Hi!

Some time ago I needed lots of stock images, but could not find a 'tripadvisor' for stock image websites. So I decided to create this. It is now launched and you can find it here: newbielink:http://topimagesites.com/ [nonactive]

This is a resource for people who want stock images.

However, I also want to add to this - a resource for photographers, and the people / companies that provide the actual stock images.

I am keen to hear from you what I could create that you would find useful? Is there something you wish was available for photographers (and creators of media products) but which is not out there? Is there something that would have made your life easier, but which currently doesnt exist?

If there are good suggestions, I would be happy to create such a resource.

Kind regards
Topimagesites

Hi!

Some time ago I needed lots of stock images, but could not find a 'tripadvisor' for stock image websites. So I decided to create this. It is now launched and you can find it here: http://topimagesites.com/

This is a resource for people who want stock images.

However, I also want to add to this - a resource for photographers, and the people / companies that provide the actual stock images.

I am keen to hear from you what I could create that you would find useful? Is there something you wish was available for photographers (and creators of media products) but which is not out there? Is there something that would have made your life easier, but which currently doesnt exist?

If there are good suggestions, I would be happy to create such a resource.

Kind regards
Topimagesites

I am a long-time user and contributor to Trip Advisor - I'm totally sold on the concept. However I can't see the similarity between travel and purchasing stock images. With travel, there's the ability to obtain details, often hidden, about the hotel/restaurant/attraction - things you only know once you've been there. With stock images, you're looking for images for a project and you can see everything you need to (for most sites with decent previews) so there's not much except price to talk about. There are various blogs that people have written comparing pricing - what more can a new site ad that hasn't already been covered (and that a Google search will uncover)?

From the point of view of contributors, there's a lot more to a decision to contribute or to remain as a contributor, but that's what this site is about. There was one before it, a now-defunct Yahoo group. It is important for contributors to be able to share information about sites - new terms of service, problems getting paid, changes in prices or royalty rates - but what do you think a new site would do that MicrostockGroup doesn't?

You also have to deal with the need for anonymity to avoid agency retaliation which will exist wherever contributors talk about agencies. Some people also wish to remain anonymous to avoid copycats.

As far as I know the Microstock Collective is no more, but I don't think there was much activity there even when it was around.

The things newcomers often want to know - what should I shoot to make the most money - aren't really things you can answer (and if you could, you probably wouldn't!)

I suppose something really sophisticated that could intelligently search a range of sites and return something closer to your needs than a simple search at sayss at your best price point would have some value...but this aint it

Ok let's talk TripAdvisor.  We recently travelled the western U.S. by car for 2 weeks, and I tried using TripAdvisor to find better mid-priced hotels along the way.   I found it useless.  Every 'name' hotel (Holiday Inn, Best Western, Quality Inn and all rest) had roughly the same rating, typical 4 or 4 1/2 stars,  based on hundreds of reviews.  Most of the reviews were glowing, a few really ripped the place up, but they gave me no basis for decisions.  It was clear that over time, human nature being what it is, they all tended to reach the same rating.  Many were from parents who only cared whether the kids liked the pool and the front desk was friendly; nothing else seemed to matter; but they swamped the voting.

The thing is, though, that some of these hotels really are much better than others in the ways that matter:  noisy room air conditioners, musty odors, trucks idling under windows, lousy blankets and pillows, breakfast offerings, and so on.  Some were great, some sucked big time. But they were all equal on Trip Advisor.

As with microstock,  crowd-sourcing never really creates quality content.

I find it moderately useful for holidays personally not so much the scores but reading a few recent reviews with a sceptical pair of specs....some people are clearly gaming it for a refund and some love anything and vice versa. I would say the last couple I've been on the comments were pretty close to what I got both plus and minus.

A microstock equivalent of Trip Advisor would be a site where contributors could donate their photos for free for the site to monetize and repay the contributors with patronizing "Achievement" awards.

A microstock equivalent of Trip Advisor would be a site where contributors could donate their photos for free for the site to monetize and repay the contributors with patronizing "Achievement" awards.

Flickr already does that

Surely people need to be able to leave reviews for it to be like TripAdvisor? Unless I'm missing something, I couldnt see anywhere to do that.

I looked at your site just now - I had not done that before.

