Pond 5 Top Ten Sales | Stock footage examples of sold clips | WHAT I'VE LEARNT

[@JamesOrlowski]

Advice from a 12+ year veteran in stock: don't spend more than 30 minutes editing a new clip when the subject matter is unproven to be in demand. Only spend the extra time on new clips of similar subjects that sell well for you in the past.

[@agreatalternative]

Great advice, thank you James! What type of clips have sold the most for you?

[@JamesOrlowski]

@@agreatalternative Honestly, I fell into the establishing shot niche, quite by accident. But those can net me up to $300 per sale. I even wrote a book about it on Amazon.

[@joelpackman]

I've been putting video clips on Pond5 since 2010. Although I've not been adding much in the past few years, I still get some sales from time to time. And I don't have all that many clips on there. Just around 200. But I was looking at some of my sales over the years and the idea that you never know what will sell is so true. I have a few shots of a wild rabbit just munching on grass in my yard. Over the years I've sold 23 clips of that bunny. Even my dog playing with a squeaky toy has sold 9 times. Obviously, there are a lot more clips to choose from now, meaning more competition, but in the end, you can't beat passive income. A clip I put up there in 2012 just paid my electric bill last month.

[@agreatalternative]

That’s made my day seeing that, cheers Joel 👍 So if you had one piece of advice for a new stock video creator, what would it be? That’s the dream and main reason why we put video on stock sites, so that in ten years time money is still appearing in our bank account. Aiming to live off grid having many passive income streams is an aim of mine, I’m looking into creating courses with local crafters, just not sure what yet 😁

[@joelpackman]

@@agreatalternative There are lots of useful tips, but I would say that if I gave only one it would be to always keep stock footage clips in mind when you go anywhere. I usually always have my video camera and tripod with me with when I drive somewhere. With today's smart phone technology, you don't even need a camera for great 4K shots. But notice your surroundings and what might be a cool shot. To follow up on my previous post, I was on my way back from camping in Wyoming back in 2010. Instead of taking the main highway across South Dakota I took a different route to get to Pierre, the state capitol. At the time, there were no shots of the capitol on Pond5. After uploading them, I didn't sell any shots of the capitol until 2013. Then I sold it for the first time. That's three years after I uploaded it. Soon after, I saw a national news story on TV and saw my clip being used as a b-roll shot. A-ha! So that's who bought it. Since then, I've sold it four more times but it has been a while since the last purchase. And looking at Pond5 now, I see a number of other shots of the capitol that are 4K and include drone shots. So, I really don't expect more sales of that one, but you never know. It takes time but you never know what someone will buy. The main thing for new creators to remember is, once it's up on the site, your job is done. Enjoy the profits of your work while you add more content.

[@agreatalternative]

@@joelpackman Great tips thanks Joel! That’s one thing that (I understand why not) but would be great is if you could see where your clips have been used. Most of mine have been sold for the lowest licence but there is one that I know has been used for TV so I’m itching to find out where 😁

[@JWhyte123]

time lapse is my top selling video content on pond5, shutterstock and Adobe Stock. You remind me that I need to get out and shoot some more of that type of content. Its easy to park time lapse in favour of other content, but it sells so well. Thanks mate.

[@agreatalternative]

Thank you for your insight, you raise a good point! I think most creators don’t suggest timelapse any more as it’s over done but in reality by it’s very nature timelapse takes time to produce so it’s a type of shot that your standard creator won’t shoot. Therefore good for stock! Plus my favourite thing about timelapse is it means you can go find a nice shot then sit (ideally with a coffee and some cake) while it does it’s thing 😁

[@O-ft3mf]

hello, excuse me, how much memory is needed to shoot timelaps?

[@agreatalternative]

That totally depends on how many photos you take and the file size of your photos. On average I take around 400-600 photos for one timelapse with each image being about 28mb

[@O-ft3mf]

@@agreatalternative thank you very much!

[@batwillow]

Got to get you doing some glassblowing, once my workshop is set up !

