Design and Photography Highlights » stock photography

Finding photos of Grandmothers and Grandfathers

admin — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 17:58:59 +0000

It’s been a while since we have put out an image request update but lately, a number of image buyers have been downloading and asking us for more images of elderly people, seniors and grandparents doing everyday things. The range of activities that these mature adults could be doing include working out, dating, eating, playing with younger kids, routine medical check-ups or any type of activity that takes place on a normal day. To give you an idea for what types of images we have of elderly people doing everyday things take a look at these elderly people photo lightboxes. We thank you for your support and uploads.

To download any of the images above please visit Cutcaster.com or the seniors lightbox page which has over 200 high quality images of older people doing everyday things.

1,000,000 Images…Here we come.

admin — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 21:32:59 +0000

Cutcaster is almost to 1,000,000 new photos and vectors.

We want to celebrate this huge milestone by giving you up to 49% off any image download when you use Cutcaster credits but you have to act quickly. This offer is only valid now until we hit 1 million images so lock in the savings by purchasing a credit package at Cutcaster. See the savings.

When Words are Absent: How to Make your Photo Blog SEO-friendly

admin — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 18:23:47 +0000

Just because you run a photo blog it doesn’t mean you don’t need search engine optimization (SEO). Some bloggers make the mistake of thinking you can only optimize blogs with words, but that’s not true at all. In fact, there’s a lot you can do with your photo blog to make sure you get the maximum search engine benefit from your visual content. Here are some tips.

Name Your Photos

One of the first things you should do, before you even upload any photos to your blog, is make sure they have names that reflect what they are. If a photo is called DSCN2000 or PICT8500m, how are the search engines going to know what the photo shows? On the other hand, if you call your photo ‘Rhode-island-casino’ then there’s no mistake about what’s in the picture. It’s also helpful to resize your photos to the maximum size you want them to display before you upload them – this will help with page loading speed which search engines love. And when you get around to uploading your pics, then make use of ALT tags to provide additional information. Search engines love those too, and it’s also helpful for people with visual impairments who are using a screen reader or other accessibility device. Use the image name for the ALT tags and it will be obvious to every site visitor what your images show.

Titles and Links

What is your photo blog post about? Does the page title tell you? If it doesn’t, it should. Now, this doesn’t mean that you always have to be factual. Sometimes you may want to ask a question about a photo or link photos together in a theme. But generally, use a title that says what readers can expect to see. Titles are also important because they generate permalinks.

Read any advice on SEO, especially for WordPress blogs, and it will say that you should make your permalinks pretty. This is crucial. A permalink is the permanent link to your content on your blog and, just like the names of the pictures, these work better when they are short, sweet and descriptive. As we’ve said, blog software usually generates the permalink from the title, but you don’t have to use all the words in the title in your permalinks. Take out ‘the’, ‘a’, ‘and’ and the like and focus on the main words that people will use to search for your content. While you already know that keywords are important for written content, they are equally important for visual content to help people to find your stuff when they search.

To help yourself with SEO, consider using a plugin such as All in One SEO Pack, Platinum SEO, FLV Simpler SEO or the SEO features built into premium themes from a range of providers. These will encourage you to include optimized titles, keywords and descriptions for your images. This only takes a couple of extra minutes per post, and is totally worth it.

Use Tags and Categories for Better SEO

SEO is not just about search engines, but about helping users to find your content – the two go together. Clever use of categories and tags can help you achieve both aims. Think of category labels as ways of organizing large collections. For example, you might have photos of buildings, landscapes, people and art – each of those could be a category. Then you could tag individual photos by color scheme or location. If you have a travel photo blog, then perhaps you want to create categories for each continent, with sub-categories or tags for the different countries. If you’re writing about cruises, have categories or tags for the different cruise lines (Cunard, Royal Caribbean, P&O). You get the idea.

Do Some Writing

Just because you have a photo-blog, don’t ignore the search engine power of text. A couple of lines of description of the photo will give the search engines something additional to crawl and will provide an excerpt when people link to your content. And you need people to link to you, because that will also show that your site is relevant to others in its niche – and that’s also good for SEO.

And finally, post regularly and include a sitemap optimized for Google and other search engines. On WordPress blogs you can do this with the Google XML Sitemaps plugin. This will ensure that all your content is crawled and you can sign up for a free account with Google Webmaster Tools so you can check on the progress of your SEO efforts.

We would like to thank Izzy A. Woods for her guest post on optimizing your images for search engines.

