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INTRODUCTION
(from July 03 issue)
SPOILT FOR CHOICE
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Cartoons
tailor-made for books, sensible@screaming.net |
Finding
the right image is getting easier. The range of images available
is unprecedented and finding them takes less time, thanks to the
internet and improved search engines.
It is no easy task to find the perfect image and there are now
even more ways to acquire pictures. In this feature we hear about
‘royalty free’ image providers, as well as more conventional
image licensing. Apart from the royalty issue, we are faced with
an incredible array of choice, ranging from hundreds of specialist
libraries to general libraries that seem to carry images on everything.
We start with some sound advice from James West of Alamy on how
to track down the images you need.
ONLINE
STOCK PHOTOGRAPHY - THE SEARCH IS ON
In
recent years, the stock photography marketplace has evolved to
the extent that you can now get hold of almost anything - from
ancient, rare archival imagery through to contemporary commercial
shots that look as good as commissioned photography.
 alamy.com
However,
for those new to working with stock libraries, finding the right
image can be a daunting task.
Knowing the best places to look is a good start. There is a plethora
of stock photography agencies, from the enormous all-things-to-all-men
agencies to the niche specialists, so you can waste much time
in the hunt for the “right one” before you've even
started looking for that eye-catching cover image. BAPLA, the
UK trade association for picture libraries, offers a useful starting
point for finding suitable providers.
Once you've found the right agency for your needs, the next step
is to search their stock for suitable images. Most agencies now
offer online searches, the convenience of a 24/7 service and the
ability to browse and compare thousands of images quickly. Of
course the flip-side of this is that if you don't know how to
search, you could drown in the volume of results returned by the
search engine. Taking time to understand how the search engine
works could save you hours in front of a screen.
Online search engines rely on the information stored with each
image, typically in the form of keywords, a caption, and perhaps
a more detailed description. Depending on the search engine, you
can search for images that contain a certain word, a phrase, or
perhaps a series of words in any particular order. Most online
search engines retrieve thousands of images, so unless you want
to be inundated, you'll need to narrow down the results using
a boolean search, say, which enables you to tailor your search
with options such as 'and', 'or', 'not' etc. For example, searching
on 'dog not bone' will give no images of bones, just dogs, 'dog
and bone' will give both, 'dog or cat' will throw up images of
dogs or cats or both.
Alternatively, if you are searching for something specific, try
placing the search terms in inverted commas to eliminate irrelevant
results. Searching for red ball may return a picture of someone
carrying a football onto a London bus, whereas ‘red ball’
should return pictures containing a red ball.
The features offered by search engines vary across the industry,
but the good news is that most agencies tend to tweak and improve
their systems on an ongoing basis, in response to customer feedback.
A good agency will provide detailed online advice with examples.
So while it might look like a jungle, in reality, searching for
the right stock photography is a straightforward process and you
can achieve stunning results. If you still have problems just
pick up the phone - most picture libraries have excellent, experienced
staff, accustomed to helping with picture searches, who should
be able to guide you through the process. Good luck!
James West is CEO of Alamy Images (www.alamy.com). To request
a catalogue, call 01235 844 600 or email sales@alamy.com.
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MANAGING
CHANGE
Photographer
Robert Harding founded the Robert Harding Picture Library in 1972.
Since then the library has built a prestigious reputation in the
stock image industry, and its files now contain well over 1,000,000
images. RHPL represents over 600 photographers as well as images
and catalogues from international agencies.
The establishment of Creative Resource in 1996 brought RHPL into
the royalty free field. RHPL represents Digital Vision and PhotoAlto.
As Robert Harding puts it, “We are a hybrid library with
two definite sides to the business, and I see royalty free becoming
more significant as the standards continue to rise. Producers
are investing in superb product, with their own studios, art directors
and an improved creative approach. It means that prices are going
up but the results are virtually as good as rights managed images.”
