Mark your calendars!  The Veer Marketplace Contributor Site launches on Monday, June 8.

Our development team is working ahead of schedule – and we’re excited to announce that on Monday June 8th, we’ll launch the Veer Marketplace Contributor Site!

After that date, you’ll be able to begin submitting your new work. While these images won’t be available for sale until we launch the complete site in mid-summer, you will able to get a head start to upload any new work using the new FTP capable Veer Marketplace upload platform.

Check out the Veer Marketplace Submissions Page for more information.

Lots of additional information about Veer Marketplace is now available on the Veer submissions page, such as, the Veer Marketplace terms of agreement, an FAQ reflecting the Veer Marketplace credit system, subscriptions, pricing and royalty structures as well as the new submission guidelines, so go check it out.

If you have additional questions you can send them to marketplacesubmissions@veer.com, or you can post questions, comments and suggestions to the Veer Marketplace Group on Veer Ideas (you’ll want to sign-up and join the Marketplace Group if you haven’t already).

Reminder:  As of May 1st, SnapVillage is no longer accepting uploads.

As of today, SnapVillage is no longer accepting uploads.  We needed to close down the upload system on SnapVillage because “freezing” the SnapVillage collection, allows us to more efficiently extract and transfer images and accounts to Veer Marketplace.

The process of reviewing all SnapVillage accounts for transfer to Veer Marketplace will be wrapped up soon. All SnapVillage contributors will be hearing from us by mid-May with an update on their account.

As we mentioned in our last blog post – although we won’t be accepting new images, buyers will still be able to license your content, and you’ll still be able to access your account.

We look forward to seeing you (and your new content) on Veer Marketplace very soon!

Thanks from the Veer Marketplace Team

Hi SnapVillagers,

It’s been just over two months since we announced our plans to roll SnapVillage into a new microstock offering on Veer called Veer Marketplace. We’ve been moving at a rapid pace as we get closer to the mid year launch when Veer Marketplace upload capabilities will be live.

The next stage of this transition requires that we stop accepting new uploads to SnapVillage. This will allow us to “freeze” the SnapVillage collection, and enable more efficient extraction and transfer of SnapVillage imagery and accounts to Veer Marketplace.

We have scheduled this to happen on Friday, May 1. This means you can continue to upload images until midnight on April 30th, but after that you’ll have to hold on to your new images while we transfer the rest of the SnapVillage content over to Veer Marketplace.

While we won’t be taking new uploads, you’ll still be able to access your SnapVillage account and portfolio as you always have. This change doesn’t affect any buyer side feature or functionality. During this transition, SnapVillage buyers will continue to be able to license your content, and you’ll continue to accrue royalties.

We launched Phase 1 of Veer Marketplace in late February with 140,000 images that are now available for purchase on veer.com and we are still slated for a full launch mid year with contributor upload capabilities and credit-based pricing and subscriptions.

We’ll be in touch with you over the next few weeks with an update on the Phase 2 launch date which will include the go-live date for the upload features on Veer Marketplace, submission guidelines and details about your new Veer Marketplace agreement and royalties.

While we’re bummed we won’t be able to accept your new content for awhile, we’re really excited that Veer Marketplace and a brand new upload workflow is closer than ever. Stay tuned!

If you have any other questions, you can email contactus@snapvillage.com

Thanks from the SnapVillage Team

- Brian

Hi SnapVillagers -

As you know firsthand – microstock is big. And getting bigger!  Corbis anticipates that within the next few years, microstock photography will represent more than 25% of the overall stock photography market. We are committed to taking a significant share of this market and providing photographers a leading brand and website to reach customers looking for affordable, quality photography and a great web experience.

We have learned a lot from SnapVillage, and we recognize that as the market has rapidly evolved over the past two years, we need a bigger, better offering to achieve success in microstock.

So today we’re excited to be sharing our plans to roll SnapVillage into a new microstock offering on Veer, which Corbis acquired in 2007.  Veer is a highly successful stock agency specializing in creative rights managed (RM) and royalty free (RF). It has a large, established, global customer base, strong brand loyalty and an industry-leading website, providing an ideal platform to rapidly build our microstock business.

We plan to build on SnapVillage’s assets to launch a new microstock-specific section at Veer called Veer Marketplace.  Veer will maintain its traditional high end offering, but will also offer clients more affordable, user-contributed microstock imagery in the Veer Marketplace section of the website.

While we can’t reveal all our secrets before the launch of Veer Marketplace, we can tell you that you’ll experience efficient upload, a great user experience and your work will be showcased and marketed within the amazing award-winning design and community for which Veer is recognized.

Veer Marketplace will launch in two phases with a small sampling of affordable images that can be purchased a la carte in late February, followed by a full launch mid year with contributor upload capabilities and credit-based pricing and subscriptions.

