213
1999 STOCK PHOTOGRAPHER PROFITS SURVEY
April 5, 1999
We had 185 photographers respond to our Stock Photographer Profits Survey.
They had a combined total of $16,134,555.87 in stock income in 1998 and
additional photographic income of $9,761,851.62 for a total photographic
income of $25,896,407.49.
The survey was mailed to over 3,000 from the combined lists of Selling Stock
and PhotoSource International, and it was made available on-line. About 80 of
the respondents completed their survey on-line and the rest filled out the
printed survey that had been mailed to them.
To put these numbers in overall industry perspective, for a long time I had been
estimating that worldwide stock photo sales were about $1 billion, or
slightly higher. However, I had only been estimating that 10% of this number
came from direct sales not through agencies.
The direct sales numbers have always been extremely hard to calculate and
were mostly a matter of guess work. Part of my reasoning in the past for
this low percentage of direct sales was based on the assumption that a
large percentage of the
direct sales were for editorial uses at lower rates. There are several
reasons why this assumption could have been faulty.
In any event, this survey showed that 24% of the gross stock sales of these
photographers came from direct sales to clients - not through stock
agencies. Consequently, I am upping my estimate of gross worldwide sales in
the industry to approximately $1.25 billion with that portion generated by
agencies or other types of reps at right around $950 million.
The photographers get to keep 100% of direct sales, but I estimate on
average, considering the involvement of sub-agencies, that photographers
receive no more than 35% of the gross sales made through agencies. This
would mean that of the $1.25 billion dollars in gross sales, photographers
receive about $528 million.
Further extended, this means that those participating in our survey represent
only about 3% of the total stock photographers in terms of gross income
worldwide. This is a very small sample and there was no random selecting of
the group to be sampled. Both factors could result in distortions. Based on
conclusions that will become clearer as we move through this report, I
believe this sample of respondents is skewed toward being above average,
rather than being representative of the average photographer.
If this sample were totally representative there would be 6,166 individuals
worldwide engaged in producing stock photography. I think the actual number
is probably much higher, but a huge percentage of them are very marginally
engaged in the business.
With all these factors considered, and keeping them clearly in mind as we
review the numbers, there still may be many useful conclusions that we can
draw from the data these 185 individuals provided.
Income From Agencies
To begin, we asked photographers to provide figures for that portion of their business
that was related solely to the licensing of still photos. We purposely
excluded art decor and motion picture production from this survey.
The total income generated by stock agencies was $11,934,468.64.
Thirty four of the photographers, or 18%, were not represented by an agency
and all their income was generated through direct sales. The total stock
income for these 34 was $1,007,230 or an average of $29,624.41 per
photographer.
Sixty photographers, or 32% of all respondents, were represented by only one
agency. Their total stock income was $4,381,312.54 or 27% of the total
income from stock. The average stock income per photographer of this group
is $73,021. The notable fact here is that this includes many of the top
individual producers who are with agencies such as Tony Stone Images, The
Image Bank, The Stock Market and FPG. However, their high incomes are balanced
by photographers who are just getting started and have not been able to build
files large enough to generate high dollars.
Eighty nine photographers, or 48% of the total respondents, were represented
by more than one agency. On average, each of these was represented by three
agencies with three photographers being represented by over 15. The total
stock income of the 89 was $10,234,951.83 which is 63% of the total stock
income reported in this survey. The average stock income of these
photographers is $114,999. This is much higher than the $73,021 average for those with
a single agent, or $29,624.41 for those without an agent.
Thus, it appears that those who are represented
by more than one agency still do significantly better, on average, than those
who have exclusive arrangements with a single agency.
There were 149 photographers represented by agencies. Of these
photographers, 35% earned more from their direct sales than from any single
agency that represented them. Some photographers, who were represented by
several agencies, earned more from the combined sales of all their agencies
than they did from their direct sales.
The respondents had work with 142 different agencies. I have attached a list
of these agencies at the bottom of this report.
