometimes stock photography is used in magazine or newspaper articles, sometimes it's used by tourist centers in towns or cities, and sometimes it's used in software applications. These are just a few examples of ways stock photos might be used however, and is not all encompassing.

There are different types of stock photography, and it's important for both buyers and photographers to know the differences.

1. Royalty Free Stock Photography - Royalty free means that a stock photo can be paid for once, but used multiple times. There are usually limitations however, depending on where you've purchased a royalty free photograph. Some stock providers will allow you to create products for resell using their royalty free photographs, while most will not. Others might allow you to do so at lower volumes - less than 100,000 for example - and some will allow you to pay higher prices for larger volume projects.

It's very important for buyers to know that "Royalty Free" means they'll pay no royalties on usage of the stock photos. This phrase does not mean the photos are now fully owned and copyrighted by them, and it does not mean the photos can be distributed freely by them.

Stock photos are always owned in full - and fully copyrighted - by the photographer. When buyers obtain stock photos, they are only getting a license to use those photos. They're not getting full ownership rights... even if they've purchased "Royalty Free" pictures.

2. Micro Stock Photography - This is a new part of the stock photography industry, and generally it falls into the Royalty Free Stock Photography area. The main difference however, is that through Micro Stock Photography sites, clients can license images for as little as one or two dollars. Regular royalty free stock photos tend to be licensed for $20, $30, even $100 or more.

3. Rights Managed (RM) Stock Photography - This type of stock photography is the most expensive, but it's also usually the most creative and unique. Rights Managed stock photography also tends to be of much higher quality, and it's more exclusive than Royalty Free photos.

With Royalty Free Stock Photography, thousands of clients could be using the same picture in their advertising or other promotional collateral. Rights Managed Stock Photography is more controlled - allowing a limited number of people to use a particular photograph at any given time. Clients pay much higher fees for Rights Managed photography, and they're subjected to many more restrictions as well. They pay royalties, or ongoing fees, based on how they'll use the stock photos they've selected.

My popular stock photos on Dreamstime

Now that we've covered the basics of Stock Photography, we'll delve deeper into a variety of stock photography lessons in this mini guide. Some of these lessons will be written towards photographers who might like to get into creating photos for stock usage, and some will be written towards clients who might like to start using stock photos.

Please feel free to use the links found throughout this site to explore the topic of stock photography in much more depth...

© 2006, Kathy Burns-Millyard, All Rights Reserved.

© Photographer: Eperceptions | Agency: Dreamstime.com

© Photographer: Eperceptions | Agency: Dreamstime.com

Stock Photo Galleries

Stock Photography Articles...

• What is Stock Photography

• Photographers: Rights Managed vs. Royalty Free Micro Stock Photography

• Stock Photography Tips: Creativity vs. Saleability

• Can Photographers Make Money With Stock Photography?

• Stock Photography of People: Model Releases

• Are You Using Stock Photos In Your Business Illegally?

Royalty Free Stock Photo Portfolios

• Dreamstime

• Shutterstock

• Fotolia

• Bigstock

About This Site...

This website is here to help new photographers and business owners learn some of the basics of selling or using stock photography. My portfolios are no longer available here, instead they have been condensed onto my main Electronic Perceptions website.