Alamy announce a ‘Find a Photographer’ service
photo credit: Caveman 92223
Alamy have announced today that they’re going to set up a section of the website where buyers of photography can “Find a Photographer”. Hats off to Alamy for a great photographer friendly initiative.
Alamy will shortly be launching a free service to put picture buyers in touch with photographers.
Customers will be able to search by location and see contact details and portfolio images from photographers in the area. Photographers will be able to update their location and availability at any time. This will be useful for customers who need a picture taken at short notice.
‘Find a Photographer’ will launch as a free service. It will be up to the photographer and the customer to define the task, agree a price, transmit images, arrange invoicing and payment and to resolve any problems between themselves.
To qualify for this service, photographers must meet all of the following criteria:
1. Be experienced in conducting assignments and/or commissions
2. Have at least 100 images and 10 sales on Alamy
3. Have a website that showcases your work
PP thinks this is a grand idea – even better if Alamy were to inspect the websites that people submit for quality. The only problem I can see with this being a very low entry threshold is that buyers/commissioners won’t know whether they’re getting someone who can actually deliver images from a commission before its too late. Then the buyer may be disappointed and this could reflect badly on Alamy.
Alamy have a hard judgement call to make on how they sign this area of the website for buyers to see. If they intimate the photographers they list are recommended it might come back to bit them in the butt if the ‘tog fouls up and customer becomes disgruntled, blaming Alamy for the introduction (a bit like your mate arranging you a blind date that he swears is a “looker” and…. well, we’ve all been there).
If, on the other hand, Alamy decide to stay 100% hands off “nothing to do with me guv” then doesn’t that say something about the quality of imagery in the library? Maybe not? Tough call.
Prospective new receivers of commissions would do well to note that it’s not unusual (as Tom would sing) to not get paid for 60-90 days after the commission. They should also have extremely robust terms and conditions of business in place which should be agreed before the commission starts, because without them you’re going to get plucked faster than a Turkey at Christmas by the wily publishers waiting in the wings to relieve you of your copyright/all rights. And there are plenty of those miscreants dotted about the sectors we’re looking at here.
Some PP thoughts for those wet behind the ears in the commissioned world.
I see some on the Alamy forum thinking this is a quick way to easy money and to make more stock images to place with Alamy. Some gigs might be; but some will also be difficult, unrepeatable and you’d better have the skills to nail it first time. The future saleability of assignment images will also depend on what rights are granted to the commissioner. If you’re forced to transfer “all rights” or copyright you won’t own the images to be able to sell them! You must also respect any exclusivity you give as part of your negotiations. Always make them pay more for exclusivity.
A lot of these commissions (if Alamy set this up on a geographical basis as they’ve suggested) will come in with a hugely short lead time and turnaround. i.e. you might get a call at 3pm one day to do a shoot the next morning and deliver files that afternoon. This sort of work is only for those who are full-time, you can’t do assignments part-time – it’s way too unpredictable. So don’t hack-off customers by pretending you’re a full time pro when you’re only available on Wednesday nights and Saturdays!
Don’t forget to charge for mileage, digital file preparation and delivery too. Remember, this is not stock, they are not buying off the shelf here but a one-off shoot so make sure you charge well for the rights you are granting. You’ll also have extra costs like public liability insurance in case your light stand acts as a trip magnet to the local ambulance chaser!
Admin dear admin
You will now have to do the Alamy bits you never see (and it”ll show you just how hard negotiation/debt collection is). You’ll need to negotiate the fee, do the shoot and get it right, deliver the images with a licence, and prepare and send an invoice. Then you’ll have to chase that invoice all the way through the system of Acme Inc. to get paid. Oh yes you will.
Finally, if you’re new to the game we call assignment photography and new to charging for your work and you need to bone up fast – have a look round here at some of the articles (many on charging and licencing) but especially this one OK!:
12-easy-ways-not-to-succeed-in-business-as-a-new-professional-photographer
God speed, you’ll need it!
PP
Tags: Alamy, Assignment Photography, Comment, copyright, find a photographer, Getting paid, licences, licenses, Photography Business, pricing photography, usage
