Storytime: How I sold my very first photo ever - before I was a photographer!

[@NicoleGlass]

What is the first photo you ever sold? I'm curious!

[@Ben.StevenswithaV]

6/3/18 - A B&W image of razor wire on the corner of a fence of a substation. Sold to someone in South Korea. Go figure.... (ID1037306812 on S/Stock)

[@ototem]

Motorcycle Track Day when after an accident I couldn't ride so I took foto equipment with me - mixing hobbys :)

[@steelcannibal]

It was maybe a week after i got my first DSLR camera, i was at the beach testing out the camera, and i had a man approach me wating me to take his picture with his 4 year old daughter with the waves crashing in the background. I told him I'm strictly a novice and he still offered me $5 but i was happy to do it for the experience. I later ran into him a few weeks later and he offered to buy me lunch because he loved the picture so much. It was a big boost, for motivation. That was about 3 months ago.

[@pennywilliamson5417]

My first photo sale was through EyeEm and I got £85 for it, it was a penguin and was sold to the computer company Dell, £85 for one photo, I was shocked 😮 I’ve since made multiple sales and find it interesting seeing who buys them and what they use them for.

[@JamesClark1991]

First download was a macro shot of a sunburst guitar. First sale was a shot of a Japanese mini-waterfall.

[@SUPER_GIANT]

Such a honest person from newspaper agency. He gave her $400+ for the mistake(did not mention her name). She sold photo but still the newspaper agency wanted to give credit to her . Great

[@NicoleGlass]

Yes indeed! It definitely left a good impression on me. He also mailed me a copy of the newspaper from Norway to the US. Very kind

[@danmccurry3810]

Good question, I'm not there yet, but I'm presently working on just that, one more reason why your content is so helpful and relevant to me and countless others creators online. I will post my experience in a few weeks! Thanks for posting helpful content

[@rjcine4181]

Being at the right place at the right time. This is a great story. We really need to expose our selves in the correct areas. Lucky yes but it gives us clues. Thanks a ton as always!

[@NicoleGlass]

Thank you, I'm glad you liked the story. I wasn't sure if this would be interesting to anyone or not, but I thought I'd try and see :)

[@timeslidr9063]

The first photo I sold was a macro shot of my smartphone; specifically a "do not disturb" icon. It sold twice to some company in France.

[@NicoleGlass]

Wow awesome! It's always cool to hear when smartphone photos do well

[@jhonathansaputra3072]

What an inspiring story...you are destined to be a champion !!

[@NicoleGlass]

Aww thanks so much :)

[@Maros_Mari]

Hey Nicole, thanks for sharing this story. It is inspiring story and it shows that it is good to follow dream and be proactive, one never knows which doors will open, but there is a way.

[@steelcannibal]

Really loving your channel. I love how real/humble you are with sharing experience. Keep it up! ❤

[@NicoleGlass]

Thanks so much, I appreciate the kind words :)

[@filmingfamily]

That's pretty cool story Nicole! I have similar experience with my family video. Couple times it already happened that companies approached and said we need a few seconds of your video for our commercial and they paid for a license. In some cases, I was just wow, once I got almost four figure number for a few seconds. Well, I love when this happens accidentally without chasing potential clients. Thanks for a nice story, Nicole!

[@NicoleGlass]

That's so awesome! I've sold a few drone clips myself this way. Those accidental sales can be exciting:)

[@Panda-pu7qd]

This video, has given me such a good perspective about the beginning stage's of photography! Especially, the amount of stress that's involved figuring out all the technicality's:)

[@NicoleGlass]

Awesome, I'm glad you found this helpful! Yeah, contracts and pricing and all that can be complicated

[@Panda-pu7qd]

@ @@NicoleGlassAgreed, After watching the many productive videos, your hard work and experience are really giving me a more "clearer picture" of what it takes to do what you do:) Wow! Thank you so much Nicole!

[@Panda-pu7qd]

Hi Nicole, Happy New Year! I'm stressing right now but 2020 is looking very optimistic! My technical skills are behind but I'm learning the whole concept from your channel:) I haven't learned enough technology in editing but I have a huge access for obtaing potential clients and stock right now (actually for a long time). But, i just now realized what potential there is. My mom, is a professional showroom designer (window displays) I have access through her, to the Dallas Market Hall World Trade Center (Incredible)! I always take a bunch of pix. I need some help getting started.. Do you happen to know, any trust worthy people or outsourcing companies youd recommend around my area possibly? At least to help get me started. Thank You So Much:) Chris/panda [e-mail]

[@starlight7830]

great story !

[@jacobchristianglover3655]

Awesome story and thanks for sharing Nicole. Unfortunately or Fortunately, I haven't sold any yet, given many away, but I have the feeling that I'll view things differently after this video :) Be well and stay encouraged!

[@NicoleGlass]

I hope so! Let me know when you make your first sale :)

[@jacobchristianglover3655]

@@NicoleGlass You have unofficially/officially become my Stock Photography Guru/Mentor!!! I'll keep you posted on my penny earned :) Be well!

[@karanmaurya1628]

Amazing story and luck... Best wishes for your success

[@NicoleGlass]

Thank you Karan!

[@rakhishejwal9655]

Thank you so much for sharing 。If you do not mind I would like to ask how consistent we can upload photos?

[@EXA054]

Great story!!! Congrats!

[@NicoleGlass]

Thank you!

[@larrybell5144]

Great advice! Thank you so much.

[@NicoleGlass]

Anytime!

[@ferik.-aerodron1854]

Thank you for sharing video-like likes and thanks for the friendship!

