• “See The World” is a snappy portfolio piece featuring gobs of Hollingsworth’s images that zip by with quick pans and lively music. You won’t really see “the world,” but you will certainly a great example of how a large body of work (a photographer’s overall style) can be presented quickly.
• In “Coming Soon” Hollingsworth speaks directly to us to explain what’s going on with his site. He shares that he is currently building a totally new site that will be part-free and part-subscription based. The four topics he will focus on are stock photography, lifestyle photography, Continue reading “Learn Stock Photography Strategies from Jack Hollingsworth”
Think agriculture photography sounds dull? I did. But then I started researching an article I’m currently writing on the topic for NANPA’s “Currents” magazine. What I have discovered is world of photography, with many top photographers committed to pushing their own creativity as they work to best capture what is, arguable, the most important industry on the planet.
It turns out that quite a bit of agricultural photography is dull — at least from a photographic standpoint. If you search the libraries of Grant Heilman Photography, Inc. and AGStockUSA, you will find tons of images that document very specific aspecst of the industry that I think you’ll find quite uninteresting — unless you happen to be keen on the topic.
Heilman and AGStockeUSA are two super stars in agricultural stock photography, and they are focused on meeting the specific demands of a unique market. (Who else is looking for “Holstein heifers about 10 months old” or “Frost on soybeans — 4 bean pod”?)
On Monday I strongly proclaimed that “stock is dead.” I was trying to force home the point that considering making a living solely though licensing stock images is about as practical as considering trying to get rich selling ice to Eskimos. And I stand by my strong-minded opinion. But, don’t worry. I’m actually not all doom and gloom.
I wrote what I wrote because I feel that it is critical that forward-thinking photographers utterly abandon any kind of perverse line of thinking that will lead them to plan their financial success around stock, even in part. As I keep saying, stock is Continue reading “What To Do About the Death of Stock”
There, I said it. Stock photography is dead. Which is to say, from the photographer’s perspective, making and licensing stock imagery is no longer a viable way to earn extra income, let alone make a living purely through stock sales.
This opinion is not one based on deep research, and it can easily be refuted by any number of photographers who are still making big bucks from both old and new stock. But I think this “stock is dead” perspective is critically important for photographers to embrace so that they do not waste precious resources trying to squeeze money out of a dead industry.
