Did you tried to be successful at stock photos but failed?

That’s great! Why? Let me explain.

I’m Paulina and I’ve started my adventure with free and paid stock photos some time ago. Like most of us, photographers, graphic designers or illustrators, I wanted to share my artwork and make a few dollars per year for offering stock photos. At first it was easy, nearly all of bigger stock portals added me and accepted my photos. However, as I moved on and tried other accounts I hit the wall. They stopped accepting my work or even let me sign up for any. Why?

A few changes in free and paid stock photos policy.

First of all they start writing messages such as: your photo/ image must be at least 2MP big..3 MP big…4MP big and so on. Then, they came up with another idea to make my life harder. „We already have tons of photos like this, try something different” was the second message.

At this point I was quite nervous. Is it my fault that some guy added 500 photos for idk, online marketing or SEO? If my photo is as good as someone’s else, why shouldn’t I contribute to it only because there was someone before me?? Like… it’s not even my problem!

Why stock photos sites do not accept my photos?

There are many examples, but they will NEVER tell you what EXACTLY is wrong with your submission or how to fix it in order to be added. And there are plenitude of examples. Blurred photos, aberration, the usage of image altering program (like Photoshop), overexposure or underexposure of the photo, too narrow framing, too low or too high contrast, photo noise or mentioned before problem with the image’s size.

And I thought to myself, maybe my photos are so bad? Maybe the expectation of the audience changed within those months of accepting and non accepting my works? What if my ideas of photos are no longer needed? So I tried to improve my photos.

Second (FAILED) test of submitting my photos.

These isn’t much to read, I’m pretty sure you know what I’m talking about. Might as you try, you’d hardly ever improve your results. They don’t let you do that.

Why your photos are not guilty?

Simply, because they are YOURS. There aren’t good and bad photos… because all of them are beautiful! Stock photos companies try to imply that minimalist, flat and cliched stereotypes-based photos are the best ones. Wrongly!

And as the stock photos itself are cliched… using them is bad as well! There are many advices of how to properly make your online business work. And using royalty free images is mentioned as a sin more and more often.

People are not retarded.

They see if the photo is done by you or is it taken from the internet. As rules for adding stock images becomes REALLY stiff there isn’t much left for imagination and most of the photos are nearly the same! A handshake stock, smiling call center consultant stock, words arranged thematically in some kind of pattern stock – we all seen those in both, small businesses and on billboards. And we do not notice them anymore, they’re like background, at least for me.

I know that royalty free images are so…cheap and many companies decide for this alternative but if ALL OF THEM decide for this alternative…they become the same. Their marketing campaigns blend together into an army of smiling faces we see everywhere and the only thing which will differentiate them will be the brand name (necessarily in flat design and with abstract shapeless logo).

Why you failed at being part of stock photos agency?

Simply because you do not like patterns and have your unique style. Your work is original and maybe you like to experiment. Or maybe because you are searching and exploring mixing various media and styles? Your photos describe your soul and grasp the idea of your emotions at that moment. Your works of art cannot be understood by the masses, and you know it very well. I had the same problem. I like „bolded” photos, abstract macro photography, bokeh photography or photojournalism along many others. And for all of them there is no place at royalty-free images sites.

The aim

There are two aims depending on who we have in mind.

The first group are artists.

Do you have photos that for some reason weren’t accepted by royalty-free stock site? As long as you are proud of them, you can still share them here and make some profit out of it. Understocks will accept nearly all your works, so you do not have to worry about any technical issues concerning your camera or software.

The second one are businesses.

Nobody seem to click your thumbnails and blogposts? Maybe because of the photos you use? You want to make your online business seem friendlier and give your corporate identity more natural look? Thanks to Understocks you can get closer to your customers and stand out from the crowd of identically looking cliched royalty-free photos.