Image Source, a London-based agency producing royalty-free stock imagery, recently launched 50 cross-media collections. Each package offers a series of matched still images and motion clips, which are sold under a single royalty-free licence. It was a first in the industry but other stock players are already working on similar products, and photographers are uniquely placed to benefit from this new business proposition – especially if they adopt HD-DSLRs, with their ability to shoot both HD video and high-quality stills, and boast impressive low light capabilities and the ability to be used with a wide variety of lenses. At Image Source, the Red camera, a hybrid camera on steroids, has quickly become the tool of choice, with creative director Rachel Hotchkiss describing it as “perfect for beauty shots”. But more portable DSLR cameras are also now making their impact on motion stock.

“HD-DSLRs are a game changer for the industry,” says Andrew Delaney, head of content at Getty Images. “Historically, it’s been extremely expensive to produce footage. But the price point has been lowered with the release of cameras [such as the Canon 5D Mark II or the Nikon D3s].”

Getty currently uses “a stable of filmmakers based around the globe” to create its moving stock imagery collection, which is constantly updated and sold under a variety of licences. It’s open to ideas from its filmmakers but also researches upcoming trends and briefs its contributors on appropriate footage. Over the past few months, for example, Getty’s photographers have been updating the agency’s healthcare and family collections, as the US Congress debated, then passed, comprehensive healthcare legislation. “We have extremely strong aerial footage that ends up in movies,” says Delaney. “Subjects such as lifestyle, business, sunsets and sunrises are also very popular.”

Corbis Motion, a subsidiary of Bill Gates’ stock agency, offers more than 300,000 video clips. “Our content comes from a variety of sources – from filmmakers who are shooting specifically for Corbis Motion or from media partners such as Sony or National Geographic,” says Simon Pearson, a sales and research manager for Corbis Motion. “Most of the work we represent has been shot by filmmakers and photographers themselves, and hasn’t been commissioned by us.”

Getty-owned subsidiary Istockphoto uses a different approach, relying solely on its contributors’ imagination to feed its footage library. “Our community will find the trends,” says Jim Goertz, head of video content development at the micro-stock agency, which so far has more than 265,000 video files available under a royalty-free licence. It’s a far cry from the six million stills the company offers, but, says Goertz, video is a booming sector and photographers shouldn’t ignore its potential. “Video helps revenues a lot, as the video files are worth a lot more,” he says. “You might not sell a video as many times as a still image, but the royalties are much higher.”

Tech specs
It’s a new and growing income stream, but unfortunately not all photographers will benefit from it. “HD-DSLRs add economies of scale – if you are shooting a story in stills, but can shoot films as well, you can increase the yield on investment,” says Delaney. “But you need to be honest about your capabilities. As with photography, some are more able than others. Some of the greatest successes with HD-DLSRs we’ve seen were when the cameras were in the hands of professional filmmakers.”

Photographers need to think about how films are made and thought about, and those who have studied films will often produce more elegant footage, he adds. Goertz agrees. “Some photographers are still not used to it, and they will apply the same rules of photography to shoot video,” he says. “One thing we’ve found is that you need to get 30 frames right in a row to get one good second of footage. Few people are able to do this.”
Image Source is offering workshops to its photographers to address the issue. “It’s still a learning process for both of us, but we are encouraging photographers to learn with us,” says Hotchkiss.

Conventional photographers do have one advantage, adds Hotchkiss – many clients want stills as well as video, and photographers are often better able to provide them than filmmakers. “Our clients are moving into the interactive world,” she says. “They are not just single buyers now, they look at integration on every single level and want a multi-discipline product. The demand is there. And now, the ability to produce such content is also here.”

The other stock agents agree. “There is huge potential for photographers who are able to shoot stills and videos that match,” says Goertz. “For media campaigns, that’s perfect.” Delaney echoes this, adding that broadband has transformed the online world, leading to more interactive online campaigns.
Image Source, Corbis and Getty all work with existing rosters of photographers and filmmakers, but they welcome submissions from newcomers who want to join the fold. “Photographers can upload a video reel for review on the Getty Images website,” says Delaney. The footage will then be evaluated, with the potential to become a member of Getty’s contributors.

Istockphoto, on the contrary, welcomes content from any contributor, after a short test. With the low pricepoint of video-enabled cameras such as the Nikon D90 and Canon 550D, competition is set to increase from non-professionals, but practised professional photographers should benefit greatly, says Goertz. “It’s a game changer. We’re not far enough into the game yet to see the dramatic influence it will have, but it’s evolving very quickly.”