Design and Photography Highlights

We were approached by a company that creates video ad templates for brands and their customers about using your uploaded images and videos in their templates. I wanted to ask the community how they felt about letting a company like this use your images in templates that others could license and you would be paid when a customer of theirs uses the advertising templates. The company wants to be able to use your images and videos in the previews of these templates and then when someone licenses then you will get paid. Another thing they wanted to try was letting their end users have access to our images and videos (i.e. the raw materials) to create their templates and you would get paid when they licensed the final product. Since Cutcaster never takes ownership of uploaded files I wanted to ask you guys what you thought and I will do what you tell me.

Some ideas i had for this could be:

Give those that have images licensed through the system a higher payout.

Make it opt in for those that wanted to add their images and video.

Can the idea and move on to the next one.

I am throwing the idea out there because I don’t want to do anything without asking the community first. I will always let you guys know what types of partnerships approach us and get your input. This is as much yours as it is ours. Please let your voices be heard. How do you fell about partnerships like this.

Are their other partnerships that you think we should pursue which you guys are interested in? Please use us to your advantage and let us work for you.

Below are some sites that can really help you with your photography business. I haven’t listed them all obviously but have added the big ones or ones that our users found helpful.

Adobe Systems, Inc., 1585 Charleston Road, P.O. Box 7900, Mountain View, CA 94039. 415-961-4400 voice, 415-961-3769 fax, 206-628-5737 fax on demand

Adobe’s Photoshop page,

See Photoshop lists described below.

Agfa Division, Bayer Corp., 100 Challanger Road, Ridgefield Park, NJ 07660. 201-440-2500 voice, 201-440-5733 fax

Agfa photography

Backdrop Outlet, 2215 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60616. 800-466-1755 or 312-842-6550 voice, 312-842-6546 fax

Beattie Systems, Inc., 1300 Mt. Read Boulevard, Rochester, NY 14606. 716-647-6287 voice, 716-254-4940 fax

Bencher Inc. Maker of copy stands

Beseler, 1600 Lower Road, Linden, NJ 07036. 908-862-7999 voice or 908-862-2464 fax

Billingham, Distributed in the US by Leica Camera Inc.

Bogen Imaging, professional photographic equipment and accessories

Brightscreen, 1905 Beech Cove Drive, Cleveland, TN 37312. 800-235-2451 or 423-478-1451 voice, 423-478-2774 fax

Paul C. Buff, Inc., 2725 Bransford Avenue, Nashville, TN 37204. 800-443-5542 or 615-383-3982 voice, 615-383-0676 fax

B+W Filters, The U.S. Distributor is Schneider

Cachet Paper

Canon U.S.A., Inc., One Canon Plaza, Lake Success, NY 11042. 516-488-6700

Chimera, 1812 Valtec Lane, Boulder, CO 80301. 888-444-1812 or 303-444-8000, 303-444-8303 fax

Cokin Filters, The U.S. Distributor is Minolta.

Contax

Cullman/Titan. The U.S. distributor is Beseler.

Da-Lite Screen Co., Inc., P.O. Box 137, Warsaw, IN 46580. 219-267-8101

Deardorff & Sons, Inc., 312 South Peoria Street, Chicago, IL 60607. 312-829-5655

Denny Manufacturing, P.O. Box 7200, Mobile, AL 36670. 334-457-2388 or 800-844-5616 voice, 334-452-4630 fax

Digital Camera Headquarters Reviews, prices and advice on digital cameras.

Durst – system solutions for image reproduction.

Duracell Photo Batteries

Dyna-Lite, 1050 Commerce Avenue, Union, NJ 07083. 908-687-8800 or 800-722-6638 voice, 908-686-6682 fax

Elinchrome, The U.S. Distributor is Bogen.

Energizer Photo Batteries

Fuji Film USA, 555 Taxter Road, Elmsford, NY 10523. 800-788-3854

Gepe, The U.S. distributor is HP Marketing.

Gitzo,

The U.S. Distributor is Bogen Imaging.

Gossen, The U.S. Distributor is Bogen Imaging.

Graflex

Hasselblad USA Inc., 10 Madison Road, Fairfield, NJ 07004. 973-227-7320 voice, 973-227-7320 fax

Heliopan Filters. The U.S. Distributor is HP Marketing

Hensel Studiotechnik

Horseman

Hoya Filters. The U.S. distributor is THK Photo Products.

