Microstock Academy - by VIEW APART

📷 The NEW NORMAL 📷

Thanks to my lovely models and my fellow microstocker Çlirim Ishmaku for this great shooting 😍

📸 MICROSTOCK ACCELERATOR 📸
(your perfect workflow)

❓ Have you ever tried to SELL your PHOTOS online?

🗣️ Most stock photography gurus are teaching you to take images which DON'T SELL, using strategies and workflows which DON'T WORK.

But nobody is teaching you a GENERAL METHOD to approach microstock in the most successful way.
A sustainable method which you can then develop, adapting it to your favourite lifestyle.

⭕ So, here we go, in chronological order for educational purposes:

➡️ Market Analysis

Before you do anything, you need to start analyzing the market, and photograph ONLY what is ON DEMAND.
Forget "niches".
Go MAINSTREAM!

➡️ Gear Selection

No excuses!
Nowadays almost any camera is ok to start with stock photography, even smartphones.
Use what you have, and concentrate your efforts (and BUDGET) on photo-shoots.
If you don't have any camera, save money and buy second-hand.
If you already have one, but you want to buy a new toy, WAIT, until your earnings are increasing and you better understand what YOU REALLY NEED.

➡️ Photo-shoot Organization

Stock photography is NOT about photographing random things around you.
It's about THINKING STOCK.
Plan your shoot in advance: first CONCEPTS, then LOCATION, then MODELS and PROPS.

➡️ Storyboard

Once you have everything arranged, put all your ideas on paper, writing down a DETAILED STORYBOARD, with all concepts that you are going to represent within the photo-shoot, following a precise timing.
On your storyboard you also want to have compositions angles, moods, lighting, etc...
Nothing should be improvised!

➡️ Copyright & Releases

Be aware of copyrighted items: it's better to avoid them before shooting than loosing time in post-production cloning them out.
Also, have your model/property releases ready: paper or electronic, as you prefer.
Don't try to be tricky.
LEGALITY is king!

➡️ Shooting Timing

Meet your models always 30 minutes before the scheduled photo-shoot, so you can have a warmup small talk, and avoid annoying delays.

Be nice with your models, and tell them ALWAYS the truth about what's going to happen with the images you take.
Once you start, don't forget to stick to your storyboard with a stopwatch in your hand: while you are shooting, time goes by MUCH QUICKER than what your mind can feel, and if you don't pay attention, you won't accomplish many of your ideas.
Take some breaks: they are very useful to refresh your mind and have your models more expressive.
Also, let them have FUN!

➡️ Database Management

Once you are at home after the photo-shoot, the very first thing is to transfer your images to your hard-drive and do a BACKUP.

BACKUP BACKUP BACKUP

Did you understand?

🤖 Have at least one BACKUP 🤖

Then, only then, start with post-production.

The second most important thing is to keep your database clean and tidy, straight from the BEGINNING.
Should you already (and unfortunately) have a messy database fix it before you go on with all the rest. Take a step back, and have it done immediately!
For example, you can organize your assets in specific folders: original (not edited) images, edited keyworded images, releases, LR catalogs.

➡️ Editing

You don't need to be a "master retoucher" .
But you need to be obsessively ACCURATE.

Here's my little editing workflow: first color correction in LR, then switch on PS for logos removal or special effects, then back on LR for a final touch.
Customers are lazy.
They want cool ready-to-go images.

➡️ Keywording

Don't ever underestimate keywords and be sure to spend enough time researching the most relevant ones.
They are CRUCIAL to your success!

Once your image is uploaded and keyworded, copy&paste metadata on LR, and export the image again: in this way you'll have your images stored in your database, READY to be uploaded anywhere in the future, without any extra work.

➡️ Uploading Strategies

At the beginning, photographing is much more important than uploading.
So, if you don't have enough images in your existing database, then... STOP UPLOADING.
You need to produce more and MORE images.
It's better to upload FEWERS photos ON A REGULAR BASIS.
It's better to upload few UNIQUE images than many ONES which look similar.

Also, for at least one year, FOCUS your workflow on very few agencies until you SELL WELL.

➡️ Portfolio Creation

As said above, GO organize your PHOTO-SHOOT now, and focus on PEOPLE LIFESTYLE.

BEGINNERS: shoot four-seasonal, as you want images that sell all year long.
INTERMEDIATE: now you can start to shoot summer/winter, but remember that there's more summer than winter in the world.
ADVANCED: now you can go a bit more on specific holidays: the very first I suggest you is Christmas, because it sells in December, giving you extra downloads in an usual weak month.

🔹🔹🔹

💪 ACTION TIME 💪

🚀 Did you already join my FREE community with more than 2,500 microstockers (from all around the world) sharing their experience?

🚀 Do you also know that I have an online video course called "MICROSTOCK ACADEMY - FAST START" which goes deep into explaining all points presented above, through practical step-by-step detailed strategies?

Watch my FREE introduction WEBINAR registering with your best mail on this link:

⬇️

https://microstock.mykajabi.com/microstock-academy-2020-fb

⬆️

Whether you buy my course or not, you'll still get the link to my FREE group ❤️

Thanks for reading and see you there!

Microstock Academy - FREE WEBINAR about selling your images online! In this free webinar I will tell you how I changed my lifestyle, traveling the world thanks to the passive income generated by my images