WILD, Our Virtual Stock Agency
I want to let you know what I’m up to vis a vis stock.
David Doubilet, and Thomas Mangelsen, and I have banded together to create a Virtual Agency on Photoshelter called WILD (www.wildphotography.com). A Virtual Agency is a search pool where art buyers simultaneously search the collections of all the photographers. When an image is selected for licensing, the screen moves to the photographer’s individual Photoshelter (http://pa.photoshelter.com/) site to complete the order.
I had been looking for an alternative to the big agencies. They took so few images that some of my best work languished, which kept it off the market and didn’t serve my goals at all while limited the buyers’ options. I haven’t sent a still to Getty for five years. When I heard about the virtual agency idea, I thought it had potential.
A Virtual Agency allows photographers to show a wider range of their work than a traditional agency affords. With our lower overheads, we can market the images for less while still making higher income since we keep 90% of the licensing fee instead of only 40 or even 30%. I asked three photographers to join me so we could assemble the best work of the best photographers in one place. David and Thomas said yes.
I wrote an article that’s appearing in the new Outdoor Photographer explaining our thinking. Check out:
http://www.outdoorphotographer.com/how-to/more-how-to/get-into-the-stock-market.html
I know the article reads like an attack on the big agencies, but I always enjoyed working with the people there. They are smart and motivated. I’m sure they do a good job with their wholly-owned material where they can capture 100% of the revenue, but in my opinion the model is broken for independent photographers, and I am moving on.
July 14th, 2009 at 10:58
Interesting approach by @artwolfe with his new stock collaboration with David Doubilet and Thomas Mangelsen http://bit.ly/DoJiQ
July 14th, 2009 at 06:02
A great read Art. Congrats on the new collaboration and virtual agency. I’m in the middle of reading Chris Anderson’s “Free: The Future of a Radical Price“. It’s a good read and might shed some light on the stock agency model that you’ve identified as broken.
July 14th, 2009 at 11:03
RT @jimgoldstein Interesting approach by @artwolfe his new stock collaboration with David Doubilet & Thomas Mangelsen http://bit.ly/DoJiQ
July 14th, 2009 at 06:12
There is a good post on FREE in the Livebooks Resolve blog, too. Thanks for the pat on the back.
July 14th, 2009 at 06:19
Great article, Art. It is great to see a respected photographer of your stature recognizes how things are changing and offer your thoughts on it.
July 14th, 2009 at 06:25
A great article and read, thanks for putting that together for some of us just getting into the “business”!
July 14th, 2009 at 08:45
Richard,
I am glad to see that my experience with stock agencies was not unique. Too many times, IMHO, buyers are really clueless at to what constitutes a quality image, and so clients never see some of the best stuff. Best of luck in this endeavour!
July 14th, 2009 at 18:11
WILD, Our Virtual Stock Agency:
I want to let you know what I’m up to vis a vis stock.
David Doubilet, and Thom.. http://tinyurl.com/mo2z7w
July 14th, 2009 at 18:16
RT @artwolfe: WILD, Our Virtual Stock Agency: I want to let you know what I’m up to.
David Doubilet, and Thom.. http://tinyurl.com/mo2z7w
July 14th, 2009 at 15:24
Art,
I enjoyed the article and appreciate you sharing your insights. As a relative new-comer, I’ve arrived at a similar conclusion that it’s most efficient for me to sell stock directly. Next time I have a moment to breathe, I’m planning to properly arrange a selection of stock in my Photoshelter archive. I like your virtual agency, although I wonder if my yacht shots would fit within the concept of “Wild?”
July 14th, 2009 at 17:09
Hi, Cory,
I am going to limit Wild to just a few photographers. You can band together with others with your thematic elements, which could be helpful for art buyers. You will have to figure out how to drive traffic your way because Photoshelter doesn’t market for you.
July 19th, 2009 at 04:51
Art,
I just, in the last month, joined PhotoShelter and the site just went live yesterday. I have a few more customizations to do and a lot of images to upload (I’ll be doing that over the next few days). The way that I found PS was from a longtime client, they suggested that I use them. It’s much easier for the client to purchase images and also more cost effective. We at Mountain Trail Photo have been contemplating a virtual agency setup for a few weeks and it looks like we will go this route also.
Best of luck!
Jerry
http://www.jerrygreerphotography.com
http://www.mountaintrailphoto.com
http://www.mountaintrailpress.com
July 19th, 2009 at 05:42
Art, I think this is on the right track. I fully agree with your comments about the Big guy’s. I have stopped my submissions to them also and will turn that part of the business to efforts such as Photo Shelter.
Best
Jess
August 12th, 2009 at 00:32
Its a very nice stock site, I like seeing your others images… normally in your books its your most beautiful images.
You forgot to mention that the stock site uses cooliris, it makes it so much easier to look at the images. My stock site doesn’t use it which is a shame. I wish I had the money and tie to start my own.
Good luck with this, I hope it does well for you.
August 12th, 2009 at 05:50
I didn’t forget. i have no idea what cooliris is since web tech stuff is outside my area of interest.
September 28th, 2009 at 22:18
Hi Art,
both this post and the OP article are interesting to read. I think the idea of a virtual agency is great. Having been a marketer for a couple of years I have spent hours scanning microstock banks for photos. This is relevant especially to microstock – there are so many photos to dig through, that once a buyer finds a photographer whose style he likes, he simply returns to him first when searching for new images.
From the buyer’s perspective, one value I would see in a big agency, like Gettys, is that they guarantee a certain level of quality. But on the other hand, this can also be achieved by rating / popularity filters or groups in photo communities.
Having said that, a reputable photographer, like yourself, may be better off by leaving a sample of your work with big agencies – for those that are not familiar with your work. If they then find use for your style, they will look for you elsewhere. From a marketer’s perspective having a pool of photos and images that are consistent in style, is a great thing.
Good luck with your new venture!
October 1st, 2009 at 06:43
Thanks. I think we are on the right path.
October 6th, 2009 at 19:31
This is just what I was looking for. The templates are a nice idea. Good Luck
more templates easy to download
October 17th, 2009 at 12:56
The long and the short of it is that You – Art Wolfe are not that interesting or compelling of a figure – you seem to be a nice man – and a wonderful photographer . Your hearts in the right place but your boring as sin !!! I saw a behind the scene episode and it was GREAT much improved – share the spotlight with your crew – your not out there alone – so why make believe your some kind of travel Hero !!! The different points of view would make for a much stronger show ! Having said that your a damn site better that Rudi Maxa – which ain’t sayin much !!!
December 15th, 2009 at 00:00
Art, thanks for your leadership in this move. You could have gone quietly to Photoshelter, but your article and transparency have been an inspiration. By publicizing your move, you may create a rush to Photoshelter which will make Photoshelter the Go-To place for photobuyers and make it a better marketplace for the rest of us.
March 10th, 2010 at 22:00
Good article on photog's collaborating to outdo the big agencies. http://blog.artwolfe.com/2009/07/wild-our-virtual-stock-agency/