Photographer FAQ

This FAQ answers questions posed to us by our photographers. For basic information on how to join, how to submit, and why you should choose Obsidian Stock, please click on the related topics.

Q: Does Obsidian Stock have exclusive use of an image once it's in your archives, or can the photographer pursue other avenues of sale? For instance - fine art exhibitions, or direct inquiry based on the photographer's own website portfolio.

A: Whatever efforts the photographer makes to market an image - outside of selling stock through us - is fine with us. Fine art prints, exhibitions and direct inquiries are all things we support (outside of putting the same image in with 3 other agencies, of course...). We're here to help photographers make a living - not curb it.

Q: Why should I put my images in with you, when I can go to Getty, Corbis or others with world-wide recognition and get the same commission rate?

A: Excellent question. There are a ton of reasons why Obsidian Stock is a better bet, but here are a few to get you started:

1. The demand is here. We have heard time and time again from local designers, ad agencies and businesses that there is a serious availability shortage of images depicting Oregon and all that is associated with it. Plus, with the recent growth the region is experiencing, the need for unique and fresh images is increasing and there is no end in sight. The big agencies offer a very slim selection of Oregon-themed images, and tracking down an individual photographer for a specific image can be time-consuming and inconvenient for the client. So we're here to connect the two.

2. Unlike at large agencies like Corbis and Getty, at Obsidian Stock you won't have to compete with thousands of other photographers and their millions of generic images - we are an agency with a tight geographic focus and accept only submissions that reflect that. So businesses can come to us, confident that they will find exactly what they’re looking for, without having to spend hours upon hours, scouring the websites of the big agencies or chasing down a photographer.

3. For pros and frequent contributors, we offer a free assignment matching service. Companies that need to have custom images shot can contact us and we hook them up with a selection of photographers that match their targeted specialty area. That's a possible revenue stream Corbis or Getty just can't provide.

4. It's hard to get works accepted into the larger agencies, and the process is usually long and arduous for the photographer. As with all small businesses, Obsidian Stock is a lot more nimble, able to embrace innovations easier, and has a closer working relationship with both photographers and clients.

Need more reasons? See here: Choose Obsidian Stock. :-)

Q: What's the standard pricing all about?

We've spent a huge amount of time researching stock pricing, and the standard pricing we have come up with is very competitive to those of other agencies, both big and small.

But - we're letting photographers pick their own pricing on images they feel are worth more and will sell better. We think that no photographer should feel like he can't submit to our agency only because he doesn't agree with the standard pricing we've implemented.

Q: I have a website - can images that are displayed in its portfolio be submitted to Obsidian Stock?

A: You bet! All of your images, unless they have an prior exclusive license with a client, are fair game for submission. :-)

Q: I'm not going to be directly marketing my stock on my website, but I might sell prints - is this a conflict?

A: Nope! You go right ahead and sell your prints any which way you like. :-)

Depending on the inquiries we get over time, we might actually add a function that lets people order fine art prints over our easy online ordering system. For now though, we'll just forward any requests directly to the individual photographer.

Have more questions? Want answers to a specific problem? Email us!