[@agreatalternative]

I’m sure there wouldn’t be anything like your glassware on any stock site! Oooo the possibilities!! 😁

[@rhubbardstockfootage]

Hey! Great video! i've just subbed! I like the range of shots you have (timelapse, probe lens etc) always think its good for the portfolio!

[@agreatalternative]

Thanks Rich, I totally agree! If you get chance to shoot stock just for the fun as well you can tryout abstract ideas that maybe you couldn’t on a regular paid gig!

[@snapsoon4302]

Fantastic video. I like your creativity. I recently joined pond 5 and I haven't sold any of my work yet. Keep up the good work and thanks for sharing.

[@agreatalternative]

Cheers! Good luck with the uploads, don’t get deterred if you don’t sell any for a while 👊

[@PapaMacVideos]

Thanks for making and sharing this video. I love Pond5 and have been selling clips there for over 5 years. Cheers!

[@agreatalternative]

My pleasure, I’m glad you found it useful!! 😊

[@TheZGALa]

Thank you for the great tips. I am just getting started. Nice video.

[@agreatalternative]

No worries, really happy it helped 😊

[@Paddy_Mac]

You actually said it before I realised you were in a caravan - ha, ha - not sure what that says about me but I have a very similar van!

[@agreatalternative]

I did deliberately frame out most of it so as not to see our dirty washing and general clutter so you’re forgiven 😁👍 What kinda van are you in? How do you deal with working online, especially where videos are concerned? (I’m constantly pulling my hair out over upload speed)

[@RedMoonRising24]

Best tip from this video: do something that challenges you every time you shoot. ❤️ that! Thanks for sharing your top 10. - Amy

[@agreatalternative]

Thanks Amy 😊 Gotta challenge yourself right!? Otherwise you’d get bored with the repetitivenesses, be creating is meant to be fun!

[@RedMoonRising24]

@@agreatalternative yes and you have to love being creative or you're going to hate doing stock footage, lol!

[@agreatalternative]

@@RedMoonRising24 That’s one of my favourite things about shootings stock - no client, just me 😁

[@consciouscoma85]

the camera back drop is kind of timeless that could sell at any time down the road...i am thinking that building your body of work over time might be the key.i have been on p5 for over a year,still no sales but i am still learning.i just beefed up my key words ,i think what i have learned from your video is diversity .

[@agreatalternative]

I think that’s a great point; Good titles, good keywords, diversity and quantity! Good luck with it 👍

[@consciouscoma85]

@@agreatalternative can you put locations in your key words?

[@agreatalternative]

@@consciouscoma85 You can yes, I’ve done that with some of my stuff, including my top selling clips which is of a specific touristy spot.

[@christophecoat1914]

Well, for the eye, it is associated with Blairwitch project also. I did myself a pumpkin shot related to Halloween by John Carpenter and it works also for the same association (lookalike and updated but copyright free). I wonder if other lookalike b-roll from famous movie would work?

[@agreatalternative]

Yeah that’s a good point! What an idea!!! 🤩 Recreations!! You could do famous films (like shot for shot remake) which would also work if it was deliberately rubbish too 😁 Or how about famous real life events? I bet it would be a load of fun to film as well! Thank you 👍

[@jejakmaknawi]

Hi, Thanks for the video. I just getting started and this video helps. I want to ask you about video codecs. Should I upload in ProRes 422 or just H.264 for easier uploading because of file size. Do you have suggestions on export settings? Thanks again.

[@agreatalternative]

No worries, really glad it helped! I export in H.264 not ProRes 422. To increase quality within the file I tend to do a 2 Pass with a bit rate of 70 - 100. That makes the files sizes big but not massive. This is also for the 4K footage that is recorded in a high bit rate, over 100mbs so I’m not falsely raising the quality.