Ikelite Underwater Systems, 50 West 33rd Street, Indianapolis, IN 46208. 317-923-4523, 317-924-7988 fax

Ilford Photo, West 70 Century Road, Paramus, NJ 07653. 201-265-6000, 201-265-0894

JOBO Fototechnic, P.O. Box 3721, Ann Arbor, MI 48106. 313-995-4192 or 800-627-5511

Kapture Group Manufacturer

of high speed trigger controls and large format digital camera back adapters

Kinnetronics

Eastman Kodak Co., 343 State Street, Rochester, NY 14650. 716-724-4679

Kodak Pro

Konica, 440 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632. 201-568-3100

Kostiner, Manufactured by The Saunders Group.

Kyocera, 100 Randolph Road, Box 6802, Somerset, NJ 08875. 908-560-0060 x4378 (Contax) x4315 (Yashica) voice, 908-560-9221 fax Contax and Yashica

Larson Enterprises, Inc., 365 South Mountainway Drive, Orem, UT 84058. 801-225-8088 voice, 801-225-8097 fax

LEE Filters, 2237 North Hollywood Way, Burbank, CA 91505. 800-576-5055 or 818-238-1220 voice, 818-238-1228 fax

Leica Camera Inc., 156 Ludlow Avenue, Northvale, NJ 07647. 800-222-0118 voice, 201-767-8666 fax

Lightform, The U.S. Distributor is Bogen.

Lightware, Inc. (cases), 1329 W. Byers Place, Denver, CO 80223. 303-744-0202

Lindahl Specialties, Inc., 800 West Beardsley Avenue, Elkhart, IN 46514. 800-572-2011 or 219-296-7823 voice, 219-296-7636 fax, email: lindahlinc@lslindahl.com

Linhof Präzisions-Kamera-Werke GmbH, The U.S. Distributor is HP Marketing.

Lowel-Light Manufacturing, 140 58th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11220. 800-334-3426 or 718-921-0600 voice, 718-921-0303 fax

Lowepro USA, 3171 Guerneville Rd., Santa Rosa, CA 95401. 800-800-5693 voice

Lumedyne, Inc., 6010 Wall Street, Port Richey, FL 34668. 813-847-5394 voice, 813-841-0000 fax

LUKSA Instruments, 3150 Innisdale Road, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada L5N 7T3. 905-785-9018 voice, 905-785-0292 fax Makes tripod that telescopes to sixty feet

Lumiquest

Lumijet Ink Jet Printing Media

Mamiya America Corp., 8 Westchester Plaza, Elmsford, NY 10523. 914-347-3300 voice, 800-321-2205 or 914-347-3309 fax

Manfrotto,

The U.S. Distributor is Bogen.

Matthews Studio Equipment, Inc

METZ-Werke GmbH & Co. KG, Ritterstraße 5, 90763 Fürth/Bay., Germany. +49-(09 11)-9706-0 voice, +49-(09 11)-9706-340 fax email: metz.werke@t-online.de.

The U.S. Distributor is Bogen.

Minolta Corporation, USA, 101 Williams Drive, Ramsey, NJ 07446-1293. 201-825-4000 voice, 201-934-4631 fax

Minox Cameras

New Seagull Paper Company, P.O. Box 28499, Santa Ana, CA 92799. 714-842-9868

Nikon USA Inc., 1300 Walt Whitman Road, Melville, NY 11747. 516-547-4200 or 800-645-6687 voice, 516-547-0299 fax

Nikon Camera’s Pro Web Site

Nikon Customer Service: 800-NIK-ONUS

Nikon Digital: 800-645-6689

Nikon Photo Products Division

Nikon Professional Services: 631-547-4397

Nikon Repair: 800-NIK-ONSV

Norman Enterprises, Inc., 2601 Empire Avenue, Burbank, CA 91504. 818-843-6811 voice, 818-843-5776 fax

Novatron, 8230 Moberly Lane, Dallas, TX 75227. 800-527-1595

NPC Corporation, 1238 Chesnut Street / P.O. Box 245 , Newton Upper Falls, MA 02464. 617-969-3487 voice

Oympus America Inc., 2 Corporate Center

Drive, Melville, NY 11747. 1-800-6-CAMERA

Omega Satter, 191 Shaeffer Avenue, Westminster, MD 21157. 410-857-6353 voice, 410-857-8587 fax

Ontrax Systems, Burns Photography, 439 Wood Street, Johnstown, PA 15902-2013. 800-598-4008 or 814-539-0334 voice, 814-536-3979 fax. Muslin backgrounds and mounting system – muslin backgrounds to studio ceilings. Paterson, The U.S. Distributor is The Saunders Group.