The Devil is in the Details – Image Metadata

admin — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 16:48:28 +0000

A human turned sinister devil with scary green eyes and snarling

Stock photography is getting more and more competitive and you will need a way for your images to stand out. Give your images an edge by getting as specific as you can with your image’s metadata; What town or city is in your photo? What is the name of the mountain in your image? Does the river you shot have a proper name?

Our buyers are looking for specifics and want to see that level of detail in your image’s metadata! Don’t forget to tell us where you shot your great images in your titles, captions and keywords. The devil is in the details and could make the difference between selling your image or not.

Thinking Outside the Box – Huge opportunity in stock

admin — Wed, 25 May 2011 21:10:32 +0000

In the last year, Cutcaster has seen an incredible improvement in the quality of photos and vector artwork, which are uploaded to the site. The quality bar keeps getting raised as we reach 1 million images at Cutcaster in the coming months. With that said, we still see gaps in our collection that have created massive opportunities. Find out here about what type of images we are actively looking for and are under-represented at Cutcaster. Fill these holes and you might find yourself with a hot seller.

To expand your portfolio into an untapped arena of stock photography, we urge you to create a portion of your portfolio that really shows your “outside of the box” thinking, i.e. get granddad out there on water-skis, or place your old credit cards in your kitchen’s blender or use Photoshop to create unique situations in your images by combining different elements. Get as creative as possible. Take chances and see what works and doesn’t work. Then carefully keyword and upload your new creative shots to Cutcaster.

Here are some examples of pictures we currently have but we’d love to see more of this type of photography and illustrations:

Crescendo Collection

We strive to provide our picture buyers with the unique images they seek. Thanks for your help creating more jaw dropping images that will impress our buyers and increase your long-term earnings potential!

Regards,

Your Cutcaster team.

The difference between Editorial and Commercial Stock Photography

admin — Tue, 24 May 2011 16:49:23 +0000

The Difference:

Commercial stock photography can be used in posters, ads, promotional brochures, etc. that advertise and/or endorse services or products. One could define it as any photography for which the photographer is paid for images rather than works of art. Commercial images usually include: better than average to normal looking, everyday people or models; subject matter that is politically correct; or the year’s latest trends, colors and hues. These photos frequently are taken by a commissioned photographer on assignment, or or licensed via a stock photography agency like Cutcaster.com. All images included in commercial stock photography must have a model release signed by the person depicted in the image, since commercial photos purpose are to endorse or help sell a product/brand.

Editorial stock photos are used in magazines, as illustrations in books, educational materials, informational periodicals and electronic media, etc. Generally these images illustrate a story or idea within the context of a published piece of work. Editorial stock photos can include people in real-life situations and capture a specific real life moment in time. Photojournalism is considered a subset of editorial photography. Photographs shot in this context are accepted as a documentation of a newsworthy event. Obviously editorial photos are inherently more unique and content-specific than their counterpart, commercial stock photos. Editorial buyers look for “authentic” pictures, not images that appear staged. Model releases are not needed for editorial usage, in most cases, because their purpose is to educate and inform.

Dad doesn’t want a tie again for Father’s Day

admin — Mon, 23 May 2011 18:12:40 +0000

After giving thanks to all the deserving Moms last month on Mother’s day, it’s now the Dads turn to shine on Father’s Day. Father’s Day is a celebration honoring fathers and celebrating fatherhood, paternal bonds, and the influence of fathers in society. It is celebrated on the third Sunday of June in many countries and on other days elsewhere. It complements Mother’s Day, the celebration honoring mothers. How will you be giving thanks and celebrating Father’s day 2011?

Get the stock photos above at Cutcaster by clicking on the below links.

http://cutcaster.com/photo/100364359-Father-Holding-Daughter/

http://cutcaster.com/vector/100298228-Father-and-daughter/

http://cutcaster.com/photo/100229267-Father-and-Son/

http://cutcaster.com/photo/100145169-Two-men-standing-outdoors-smiling

http://cutcaster.com/photo/100086279-Dad-carrying-son

http://cutcaster.com/photo/100132689-A-Middle-Eastern-man-with-his-children

Top Freelance Picture Buyers, Photo Researchers and Photo Editors

admin — Wed, 04 May 2011 17:33:34 +0000

If you would like to be added to this list of the top professional in the photo research and picture buying world (it’s free) please call: (888) 356-2462 or email your information and website to the webmaster@cutcaster.com.

Media companies and newspaper & magazine picture desk’s can use this list when they are seeking top professional freelance picture researchers and editors around the globe. These are the top Picture Researchers who can help you through various stages of the getting the correct rights to use an image.

