Interested in joining 500px Prime and making money with your photography? Or maybe you’re already a 500px Prime photographer, and you’ve had some success, but you’d like to do better. Good! Because we’ve got some trends to share with you that may help you do just that.
There are certain things buyers always want—like quality, authenticity, and simple licensing options—but that’s not the only thing that stays more or less consistent.
Buyers also tend to follow large-scale trends in stock photography, and if you’re aware of those trends, you can really up your sales game. So, if your goal is to start making more consistent money by licensing your photos through 500px Prime, get out a pen and a pad—these 5 photo trends can help you in a big way.
1. Stereotype Busting Pics
Stereotypes are being rejected all over the place. Business meetings no longer have to happen in offices between tall lean men in crisp suits, the professional woman is starting to get the representation she deserves, and the definition of a family is shifting for many people.
Follow the example set by groundbreaking agencies like SheStock and reject the current stereotypes in stock photography.
2. Get Real, NOT Stock
Along the same lines as the trend above, cheesy and posed stock imagery that is OBVIOUSLY stock imagery is not going to sell. There is a massive repository of cheap stock out there that more than fills those gaps—make sure your work stands out as authentic.
The best way to do that is to simply take your camera around with you everywhere. Capture real moments with your friends and family, and then have them sign model releases on the spot using the FREE Releases by 500px app.
3. Put Tech in Your Photos
The connected tech revolution isn’t coming… it’s here. It’s evolving. Smartwatches are taking over our wrists and connected devices are starting to regulate everything from the temperature to the lights in our homes. Capture this evolution in your photos.
4. Food from Above
It may sound kitsch to you, but there is nothing cliché or low-brow about food photography when it’s done right. The work of Dina Belenko is a perfect example of the kind of food photography that sells.
It’s well thought out, it’s captured from above, and it tells a story. It also kicks your salivary glands into overdrive, so beware of drool.
5. Big Landscapes, Small People
Beautiful landscapes still sell, but they fall short of one of the hottest trends on the photo market: vast landscapes with small people in them for scale. The lone human figure or group in the distance helps put the scene in perspective. It also allows the viewer to insert themselves into the adventure in front of them.
Next time you’re out shooting landscapes, consider bringing a friend along for scale and reap the rewards afterwards.
There are, of course, more trends and topics you can photograph to take your sales to the next level, so don’t take this list as comprehensive—it simply represents 5 of the hottest trends we’ve noticed at 500px Prime.
Think you’ve got what it takes to start making money doing what you love? Become a Prime photographer today!
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