Stock imagery has been around for a long time. One of the first examples of a stock photo was circa 1920 when American photographer H. Armstrong Roberts ensured that the people photographed in "Group in Front of Tri-Motor Airplane" all signed model releases. His stock photo collection was later purchased by Getty Images. By the 1970's agencies were printing stunning high gloss catalogs. Some agencies would even charge your for the catalog. I purchased my first photo online at iStock.com in 2005 for a tv show project. I preferred them because I could buy one single image and pay once at a relatively affordable price. Other agencies only allowed for memberships or you had to purchase a credit pack (then you forget about the credits and they expire). Over the years a lot has changed. Many stock houses have gone bye-bye. Or more seem to pop up for a while.
Probably the most challenging part of buying stock images is searching for what you need. But we aren't always looking for just one image. Most projects require multiple images. If you do find the right image the next challenge is to find more images that work well with the first image and so on. Most agencies have tens of thousands of contributors using different gear all with a slightly different style (I am one of them). Getting ten or more images to work together in a cohesive design look can be a real challenge. Not to mention the time it takes to find each image.
We wanted to deliver imagery in a more effective, affordable and efficient way. That's why we created our royalty free image packs and its why we sell images the way we do. Our image packs contain dozens of images with a particular theme and style. There are different angles, lighting styles and compositions to give designers options and flexibility.
We've been designing for our clients for many years. We started producing stock media elements over 20 years ago. We know stock. When we need a specific element we, like most people, go to the online stock agencies. We search and search and hopefully find exactly the image we need. Not always. Sometimes the "perfect" image is just a tad off. We want the angle of the shot slightly different, the framing adjusted or we just wished we could have a compete series of the same images to use throughout our project. Sometimes we'd find a contributor that would have 10+ images in a series all for sale. But not always. Then there are the prices. Licensing one image at a time gets expensive quick.
*Typical microstock creator
We decided to rethink how stock imagery is delivered. Give creators a way to license an entire collection of images. All of the images match in resolution, color and technique. The images are all created by the same artist at the same time. There is consistency, the images work together as a cohesive set. If you are a design house that is constantly making new content for you clients you have a library you can go to and choose a version of an image. You can choose the angle you want, the lighting you want. You have options, you have choices.
Every image in our packs is made from scratch in house. We don't have contributors to pay. By keeping the cost of production and overhead low, selling direct to our end users we are able to keep prices affordable. We are exited about this new way of doing stock imagery and we hope to have the opportunity to help you find what you need.
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