“Can you tell me if these photos are good enough for stock?” Often, people want to show me their photos so I can say whether or not they’ll get accepted into a stock agency. For one, I can’t really tell you. I can only make a good, educated guess. But more importantly… if you’d submitted those photos to an agency months ago, you’d already know by now! The thing is… you’re never going to be ready to sell your photos as stock. You just have to start submitting them. You will get some rejections. Everyone does. Celebrate them — they mean you are moving your butt towards your ultimate goal of making money with your photos! My photographer friend Sarah, who just started in stock two weeks ago (follow her progress here and here), got a few rejections of her own the other day. See which of her photos didn’t make the cut, below. — Bonnie Bonnie Caton Creator, Breakfast Stock Club P.S. There is no time like the present to begin submitting your photos to stock agencies. Get the knowledge, tips, and advice you need to help you get started and keep you going by becoming a Breakfast Stock Club Premium Member today! Learn more here.
Quick Rewards for Starting in Stock – Part 3
By Fine Art Photographer and Lightroom Instructor, Sarah Ehlen
Yep, I got rejected. Woo-hoo! It might sound cliché, but failure really is a great teacher. As I mentioned last week, rejection is just part of the stock photography game. Although you shouldn’t be surprised if some of the images you submit initially don’t make the cut, it’s a good idea to pay attention to the reason why. This will help you avoid making the same mistakes and ultimately become a better photographer. Here are two of my initial stock photo submissions that got rejected: 
IMAGE 1: Rejected for soft focus — turns out they wanted a little more of the cup to be in focus. IMAGE 2: Rejected for harsh light — see how the cat’s face is partially in direct sunlight and partially in shade? The light here is too harsh for most stock agencies. While I like these images, it’s important to remember that stock agencies are very picky. They’re not looking for fine art. They’re looking for images that will sell to a wide range of buyers. If your images get rejected, it doesn’t mean they’re “bad” images. It just means they’re not right for that particular stock agency. Read the rejection reasons. Look back at the photos. Learn. And move on to the next batch. Since stock is a numbers game, you obviously want the highest acceptance rate possible to maximize your sales. Stick with it and you’ll see your earnings grow along with your stock portfolio. I uploaded about 20 more images this past week and I’m super excited to continue to build upon my successes (and rejections) moving forward!
Your Weekly Breakfast Dish
The Latest from Your Breakfast Stock Club Facebook Page From Valerie Haas:
Finally sold my first video on Fotolia! Yippee! From Joanne Baumann: Just had 6 photos accepted at Bigstock, bringing my portfolio up to 15! Dreamstime =17 in waiting, Fotolia = 2 accepted and One Dollar Media = 120 w/ my name on it. Would love to have a first sale… somewhere. Completely random but determined and enjoying it.