[@lucaferrara7206]

Hi Nicole, firstly thanks for your channel, it's very informative and very well made. I would love to hear your opinion on whether submitting pictures on Shutterstock (or other stock platform) potentially cuts you off the opportunity to sell the same image at a much higher price (say hundreds of USD) to a potential buyer later in your career. Do you submit *everything* ? Or do you keep the most successful shots for future potential higher paying buyers ? Thanks.

[@mariomalino]

such a nice and informative channel, i am happy i found it :)

[@NicoleGlass]

Aww thanks, I'm happy you found it too! 😊

[@lesleydehaan5898]

I'm wondering about likeness-release of the people in your photograph? Do you get releases signed but those in your image? That's why I hesitate to sell photos with people in It.

[@NicoleGlass]

Good question. It depends how the photo is being used. Regarding the photo in my story: that was a newsworthy event open to the public and could be used/sold as an editorial image (not for commercial use). You need releases if you are selling an image for commercial purposes. But when you look at a newspaper and you see photos of news events, you can be sure that those newspapers are not going to every person in the picture to get a release form signed. That's because those images are editorial.

[@karelunalan]

i am a rookie for photography i would like to ask something if your photo rejected by shutterbox can we correct photo and resend them back?

[@NicoleGlass]

Yes you can reupload the image and resubmit it

[@SprueFascinationChannel]

Nice story Nicole!

[@NicoleGlass]

Thank you! :)

[@letsdiscover8327]

Interesting)... wanna thank you for all the information you provide, it helped me a lot. Do you remember the camera you used at that particular event (just interesting)

[@NicoleGlass]

Sure. Back then I was using a Canon Rebel T2i and a kit lens. Nothing special.

[@RajKumar-do6hq]

Keep it up and thanks for video...

[@GeezerDust]

Great story.

[@NicoleGlass]

Thank you!

[@liverpix]

I wonder if the same paper would still pay $350 for a similar photo in 2019 ?!!

[@NicoleGlass]

Good question, I have no idea 🤔

[@risangandroid]

Hi I am so inspired by your story. And i am wondering about your internship at natgeo. I havent join a photography journalism training / course yet before. So would you mind to make a video about photo journalism?

[@NicoleGlass]

I'm glad you asked! I actually wanted to make a video about this. Stay tuned 😊

[@markferrell55]

Nicole, is it possible to post that picture you sold or you can't anymore, your a real inspiration to me.

[@NicoleGlass]

Thanks so much! I showed the image in my video. I still retain copyright so I can do whatever I want with the image 😊

[@pixelatedreverie]

No wonder this got you serious about stock photography. My first(and only) photo is sold for 25 cents ! :D

[@NicoleGlass]

Haha this was years before I got into stock photography. Totally unrelated

[@pixelatedreverie]

@@NicoleGlass Haha I know, meant it as a joke. U work very hard and totally deserve your share of success. :)

[@BrutallyHonestStockGuy]

So cool, Nicole, thanks for sharing your story! $450 for a first sale :D

[@NicoleGlass]

No problem, thanks for watching! Yeah, I was pretty excited at the time :)

[@rizwanrizwan-qj8ve]

Nice

[@zjgvergara]

What does circulation mean?

[@NicoleGlass]

How many people that publication reaches. (Ex: How many people receive a specific magazine or newspaper)

[@s34445]

Great

[@kanocularTV]

wow $400+ for one photo. makes me think if i should still pursue stock photography where they slap me in the face as a payment + a dollar or two.

[@NicoleGlass]

Yeah, many people feel that way. In microstock it's all about quantity. The way I see it: I upload plenty of photos to stock sites that I would probably never be able to sell anywhere else (editorial images such as overflowing trash cans, soda cans, photos of storefronts, an accident, etc.) There are some photos that I do not put on stock because I would rather sell them on my own, indepedently. It's a mix.

[@kanocularTV]

@@NicoleGlass that is a very good point. sell only editorial images on microstocks and sell the other works of art somewhere else for way more money. No point in spending so much time, money, energy and effort capturing magnificent landscapes and tons of time editing if all you're gonna get is $15 or so. but yeah, we gotta find the proper mix.

[@rekha9777]

@@NicoleGlass how I can sell my photos on my own?

[@jimwilliams5099]

Are you getting much money from Shutterstock, even after they adjusted their pay down?

[@NicoleGlass]

I am, but not from photos -- 90% of my SS income comes from video sales.

[@czn8040]

Subscribed 😊😊

[@danielrus7117]

Like.... What?!!!!! Yeah!

[@ramizveseli775]

Hello I am a new shutterstocker,and i want to know if i can register a random bank card,or just paypal payoneer skrill,please help me how i can do it .? Thanks for the help. btw:Keep it up 👍🏼

[@NicoleGlass]

Shutterstock pays you through PayPal

[@runetek]

Hi Nicole, I picked up a camera for the first time 12 months ago and have been hooked ever since. I have not "sold" any photo's yet but have had 3 photos used in 2019 Calendar for the Town I live in. Feel free to check out my Instagram #snappedraw

[@NicoleGlass]

That's awesome, I hope they at least gave you some free calendars! :)

[@rahulhai5742]

Not a single dislike

[@NicoleGlass]

🙂

[@TezSidhu]

Gud

[@tanvirtimes2217]

Take love Necole Glass From Bangladesh..

[@alphacomputersolutions2314]

SUBD LAST WEEK

[@JOEBLACK1979]

:-)

[@starlight7830]

is 1 nose hole bigger than the other !