Contents

PREFACE

A Billion Photos Every Day

What Is Stock Photography?

Who Sells Stock Photography?

Who Buys Stock Photography?

ALL TECH CONSIDERED: Amazing Cameras

How Do Stock Photographers Get Paid?

1. Do Cell Phones Really Work for Stock Photography?

Can Cell Phones Compete with DSLRs?

ALL TECH CONSIDERED: The Lens

ALL TECH CONSIDERED: The Shutter

Ease of Use

Automatic Features

Shooting Through Obstructions

ALL TECH CONSIDERED: Auto Exposure

It’s Always There

VISUAL GRAMMAR: What Is Composition?

DSLR or Cell Phone Camera: The Rule of Thumb

2. Keywording

Not a Fun Task—But Absolutely Necessary

A Systematic Approach

    Identify the Top Attribution

    Do Your Research

    Work from the Specific to the Generic

    Use Keywords for People, Objects, Activities, and Conditions

    State the Obvious and the Implied

In This Book

3. Travel

Landmarks (or Not)

VISUAL GRAMMAR: The Position of the Horizon

TIPS ON TECH: Cell Phone vs. DSLR

Cell Phone vs. DSLR Subjects

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Open vs. Closed Compositions

An Environmental Theme

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Negative Space

Including People

A Fleeting Moment

ALL TECH CONSIDERED: How Cell Phone Cameras Focus

4. Food

A Rustic Twist

Behind the Scenes

TIPS ON TECH: Turn That Flash Off

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Texture

TIPS ON TECH: Light—Lots of Light

Food Handling

Exoticism

Re-Envisioning Restaurant Images

VISUAL GRAMMAR: The Rule of Thirds

INSIDE THE MIND OF A GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Interview with Evan O’Neal

5. The Wonders of Nature

Small Wonders

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Open vs. Closed Compositions

Curious Subjects

Fossils

Zoos

TIPS ON TECH: Help Your Cell Camera to Focus

6. Environmental Change

Coal Power Plants

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Negative Space

Wind Farms

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Vanishing Point

The Grid

Drought

Retreating Glaciers

INSIDE THE MIND OF A GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Interview with Rhonda Schaller

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Negative Space

7. Parks and Landscapes

Yosemite

VISUAL GRAMMAR: The Position of the Horizon

Crater Lake

The Grand Canyon

Enchanted Rock

Saguaro National Park

Shasta Lake Caverns

8. Lifestyles

Bicycles and Cycling

VISUAL GRAMMAR: The Rule of Thirds

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Vanishing Point

What’s Special Around You

Watch for Impromptu Moments

9. Structure Over Identity

Leaves and Branches

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Texture

Sunlight, Sky, and Metal

Interior Design

Purely Abstract

10. Architecture

Structures as Sculpture

The Function of Architecture

Conventional, But With a Twist

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Framing

Look for Rare Opportunities

INSIDE THE MIND OF A GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Interview with Michael Wooten

11. The Keen Observer

The Mechanical World

ALL TECH CONSIDERED: Camera Apps

Reflections

Rarity

VISUAL GRAMMAR: Open vs. Closed Compositions

Unexpected Color Balance

TIPS ON TECH: Light—Lots of Light

Plants

Hobbies

Pets

Index