Taking Expenses Into Account
The average stock income before expenses for all photographer was $87,213.81.
The average gross photography income adding in Other Photographic Income and
Barter Income came to $145,915.36.
However, the estimated total expenses necessary to produce this income was
$11,211,154.14. It should be noted that 12 of the respondents reported no
expense figures. To give a fair representation, we removed their income
figures from the gross income category before deducting expenses to achieve a
net income figure. We divided the result by 173 to get the average which was
$81,111 before taxes.
In the expense category photographers were asked to include: film,
processing, dupes, props, sets, models, assistants, travel, digital scans &
outputs, marketing costs, computers, camera equipment, studio and office
rent, phones, office equipment and supplies, accounting, insurance,
depreciation, continuing education, etc.
We did not ask photographers to break out expenses just for the stock side of
their business because we felt it would be too difficult to separate for
those who do both stock and assignment work.
It should also be noted that only 61% of this $81,111 was income resulting
from stock sales so the average net income from stock sales, before taxes,
was $49,477.71. In doing the calculations this way we have assumed that the
expenses for the stock and assignment sides of any particular photographic
business are proportional to the income. This is probably not true. In spite
of the potential inaccuracies of this average stock sales number we believe
it gives some sense of the costs of producing imagery and the understanding
that income from stock imagery is not cost free.
One hundred seventy-four of the 185 photographers made estimates of the
number of days they worked to produce their stock income. The average was
134 days. If we assume 250 working days in a year, and that at least 39% of
the time is spent producing other types of photographic income, based on
the averages from this survey, that would
leave, at most, 152 days for producing stock. Some of the photographers
reporting are engaged in activities other than photography as a means of
earning a living wage.
Tony Stone Images
The agency with the most photographers represented was Tony Stone Images with
46 photographers reporting some income from TSI. The total royalty payments
these photographers received from TSI was $2,885,046. Because we got such a
good representation from this particular agency, and because other statistics
are available from TSI, we may be able to draw some conclusions about how
accurately this survey represents the stock industry at large.
Gross sales for TSI in 1998 were probably in the range of between $80 and
$100 million. TSI says they pay their photographers approximately 38% of
sales. Thus, if we take the high sales estimate, the amount of that which
would go to all the photographers would be about $38,000,000. We also know
that late last year TSI offered contracts to about 1,000 photographers.
Thus we would expect the average TSI photographer to earn about $38,000 per
year. But, the group responding to this survey earned an average of
$62,718.39 from TSI. Averages don't mean much since there is a very broad
range in earning potential. The individual earnings from the TSI
photographers responding to this survey ranged from a low of $485 (this
photographer was
with several agencies) to a high of $450,000. The photographer with the
$450,000 in earnings from TSI sells through two other agencies, as well as
making significant direct sales to clients. He reported gross stock sales of
$625,000.
The TSI photographers who responded to this survey represent 4.6% of the
total photographers represented by TSI, but at least 7.6% of the royalties
paid to photographers. If TSI's gross income was closer to $80 million than
$100 million these photographers might represent as much as 9.5% of TSI's
gross income.
Based on TSI alone we might draw the conclusion that photographers responding
to this survey are more successful than the average stock photographer.
Unfortunately, we didn't get a large enough block of photographers reporting
from any other major agency to varify this conclusion.
The most successful photographer was with FPG and reported $596,000 in gross
stock income. Seventeen FPG photographers responded. The Stock Market had
11 photographers reporting, The Image Bank had 8, Index Stock Imagery had 16,
Telegraph Colour Library
had 4, Corbis Westlight had 5, and Stock Boston and Stock Connection each had
12. The foreign agency that was named most often was IFA Bilderteam in
Germany with 11 photographers responding. The income from these agencies
and TSI represented 49% of all stock income reported.