What does this mean for SnapVillage?
In the months ahead, we’ll be inviting SnapVillage contributors and customers to Veer Marketplace. Once Veer Marketplace is launched and fully operational, it will become Corbis’ only microstock brand and SnapVillage will be phased out by the end of the year.

What does this mean for you?
We will be in touch in the coming months with more information on transitioning your photography and illustration to Veer Marketplace. We have hundreds of thousands of images and thousands of contributors, so please be patient, and we assure you we’ll work as fast as we can!

Do you have friends who may be interested too?
Tell your friends that Veer Marketplace will have ingestion capabilities for new photography by mid year. Starting now, you can direct everyone to the submissions page on submissions.http://submissions.veer.com where they can submit their contact information and find further details about Veer Marketplace so they’re ready to contribute later this year.

Want to learn more about Veer? Wondering if there is anything you need to do? Click here to read the Veer Marketplace – SnapVillage FAQ to read through some frequently asked questions and answers. If you have any other questions that we don’t cover, you can email contactus@snapvillage.com or marketplacesubmissions@veer.com.

We’re excited about what lies ahead!

Thank you for your support of SnapVillage and get ready to be part of the new Veer Marketplace.

- Brian

Image: 43-00608312

Title: Railway tracks at sunset

Contributor: Stephen Strathdee

One school of thought in the stock photography world is that it’s often a good idea to keep your images aimed at a more general audience rather than a very specific one. This image is a good example of that philosophy. The trick is to find a balance between a striking image and something that can be vague enough to be useful in a variety of contexts. Easier said than done, but Stephen Strathdee pulls it off nicely in this composite shot titled, “Railway Tracks at Sunset.”

Travels, transportation, riding into the sunset, emptiness, isolation, vastness, are just a few of the ideas that this image could convey. Really there is no telling how many different ways this image could be used; we’ll let the buyers figure that out.

Some skillful but unobtrusive manipulation adds to the general aesthetic, proving once again that sometimes less is more or at least more useful.

- Dustin

Image Reviewer

Image: 43-00095686

Title: Floral designs with songbirds

Contributor: beaubelle

If you haven’t noticed, the aviary trend has been going on strong for a while now. Birds are popping up all over in illustrations, textiles, stationary and home decor.

The birds in this particular design are a nice compliment to the flowers, adding a bit of contrast but still keeping it a cohesive design. The mix of solid shapes, gradient and line drawings create depth and give the whole piece a refreshing splash of color. As if it wasn’t great enough- the whole illustration is laid out in a giant swoop, which brings your eyes around the whole piece.

And plus, who doesn’t love a cheery vector illustration?

If you want to jump on the trend and spice your design up to give it some hip flair, you can visit these sites to learn how to create your very own vector image:

VectorTuts
Instructables – How to create groovy vector art

- Shelby

Image Reviewer

43-00651059

Family Baking

Alexander Shalamov

Childhood memories waft off the screen along with the smell of homemade cookies. In a world of pre-made cookie dough in the grocery isle, traditions like baking cookies together just isn’t the same. This image by Alexander Shalamov is image of the week because it reminds us of family togetherness.

We like the composition in this image and how the focus is on the hands as they are cutting the cookies out. It’s tells a story and prompts the viewer to feel nostalgic or just warm and fuzzy. The lighting is nice and warm looks natural. There is an authenticity to this shot that stands out. It feels like you just stumbled across a mom and her child really baking in their kitchen. Consider these authentic moments when shooting for stock. When an image feels too staged, it gets cold and is hard for the viewer to connect with.

Enjoy your holiday indulgences and keep your camera shooting!

- Shannon

Image Reviewer

Each SnapVillage reviewer goes through many hundreds of images daily, but we still get excited when we come upon a great image. We’re always on the lookout for good content that is commercially appealing, technically strong, and conceptually engaging. But we’re also a pretty diverse group here and can’t help but be moved by all kinds of interesting imagery.  Now that we’re into the New Year, let’s look for a moment by presenting Snapvillage Reviewer Favorites ‘08.  These are highlighted selections from some members of our image review team.

We look forward to seeing more great images in ‘09!

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Molly’s Pick: 43-00684632

Contributor: CURAphotography

“The desaturation of colors and interesting lighting make this whimsical portrait delicate and beautiful.”

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Malia’s Pick: 43-00593167

Contributor: Gregory Johnston

“The stillness and clarity of this image attract my eye.”

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Shelby’s Pick: 43-00427801

Contributor: littlelion

“Just looking at this pattern makes me happy!  The warm, cheery colors and the delicate little patterns draw my attention in and make me take a closer look.”

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Ryan’s Pick: 43-00665715

Contributor: Anton Prado

“Great imagery, slick composite work.  I love pictures that reveal themselves to be more complex the closer you look.”