Alyson Whalley – Picture Editor, Art Buyer -UK

Art buying and picture research for corporate and advertising work

Phone – 07940 590884

Charlotte Maguire – Freelance Picture Editor – UK

Freelance Picture Editor and researcher with ten years experience.

Email – lottiepicresearch@btinternet.com Phone – 07816 402468

Jamey O’Quinn – Photo Editor/ Researcher/ Art Producer – Boston, MA

Experienced photo editor and researcher for magazines, websites, and educational books.

Email jamey.oqinn@gmail.com Website: www.jameyoquinn.com

Robyn Lange – Photo Editor/Researcher – NYC

Freelance photo editor for top US publications

Website – www.robynlange.com

Alice Jessop – Freelance Picture Editor / Researcher -UK

Works with Newspapers, Magazines and Agencies. Research skills, full contacts book, experience commissioning, briefing, budgeting, clearance and negotiating fees. Photoshop skills.

Email – alicejessop1@gmail.com

Bill Van Warden – Photo Researcher – Des Moines, IA

Van Werden Photo Research

Email – vanwerden@gmail.com

Thomas Bonsu-Dartnall – Freelance Picture researcher – UK

Topics include History, Art, Science and Nature etc,

Email – houseof77snakes@hotmail.com

Susi Paz – Photography, Picture Researcher and E-learning Video Producer – UK

Expertise – advertising, publishing, Government departments and the United Nations.

Website – www.susipaz.com

Judy Mason – Picture researcher/Photo Editor – California

30 years experience with U.S. textbook publishers. Specialize in college-level books ranging in subject from music to psychology to information technology.

Hannah Houston – Picture Editor & Researcher – UK

Experience sourcing imagery for newspapers, magazines, online, book publishers and ebooks. Experience in Photoshop, keywording, captioning and cataloguing.

Email – hshouston@hotmail.co.uk Phone 07789 173 481

Joanna Meadows – Picture Researcher – UK

8 years picture library experience. Experience in sourcing imagery for newspapers, magazines, advertising and book publishers both creative and news / editorial based imagery.

Claire Gouldstone – Freelance Picture Researcher – UK

Picture researcher with 10 years freelance experience within Art, Architecture, Gardening, Textile Design, Interior Design, Graphic Design, etc.

Phone – 01432 344 315

Graham Harper – Picture Editor/Researcher – UK

Experienced working with magazines, books, catalogues & brochures.

Anna Mousley – Picture Editor/Researcher

15 years experience in the photo industry, including picture research, editorial work, copyright clearance, captioning and key-wording.

Sharon McTeir – Picture Researcher/Book Designer – Scotland

18 years experience. Photoshop and Illustrator for photo/vector editing, keywording. Print and digital rights.

Jessica Korman – Picture Editor/ Photo Researcher – UK

Email – jessica.korman@gmail.com

Ashley Lumb – Photo Editor – London, UK

Photo Editor with 8 years experience in picture research, production, commissioning photographers worldwide. Works with magazine, book, website and advertising clients.

Email: ashleylumb@yahoo.co.uk

Kristin Doherty-Burns – Freelance photo editor, researcher, shoot producer –NYC

Experienced in celebrity, food, portrait, product and travel photography. kristinburnsphoto.com

Sean Hannaway – Picture Researcher – UK

Experienced in partworks/magazines, books and newspaper publishing focusing on natural history and sports photography.

Leonie Lodge – Picture Researcher – UK

Experienced at picture research and mark ups to negotiating fees and commissioning shoots.

Email – leonieb7@hotmail.com

Mary Rose MacLachlan – Picture Research & Copyright Licensing – Canada

Researcher, editor and permissions experience with over 20 years’ experience in book publishing.

Website – www.mrmassociates.ca

Susie Prescott – Picture Researcher – UK

18 years experience.

Sheri Arredondo – Photo Researcher – St. Albans, ME

First Light Photo Research

Website – www.firstlightresearch.com

Dayna Bealy – Photo Editor – New York, NY

Email - dayna.bealy@gmail.com

Roger and Judy Feldman – Photo Research, Rights and Permissioning – Chicago, IL

Feldman & Associates, Inc.

Website – www.feldmans.net

Stephen Forsling – Photo research, Image Rights, and Permissions – San Francisco, CA

Forsling image research and permissions, Specialties include fine art and social sciences.

