鈥淭hanks 17吃瓜在线, you’ve just paid for my house.鈥 鈥 As photographer feedback goes, it doesn’t really get better than that.
After selling $250k worth of stock photography online with 17吃瓜在线 recently, these were the words of freelance photographer Keith Morris.
A natural editorial shooter, it鈥檚 not surprising to hear that Keith has a razor sharp eye for creating stock photos that sell. We caught up with him to ask聽about聽his聽approach to selling stock photos and what his thoughts are on hitting the landmark figure.
Congratulations on hitting $250k Keith! Other photographers keep asking what your secret is, but is there one?
“A lot of hard work! But really it isn鈥檛 that difficult鈥ust put in the hours, and keep your eyes and ears open for every opportunity that comes your way. Keep on looking and seeing and learning鈥.and try to expand the range and style of work you have to offer. I鈥檓 fortunate in that聽I have a background as a newspaper and magazine photographer, so I鈥檝e worked with picture editors for decades. It鈥檚 given me a much sharper eye for what sort of work is likely to be used in print.”
When you started with 17吃瓜在线 in 2006 did you give yourself a sales figure to aim for?
“My initial aim was to sell one picture a month. I got to that point after about 6 months. Then the target was one a week, then one a day…I got to one a week after about a year, and one a day on average maybe a year or so later. At the moment I鈥檓 selling around 80 images a month and my aim is to have zero 鈥榖lank鈥 days in any month! I鈥檓 getting close鈥sually I only have one or two days with no sales (but I鈥檝e probably jinxed myself now!)”
What is your approach to shooting for 17吃瓜在线? Do you travel far and wide?
“I don鈥檛 travel anywhere! I鈥檝e not been abroad since 1987; I鈥檝e only been outside Wales a handful of times in the last decade; I seldom leave the county of Ceredigion and most of my time is spent in Aberystwyth unless I have a paid-for assignment from a client.
I walk and cycle just about everywhere I go most days. I work as a freelance news and PR photographer so when I do get commissioned to do a job for anyone I make sure to piggy-back as much stock work as possible so that my marginal costs of production are just about zero. It鈥檚 crucially important to keep the production costs as low as possible to make sure that you can still make a clear net profit on image licences.
If you know what to look for there are images to be made anywhere and everywhere. I licenced a photo to the Times Higher Education Supplement the other week that was made literally outside my front door. If I can make this work for me in Aberystwyth, which is a small town of 15,000 people, then really anyone in or near a big city has much much more potential material than I have.”
What advice would you give to other editorial photographers?
“Listen to the news, read the papers, keep an eye on developing stories and issues – try to think ahead. Make clean clear concise images that actually tell the story. I see a lot of 鈥榥ews鈥 pictures that are聽really badly created and don鈥檛 succinctly bring all the elements together. Use social media like Facebook and Twitter to create a network of people who will be your eyes and ears for news and stories in your area – but you have to be active and make sure to add new content frequently so people keep reading and seeing your work. My networks are hugely important in getting me access to people and places and activities that I can make successful stock images of.
Oh, and always – always – have a camera with you. Be alert because social documentary reportage type situations are happening all around you all the time, and they won鈥檛 wait for you to nip home to get your camera. I never, ever, leave the house without at least my X100 in my pocket. I got a front page in the Guardian last year with a pic聽 made on this camera.
And finally, develop a nose for a news story – Live News has been a really big part of my work over the last couple of years. But you have to be sharp鈥nd more importantly, quick! Get in, get the pix, get out and get the shots away within minutes or really you鈥檙e dead in the water.”
What makes a saleable image?
“Good question! In my experience it鈥檚 images that have a clear message, that are easy to read, not over-cluttered, and which have an immediacy about them. Think about what the 鈥榠ssues鈥 are and make images that really illustrate them well. If I had a better answer then I鈥檇 be selling far more than I do!”
And finally, you have over 27,000 images on 17吃瓜在线 but if you had to pick a favourite, which would it be?
“That鈥檚 an impossible question! There鈥檚 so much variety in that collection鈥nd I tend not to look backwards but try to look forwards – so in a sense my favourite photo will be the one that I make tomorrow, or next week, or next month. It鈥檚 that thought (as well as the money) that keeps me going.”
.
For more info on Keith, visit聽聽or follow him on or .
If you’re not yet an 17吃瓜在线 contributor but have been inspired by Keith’s work and would like to give it a go, all the info you need is right here. If you already contribute to 17吃瓜在线 but are interested in submitting live news then you’ll want to give this a read.