Summary of sell photos at Shutterstock

[ ภาษาไทย ]

Micro stock photographer can save little by little from sale picture online. They have to be patient because they have not many pictures in their portfolio at the beginning so they will get less commission (each downloads 25 cents).

My friends asked me that you are unemployed so, what do you do? I told them I sale picture online. They asked me how much money you got from it. I told them I got 25 cents each pictures. My friends laughed at me and told me that why is so little. It is true that I got little money.

I think that I save little by little and then one day I will get much money from this job. And the important thing is that my operating result won’t be negative.

Lastest Downloads View of Shutterstock Contributor Page

The above picture is a part of webpage that photographer sale picture online at Shutterstock. It called contributor. I think that most of photographers in the world open this webpage. I also do that.

This webpage show that the ten latest pictures are sold and which where the customers download the pictures. So, I can know which country like my pictures. I feel very proud myself that I export some goods such as export coffee to USA or export woods to AUS.

The below picture is the summary of download picture statistic at Shutterstock on May 2010 which I start to sale pictures. I bought the book about teaching sale picture online that written by Mr. Sura Nualpradid. I read this book for 4-5 days. Then I sent my 10 pictures to Shutterstock to test and at least 7 pictures should be pass to become contributor. If the pictures don’t pass this month, you can send again next month.

My seven pictures were pass in that time but now it is very difficult to pass the test. This is because they got many pictures from all photographers around the world so, there are many competitors. But there are some Thai photographers sent the pictures and pass every times. Don’t be scare to send the pictures. If you are interested, you can click Become a Contributor.

Download Stats - May 2010, Shuttersotck Contribute Page

My first month start to sale the pictures online. I think that I am very lucky to got Enhanced Download which I received 28$ plus 25 cents from normal download include On Demand download. My statistic show that I got more than 100$ in my first month.

I have 1,952 images and 36 footages at Shutterstock. Most of my income comes from sale pictures. My acceptance ratio is 60%. I think most of my pictures pass the test. During I write my blog, I got 8,637 downloads now. So, I got more than 4,000$.

To withdraw money from Shutterstock, if you have money more than 100$ (can change the amount of withdraw money) in this bill date, Shutterstock will transfer money to PayPal around 6-7 days next month then PayPal will transfer money to Bank in Thailand around 5-7 working days.  I think that I will get the money around 14-15 another month.

The above statistic can be see that each downloads have a difference price. The details as given below:

Shutterstock Submitter Earnings Schedule

To calculate income per download, earning Schedule divides into 4 things:

• Level 1 - The accumulate income not more than 500$.
• Level 2 - The accumulate income between 500$ and 3,000$.
• Level 3 - The accumulate income between 3,000$ and 10,000$.
• Level 4 - The accumulate income more than 10,000$.

A new photographer will start at level 1. For myself, I am at level 3 now. It took me 2 years. But some Thai photographers took only one year to level 3.

Products Type depends on customers type as below:

• Subscriptions(25-A-Day) – Customers download every day. The photographers will get around 0.25$ to 0.38$.
• On Demand (Small/Medium) – Depends on customers can buy small or medium size when they want to use it. The photographers will get around 0.81$ to 1.24$.
• On Demand (Any Size) – Depends on customers can buy any size when they want to use it. The photographers will get around 1.88$ to 2.85$.
• Enhanced License – Depends on agreement condition between photographers and Shutterstock. The income is around 28$.
• Single Image On Demand is the latest one. The photographers will get money by the percent of sale price which is around 20%-30%.

Note: Deduct 15% tax if the revenues come from American customers. The others countries won’t be charge.

I have not only picture or vector but also have footage. I will told you next blog.

Before I finish my blog, I have the best five pictures that I make money more than 200$. See you next blog.

Coffee beans ripening on plant / 400 Downloads

Cardboard Texture / 359 Downloads

Concrete Texture / 355 Downloads

Green palm tree leaf as a background / 192 Downloads

Sheepskin Background / 179 Downloads

Summary of sell photos at Dreamstime

[ ภาษาไทย ]

I make money by selling pictures online from Shutterstock, Fotolia and Dreamstime respectively.

