Doug Jensen

Exactly! And that is why I would describe it as drudgery. Whenever someone says they don't mind doing metadata or they enjoy it, I am skeptical they are really putting the time and effort into it that they should. Who enjoys doing paperwork?

I have enough experience through trial and error, experimentation, trying different techniques, and just plain old common sense to determine whether a clip's keywords and descriptions will be effective or not at attracting customers. Some people are just terrible at it, especially non-native English speakers. If you're not fluent in English you will definitely have a more difficult job to earn money through stock. I will say that is It is often easier to spot bad metadata than it is to figure out what good metadata might be missing from a clip. People think it is all about having the right keywords, but is also about NOT having the wrong keywords. Bad metadata will hurt sales. Furthermore, anyone who relies on automated systems to provide the best keywords is going to settle for mediocrity. I'm not saying my own metadata is perfect, far from it, but I believe my sales show I'm doing something right. The best clip in the world is worthless if nobody can find it.

Sorry, I guess it is an American term. By saying out loud that "September will probably be much better than August" you have doomed it to not happen.

Now you jinxed it.

It sounds like you have not checked the box "Render at source resolution" in the Delivery settings.

The free version of Resolve does 4K.

You are absolutely right and that is how I judge my progress. My numbers for 2020 compared to the same month in 2019: January +15% February +75% March +9% April +24% May +37% June +14% July +23% August +1% The size of my portfolio probably increased about 10% during that period of time, so earnings have increased faster than the portfolio size.

Normal ups and downs that look like every other year so far.

There's a big difference between creating effective keywords and descriptions vs. just filling in the blanks with computer-generated suggestions. Taking the time to create better than average metadata is where the drudgery comes in. Great images are worth nothing without effective metadata that actually draws customers in to buy them.

I am speaking of an existing portfolio where the work has already been done and the assets are already in place. The bottom line monthly income is what matters to me, not how it is sliced up. 10 downloads or 1000 downloads, who cares if the bottom line dollar amount is the same either way. BTW, if you are able to determine in advance of submitting which 10 images of the 1000 are going to be the big sellers, so you don't have to submit the other 990 images, more power to you. Personally, I do not have a crystal ball. I choose to submit 1000 images and let customers decide which ones will become the big sellers. Fortunately, the clips that sell very well will more than make up for the ones that never sell once.

Thanks for the suggestion. I don't know anything about sets, but I will look into it the next time I'm ready to submit.

Well, that is your opinion. We'll see how it works out.

Tracking long-term success is tricky because it takes years for images to prove their worth, and as long as they are in your portfolio, the possibility exists for them to earn even more money. I have clips that I submitted when I started in 2012 that still generate steady sales - and will continue to do so indefinitely. And some clips that have sat dormant and never had any sales before suddenly come alive. So, at any given moment in time it is impossible to forecast exactly how much income can be earned from any image in your portfolio. However, with that said, as of today, the average clip in my portfolio has earned $18.15. And each clip took an average of 5 minutes to edit, grade, generate metadata, and upload. So, five minutes = 12 clips per hour that I can process. 12 clips x $18.15 = $217 per hour. If that number drops below $100 per hour, I will quit uploading. If I'm not making at least $100 per hour, I have better things to do with my time. I'll continue to shoot for fun, but not to waste my time uploading. Perhaps I will make a deal with someone else to take ownership of the footage I shoot and let them submit the clips and I will take a percentage. But I certainly won't be doing that drudgery myself for less than my minimum wage. The number I'd really like to know, but would be very difficult to track, is how NEW clips are earning. That would be an even better indicator as to whether it is worth my time or not, but almost impossible to track and the results can't be known for years anyway.

I totally appreciate your reply even though our view of the work vs. reward is completely flipped 180 degrees. We should team up. I'll shoot and you keyword.

No, I would not agree. Shooting for fun is something I've done for longer than Shutterstock has even been in business. It is my chosen leisure activity, in the same way other people go fishing, golfing, or sitting on the couch watching TV. I'd be shooting anyway, so I don't include time spent shooting in my calculations. It is not work. I do not expect to be compensated for shooting. But doing metadata, now that is an awful process that I will always hate. I have streamlined my workflow and made it as painless as possible, but it is still WORK. I expect to be compensated for work or I won't do it. If the time I spend doing metadata and submitting images ever drops below a certain hourly-income level, I will stop submitting. Period. If the rewards do not equal the effort, why bother? But I will always continue shooting because shooting has nothing to do with my earnings from stock. Now, other people may have an entirely different point of view. Fine. Maybe shooting is a pain in the ass and they don't enjoy it. If it is work to YOU, then you should include the time you spend shooting in YOUR calculations. That is why I ask people how they calclulate their hourly income. We don't have to agree on what formula is best or what hourly income threshold is expected, but anyone who doesn't give thought to their own numbers is a fool. Wouldn't you agree?