Pelican Products, 23215 Early Avenue, Torrance, CA 90505. 310-326-4700 voice, 310-326-3311 fax

Pentax Corporation, 35 Inverness Drive East, P.O. Box 6509, Englewood, CO 80155-6509. 800-877-0155 or 303-799-8000

Photek, 549 Howe Avenue,

Suite 307, Shelton, CT 06484

800-648-8868

Photoflex, 333 Encinal Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060. 800-486-2674 or 408-454-9100 voice, 408-454-9600 fax

Photogenic, 525 McClurg Road, Youngstown, OH 44512. 800-682-7668 or 330-758-6658 voice, 330-758-3667 fax

Polaris, The U.S. Distributor is The Saunders Group.

Polaroid

Prat Paris Presentation Materials

Printfile Archival Storage Systems

Profoto AB, Box 2023, S 12821 Skarpnack, Sweden. +011-468-930-980 voice, +011-468-604-1794 fax

Quantum Instruments, 1075 Stewart Avenue, Garden City, NY 11530. 516-222-6000 voice, 516-222-0569 fax

Reflecta, The U.S. Distributor is Bogen.

Ricoh

Rimowa, The U.S. Distributor is HP Marketing.

Roadwired Bags and Gear

Rodenstock, The U.S. Distributor is HP Marketing.

Rollei Fototechnic GmbH & Co. KG, Salzdahlumer Straße 196, Postfach 3245, 38126 Braunschweig, Germany. +49-531-6800-319 voice, +49-531-6800-243 fax

Romney Publishing, Box 487, Drayton, SC 29333. 864-597-1882 publisher of advanced camera repair manuals.

Saunders (a division of the Tiffen Company), 90 Oser Avenue, Hauppauge, NY 11788. 631-273-2500 voice, 631-273-2557 fax

Schneider KreuznachSchneider Corporation of America, 400 Crossways Park Drive, Woodbury, NY 11797. 516-496-8500 voice, 516-496-7508 fax

Schneider Optics, Inc., 285 Oser Avenue, Hauppauge, NY 11788. 516-761-5000 voice, 516-761-5090 fax

Sekonic,

Sekonic is now a division of Mamiya

Sigma Corporation of America,. 15 Fleetwood Court, Ronkonkoma, NY 11779. 516-585-1144 voice, 516-585-1895 fax

Sinar Bron Imaging, 17 Progress Street, Edison, NJ 08820. 908-754-5800 or 800-456-0203 voice, 908-754-5807 fax. Leaf, Sinar, Broncolor, Foba

Singh-Ray Filters, 2721 SE Highway 31, Arcadia, FL 34266. 800-486-5501 or 941-993-4100 voice, 941-993-4160 fax

Slik,

The U.S. Distributor is Tocad America.

Speedotron, 310 South Racine Avenue, Chicago, IL 60607. 312-421-4050 voice, 312-421-5079 fax

Stroboframe, Manufactured by The Saunders Group.

Sunpak

Superior Specialties

Tamrac, 9420 Jordon Avenue, Chatsworth, CA 91311. +1-818-407-9500 or +1-800-662-0717 voice, +1-818-407-9501 fax

Tamron Industries, Inc., 125 Schmidt Blvd., Farmingdale, NY 11735. +1-516-694-8700 or +1-800-827-8880 voice, +1-516-694-1414 fax

Tenba, 503 Broadway, New York, NY 10012. 212-966-1013 or 800-328-3622 voice, 212-334-0841 fax

Tiffen Manufacturing Corporation, 90 Oser Avenue, Hauppauge, NY 11788. 516-273-2500

ToCAD America Inc., 300 Webro Road, Parsippany, NJ 07054. 973-428-9800 voice, 973-887-2438 fax. Slik, Sunpak, Zero Haliburton

Tokina, The U.S. distributor is THK Photo Products.

Total Training, Inc. – a pioneer in innovative video-based training for leading creative design, digital video, and office productivity software programs.

Toyo a division of Mamiya.

Visual Departures Distributor of Dedolight and Flexfil

Vivitar Corporation, 1280 Rancho Conejo Boulevard, P.O. Box 2559, Newbury Park, CA 91319. 805-498-7008 voice, 805-498-5086 fax

Vue-All, The U.S. Distributor is The Saunders Group.

Wein, The U.S. Distributor is The Saunders Group.