This website doesn’t have to test the pictures. If you register in this website, you can send your pictures to inspector. My first time sent 20 pictures and I pass 17 pictures. I thought that it is very easy for last 2 years. But now I sent my 10 pictures which couldn’t pass 7-8. I think that I will change my picture styles. And I got only 40% of acceptance ratio which is very low.

At Dreamstime, I have 1,196 pictures and 444 downloads for 2 years. I got money for nearly 400$. You can see from Icon below:


Generally, this payment website is same as another Micro stock photography. There are subscription types and credit types. If photographers have subscription types, they will get money between 0.30$ and 0.35$. If photographers have credit types, they will get 0.24$ for 1 credit (extra small), 2.03$ for 7 credit (medium) and 8.0$ for 23 credit (TIFF).

If you got the price from downloads by using credit types, may be not the same price that I got it. I am approximately the picture price from my experience. I used to got the highest price at around 12.67$ for 50 credit (maximum) by Print Usage (P-EL) license.

And if your accumulate money is around 200$, you can withdraw money to PayPal and then transfer to Bank in Thailand. This method is very convenient.

I summarize my first three pictures as the following:

Plumeria flowers on the beach / 8 downloads

Winding Road / 6 downloads

Watermelon Seedling / 6 downloads

Summary of sell photos at 123RF

[ ภาษาไทย ]

I make money by selling pictures online from Shutterstock, Fotolia, Dreamstime and 123rf respectively. I have 2,075 pictures at 123rf (See my portfolio at 123rf).

At 123rf, I have 2,067 royalty free, 7 footage and 1 editorial. I emphasize on royalty fee more than the others. I just trial to sent editorial and footage.

This website doesn’t have to test, so you can send your pictures to them. I sent my 20 pictures which the same pictures as I sent to Fotolia. My 9 pictures were pass, so I thought that this website is not easy. After that I emphasize on more quality, so I got 80% of acceptance ratio. I never got 80% acceptance ratio from another Micro stock photography before.




This website is easy to pass but my first picture can be sale after I online for 3 months. I thought I shouldn’t send my pictures again in this website. However, I got my power back and then I start to send the pictures again until I sale my flowers picture around 41.5$. I am very excited because I got CEL (Comprehensive Extended License+TIFF). After that I upload as many as pictures that I have to them.

The pictures prices depend on size that customers download. There is at less price which is 0.36$ for subscriptions license. There are many pictures sizes such as S=0.5$, M=1.0$, L=1.5$, XL=4.0$ and XXL=4.7$ respectively (the revenue also depends on tax in some countries as well)

I got less downloads which were only 350 when I compare to another Micro stock photography. But I never be discouraged; on the contrary, I think that my pictures will be work for me. When I look back to the total money, I will surprise it.

This website will pay on 15 every month. If you want to withdraw money, you have to had more than 50$ otherwise until you have 50$. After payment your money will transfer to PayPal immediately. You don’t have to fill in withdraw money document. It is very convenient.

My popular pictures are nature and flowers. This is because my portfolio has only nature and flowers pictures. It is not surprise that why my best selling are also nature and flowers pictures. Therefore, I summarize the first three of my pictures which have more downloads as the following:

Floating Market in Thailand / 15 Downloads

Black & white water lily / 9 Downloads

Pink lotus / 9 Downloads

Summary of sell photos at Fotolia

[ ภาษาไทย ]

Most of my income comes from Shutterstock which I told you before from previous blog. Then my second income comes from Fotolia. I have 1,499 photos in this website. I got 700 downloads (See my portfolio at Fotolia)



This website doesn’t have to test the pictures. If you register in this website, you can send your pictures to inspector. My first time sent 20 pictures and I pass 16 pictures. I sent my 4 pictures which couldn’t pass in this website to another website. These 4 pictures become the best sell in another website.