The main library, meanwhile, continues to be updated regularly
with imagery of Travel, Geography, Culture and the Natural World
from over 220 countries. It has been dubbed World Imagery because
of its comprehensive, encyclopaedic coverage of the planet. Robert
Harding again: “We already have over 60,000 of our stock
images on the website. And we’re adding thousands more each
month. Remember though, you’re only seeing the tip of the
iceberg, so for this and many other reasons, we encourage our
clients to talk to us. We have a strong tradition of customer
service and welcome telephone contact, unlike many websites.
“Technology has totally revolutionised our business. The
old order of doing business has changed. Converting a library
like ours to digital takes considerable time and investment. It
is something we are committed to. Many of our book publishing
clients are still happy to work with transparencies, but we realise
this won’t last. We will search on behalf of our clients
conventionally or digitally and when scanning is required, this
is also provided free of charge.”
Regarding book publishing, Robert Harding continued, “We
are able to market digital material on behalf of UK book publishers
and we are very keen to forge links with any publishers wishing
to make better use of their own digital material. Book publishers
represent nearly half of our business and we are always happy
to help out on pricing where arrangements can be put in place
for bulk use.”
For more information visit: www.robertharding.com
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ROYALTY
FREE
To
those new to royalty free stock photography it is a way of purchasing
images, illustration and now even footage and music and having
something that can be used whenever and wherever you like, repeatedly,
at no extra cost. In essence you pay a one-off price for an image
that you own the licence to.
Royalty free stock first started to emerge around 10 years ago
with the first real commercial library coming from Seattle-based
PhotoDisc. It has evolved into a market that no longer produces
badly-scanned, poor quality shots with poses straight from an
early mail-order catalogue. The shots are no longer just for the
business industry. As the RF market has grown, so has the variety
and quality, with lifestyle and other visually stunning images
greatly outstripping the proliferation of hand-shaking over a
busy meeting table.
Images now range from beautifully captured wildlife shots to computer-generated
layered artwork, which flexibility means that the work produced
from one image is infinite. Images are photographed by professionals
for professionals.
As a rule the images come in three sizes: Comping and Web usage
- 600k -1Mb at 72dpi, A5 size - 10-12 Mb at 300 dpi and A4 size
- 20-32Mb at 300dpi, with a CD containing at least two of these.
The major publishers are now also supplying larger files of anything
from 50-100 Mb, allowing greater flexibility with regards to use
and implementation. Post-production values have also risen with
vibrant colours replacing the dull predecessors. Images are now
cropped and designed to allow designers to achieve an image with
minimal editing and fuss.
Cadmium’s involvement with royalty free started 10 years
ago when they were the first company to promote and sell royalty
free images in the UK. The company started with just four libraries
– PhotoDisc, part of the Getty collection, and Digital Stock
which is now part of Corbis. Over the years Cadmium has become
the major supplier in the industry, expanding its portfolio to
include all the major royalty free libraries as well as some exclusive
collections working directly with the photographers.
To find out more about Cadmium and royalty free stock photography,
visit their website at www.cadmium.co.uk
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MARY
EVANS APPROACHING 40
Mary Evans Picture Library, one of the founder members
of BAPLA, has been supplying historical pictures for almost four
decades, and will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2004.
The return of the sun in the Arctic regions during the voyage
of Ross to find Franklin in 1848; the crew leave their ships,
Enterprise and Investigator, to enjoy the full effect. Unattributed
engraving.
Built
up as a collection of books, prints, photographs, engravings,
postcards, ephemera – history in the making if you will
- the library now occupies a rare position in the picture business:
a collection-based commercial archive, each image chosen for what
it reveals about how we lived, worked and played.
The researchers at Mary Evans Picture Library are all graduates
of history or related subjects and know the collection well. The
library encourages clients to use its researchers’ knowledge
and experience when searching.
One of the main advantages of a specialist image source is expertise
and back-up for in-depth research from a collection put together
in an intelligent and passionate way. A friendly and knowledgeable
researcher-based service is combined with up-to-date technology.
Whether by traditional transparencies or high resolution scans,
image search by researcher or via digital database, the library
can help the image buyer get the best results. There are over
125,000 pictures on the Mary Evans website.