F. J. Westcott Company, 1447 Summit Street, PO Box 1596, Toledo, OH 43603. 419-243-7311 or 800-886-1689

Wisner Classic Manufacturing Co., P.O. Box 21, Marion, MA 02738. 508-748-0975 or 800-848-0448

Wholesalers-Direct; Home of the photography enthusiasts resource directory, and retailer of digital camera equipment and accessories including Kodak, Fuji, Canon, Nikon, Tarsus and more. At near wholesale prices, and everything is brand new!

Yashica

Carl Zeiss Inc., One Zeiss Drive, Thornwood, NY 10594. 914-681-7300 voice, 914-6817485 fax

Zero Haliburton, 200 North 500 West, North Salt Lake City, UT 84054. 801-299-7390 voice, 801-299-7350 fax. The U.S. Distributor is Tocad America.

Zing Designs Zone VI Studios

Let us know if we missed any biggies and thanks to ASMP for helping us organize these.

We have successfully moved your images over to Amazon and have them stored and being delivered from s3. Its a really cool web service if you don’t know about it and Amazon lately has been doing some cool things.

Some of the images on the site ended up in a blank studio under Sara Morrison’s name. I have been examining the problem and can’t figure out why really but the affected files were uploaded in the month of March and some were related to files John helped people upload. If you are missing files please check this studio and let me know which ones are yours.

http://www.cutcaster.com/studio/pub/0

In addition if you have files that have no thumbnails please let us know or delete them and re-upload. I can help you with re-uploading if you need them and the FTP should be working well now. I will release them immediately. For some reason on the transfer, our thumbnail generator didn’t like those files and we couldn’t create thumbnails for them.

That’s about all for now. Hope the day is going well.

Call to Action on Orphan Works: Cutcaster urges you to contact your Senator to tell them you are against S.2913, the Senate’s version of the Orphan Works bill. For more information and updates go to the ASMP website. We will continue to support the House version, H.R. 5889.

Daryl Lang at PDN is one of my favorite journalist and reports on some really interesting developments in the photo world. Today, he wrote on Getty’s disclosure that showed how Getty believes that microstock customers and usages are the cornerstone for future growth. Bravo for Cutcaster and our contributors!

“Customer research suggests that approximately 40-50% of microstock demand is comprised of entirely new end-uses,” the memo says. “As a result of the combination of new customer segments and new end uses, volumes of microstock images are 15-20x greater than traditional stills.” Those are numbers that I think could be understated.

This makes one believe that the guys at Hellman & Friedman, who are about to close their deal to buy Getty are banking on microstock being a goose that can lay a golden egg for them. It’s clear they are listening to their bankers, Goldman Sachs, who during their pitch to investors to take Getty private outlined some impressive growth for iStockphoto and other microstock sites. See the numbers below to hear what the bankers think.

According to Goldman, it appears that the iStockPhoto business, currently just 14 percent of total revenues, is expected to account for 22 percent in 5 years.

Getty published a graph in the papers that show volumes of traditional stock image licenses on a slippery slope downward since the beginning of 2006, while microstock volumes have nearly tripled. (Getty acquired iStockphoto in early 2006 for 50 million dollars, rather cheap now based on all the projections and performance so far.)

Something that Daryl pointed out that I found interesting but sad for Jupiter, “is that Getty now considers AP Images its second-largest competitor after Corbis. Previously, that distinction belonged to Jupiterimages.” Since I am a former stock trader I checked out the price in the markets and it was trading at $1.34, the lowest since 2001. I bet, like others probably, that Jupiter gets taken over. They have great web properties.

Other interesting facts from the memo were:

Looking at the entire market, Getty’s top dogs guesstimate the market for imagery is between $7 and $8 billion annually. Around sixty percent (60%) of that is commissioned, the rest is stock.

That would put stock imagery at around a $2.4 to $3.5 billion business, according to Getty.

What does this mean for the market and Cutcaster? I agree that the user base and usages for microstock photos and videos are increasing at an extraordinary pace and the buying market should be growing for everyone. We have always talked about making the pie bigger for everyone without trying to cannibalize one site’s earnings. Everyone can prosper because of the new users and new usages creating more demand for microstock images and video. Educational tools and resources will need to be developed to show new buyers how this market can work for them and how to license content securely and legally instead of just taking it. Introducing a new set of buyers to the space as well as usages is exactly what Cutcaster is looking to do and what we have been researching. We don’t want to be labeled as just a stock company but an image licensing community which is open to all but still secure for all participants. If a new class of buyers emerges I think the 2 to 3 billion dollar market for stock could easily double. Just ask Dan Heller. That would double or triple contributors’ monthly payouts across all the sites they contribute to.

Read the complete story on Getty’s disclosure here.