My acceptance ratio is 50% which is less than Shutterstock (60% of acceptance ratio). I think that Shutterstock likes my pictures styles more than Fotolia.

The photographers got the money from Fotolia by difference customers’ license types. Some customers want to buy small pictures. Some customers want to buy large pictures. So, the picture price depends on pictures size and customers’ objectives. I explain the details below:

License Types                         Earnings (USD)

 - Subscription L                           0.23-0.30$
 - Subscription XL                        0.27-0.35$
 - Standard XS (1 credits)             0.21-0.25$
 - Standard S (3 credits)                0.59-0.75$
 - Standard M (5 credits)               0.98-1.25$
 - Standard L (7 credits)                1.61-1.75$
 - Standard XL (8 credits)             1.84$
 - Extended X (20 credits)            4.25-5.00$
 - Extended X (50 credits)            11.50$

Note: The details above that I explain to you. I got these details from my experience. May be there are many license types more than I gave it to you. And another thing is that if you get the same license, you will get the difference income. This is because some countries have to pay tax.

If your accumulate sales is 50$, you can withdraw money. Most photographers like to withdraw money from Fotolia to PayPal. This way is very convenience because it use only 4-5 days. Then PayPal will transfer your money to Bank in Thailand after 5-7 days.

My best sale is Frangipani with sea background pictures at Fotolia.  I am curious that why this pictures is so popular. May be this pictures got higher download so, it will easy to pop up when customers search the pictures.

Plumeria flowers on the beach / 136 downloads

Floating Market in Thailand / 34 downloads

Coffee beans isolated on white / 22 downloads

Two years to sell photos online

[ ภาษาไทย ]

I don’t update this blog for long time. I think that this job is my hobby (sale picture online). I do it for 2 years so I summarize my job result and share it to other people.

In May 2010, I started read the book about sale picture online from Mr.Sura Nualpradid. And then, I sent my picture to Micro stock photography at Shutterstock to check my picture. This is the first website that my pictures pass. In the mid of May 2010, I started to sent my picture to another Micro stock photography (the total of Micro stock photography are 14) as given below:

1. Shutterstock.com  (1,882 online photos and 17 online footage)
2. Fotolia.com  (1,499 online photos)
3. Dreamstime.com  (1,171 online photos)
4. 123rf.com  (2,031 online photos / 7 online footage)
5. Freedigitalphotos.net  (108 online photos)
6. Veer.com  (748 online photos)
7. Graphicleftovers.com  (1,826 online photos)
8. Canstockphoto.com  (557 online photos)
9. Photodune.net  (673 online photos)
10. Depositphotos.com  (1,379 online photos)
11. Bigstockphoto.com  (222 online photos)
12. Crestock.com  (42 online photos)
13. Alamy.com  (107 online photos)
14. iStockphoto.com  (23 online footage)

Since I sale the picture online, I have 9,600 download from 14 websites. My income is around 4,000 USD. 90% of my income from Shutterstock, Fotolia, Dreamstime and 123rf which I follow it from Mr.Sura’s suggest in the book.

I got 60% of the average acceptance ratio from every website. This is because many rejected. I think most of my picture is nature which cannot make much money. So, I will improve mine to other pictures (not only nature).

I think that iStockphoto.com is very difficult to pass the pictures since I test all Micro stock photography. I used to send 7 times but it still could not pass. So, I have to wait to send the picture again in April 2013. However, I sent my picture to footage instead. I sent 2 times but the second times I pass it in March 2012. Now I also have 23 clips in footage. Even though no one buy it, I still proud that my pictures pass it.

I am very surprise that Freedigitalphotos.net is very difficult to pass the pictures. Because this website looks very simple and normal design so, it should be easy to pass. But I got only 35% of acceptance ratio that why I have only 108 pictures in this website. However, my fifth income comes from this website because my pictures have appropriately price.

All in all, I will deeply study each Micro stock photography for next blog.