iStockphoto Adds Pricing Filter

Today, iStockphoto added a pricing filter to their advanced filtering options (found on the left side of the search results).  This was announced in the forums:

We’re releasing a new search filter today that will allow clients to sort results by price. By default search results will contain files from every price range. To narrow results, you can select preferred price ranges by adjusting the “Price Range” section on the left-hand side of the page in the search facet area.

Finding Your Images “Out There”

A lot of stock photo contributors are interested in finding their work “out there” being used.  For quite a while now, it’s been easy to use a website called TinEye to try and find a certain image being used on the internet.  In fact, back a while, I wrote about how buyers could use TinEye to brainstorm in their work process.  TinEye is kind of like a google search, but for images.  Well, yesterday, Google revealed their new product which is actually a Google search, but for images.  And it’s easy to use (and addicting).

New iStockphoto Search Filter

I’m not sure how long this has been there, but I just learned of it today, so I’m passing it on to you.  When you do a search for content on iStockphoto, in the left column are a bunch of attributes and filters you can use to modify the return results.  Well, way at the bottom, under “More Attributes” is the new (?) “Files From” filter:

iStockphoto to Add Getty Editorial Content

In case you missed the announcement on Monday, iStockphoto will be adding celebrity and location editorial content from Getty Images proper, to compliment the existing iStockphoto editorial offering:

Our product shots are already a great success for us. What we’re quickly learning is that we need a much more complete offering to truly be competitive in the editorial space. In order to attract more of the non-creative users like media, publishers and bloggers, and properly assert ourselves in this marketplace, we need to add more traditional editorial content.

On June 9th we are planning to add a collection of news, location and entertainment images from Getty Images photographers. You’re going to see unreleased images of famous people and iconic locations on iStock for the first time ever. By adding this content we hope to draw more attention from traditional consumers of editorial imagery.

Needless to say, this announcement was met by less than great enthusiasm from most iStockphoto contributors who view this as yet another incursion upon the content collection they helped grow and build.  Some, however, feel that it will draw new buyers looking for content not allowed in the iStockphoto regular editorial collection ( content, which iStockphoto doesn’t allow in by its contributors, not that contributors aren’t offering it ).

No word on pricing yet.

iStockphoto Contributor Royalty Targets Announced

Last Friday at end of day, iStockphoto released the redeemed credit target numbers that contributors must surpass in 2011 to achieve a certain royalty percentage level for 2012.    After widespread reports of declining download numbers across the site, contributors were surprised to see the levels at the original numbers posted for last year, 2010.  Those numbers were modified at the end of 2010 to lower target levels.

Sports Fans Shoot Behind the Scenes

In yesterday’s post, I teased a bit about some “behind the scenes” shots of my recent “Sports Fans” stock photo session.  Let’s see what I can dig up from my assistant’s shooting… (I’m not watermarking these, so if you steal them, I will hunt you down and make you watch “The Bachelorette”).