PhotoShelter.com - A New Sales Haven for Photographers

If you're a photographer who's tired of losing money to stock image websites which don't grant you the commission to which you feel entitled, check out PhotoShelter, a newly-launched website for commercial stock images which plans on offering artists a much higher cut of its profit from sales than do other similar sites like Corbis (PhotoShelter is currently advertising up to 70% commission). Additionally, PhotoShelter lets photographers price their own images (starting values begin at US $50), and offers pricing tools so you can figure out approximately how much your work should go for. Artists also have access to information regarding who buys their images and for how much. On the other end, buyers have access to an amazingly accurate and specialized search engine which lets them run either a keyword image search or a search by artist.

"An edited, open marketplace for commercial stock images. Free to join. Now accepting photographers".

PhotoShelter may pull a lot of photographers from posting their work on larger, more commercialized sites like Corbis simply based on the fact that they offer a much higher commission. Combined with more controls and customizability (artists can even integrate PhotoShelter with their personal website with minimal interference), PhotoShelter is poised to become the new sales haven for the professional photographer.

Though PhotoShelter will no doubt be good for photographers, will it end up being cost-beneficial in the end? Though other sites offer a lower commission, they might invite more purchasers because of the lower prices offered. Will PhotoShelter's sales be high enough to offset the minimum $50 going rate for a photo?