Great Escape Publishing

Posted July 30th, 2009 by twl_admin & filed under Travel Photography.

Dear Reader,

Here’s this week’s Featured Publication, with a profile of stock photo site Dreamstime…

Stock photography, as you know, is an easy way to sell your photos online. We like it because it’s a fun. You can do it in your spare time (from anywhere in the world you choose to travel or live). And you don’t need a huge collection of photos to get started.

Online stock agencies, like Dreamstime (below), display your photos online, offer them to buyers, and then take a commission on the sale. They do all the marketing work so you don’t have to.

Scroll down to find out how to get started with Dreamstime…

— Lori
Lori Allen
Director, Great Escape Publishing

P.S. If you’d like to really roll up your sleeves and dig in… join us for our next Ultimate Stock Photography Workshop. There, you’ll learn from some of the best photographers in the business how to set yourself up as a stock photographer… sell your photos online… and collect a handsome royalty check for your “trouble”. Bring your camera and get ready to shoot. You’ll learn how to make marketable images of people, places, food, and more. And you’ll have the opportunity to come away with a whole portfolio of photographs you can upload and sell right away.

Dreamstime: Sell your photos as stock or editorial

Stock photography is big these days… and growing. Just last month, our very own Shelly Perry (who writes our weekly Photo Tips) reported record earnings in her stock photo sales. One of the bigger agencies out there, with 6,213,982 images up for sale, is Dreamstime.

It’s easy to set yourself up to sell photos on Dreamstime. Here’s how:

STEP 1: Sign up for a free account.

STEP 2: Under the “Contributors Area” tab, click on “Upload images.” Dreamstime accepts only .jpg images that are at least 3 megapixels, saved at highest image quality.

STEP 3: Check your email to see if your images are approved or denied. This may take a few days. If your images are denied, you’ll receive a reason why. Then, you can fix the problem and try again. At Dreamstime, there’s also an editorial section, where you do not need a model release for the people in your images. However, images in this section must be newsworthy, or images that document current events in culture, politics, and news topics.

PAYMENT: The amount you make per photo on Dreamstime depends on how many times that photo has sold. The number of sales determines a photo’s “level,” and payment rises with each level, starting at $.46 at level 1, and rising to $7.00 at level 5. Earnings also depend on whether you opt to become an “exclusive” member or not. You’ll find payment details here: http://www.dreamstime.com/sell

MORE PAYMENT: You can also join the referral program, which pays you a $5 bonus for signing up and placing a Dreamstime sitebadge (a logo that links back to the site) on your personal website. When someone you refer becomes a member (either a photographer or buyer) you’ll receive 10% of the sale on images they buy from the site or sell through it.

To learn more about selling your photos to online stock photo agencies, check out our Quick and Dirty Guide to Stock Photography.

Further Resources:
Dreamstime submission guidelines
Dreamstime photographer registration page

[Editor’s Note: Learn more about opportunities to profit from your travels (and even from your own home) in our free online newsletter The Right Way to Travel.]