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Shannon’s Pick: 43-00587159

Contributor: scargut

“The use of color, movement and whimsical expression makes me smile when I look at this image.”

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Julian’s Pick: 43-00460729

Contributor: Duccio Francolini

“The city can be home, and the rich warm tone and motion-blurred pedestrian helps this urban shot say ’street life’ instead of ‘life on the street.’”

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Colin’s Pick: 43-00636957

Contributor: Infinity

“I like the surreal nature of this image.  It’s simple but arresting, and could be used in a wide variety of ways.”

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Betty’s Pick: 43-00106165

Contributor: iofoto

“This is female beauty, fashion, body image, and aging concepts all rolled up into one attractive photo.”

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Brian’s Pick:  43-00536820

Contributor:  Jill Flusemann

“I’ve already mentioned this in a IOTD blog post some time ago – but I am still mesmerized by the color form, and composition in this shot. It’s the idealized “travel shot as art print”.

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Dustin’s Pick:  43-00387902

Contributor:  Chromatica

“Ok, first full disclosure is needed, I love jumping on the bed. Always have, always will. This shot does an excellent job of capturing the sense of freedom and excitement that many a jumper has experienced first hand. Sadly now that I’m a “grown up” my head hits the ceiling when I try it.”

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Image: 43-00664113
Title:  “Wall of old analog clocks”
Contributor: drob

Time’s running out for holiday gift shopping!  Are you ready?

In a world of rapidly growing digital media and fancy mobile devices, these old-fashioned analog clocks are a welcome reprieve.  We love how the timepieces are squeezed into every nook and cranny, creating an unusual texture that keeps the eye busy.  It evokes the memory of a time gone by when things were slower and less complicated.  We can almost hear the sea of ticks, perhaps inside an antique store off the beaten path.  At the same time, the sheer number of clocks scream “Wake up!  Hurry!  Pressure!  Deadline!” 

This example shows you don’t need a studio full of overly stylized props and complex lighting to shoot a great image.  Appealing subjects are all around us!  Keep your eyes peeled for standout shapes, texture, and colors.  Use existing light to accentuate your subject.  Shoot many frames and shoot often until you find the perfect composition.  You might not always stumble upon something wonderful like a wall full of clocks, but keep in mind that visual interest can come from unlikely sources.  Everyday objects, while seemingly mundane, can be transformed with your camera.  Take a look at the entries from this 2005 photo competition called “Interesting Photo of a Boring Subject”:

http://www.myfourthirds.com/folder.php?id=473

…And if you’re still not sure what to get your loved ones for the holidays, a quality timepiece makes a great gift! 

- Betty

Hi -

We’ve heard from many that have missed our “Image of the Day” blog feature. Sadly we’ve been busy, and our blog has indeed been looking lonely lately.  We’re back and we’re changing things up a bit this time ’round. We’ll be switching to a weekly format – and while I’ll continue to chime in, we’ll also be featuring posts from SnapVillage reviewers and other team members.

Kicking things off – this IOTW (Image of the Week) post comes from Maggie, one of our lead image reviewers. 

Enjoy!

   – Brian

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Image: 43-00621761
Title:  “Loose Green Tea”
Contributor: Elenathewise

 Great shots like this one by Elena the Wise beg the question, “What makes a great food shot?” As an image reviewer, one sees many examples of food photography so I thought it might be helpful to share some hints for successful food shots. Here’s why Elena’s image works well:

• Nice lighting: The shot is well lit with no unsightly areas of shadow or blown out highlights.
• White balance: The lighting helps keep the white balance accurate. Food shots with greenish or yellowish color casts from improper white balance are usually pretty unappetizing.
• Interesting props: The use of the porcelain spoon vs. a regular teaspoon adds interest and a splash of color. The spoon’s decorative blue border contrasts nicely against the pink of the petals in the tea.
• Great composition: Getting close-up and shooting the spoon from slightly above rather than from the side really lets the tea stand out as the main subject. The use of selective focus draws the eye to the subject.

Nice work, Elena!  If you’d like to learn more about how to make your food shots look fabulous, check out these resources:

Introduction to food photography:
http://digital-photography-school.com/blog/food-photography-an-introduction/

Food photography gear:
http://stilllifewith.com/2006/12/12/my-guide-to-food-photography-gear/

 Equipment on a budget:
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-build-a-food-photography-light-stand/ 

Bon appetite!

- Maggie

Hi SnapVillagers -

Heads-up! SnapVillage will be down for a scheduled temporary maintenance outage starting at 5pm PST Friday December 6th. 

We plan to be back up and running during the day on Saturday.

Be sure to check back here for the latest updates.

Have questions or comments?  Feel free to drop a comment here, or you can reach us at contactus@snapvillage.com

- Brian