Photo Contributor Guide and FAQ

How do I link my similar files?
If you look at the file close up pages, you will see many of them have image links in the description area that link to similar files. There are two main ways linking, either by having small thumbnail images that link to other individual images or by having an image that links to a group of files in a private lightbox or set of search results.

There is an article here explaining exactly how to create links to similar files.

You can use Deep Meta to add individual image links.

The UBB thumbnail link generator by Sirimo also does a similar thing.



(Edited on 2013-03-05 14:45:55 by kelvinjay)

What are private lightboxes?
A private lightbox is a tool that allows site members to create collections of files. For example, buyers and designers may add files to a private lightbox, so that they can show them to their client later or just to make a note of them for future use. You can manage your lightboxes on the lightbox page. Private lightboxes are not strictly private, in that they can be shared and the contents made visible to others if you wish.

You can add a file to a lightbox from the link beneath the preview on the file close up page or from search results by clicking icon showing a little light bulb with a plus sign which is displayed below the thumbnail image. Files can be removed from a lightbox by clicking the light bulb with a minus icon when viewing a lightbox's contents.

The other main use of private lightboxes is by contributors who wish to group together a set of files in order to promote them as a series. If you wish to create a series of similar files in a lightbox as outlined here, in order to promote them in the decription area of the file close up page, you can do so using a private lightbox.

What are public lightboxes?
Public lightboxes are intended to be used to show the works of multiple contributors, not just one. Public lightboxes are added to the Lightbox Search on the lightbox page. In order to create a public lightbox, you must have at least 20 files in it and at least one must be from another contributor.

You do not need to create a public lightbox just to link your own files and promote them. For that purpose you can simply create a private lightbox and follow the instruction in the post here.

What's exclusivity? How do I become an exclusive contributor?
To become an exclusive photo contributor with iStock you need 250 downloads and a 50% acceptance rate. You can also apply for exclusivity when you have more than 500 DLs, regardless of your acceptance rate. Vector, Video and Audio have their own requirements, please check the Exclusive Program page for more info.

Exclusive contributors cannot license their files on a Royalty Free basis through any agencies outside of the Getty Images family. iStock exclusivity applies to the artist, not just to individual files, so it is not enough to have certain files exclusively available here. Exclusives can still sell prints, do work for hire or license files on a Rights Managed basis outside of iStock though. Please contact Contributor Relations with any questions.

If you're applying to become an iStock exclusive, you will need to remove your files for the relevant media from all other sites before submitting your application. Some other agencies may lock your files for six months, so it's important to think ahead. If you have any issues applying for exclusivity, please open a Contributor Relations support ticket.

Some of the benefits of being an exclusive contributor include being able to submit work to the Vetta and Agency collections, your files sell for more credits as well as earning a much greater percentage royalty. The Best Match has historically favoured exclusive work too, so your files may also gain some prominence in that.

Any Photo+ files will convert to Exclusive+ files, which are also then also made available for sale on the Getty Images site. Exclusives can choose which, if any, of their work will be made available on the Partner Program sites. Plus you should also have faster inspections, no rejections for keywords and you can attend official lypses as a participant. You also gain access to exclusive forums and exclusive creative briefs.

What is the Photo+ collection?
Non-exclusive contributors can opt in up to 15% of their files into the Photo+ collection. Once a file has been added, it will be locked into Photo+ for 6 months. In the meantime if you apply to become an exclusive contributor, those files will automatically move into the Exclusive+ collection.

To nominate your files, go to My Account --> Contributor Tools --> Uploads. Once there, click on the arrow beside My Upload, then click on Exclusive+. Just click the check box beside the file you would like in the collection.

Photo+ will be distinguished with a camera + symbol.

The credit pricing for Photo+ is as follows:

XS - 3
S - 5
M - 10
L - 12
XL - 15
XXL - 18
XXXL - 20

Royalties rates remain the same.

Once you have added a file to the collection, it will take about 24-48 hours for them to show up in a search as a Photo+ file. This is the same as when you add files to E+, V/A. Just to reiterate, Photo+ is for NON-EXCLUSIVE contributors. It functions the same way as our Exclusive+ program works, in that you have a certain percentage that you can upload monthly. The files uploaded to Photo+ are NOT exclusive.

What is the Exclusive+ collection?
Exclusive contributors can opt in up to 20% of their files into the Exclusive+ collection. The Exclusive+ page explains in detail what percentage you may add.

Once a file has been added, it will be locked into Exclusive+ for 6 months. In the meantime if you choose to become a non-exclusive contributor, those files will automatically move into the Photo+ collection. Once you have added a file to the Exclusive+ collection, it will take about 24-48 hours for them to show up in a search as a Exclusive+ file.

Exclusive+ files are distinguished with a crown+ symbol.

The credit pricing for Exclusive+ is as follows:

XS - 10
S - 20
M - 30
L - 40
XL - 45
XXL - 50
XXXL - 55

Royalties rates remain the same.

What is the Vetta collection?
The Vetta collection is curated by iStock admins and contains files that show exquisite art direction, intelligently executed concepts and rarity. Only iStock exclusive artists can upload to the Vetta collection. Files in the Vetta collection for photo, video and illustration are distinguished by showing one of the following icons.

You can find details on the Vetta home page and see examples on the Vetta search page.

To nominate a file for inclusion in the Vetta Collection, first you need to make sure that you have opted into the collection. You can check your settings on the Collections Edit Page.

The file upload page shows you your current weekly Vetta upload limit.



