In the same spirit to my Spanish stock-gathering trip from April-2023, having just returned from an epic 20-day cruise starting from Spain and heading into France, Italy, Morocco and ending in Brazil, I gathered 100s of stock content to upload to multiple agencies.

In this post I’ll run down my approximate travel costs and provide a detailed breakdown of the number of images/clips accepted, then ask the magical question, “will I eventually be able to recover my costs?” Let’s get started!

Refresher: Top 5 Reasons Every Travel Photographer should Consider Booking a Cruise

2023 Case-Study: Cruise Details

Here’s a summary of expenses from my trip over a 21-day period:

Type of expenses	Total cost (USD)
Plane ticket to Barcelona and hotel	100
Cruise ship package	1,200
Food (not from cruise)	150
Miscellaneous (excursions, other expenses)	150
Total	$1,600

Thinking about “Lost Opportunity Costs”

Now, for my time, I will consider an average of 2 hours/day of shooting, plus 2 hours/day of post-processing for a total of 80 hours. I did a shoot a lot but I also tried to relax some of the time and enjoy it as a pure holiday, admiring the sea, on-board shows and of course the all-you-can-eat buffet which I tried desperately to control myself.

I consider my time to be “worth” roughly $10/hour, which is probably generous. Instead of doing this stock stuff I could, in theory, have a minimum wage job doing something else and earn this. Therefore, this “lost opportunity” cost would be around $800, which I’ve added to my travel costs.

I’ve also deducted what I would have paid for a one-way flight to Brazil which wouldn’t have been a business cost as I was going anyway, which would outrageously these days be around $700. So I’m considering the difference of $500 between the hypothetical flight and the actual cruise.

Total cost of trip = $1,700

Stock Content Details from the cruise

Now let’s move onto the meat of the blog post, the content that I captured which were accepted. You may notice how I captured a lot of videos relative to microstock pics (which I’m slowly phasing out as ranted in my last monthly report). Also, I’ve put in quite a bit of effort towards those book covers which currently are my priority because everything else is turning to shit.

I’m still working through batches and uploading as the internet connection was quite slow and didn’t manage to upload everything yet so many of the following I’m yet to upload (other than Arcangel accepted).

Type of Content Accepted	Quantity
Microstock images to upload at multiple agencies*	250
Microstock videos to upload at SS, AS, P5, iStock*	100
Book covers accepted at Arcangel	140
Total assets	490

I’m confident that I’ll have a ROI due to the quality and uniqueness of the work. Here are some examples, starting with 3 images.

Favourite / most-commercial 5 Clips

Although I didn’t have my drone with me, I still managed to capture some unique clips using my trusty Panasonic Lumix. The following is a combination of my favourites together with what I think have a strong chance to sell (although who knows in this strange market).

Note: I still need to process these and upload them.

Favourite 10 accepted Book Covers

As I’ve devoted the majority of my efforts towards book covers, I’ll show you 10 of my favourite!

Will I soon be able to report a return on investment?

Discussing strictly monetary considerations, I predict that I’ll quite easily make back the modest investment of approximately $1,700 considering the quality and uniqueness of content captured. I estimate that within two years I will have it all paid off, although this industry is notoriously unpredictable so even though I’ll disappointed I didn’t get the returns, I won’t be surprised.

If I do achieve a return and eventually turn a profit, it’s difficult to predict that far how much I’ll earn…I’ll have an indication within the 6 months when some of the content starts selling and ranking higher and higher for certain keywords.

It’s not all about money

Outside of financial considerations, it was a hell of a trip for personal reasons. Not only to visit places I had never been but also spend time with my 97-year old grandfather. Not everything we do in life is or should be about making money. I would have invested those $2k+ easily just for the experience alone, probably more.

Will I be going on another cruise soon? Certainly!

To sum up the experience there’s a Brazilian expression about the cruise: “unir o útil ao agradável“, which roughly translates to “combining business with pleasure” and it was exactly this because I got the best of both worlds on this trip.

I’ll re-visit this post in a few years and see if my predictions came true. In the meantime, hope you’re having an excellent end to the year and I’ll be back soon with my December report and year-end review post + YouTube video.

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About Alex

Greetings, fellow adventurers! I’m a quirky guy currently stationed in sunny Lisbon, Portugal, on a grand quest to explore every nook and cranny of this beautiful planet while snapping jaw-dropping stock images and footage. It’s been a wild ride, dedicating a whopping nine years to perfecting my craft as a travel photographer/videographer and freelance writer.

But wait, there’s more! Lately, I’ve taken a plunge into the world of book cover images for Arcangel Images. Yep, I’m all in, diving headfirst into this exciting new endeavor. And let’s not forget my latest addition to the team – my trusty DJI Mavic 2s drone! I’ve been buzzing around like a kid in a candy store, capturing awe-inspiring shots from new heights. A Mavic 3 might just be on the horizon too, who knows?

And hey, I’m not just all about pretty pictures. I’ve even written a book about my adventures, sharing brutally honest tips on how to make it as a stock travel photographer. It’s my way of giving back and inspiring others with a unique insight into this fascinating business model.

So join me on this epic journey as we conquer the world, one stock photo at a time, and uncover the secrets of the travel photography universe. Adventure awaits, my friends! Let’s make some memories and capture the world’s wonders through my slightly offbeat lens!