Mary Evans Picture Library, 59 Tranquil Vale, London SE3 0BS,
UK. Tel: +44 (0)20 8318 0034; Fax: +44 (0)20 8852 7211; e-mail
pictures@mepl.co.uk or visit the website www.mepl.co.uk
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ONE
FEE FITS ALL
Online travel image library, www.photobyte.co.uk, has
been set up to take the frustration out of sourcing and buying
images. Purchasing a licence to use an image from Photobyte Image
Library couldn’t be easier – there are no lengthy
questionnaires or negotiations - just one fixed and reasonable
fee.
The copyright laws are complex and difficult. Photobyte established
that the users of images found the process of negotiating fees
extremely complex and time-consuming. So came up with a system
to simplify matters – one fixed fee for the use of an image,
however or wherever.
www.photobyte.co.uk features Fran Black's portfolio of travel
photography. Black, a professional photographer, has been documenting
her travels with a sympathetic lens for nearly 20 years. Her philosophy
is to capture the real spirit of a place; its people, culture
and architecture. Whether India, Marrakech, Vietnam, Guatemala
or any of the other areas covered, a wide choice of images is
available.
The entire collection of images is online, and can be viewed without
relying on the correct search criteria to be entered into a database
to make the selection, or for someone else to interpret your request.
This should prove particularly attractive to book publishers whose
two main complaints are tight budgets, and even tighter deadlines.
www.photobyte.co.uk bypasses both of these problems by simplifying
fees, and offering an online travel picture library that can be
viewed in its entirety, and ordered from, 24 hours a day, seven
days a week. m
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WATCH
OUT FOR WILDLIFE
Ardea
is a specialist wildlife, pet and environmental photo library
that has been established for over 25 years, and holds the images
from over 150 photographers living and working all over the world.
Many are full-time professional photographers; others are professional
naturalists who spend much of their working life in the field.
In addition to the library’s core collection of mammals,
birds, plants, insects and other creepy-crawlies, fish, reptiles,
amphibians, pets and underwater life, Ardea also stocks scenic
images from around the world illustrating the habitats within
which the creatures are found, from impressive aerial shots of
Australia to the barren tundra of Siberia.
Later this summer Ardea will be launching its fully searchable
website, enabling picture researchers to search online for images,
create lightboxes, source low resolution images for lay-out purposes
and download high resolution images for final use. The site will
offer in excess of 10,000 images, which will be added to on a
regular basis. A team of friendly and knowledgeable researchers
are available to search the entire transparency collection if
required.
For more information visit: www.ardea.co.uk.
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ALL
ABOUT BAPLA
Everything
you need to know about finding, buying and selling images
The British Association of Picture Libraries and Agencies (BAPLA)
was established in 1975 and with 400 members is the largest of
its kind in the world. BAPLA is a not-for-profit organisation
whose remit is to promote and safeguard the interests of the picture
library industry.
Members range from small specialist libraries, sole trading photographers,
to the large international libraries, galleries and museums, publishers
and broadcasters. All members sign a professional code of conduct.
BAPLA offers a free telephone and online referral service to help
picture researchers locate the best source of imagery and also
produces a printed Directory of Members, which is available to
purchase for £20. BAPLA recently published the Pricing Trends
Survey, which is a historical survey of its members pricing trends
for 2001. The survey covers all areas of fee negotiation, including
the book publishing sector, and can be purchased for £350
BAPLA also runs a series of industry related seminars. Forthcoming
events include a Rights Seminar which will cover legislation,
including copyright and clearing secondary rights, as well as
the fee negotiation process.
The BAPLA Picture Buyers' Fair is now an annual event, where researchers
and buyers of images can visit over 150 picture libraries and
agencies under one roof. The Picture Buyers' Fair will next take
place on May 12-13 2004, at the Business Design Centre, London.
Register at the BAPLA website and receive industry news and event
updates by e-mail.
For more information about BAPLA visit www.bapla.org or tel: 020
7713 1780.
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©
Book People 2003
Website developed and maintained by Rigden Thorne. info@rigdenthorne.com
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