Stock Photos

A stock photograph is an image that exists in the file of a photographer or agency, which is available to be licensed for use or reproduction. Microstock, an offshoot of traditional stock photography, works entirely via the internet, selling images at a very low rate. There are two methods of licensing images from microstock.

The majority of photobuyers today purchase images royalty-free. Royalty-free does not imply that the image itself is no-cost, but rather that it is free of royalties. Under this agreement the buyer is allowed limited use of the image for a single license fee. This fee can be as low as twenty cents. There is no time limit to when an image can be purchased and/or used. A print run is given as part of the contract, and reproduction beyond that run requires an additional fee per use. No exclusive rights are given to the buyer, and the photographer or agency is allowed to license the image to other clients at the same time. Royalty-free purchases are the most cost-effective for publishing houses and clients who intend to use the image in a smaller print run. The arrangement also benefits photographers and agencies, which make up for the low single rate by selling to many buyers.

If exclusivity is an issue for the photobuyer, or if a larger print run is necessary, images are licensed under a rights managed agreement. With this arrangement the photobuyer pays each time he or she uses the image. The fee is negotiated based on considerations such as exclusivity, distribution, length of time used, and geographic location of use. Exclusivity must be stipulated in the contract, and generally is given for one year. This means that the photographer or agency is not allowed to license the image to any other buyers or use the image in any way during that time. After the time is up, however, the image may be placed on the market again. In the case that releases cannot be obtained from the subjects in the photograph, the image cannot be used for purposes other than news and education.

The ease of buying microstock images today, together with the quality and variety of the images available, has made stock photography a satisfying option for anyone who uses pictorials in their publications.

About the Author
Rob Daniels enjoys photography as a hobby and manages content at Future Photo http://www.future-photo.com and is a photographer for the stock photo website at Photo Wizard http://www.photo-wizard.net