Email - safors@pacbell.net

Ilene Bellovin – Editor and Photo Researcher – Larchmont, New York

Producing, researching, licensing images for magazines, websites, books, film and museum exhibits. Top researcher. Ilene Cherna Bellovin

Email – icbellovin@gmail.com

Rizal Alessi – Photo Researcher/Photographer, Jakarta city, Indonesia

More than 10 years experience in photo research for various subjects for national and international publication.

Email – rizal.alessi@yahoo.com

Nancy Tobin – Art & Photo Editor/Researcher – Orlando, FL

Art & photo editor/researcher with 25 years experience in the textbook industry specializing in History and Art.

Website: www.nancytobin.net

Kerry Faulkner – Freelance Photo Producer, Researcher, Editor, Art Buyer – Germany

18 years of photo industry experience.

Email – k.faulkner@mac.com +49 151 5070 7858

Lin Barton – Picture Researcher – New York

Experience in academic publishing and art news publications, familiarity with European and American archives and libraries, German and some Italian reading knowledge.

Judy Brody – Photo research & permissions - Bay Village, OH

Photo archiving for commercial and individual collections.

Email – JKB7810@aol.com

Jerry Marshall – Experienced Picture Researcher & Photo Editor – New York, NY

Picture Research & Photo Editing, Permissions & Rights Clearance services to a wide variety of clients for over 20 years. Any size project in any type of media, including trade & text books, newspapers & magazines, web sites, advertising and video.

Email – jerry@pictureresearching.com

Daniella Nilva Cunningham – Photo Editor/Footage & Stills Research – New York, NY

Over 20 years experience. Specialty includes Textbooks/Children’s Books/Consumer & Trade Magazines/Multimedia Projects/Copyright Clearance

Email: Dnilva@yahoo.com.

Anne Burns – Freelance Photo Research – Fort Lee, NJ

Anne Burns Images

Email- anneburns@earthlink.net

Linda Carter – Freelance Photo Services NYC

Photo Research, Editing, Rights Clearance, Writing, Proofreading

Email - lindancarter@yahoo.com

Jain Lemos – Producer, Editor, Consultant – Laguna Niguel, CA

Jain Lemos Productions

Website – www.jainlemos.com

Doug Hill – Bethesda, MD

RightsAssist, LLC

Email – dhill@rightsassist.com

Martha Davidson – Image & Content Research, Licensing – Washington, DC

Additional experience in concept development, writing/ editing on history, art, science

Email – mdwdc@sprintmail.com

Lindsey Nicholson – Photo Editing, Project Management, Art Direction – NYC, NY

Knowlegable in SEO, Keywording, Project Management skills and working with a variety of editing tools and web-based tools.

Website – lpnicholson@nyc.rr.com

Anita Dickhuth – Visual Research Editing/Licensing Services – New York, NY

Images Inc. Experience includes trade, textbook, magazine & custom publishing.

Email – ernider@earthlink.net

Janice Ackerman – Photo Editor, Photo Researcher and Art Buyer – Brooklyn, NY

Over 15 years experience in the publishing and advertising industries.

Email – janiceackerman@gmail.com

Sharon Donahue, Photo Editor, Image research & Permissions – Boston, MA

Extensive experience: fine art, science, history, literature.

Email – sharon.donahue@gmail.com

Francelle Carapetyan – Image Research Editorial Services – Francestown, NH

Image Research & Permissions, especially arts & humanities.

Email – francelle@imageresearcheditorial.com

Lydia Evans – Publishing – Evanston, IL

InContext Publishing Partners

Website – www.incontextpub.com

Toby Greenberg – Picture Researcher & Editor.- New York, NY

Toby Greenberg Picture Research & Photo Editing

Website – www.tobygreenberg.com

Melissa Allison – Photo Researcher, Editor and Permissions – Palo Alto, CA

Website – http://www.pacificpictureresearch.com

Maureen Collins – Senior Photo Research, Editor, Permissions Pro.