Summary Figures
INCOME
|
|
|
Percent of TPI
|
|
From Stock Agency Sales
|
11,934,468.64
|
46%
|
|
Stock Sales Direct to Client
|
4,200,087.23
|
16%
|
|
Gross Stock Income
|
16,134,555.87
|
62.3%
|
|
Total Photo Income (TPI)
|
25,896,407.49
|
|
EXPENSES
|
|
|
|
|
Expenses for 173 or 185 Photographers
|
11,211,154.14
|
43.3%
|
|
Net Photo Income
|
14,685,253.35
|
|
1998 Survey Comparisons
There are some interesting comparisons between the survey we published in
March 1998 and this year's survey. In 1998 we supplied a series of income
categories rather than asking photographers to list their specific income.
The comparisons of the number of photographers in each category are as
follows:
Year
|
1997
|
1998
|
|
Total Respondents to Survey
|
206
|
185
|
|
|
|
|
Gross Income in 1998
|
Over $400,000
|
6
|
6
|
$3,559,000
|
$250,000 to $400,000
|
13
|
12
|
$3,494,179
|
$150,000 to $250,000
|
14
|
18
|
$3,475,883
|
| $100,000 to $150,000
|
24
|
11
|
$1,336,415
|
| $70,000 to $100,000
|
13
|
18
|
$1,489,116 |
| |
|
|
|
| Percent of Total Responding to Survey |
34% |
35% |
|
Click here to review the 1997 survey, Story 125 ).
Other relationships
Fifty photographers, or 27% of the total made their entire photographic
income from stock. Twenty-one percent made all of their stock income from
stock agency sales, and nothing from direct sales. Thirty-five photographers
reported some barter income, but the total barter income was only $286,200 or
just a little over 1% of the combined total photographic income.
Ninety three photographers reported that their yearly income from stock is
increasing. Fifty five said it is about the same as last year and 35 said it is
decreasing. Three did not respond to this question.
Less than 2% of the gross stock income came from Royalty Free sales. Nine
photographers reported some stock income from Royalty Free companies for a
total of $310,552.80. However, one photographer represented almost $200,000
of this total. Obviously, some photographers are doing well with Royalty
Free, but the broad base of photographers who responded to this survey are
not involved in RF.
We tried to determine the percentage of each photographer's work that was
either generic images that require little regular updating, or images that
need to be updated regularly. The generic which don't change include
such
subjects as: wildlife, scenices, babies with no clothes and certain concept
illustrations. The kind of images that need to be updated frequently include
business and lifestyle images where clothes, hair styles and equipment people
use change frequently.
The percentage figures used to calculate this number were estimates made by
each photographer and left quite a bit of room for variation. We calculated
the actual dollar amount of total stock income for each photographer based on
the percentages they supplied. Then we totaled the income in each category
and figured the percentage of the total for that category.
While the percentages varied greatly from photographer to photographer, some
worked almost solely in one category and others worked almost solely in the
other category. The final breakdown when everything was totaled was 49%
generic and 51% images needing regular updating. We looked at the
photographers who earned $70,000 or more from stock and there was a slight change
with 47% of the income coming from generic images and 53% coming from images
that need regular updating.
This 50/50 split happens to fit very well with observations I have made
recently after reviewing various catalogs. Of course some catalogs
appear to be weighted much more toward people pictures, but if we
can trust
these estimates there is about as much stock income from pictures that don't
require regular updating as from those that do.
We asked photographers to consider their work in terms of two broad market
categories -- editorial and corporate/advertising. They were asked to give
the percentage of their total production that fit into each of these two
categories.
Using the same calculating strategy as outlined above, and taking the
percentages of total stock income, 35% of the income was produced from editorial
images and 61% was produced from corporate/advertising images. Respondents
indicated that 4% of their income fell into some other undefinied category.
Again, when we looked at only those who had sales of $70,000 or more there
was a slight change with 32% of the income coming from editorial and 65%
coming from commercial/advertising.
We got some confusing answers on questions 13 and 14. The
questions were:
13 - Are any of your images available on RF discs or web sites?
14 - Are your RF products self-produced and marketed, or does some other
company handle the marketiang of these products for you?