(Edited on 2013-04-20 05:02:20 by kelvinjay)

What is the Agency Collection?
The Agency Collection is curated by admins and contains files that are nominated by iStock exclusive contributors as well as files imported from other Getty collections. The Agency Collection is priced at a premium to Vetta and is available on iStock, Getty Images, Jupiter and PunchStock.

To nominate a file for inclusion in the Agency Collection, first you need to make sure that you have opted into the collection. You can check your settings on the Collections Edit Page.

Use the Nominate for Vetta option at the time you upload to iStock. Admins will then decide if your file meets the criteria they are looking for. Agency Collection files are distinguished by having a small blue camera icon.

iStock pays a modified royalty for the Agency Collection that fits between traditional stock and current iStock royalties. The royalty range for this collection will be: 22, 24, 26, 28, & 30% when sold on iStock. For content sold off of iStock, all royalties will be 20%. More details can be found here - The Agency Collection



(Edited on 2013-04-20 05:01:17 by kelvinjay)

What is the Value Collection?
The Value Collection, formerly called the Dollar Bin, is a collection of generally older files or files that for whatever reason did not take off in terms of sales previously. The files are priced lower than files in the other iStock collections.

There is no way to currently nominate files to be part of this collection. Further details of the collection are outlined this forum post - The Value Collection. Click here to browse The Value Collection.

Is there a list of things we're not allowed to upload?
There are certain subjects that iStock cannot license due to intellectual property issues. Some of these are listed in the iStock/Getty wiki. The wiki is updated regularly, so please check it to see if a subject is currently acceptable for upload or not.

What is a Creative Network?
The Creative Network is used to connect site members together, and it works a bit like an address book. There is no prize for having the biggest CN so most people keep it to people who have helped them, people they respect, or friends you may have made here. When inviting someone to join your network, we suggest putting in some comments as to why you are trying to add them - many people won't accept an invite without some personalised greeting.

What's with the acronyms? BME? WMTY Huh?
Best Month Ever! Worst Month of The Year! There are quite a few acronyms flying around the forums among the regulars and it can be quite confusing for newcomers. However, we have a link here to an old thread that explains most of them Click here to find out more.

How much do you make in a year?
This question gets asked quite a lot by new contributors, possibly because they want to determine if time spent doing iStock will be "worth it". It's a difficult question to answer. Like many pursuits, we have full time dedicated professionals and some part-time hobbyists. We have people earning thousands of dollars a week and others who may only collect a hundred a year, and everything in between. People generally are quite cagey about supplying their income information to strangers, so don't expect much of a detailed answer if you pose this question in the forums.

How can I buy iStock content using money I earned here?
If you go to your main page and click on the financials tab, there's an option there to convert earnings to credits. You can convert just some or all of your earnings and then use the credits to buy a file. Here's a short-cut: Convert earnings to credits page. Converting earnings to credits is probably the cheapest way to buy iStock content for most people.

How do I change my site username?
You cannot change your site username yourself. If you would like to change your iStock site username then you will need to send Contributor Relations a note, telling them exactly what you want it changing to. They can change it for you in a day or two. Remember this is a business and a stupid username can potentially scare away buyers.

When will I receive tax forms for my iStock earnings?
iStock does not send tax forms to contributors residing outside of Canada. Contributors outside of Canada should keep track of their earnings and consult a tax advisor in their country and comply with all laws regarding taxation of earnings. iStock does not give tax advice to contributors. As rough guidance, Canadian contributors usually receive their T5 forms sometime around the last week of February or first week of March.

How do I request a payment of earnings?
When you have earned more than $100, you can request a payout of earnings. There is a link on the Financials tab of your user page here. Clicking on the Request Payment of Earnings will then allow you to choose your method of payment be it Cheque, Paypal, Moneybookers or Payoneer.

You will be prompted to provide your Payout Account and then be asked to Confirm Payout Account - what this means is that you need to enter the same thing twice - so if you are requesting a Paypal payout, for example, you would type in myname@emailsite.com and then type that email address in again. For any issues over payouts, please contact Contributor Relations.

The 2013 Payment Schedule is here.

How do I deactivate a file?
If you would like to remove a file from your iStock portfolio, you can deactivate it by following these steps. First, go to the normal file close up page for the image, that's the page where it can be downloaded from, not the edit page. On the right hand side below the keywords and other data there is a link titles Administration, click on that.



In the section that opens you will see an option to deactivate the file, click on that. Add a quick reason in the box for your own future reference and hit the Deactivate file button below it. That's it, the file is deactivated and you should receive an email right away confirming that this has happened.

Files that you deactivate are instantly no longer available for download. Deactivations are instant the file will still show up in searches, including lightboxes and portfolio searches, until the site index runs again, which is usually every 24hrs although not on weekends.

(Edited on 2013-05-01 04:44:12 by kelvinjay)

How come I sold a file but it has no views?

There are two ways a buyer can buy a file without registering a view.

1: From a page of search results, a buyer could add your file to a lightbox and then later download the files from their lightbox page. As the buyer has not actually visited the file close up page, no view is registered.

2: From a page of search results, a buyer could add your file to their shopping cart and then pay for the file using direct payment i.e. cash or credit card but not using credits. Again, because the buyer has had no need to visit the file close up page, no view would be registered.

How does the view counter work??

The file view counter is only triggered when a logged in iStock member with a buyer account looks at a file close up page i.e. the page that files can be directly downloaded from. A contributor viewing their own file page will not register nor will any other contributor viewing that page. A file being moused over and viewed with the loupe function in search results does not count either. Views will only count if they are made by an active non-contributor iStockphoto account.

(Edited on 2013-05-01 05:07:08 by kelvinjay)