Image Specialist, Maureen Collins Photo Research/Editing/Permissions Lemont, IL

Email – collins.maureen100@gmail.com

Frances Brown – Photo Researcher, Keywording – Evanston, IL

Textbook publishing,

Email – fjbnoyes@comcast.net

Josh Brown – Photo Permissions and Research – Valparaiso, Indiana

Pre Media Global

Email – jbrown@premediaglobal.com

Alicia DiPiero – Freelance photo researcher, editor and coordinator – Austin, TX

Alicia DiPiero Photo Research

Website – www.aliciadipiero.webs.com

Erika Hokanson – Print and online content specialist – Newbury, NH

Print and online content specialist. Integrated editing & photo research service. Refresh Media Resources

Website – info@refreshmediaresources.com

Marybeth Kavanagh – Picture researcher, Editor, Art Buyer, Photo Editor – Loma, CO

Kavanagh Media Research. Top Level Picture researcher and editor for print and online products with 20+ years experience

Email – mbkavanagh@gmail.com

Barbara Salz – Image Researcher, Photo Editor – South Orange, NJ

Full service image research, photo editing, photo program development, licensing and permissions. Barbara S. Salz, LLC

Email – b.salz@verizon.net

Debra Lemonds – Photo editor – Pasadena, CA

Photo layout and design. Photo research. Editorial and advertising projects. Debra Lemonds Picture Editor

Email – dlemonds@earthlink.net

Jane Yeomans – Photo Editor/researcher – New York City, NY

Email – janeyeo@nyc.rr.com

Mary Fran Loftus – Photo & Fine Art Research, Permissions – New York City, NY

Omni-Photo Communications, Inc. Project Consultation

Website – www.omniphoto.com

Rory Maxwell – Photo Research and Editing, Permissions, Data Entry – Norwalk, CT

Over 20 years in the industry. Rory Maxwell Photo Research

Email – rorymax@optonline.net.

Mary Rose MacLachlan – Photo Researcher, Visuals and Literary Permissions, Copyright Licensing Specialist – Salt Spring Island, Canada

MRM Associates

Website – www.mrmassociates.ca

Martha Witte – Freelance Photo Researcher.- Philadelphia, PA

Worldwide image and permission sourcing for business and publishing. Martha Witte, picture researcher

Website – www.wittepixarena.com

Laura Wyss – Photo Researcher – New York City, NY

Specializes in books and book covers. Wyssphoto, Inc.

Website – www.laurawyss.com

Maryellen McGrath – Photo Researcher, Editor, Producer, Photographer – New York City, NY

20 years experience in the photo industry (print, marketing, online which includes entertainment, news and sports).

Email – mmcgrath2008@gmail.com

Alicia DiPiero, Photo Researcher/Editor – Austin, TX

Experienced photo specialist with twelve years of experience procuring, licensing and tracking photographs for large scale programs in the educational publishing industry;

Email – dipieropix@gmail.com

Debbie Needleman – Friendliest Freelance Photo Researcher – Portsmouth, NH

Photo and art research. Over 20 years experience for publications, documentaries and museum exhibits

Email – NeedDeb@gmail.com

Mary Risher – Picture Research, Photo Editor – Noblesville, IN

Image Management & Shoot Production www.maryrisher.com, Mary Risher Media

Email – maryrisher@mac.com

Walter Malden – Image Researcher/Editor

Image research, editing, producing, licensing/permissions for publishing and advertising worldwide. Acme Pix Los Angeles, CA

Website - www.acmepix.com

Joan Meisel Picture Editing & Research New York, NY

20 years experience in picture editing, research & permission acquisitions. All subjects.

Email – photofinders@yahoo.com

Beth Reitmeyer – Research and licensing; art buyer – Bowling Green, KY

Photo, film, sound, text research and licensing; art buying; specializing in education & humanities, Better Imaging

Email – beth.reitmeyer@gmail.com

Robin Sand – Photo Researcher & Editor – Whitestone, NY

Image Rights, Permissions, and Licensing Specialist, Robin Sand Photo Research

Website – rsand@nyc.rr.com

Barbara Schultz – Photo Editor/Researcher – New York, NY

Editorial and archival news, history, fine art. Schultz Image Consulting

Website – www.barbaraschultzimageconsulting.com

Joan Mathys – Picture Researcher/Photo Editor – Washington, DC

MJM Picture and Film Research

25 years experience researching and licensing images

Email – joanmathys@msn.com

Maggie Silker – Image Researcher & Editor – Marlboro, MD

Experienced in books, magazines, exhibits, websites, newsletters and slide shows. PhotoRes Upper

Website – www.photosearcher.com

Deborah Nicholls – Photo and Footage Research – Boston, MA

Research and licensing; specializing in the textbook and travel markets. Media Research

Email – shawondasse@yahoo.com

Kristin Sladen – Photography Services – Bedford, MA

Experienced photo editor in both print and online, specializing in research and permissions.

