Prompted by the Sept. 11 announcements of massive Corbis layoffs and the closing of the PhotoShelter Collection, PhotoNetCast has released a podcast that contemplates the future of stock photography. Several participants provide their answers to the question: “Is the future really just microstock?”
PhotoNetCast was born in late April with the idea of providing photographers with relaxed and dynamic content in a roundtable format. This collaboration of four photographers and photo-bloggers offers opinions and news discussion in podcast form, as audio-only shows of varied length, available at the PhotoNetCast Web site.
The photographers behind the project offer a perspective on the type of people who currently work in the field of photography.
Jim Goldstein is a professional photographer and a member of the American Society of Media Photographers. Goldstein focuses on nature and the outdoors and contributes to Danita Delimont Stock Photography, Ambient Images and Acclaim Images.
Martin Gommel, Brian Auer and Antonio Marques are serious hobbyists of various levels; each maintains a well-read photo blog and has sold his images. Auer, for example, is among the few who report having had a sale though the PhotoShelter Collection. Gommel’s German-language blog boasts over 5,500 readers.
Thus far, PhotoNetCast has produced podcasts—which it refers to as “episodes”—on a diverse range of topics, including recommended books, photo competitions, editing and online image theft. “What is the future of stock photography?” weighs in at slightly over an hour and begins with, “Pain. Lots of pain.”