September was busy but not in the way I’d have liked. Truth be told, I barely shot anything for microstock. Performance across nearly all microstock agencies has been abysmal, particularly on Shutterstock and Pond5. And this is supposed to be one of the good months after the usual summer slump.
Putting My Energy Where It Pays Off
Instead of banging my head against a wall, I’ve shifted focus to projects that actually generate income. That includes more non-stock shoots and perhaps unexpectedly, poker. After years of grinding, I’m starting to make a name for myself at tournaments and getting gigs to shoot.
Perhaps one factor for my newfound fame is that I might even be the only lunatic flying a drone indoors, including over the final table of a major event.
Thinking about different business models
I’m already brainstorming some side projects, like AI-generated portraits of players re-imagined in different styles: cartoonish, Western, cyberpunk, futuristic, and more. Below are a few early examples I’ve been testing out with ChatGPT-5. So far I’ve had positive feedback from the players.
Some cash poker success
Add in steady results from playing at the cash tables, and poker is fast becoming my bread-and-butter source of income. No plans to go pro though, although I can certainly try to look the part!
Stock Is No Longer Reliable
It’s funny how times change. Stock once provided a solid side income…was almost never a lot but just enough. Now it feels like pocket money, enough for a few nights out or the occasional guilt-free gear upgrade.
My case is different since I was never a full-time stock shooter to begin with, but for those who rely on it to pay bills, I can only imagine the frustration of staying afloat.
Incidental Submissions
I still submit here and there (like 30 images and 15 clips a month on average to micros), but it’s more incidental than deliberate. If I can’t even crack $500 in September, what should be the most profitable month, what hope is there for the dead months (December, January, July, August)? With my revenue shrinking ~20% annually and inflation holding steady at 5%, the math just doesn’t add up.
Still, I’m trying to stay positive. Opportunities outside stock are opening up, and the key now is not wasting time on things that don’t move the needle. I just need to keep watching my step not to waste anymore time.
Monthly Highlights
My full rant on collapsing sales:
But also a reason for optimism: my exclusive interview with Stephen Mulcahey on the book cover front.
Which AI image generators let you legally sell on microstocks (Xpiks)
Monthly Earnings Breakdown
Image Earnings (USD)
| Agency | Number of Images in port (new images Sept) | Net Revenue Sept | Avg Return Per Download |
| Alamy | 16,934 (33) | 57 | 3.80 |
| Arcangel (RM-exclusive) | 5,592 (56) | 400 | 200 (yearly average) |
| Adobe Stock | 4,866 (41) | 98 + 64 Adobe Firefly AI payment | 0.89 |
| DepositPhotos | 8,768 (29) | 14 | 0.23 |
| Dreamstime | 9,766 (3) | 9 | 0.45 |
| Freekpik | 1,211 (0) | 5 | 0.06 |
| iStock (Aug 2025) | 9,357 (12) | 47 | 0.47 |
| MotionArray | 469 (13) | 13 | 0.16 |
| Robert Harding (Q2 2025 monthly average) – RM/RF exclusive | 667 (1) | 10 | 0.80 |
| Shutterstock | 12,750 (3) | 68 | 0.40 |
| Wirestock | 3,066 (0) | 5 | N/A |
| Total | 790 |
Clip Earnings (USD)
| Agency | Number of clips in port (new clips Sept) | Net Revenue for Sept | Avg Return per Download |
| Adobe Stock | 1,536 (5) | 32 | 6 |
| Pond5 | 3,191 (25) | 1 (pic) | 1 |
| iStock (Aug 2025) | 1,197 (53) | 30 | 3.70 |
| Shutterstock | 2,619 (49) | 4 | 2 |
| Total | 67 |
Grand Total: $857
Thoughts on the month
Adobe Stock is at least showing some signs of life. Everywhere else, slim pickings.
On the clips front, I’m especially frustrated as my drone work should be moving at higher prices. They sell, but this month’s average was a pathetic ~$4/clip.
Maybe I need to adjust expectations to this new reality. Sure, I would love a new Mini 5 Pro is it really going to help me sell for higher prices? Doubt it.
Arcangel book covers – Update
Arcangel reported to me two sales in September for the yearly average of $200 each (I’ve been asked not to give away specific amounts. I’ve managed to spot one of the book covers, licensed in France.
Other one has been published yet but will be on the lookout but it’s from this original image.
Best-Sellers
None worth mentioning this month. Nothing stood out.
Plans for October
October is shaping up to be just as intense as September:
- Early: Shooting + playing a poker tournament in Lisbon
- Mid: Heading to Sofia, Bulgaria for another poker event (and some exploring)
- Late: Boarding a giant cruise ship from Lisbon to Miami
Thanks for reading, and see you next month!
About Alex
I’m Alex, eccentric, based in Lisbon, and on a mission to explore every corner of the globe while capturing stock images and footage along the way.
For the past 12 years, I’ve been grinding as a travel photographer/videographer and freelance writer. Along the way I’ve also written The Brutally Honest Guide to Microstock Photography, a book packed with war stories and practical tips for anyone crazy enough to enter this business.
Alexandre Rotenberg's Brutally Honest Guide to Stock Photography & Footage 
This post feels rather elegiac Alex.
Thank you for all your blogs (and formerly your input to the Shutterstock forum) over the years – you have encouraged me in many ways although you have always done everything about 10 times more than me eg. uploading and competence!
All the very best for the poker and all your endeavours.
Regards
Debbie
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Thanks!
It is what it is, why should we put more effort when the returns are diminishing. Time to move onto something else.
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ps. I was browsing your Arc port yesterday.
I really love your images.
Very atmospheric.
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Thanks, I’m very proud of it but it’s sole purpose is to sell not to impress 🙂
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Speaking of your “missing” sales. Do you track your sales statistics (e.g. with Stock Performer or Microstockr or others) in any way? If it was my portfolio, I would be interested what kind of content that used to be sold previously, is not sold anymore. Are there any common themes or patterns (e.g. only “beach photos” not sold anymore)? This is not obvious at first, you need to look back at some time to understand what content “popped out”.
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Yes, that would make for a fascinating post. I have done something similar – https://brutallyhonestmicrostock.com/2023/03/14/2023-update-7-reasons-why-microstock-photography-is-probably-a-waste-of-your-time/
I don’t mind re-visiting the subject and I do have Microstockr. From a quick glance I can see that the usual stuff has sold consistently but it’s for less on average and less often.
Also, the new stuff that I upload doesn’t seem to really get picked up and when it does it takes a long time (and again sells for very little).
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In Stock photography there is no more “added-value”. You can create value if you do 100% original content. This is why i switched to vector images. It’s a totally different market. Whit the same amount of content what you have, I do double the money.
Looking at your content it is nothing more than silver spoon content. You cannot expect big sales from content that has a hitload of competition. Also, uploading a few pics per month it’s not sufficient. You need to upload daily.
Making 400-800$ per month from this amount of content it’s more than ok in this oversaturated market.
Sorry for being brutally honest.
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Sure I get your point for much of my work but the latest drone clips do you really consider to be generic “silver spoon”? Take a good look please
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