Email – ksladen@gmail.com

Lauren Stockbower – Picture Editor and Researcher – Annandale, VA

Email – laurenstockbower@mac.com

Fay Torresyap – Photo Editor, Photo Researcher – New York City, NY

20 years experience. All subjects. Bluedot projects

Website – www.bluedotprojects.com

Rachel Youdelman – Editorial photo research, editing, rights/licensing – Boston, MA

Fine arts, history, science. Rachel Youdelman Picture Research Brookline

Email – ryoudelman@gmail.com

Vikii Wong – Researcher, Editor – Brooklyn, NY

Researcher, Editor, Buyer, Consultant, print, new media, video. Vikii Wong

Email – vikii.wong@gmail.com

Carola Strohoff – Picture Editor & Researcher – UK

Experienced Picture Editor, Researches for Text & Photographs, Production Services, Worldwide Researches, Languages: German, French and English,

Email – kr@kandrmedia.com T +44 20 8743 5766

Louise Turner – Picture Researcher – UK

Freelance Art buying and Picture Research to Ad Agencies with 15 years experience in the industry.

Photography Copyright Explained- Best Practices

admin — Tue, 03 May 2011 21:04:08 +0000

What is photo copyright?

Copyright is defined as the exclusive set of rights granted to the author or creator of an original work, including the right to copy, distribute and adapt the work. In addition, any of these rights can be licensed, transferred and/or assigned to another party like what takes place at Cutcaster when we license or sell one of your images royalty free. Copyright only lasts for a certain time period, after which the work is said to enter the public domain. The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works protects any creator of “original works of authorship” under it’s copyright law which protects works in all 160 countries that are party to the Convention, as well as various other laws such as the US copyright act.

Copyright law has been internationally standardized, lasting between fifty and one hundred years from the author’s death, or a shorter period of time for corporate authorship or anonymous works. Generally, copyright is enforced as a civil matter, though some jurisdictions do apply criminal sanctions.

Before 1989 all published works, in the US, had to contain a copyright notice, the (c) symbol, followed by the publication date and copyright owner’s name, to be protected by copyright. This is no longer the case and use of a copyright notice is now optional in the US, though you will still see them used.

Does copyright apply to all images?

Yes, every image out there from the time it is created becomes automatically protected under copyright laws. One should know, that copyright law is different from country to country, and a copyright notice is required in about 20 countries for a work to be protected under copyright laws.

What is copyright infringement?

Copyright infringement, copyright piracy or copyright violation, is the unauthorized use of photos covered by copyright law, in a way that violates one of the copyright owners’ exclusive rights. Imagery infringement may include:

• Using the image beyond the scope of a license or permission granted
• Recreating an image identically with another photographer
• Use of whole or part of an image without permission i.e. “mash-up” or derivative work
• Art rendering, where someone adapts an image without permission

Camera shoot ideas for the spring and summer months

admin — Mon, 02 May 2011 20:16:08 +0000

A note from our Creative Director, Cora Reed:

Spring has arrived, and everyone is eager to get outside and take pictures of all the fresh blooming flowers. Some stock sites aren’t even taking flowers any more, but I must admit I love them.

Here are some hints for flowers:

Compose! I know it’s tempting to take shots from top down, or even just at random. A fat bumble bee on a perfect flower is nice, but a random bug on a flower, not so much. Keep those for your personal collections. Think outside the box! Look for different angles, make sure your flowers look perfect. Macros are wonderful, bokeh works great for background compositions. Send only your very best flower pictures. Really look at them carefully, and submit the pictures that make you say “WOW!”

Download these images here:

Photo of Tulipa World Legend Darwin Hybrid Tulip

Serenity Sakura

Gerbera flowers

That said, a word of warning for you spring and summer time shots. Here is a short list of easy shots that we really don’t want to see:

1) Common ducks, geese, and sea gulls. (Give me a nickel for every duck photo I see and I could pay down most of the US’s national deficit. Well almost.) If you must submit ducks, find the interesting pictures of ducks like this:

And as with any animals, be sure to keyword with common and scientific names of animals.

2) For those close to a beach and taking pictures of the beach, keep those WOW concepts in mind. Remember that Cutcaster does NOT accept pictures of children you don’t know and can’t get a model release for, so please do not upload them, even as editorial photos. In addition, we will not accept the backends of beachgoers without their consent or knowledge.

We are extremely excited to see your latest pictures of spring’s bounty! Get out, shoot as much as you can and keep your most exciting and best work coming!

Download the above images below at Cutcaster using these links.

Woman in white dress in sea

Pretty young girl smiling while at the beach mother at the back

Bicycle with flowers

Warm Regards,

Cora Reed