Twenty one photographers reported that they had supplied images to RF discs
or web sites. Thirty two photographers said yes to question 13. In answer
to question 14 eleven said they self marketed their RF images and 21 said
they were selling through another company.
In addition to producing stock photography 12 people said they were involved
in some manner in marketing the work of other photographers.
Agencies Named In The Survey
The following are Stock Agencies where more than one person responded to the
survey and the numbers to the left of the agency name are the number of people
who responded.
No |
Agency |
No |
Agency |
No |
Agency |
|
|
|
|
|
|
8 |
AGE Fotostock (Spain) |
16 |
Index Stock Imagery |
3 |
Picturesque |
3 |
Adventure Photo |
2 |
International Stock |
2 |
Science Photo Library (UK) |
3 |
Ag Stock |
2 |
Landmark Stock Exchange |
2 |
Spectrum (UK) |
2 |
Airstock |
9 |
Liaison |
12 |
Stock Boston |
2 |
Alaska Stock |
2 |
Light Sources |
12 |
Stock Connection |
6 |
Bruce Coleman |
3 |
Marka |
2 |
Stock House |
4 |
Corbis |
2 |
Mauritius |
4 |
Stock Solution |
3 |
Corbis/Digital Stock |
2 |
Midweststock |
7 |
Superstock |
5 |
Corbis/Westlight |
4 |
Mira |
2 |
Sygma |
2 |
Cosmos |
3 |
Natural Selection Stock |
4 |
Telegraph Colour Library (UK) |
2 |
Dinodia |
3 |
Nawrocki Stock Photos |
8 |
The Image Bank |
2 |
Direct Stock |
2 |
nonstock |
11 |
The Stock Market |
17 |
FPG International |
8 |
Pacific Press Service |
43 |
Tony Stone Images |
3 |
Focus |
5 |
Panoramic Images |
7 |
Uniphoto/Pictor |
2 |
Folio |
2 |
Peter Arnold |
3 |
Viesti Associates |
2 |
Granata Press (Italy) |
5 |
Photo Researchers |
5 |
Visual Unlimited |
4 |
H. Armstrong Roberts |
4 |
PhotoDisc |
2 |
Washington Stock |
11 |
IFA Bilderteam (Germany) |
2 |
Photonica |
7 |
West Stock |
6 |
Image Works |
2 |
Phototake |
2 |
Zefa |
The following are Stock Agencies with only one person responding.
| ABPL (South Africa) |
Digital Vision |
Key Photos (Japan) |
ROMA |
| ACE (UK) |
ENP Images |
Leo de Wys |
Rapho (France) |
| AFIO |
FLAP (UK) |
Michael Ochs/LA |
Saba Press |
| Allsport |
First Light |
Mo Yung |
Silver Image |
| Amana Images |
Fotex |
Monkmeyer |
Sipa |
| Amana Nations |
Fototecha |
Mountain Stock |
Stock Options |
| Animals Animals |
Frozen Images |
NHPA |
Stock Photos |
| Aris |
Grazia Neri (Italy) |
National Geographic |
Stock Shop/Medichrome |
| Artville |
Horizon |
Naturbld (Germany) |
The Stock Rep |
| Aurora |
Hot Shots |
Omni-Photo Communications |
The Stockhouse |
| Bavaria |
Huber (Germany) |
Pacific Stock |
Tom Stack & Associates |
| Benelux Press |
IFOT |
Photo 20/20 |
View Finders |
| CMI Disc/Ads |
INA |
Photo Edit |
Vireo |
| CMI Library |
Ibid |
Photo Network |
Vision Photo |
| Code Red |
Image Bauls |
Photo Spin |
Wild Iris |
| Colorific |
Image Colour Library (UK) |
Photophile |
Woodfin Camp |
| Comstock |
Image Finders |
Photri |
Zephyr |
| Cosmo (Japan) |
Image Quest |
Picture Book |
|
| DRK Photo |
Imperial Press (Japan) |
Premium Stock |
|
| Dembinsky |
Ken Graham |
Prisma (Switzerland) |
|