This isn't a guide, but a very selective subset of agencies with a sort-of cross agency search function (you only show a few from each agency in the comparison). There's also some very misleading information about licensing, releases and distinctions between micro and macro.

You don't include Shutterstock? What sort of misleading headline is it to say "Search ALL the stock image websites for ANY image" when you're not searching one of the largest? On your Top Pics page you list agencies with the "largest" collection of images but exlcude Shutterstock which has more images than any your list with the exception of Getty and Alamy.

When you list sites, you don't make any mention that there are lots of other sites (e.g. Stocksy or CanStock) - how is that helpful if you're trying to provide a guide for those who don't know what's out there?

You are also saying things that are muddled and seriously misleading, such as:

"However, the distinction between microstock and macrostock has lately become more blurry. This is because many microstock image websites now also offer an extended license to their products. If you purchase this license to a product, the product will normally be withdrawn from further sale at the stock image website, which means no other users can purchase the right to use this product in the future"

Extended licenses typically permit larger print runs, products for resale, templates or multiple users. Dreamstime offers a buy the rights option and Alamy's RM offers periods of exclusivity but that's about it. You repeat the incorrect information here. Many macrostock agencies sell both RM and RF licenses to work they represent. Microstock agencies offer RF plus a limited set of additional rights via an extended license.

You also say:

"Macrostock image websites generally sell you exclusive rights to images (or other media products)"

That's not accurate. RM licenses typically specify which uses, sizes and a length of the license term. Exclusivity may or may not be an option, but that's not their primary selling point. The fact that an image is exclusive to a particular agency is not the same as offering exclusive use to a client. You have a much better description of an RM  license here.

What you write about model and property releases is really muddled. People can use any image they want for any purpose - there's no worldwide authority that doesn't "allow" this for privacy reasons. If you use unreleased images in commercial ways you risk a lawsuit from the person or owner of the property, which is why people buy released images.

I have no idea what you're referring to when you write:

"In order to have such a permission, there are two options: 1) There would either need to be such a permission already in place, or 2) you would need to enter into an agreement with that person called a model release. That means that the person in the image or video would grant you the right to use that product commercially."

Buyers of stock images from agencies have no information about who the model is so they can't go to get a release from the model directly. The photographer/videographer signs the contract with the model when the shoot takes place. Same for property releases.

And why pictures of tropical fish on a page about model releases? You don't need a release for wildlife.

Why would you create a guide site for an industry you understand nothing about? Sheesh the internet is depressing.

ETA: had a look at some of their videos and they also include the same misinformation Jo Ann has already mentioned.

Why would you create a guide site for an industry you understand nothing about? Sheesh the internet is depressing.

Why would anyone create a guide for an industry they do understand? I've seen it before, newbies start teaching other newbies how to do stock, once they reach a certain level of income (if they reach it), they go mum.

Hi and thanks for reading and responding to my message.

Let me be the first to say I am no super expert in the industry. But I do intend to become one. And this website is a genuine and candid attempt at making life easier for people who need stock images. When I needed stock images the first time, a resource like this would have been of great help to me.

Thanks for informing me that some of the information on the site is not correct. I will update this.

Many thanks as well to JO ANN SNOWER for your thoughts, I greatly appreciate this. Here are my responses:

Why is Shutterstock not included? I would love to also feature Shutterstock, but they (as well as Bigstock) did not want to be included when I first reached out to them. I will contact them again and I hope they will reconsider.

Why are only 10 stock image websites featured? As a first version, I want to include 10 of the top websites. For most users, I think this would be sufficient. However, I may add more in the future.

When I say "Search ALL the stock image websites for ANY image" - I mean all the stock image websites featured on Topimagesites, not all the stock image websites on the web.

OPAL - is this what you would like to see? A search function where one could click on an image (or video) and get up a list with links to the places on the web where this image (or video) is already used?

Thanks again for your thoughts

but if you are gonna use something illegally could you at least make an honest effort to remove or hide the watermark  ...

No, please DON'T.

Quote from: niktol on June 25, 2017, 08:22

but if you are gonna use something illegally could you at least make an honest effort to remove or hide the watermark  ...

No, please DON'T.

Well, I prefer competent people to bona fide idiots . If you are robbing a convenience store, don't do a special shout-out to your mom on a security camera.