[@jejakmaknawi]

@@agreatalternative Hey, Thanks for the reply. I painfully uploaded 55 clips lol. Now I'm going to upload in H.264 instead. Thanks and Hi from Jakarta Indonesia

[@agreatalternative]

Don’t re-upload that’s a waste of time!! 😁 I don’t think it really matters too much as long as you’re trying to give the best results while at the same time making it manageable for you. Good luck!! 👍 Hello from Wales, UK 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 🇬🇧😊

[@jejakmaknawi]

@@agreatalternative No sir, H. 264 it's for future uploads. Thank you, 😊

[@AviationMediaOne]

I have shed loads of New York City drone footage to upload to Pond5, what title or tags would you recommend I put to generate some sales?

[@agreatalternative]

I use dropstock.io It’s a site that’s free to sign up and has a keyword tool that’ll show you what’s popular 👍 Pond 5 allows 50 tags per clip and it’s probably a good idea to use them all if you can. Plus a specific title is good, rather than a super generic one like “New York aerial at dusk”

[@AviationMediaOne]

@@agreatalternative thank you for these tips. Much appreciated 🫡

[@dreamcuts6811]

haha xD Rotoscoping for 2 weeks and earned no money xD !! *Sorry to rub salt on the wound! Thats just the Life of a creaitve! :') Thanks a ton for this video mate! Im starting out with stock footage right now and this was what i needed! Subbed and watiing for more!! Love from India!

[@agreatalternative]

Thanks for the comment, that’s made my day 👊 What topic would you like me to cover?

[@James_m7]

Nice! Did you have to get property releases for the mall escalator and the historic sites?

[@agreatalternative]

Good questions! The mall escalator = Yes, I was there getting a few timelapses as part of a paid project so got permission from the internal team. Although when it came to filming they only wanted to know what time I was going to be there to let security know, I was given free reign to go shoot whatever and they didn’t ask to see what I’d shot. The historic sites = No. I cover what I found on the police website about what’s allowed on one of my other videos “making money from historic sites”. Overall I think it was ok as it’s a public location, especially if you’re not filming from land that isn’t owned by the location.

[@James_m7]

@@agreatalternative Can you typically have the right to sell the footage that you've shot for a paid client's project? thx!

[@agreatalternative]

@@James_m7 Good question. Totally depends on what’s been agreed upon with the client. To be totally safe you should have a contract to prove this but I’ve also done it as a voiced agreement between myself and my client. Also generally the shot I use wouldn’t be specific to them, like employees/ their buildings to make it less likely for them to change their mind at a later date but also that’s dependent on the project.

[@TheZGALa]

The top thing I am going to do is more research for ideas, and then, upload variety and see what happens.

[@agreatalternative]

Great idea! Whatever the case I’m sure you’ll be surprised! Good luck!! 👍

[@hafizmustapha4391]

Hi! Just found your channel. Thanks for your sharing. Do you set your pricing manually or let Pond5 auto-pricing your footages?

[@agreatalternative]

Cheers Hafiz 👍 I let Pond5 set the price because my guess is that it’s more likely to sell. Plus I’m not sure if when you set your own price it means the clip won’t be included in bulk subscription options. That said I haven’t tried both ways yet so you could try it for a couple months (half set by you/ half set by pond5) and see what works?

[@hafizmustapha4391]

@@agreatalternative Thanks for a speedy reply ! and thanks for the sharing. My portfolio is still small on Pond5 and I start with stock photo. Then I realised that Stock Photo is not worth the effort now and now I'm focusing on the footage. Will try to set to Auto-pricing and see how it goes.

[@agreatalternative]

@@hafizmustapha4391 I think that’s a wise move, good luck with it 👊

[@CatEqualsYes]

Do you have any cameras that shoot Pro Res or RAW? I noticed when I click at random on your clips they're all H.264. I strongly believe this would increase your sales, your stuff is fire no joke! Edit: it looks like your camera is capable of this, I'd use those codecs personally instead of H.264

[@agreatalternative]

Honestly hadn’t thought about it, could be a good shout!! I’ve uploaded a few 5-7k timelapses before but haven’t noticed any increased sales because of it but haven’t attempted RAW or pro res. It’s a good idea as an editor may want the option to totally grade the clips themselves! The only reason why I’d do H264 is due ti my computer speed and ease of editing for my regular projects. So if it was a shoot done just for stock then RAW, whereas if it’s a standard KZbin vid that I may get a few clips out of but want to be able to edit quickly then H264.

