Eating, living, breathing Stock Photography Part 1
Jill Chen | Sunday, December 4th, 2011 | No Comments »
Living with a full-time stock photographer is something quite different from ‘regular’ life. Instead of having a routine of waking up, going to work, fulfilling humdrum daily tasks, heading to the gym/leisure activities and back home again, we lead a lifestyle that is centered around the very thing we do here at Microstockhelper – that is microstock photography. There is no such thing as routine around here, our days vary with the organising, execution and follow up of photoshoots for uploads on to the various microstock agencies.
Although there is a lack of daily routine, there is a workflow that we do subscribe to and I will share it with you. Today’s edition will be Part 1 of a 5 part series describing the typical workflow of a Microstockhelper shoot from pre-conception to post upload. I think this information would be useful to those who are new to stock photography and for those willing to take stock photography one step further than the occasional travel picture from a weekend away. Organising photoshoots will not be as daunting as one would imagine as long as you have your bases covered.
Firstly, conceptualising a shoot and the early part of planning you need to do for a shoot. As you already know, stock agencies do not restrict their contributors on what to shoot and how to shoot it. Therefore, photographers are free to shoot whatever they want and however they wish to interpret a certain concept. One can choose to shoot based on upcoming seasons or holidays to address the expected increase in demand, or shoot according to a noticeable gap in the market of existing stock images or simply what one would imagine sells well on stock photography. I don’t think we’d ever see a lack of new ‘smiling woman isolated on white’ or ‘confident businessman’ type images 
Here at MSH, we tend to vary our shoots, mixing the basic isolated on white studio work with more lifestyle, outdoors type of shoots. Occasionally we feel the need to push our buttons and do something completely different (which more often than not ends up being a gap in existing stock images). So, conceptualising a shoot is purely up to the individual but this is the vital first step towards having a well executed stock shoot. Without a proper idea of what you want to achieve on your shoot, it will be difficult to provide direction for all the subsequent steps.
After deciding on a theme for the shoot, the next step is to collect references and inspirations. This is what we call creating a moodboard. The purpose of the moodboard is to help translate your vision to the people you will be working with on the shoot. By providing them visual references, all parties on the shoot will have a clearer idea on what you wish to achieve and how they can help you achieve that. Elements of the moodboard could range from styling of wardrobe, type of make up, use of props, lighting set ups you wish to mimic to type of location and range of model poses. The more parts of your concept you share, the better the results of your shoot will be as everyone will have the same expectations as you.
Once you have completed your moodboard, it all boils down to planning, planning, planning. Who are you going to work with, where are you going to shoot and when. Just like casting directors choosing different actors for different roles, photographers must remember to choose their models with care. Don’t choose your models just because they are ‘hot’ or have a fantastic body, rather choose your models based on whether they have the look you are going for. Depending on your concept, age or maturity of a model also makes a huge difference. For example, when executing a medical related shoot, you’d want to have older models who look more matured as this will lend your final images a more realistic touch to it. Your images will not be convincing nor believable if you used an early 20-something model, bright eyed and bushy tailed to pose as an established and reliable medical professional. It just wouldn’t work. Stock images are about being believable. Apart from model(s), we also work with make-up artists (MUA) who provide all hair and make up expertise for the shoot. We have a few MUA on our books that we choose to work with on most of our shoots so part of our planning process is to contact them for their availability. If you’re new to stock photography, you might not have established contacts wit MUA and there are few ways you can get in touch with MUA in your area. ModelMayhem is a good resource to turn to, it is a platform that encourages collaboration between photographers, models, MUA, retouchers and stylists and the best part is you can search for talent according to your location. Another way is to list a local classified ad on websites such as Gumtree or Craig’s List. If you like being cautious, I would highly recommend for you to ask new MUA (one whom you’ve not worked with before) to do a trial prior to the actual shoot day. This allows you to judge their standard of work and will help to prevent any shocks on actual shoot day. Most MUA will be willing to do a test for free or at a cheaper rate.
Lastly, you have to plan a tentative shoot date in which all parties will be available to shoot. Don’t underestimate this part of planning, it may sometimes be the most difficult part! Trying to juggle and coincide everyone’s schedules can be quite a mission sometimes, so one way we like to minimise the hassle of this is to regularly ask our models and MUA about their upcoming schedules and be aware of their regular commitments such as work or school hours so we can plan our shoots around that.
I think that’s quite enough information to absorb for one post, so keep following us to know more about the next step of our workflow which will cover the planning process 3-5 days before the actual shoot. Hope you liked my first post and that it will help you get closer to successfully selling your photos online!
