October 1, 2007
When life hands you lemons...
Create a stock photograph out of them! 
Confused? OK, for those new to my blog I shoot stock photography in my
spare time. I shoot a lot of technology related stock photos, partly
because they are good sellers and partly because I'm a computer geek and
surrounded by the stuff. Over the weekend I was going to shoot some stock
photos using my laptop. Since I have 4 cats I have a bit of a problem with
cat hair... everywhere! It particularly likes to collect in the crevices
of my laptop keyboard. Well, I had the bright idea of trying to vacuum it
out of those crevices with my handy-dandy shop-vac. This turned out to be
a mistake. Yep, I managed to suck the "G" key right off the
keyboard. 
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Hmm, this certainly appeared to put a stop to my plans... or so I thought! I broke out one of my favorite stock photography props... some miniature model railroad figures painted to look like construction workers. I arranged them around the missing keyboard key as though they were diligently fixing the problem. Viola! Lemonade... so to speak.
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These little figures can be really fun to photograph and are great for concept imagery. Click on the link below to see some more examples of my stock photography shots where I've used miniature railroad figures. Sorry for the annoying watermarks folks, I've gotta protect my work from evil internet picture stealers.
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Warning : Shameless plug below
For those of you who just stumbled upon this blog post and would like
to know where you can purchase my stock photography please go to the following
links!
My
iStockPhoto portfolio
My
Shutterstock portfolio
My Dreamstime
portfolio
My Fotolia portfolio
Posted by pixelbrat at 9:53 PM | Comments (1)
December 9, 2006
Taking it up a notch
In February of this year I jumped into the world of shooting stock photography and have been having a blast with it. You can read past posts about that by clicking
here,
here
and here. This little hobby of mine has really made a big impact on my life and
has been surprisingly profitable as well. As a bonus I have had the
pleasure of seeing my photos in advertisements, brochures and websites all over
the place. One of the most recent finds is here on the New
York Magazine blog. Yep, those are my feet. 
Over this time I have really pushed my little consumer grade Canon 350D DSLR
camera to it's limits. I found myself wanting something more professional
and with more features. In September, going against my "immediate
gratification" persona, I began saving my earnings from stock photography
and from my Motogear_4_Her
store with the hope of buying a more professional grade camera
and lens. After 3 long months of saving I finally purchased a Canon 5D and
a 24-105mm f/4 L IS lens. It should arrive on Monday and I'm so excited I
can't stand it! This new gear, along with all that I have learned over
these last 10 months, will allow me to take my photography to a whole new
level. I have set some big goals for myself for the coming year and if all
goes as planned I will be one happy, happy girl.
Posted by pixelbrat at 9:07 AM
May 21, 2006
One of my stock photos in action
As I mentioned in a previous post my latest obsession has been shooting photographs to sell as stock photography. I've been doing it for a little over 2 months and I'm hopelessly hooked on it. In that time I have sold over 800 downloads of my photos, which completely astounds me. The only downside to the way my images are sold is that I will rarely know how my images are used. The people who buy them are not required to tell me how they will use them, nor are they required to give me credit. The only way I'll know is if I or someone else happens to see one of my photos out in the world and tells me about it, which again is very rare. Well, today I found one of my photos being used on a website and they even gave me credit for it by adding my name! The first image below is the one that was used. (Sorry, it has the iStockPhoto watermark on it to protect it from being copied - which is the faint 'X' that you see) The small thumbnail photo below it is a link to a partial screenshot from the website where I found it. (I didn't want to link to it directly as I'm sure the site will change eventually) Click on the thumbnail to see if full sized.
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 Click the image above to see it full sized |
Sure, the picture is small and not very glamorous but I got paid for it
nonetheless.
It's
the first time I've seen my stock work in use, and as a bonus was given credit
for it by name, so I have to make a big deal about
it. 
If any
of my family and friends would like to familiarize themselves with my photos so
you can help me find where they might be used then please click the link below to view
one of my stock portfolios. If you stumble upon any of my shots being used in an
advertisement, billboard, website or whatnot I'd be forever grateful if you'd shoot me an email
letting me know. I upload new images to this site fairly often so be sure to check
it occasionally
to see my newest work.
Are you a budding photographer? Do people often tell you that your pictures are excellent? Then you too can make money with your photos! It's a lot easier than you might think. If you would like to try your hand at stock photography please use my referral links below and try it out for yourself!
Shutterstock.com
iStockPhoto.com
Dreamstime.com
Fotolia.com
Posted by pixelbrat at 9:32 PM
April 23, 2006
Where, oh where has Amy been hiding?
I'm still alive, really. Quite honestly I've been behind my camera shooting like mad. I have taken on a new obsession that combines my love for taking pictures with my desire to make money. Put them together and you get stock photography. Stock photography consists of photos and images that advertisers, graphic designers and publishers use in websites, newsletters, advertisements, brochures, etc. I'm working with 4 different online agencies right now and doing pretty well with my small but growing portfolio. It gives me an excuse to take pictures, which I love to do, and as a bonus I get paid for it. Who could ask for more? Admittedly, some of the things I take pictures of would normally be considered boring or unimaginative but so what, people buy them. To get an idea of the types of pictures I take for stock you can click the links below to see a couple of my portfolios. (each will open a new window)
Shutterstock.com
Portfolio
iStockphoto.com
Portfolio
When I'm not behind my camera I've been riding my motorcycle. Spring has
sprung and the weather has been awesome for riding. 
Before I go I thought I would post some fun new kitty pictures below. The
top one is Wasabi hiding in his favorite Diet Coke box. The next is a shot of
all 4
of our kitties scarfing down some food. Food, specifically tuna, is the only way you can get
them all in one shot.
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 In order from left to right: Mazy, Hobbes, Wasabi, and Emma |
Bye for now!
Posted by pixelbrat at 11:14 AM
February 20, 2006
Having fun with photography again
Many of you know that I have a love of photography. Over the past couple of years I have let that hobby slip somewhat. I found
that I was only taking photos at family gatherings or on an as-needed basis and not really having fun with it like I used to. I am happy to
report that those days are over. 
I bought a new digital camera last week that I have fallen in love with and it has ignited that fire in me again. It's a DSLR called the Canon EOS 350D.
(aka Digital Rebel XT) Let me tell ya, this is no point-n-shoot camera. It's much more advanced and gives me loads more control over my
shots. Well, Sunday was gray outside so I decided to take it for a spin in my kitchen sink, of all places, with some water droplet shots. Below is one example and you can see 2 others by clicking on the link below it.
Wow, I really love this camera!!
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To see two more shots click the link below.
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