[@CatEqualsYes]

@@agreatalternative You could try to shoot with no intention of using post in any way. Have the camera pre muted and just upload the unaltered clips. Pro Res is uncompressed, and favored wildly for post production because of this. H.264 is (supposedly) more work on your PC/Mac while in post because of the compression. The possibilities for what can be done to the footage in post with Pro Res are in a diff. ball park from H.264 as well.

[@agreatalternative]

@@CatEqualsYes That’s certainly opened my eyes to a new way of doing it! I’ll try that thanks 👍

[@hayabusaTravels]

I have almost 150 images on pond 5 and no sales yet. Images I took while traveling in Greece and Turkey. I keep uploading to pond 5 (just added another 50 images today). Almost 6 months since my first upload and I have more then 800 to upload. Can I post here my pond 5 portofolio link to maybe get some hints form you? Thank you! PS: Shutterstock acquired Pond5.

[@agreatalternative]

I think you may need quite a lot more on there but the first 1000 is a great start! I’m not sure how images relate to video so please keep me updated. Yes feel free to share links in the comments 👍 I did know Shutterstock acquired Pond5, in fact I made a video about it 😁

[@sk810av]

Images don't seem worth the time.

[@agreatalternative]

@@sk810av I suppose it could be quicker to shoot a lot more, but then you have to sell so many I think you’re right, is it really worth it!

[@carlmckeown2875]

Hello uncle Jason I'm watching your videos

[@agreatalternative]

🥳 Hello 🥳 Does daddy know you’re using his channel?

[@carlmckeown2875]

@@agreatalternative I do 😂

[@CatchavistaAerial]

Great stuff

[@agreatalternative]

Cheers 👍

[@G_Channel_G]

Did you have to obtain filming permission from the council or elsewhere? If your channel is monetized then that's considered filming for commercial use.Can you please confirm if you had to do it? How about these historical sites you filmed?

[@agreatalternative]

Hi Gabriela, That’s a really good point, I hadn’t thought about the monetisation of this video as the main purpose of these clips was for stock. I didn’t seek permission for the historical/ tourist sites. If you check out my video about filming in historical sites I show what the police guidelines are for this but overall I’ve found it to be a really tricky grey area as depending on who you ask there can be a different response.

[@G_Channel_G]

@@agreatalternative Very grey, in particular about stock footage the platforms will most often ask you for license in order to upload your content on their platforms. That's why I was wondering how you did it.

[@agreatalternative]

@@G_Channel_G Right I see. Pond 5 haven’t asked and to be totally honest the way they choose commercial or not doesn’t seem to make sense, overall it seems to come down to if there is branding in a shot. In regards to historical sites again I think it seems to depend on who is checking the clips as some of mine are and some aren’t and I can’t totally figure out why. Sorry if that’s not too much help!

[@G_Channel_G]

@@agreatalternative Thanks for sharing your experience. Sometimes one can have the whole creativity and equipment, but stressful obstacles like that which make it complicated may discourage people. Nothing is easy... I'm watching your video now for the historical sites, thanks for making it!

[@agreatalternative]

@@G_Channel_G My pleasure, it’s for (hopefully) the help I can be to awesome people like you that is one of the main reasons I do it……. along with taking a wander to go shoot timelapses cos that’s just fun 😁 My general view is to cover a load of different areas just in case one doesn’t work out. So for example Pond5 is just one of many ways to make money out of the original filming, plus even then I don’t just shoot buildings. It’s all about variety! Good luck with your filming!!

[@funnycat4583]

Inspiring!

[@gracecinematic65]

How long are the time lapses?

[@agreatalternative]

Mostly between 8-12 seconds. Whenever I do a Timelapse I try to take at least 300 images as sometimes you have to trim one end of if for example the weather gets worse.

[@beautifulplaces2703]

50 dollars for 10 seconds job - not bad .