Art Matters

Graphic Leftovers' New Look

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:43:00 +0000

Hot Star

Graphic Leftovers is sporting a hot new look! I saw a preview a couple of weeks ago and liked what I saw. It has now been unveiled to the internet world with clean lines and functional navigation throughout the site. If you would like to check out my portfolio click here.

In other news, I think my desk top hard drive has crashed. Fortunately, I have most of my data backed up on an external hard drive but there are a handful of folders I would really like to get. Tomorrow, our 23 year old IT expert will come over to try to salvage it. I'm saying a little prayer but this just reinforces the idea for me of backing up every day rather than once a month. In the meantime, my laptop will have to do. I'm hoping for the best...

Graphic Leftovers

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:59:00 +0000

Snowflake Background

I am really liking Graphic Leftovers. They are a small player, but they are obviously marketing to the graphic design world and I am getting sales. Last week I was approached to donate an image that would be added to a giveaway download package for Web Designer Depot , which will be celebrating its anniversary this month. I agreed and this is the image they picked. They have been a pleasure to work with and I hope they are able to grow and continue their success. For my part, I will finish uploading the rest of my portfolio and continue to support them.

Some Success

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 13:09:00 +0000

Indian Corn

I've had a mixed bag of results from my new microstock activities. I've actually made some sales on Graphic Leftovers. Although I've had lots of views at The 3D Studio, I've made no sales. I'm hoping this is simply because they are letting their inventory build up before doing some marketing. I'm debating their offer of a higher commission by locking all my images into a 5 year loyalty (but not exclusivity) program. I'm not sure I want to lose control of my work for that long, especially if there are no sales. Something to think about...

Change in the Air

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 00:38:00 +0000

Sunny

copyright (c) Joan Kerrigan

Autumn is my favorite season of the year and this morning it finally felt like it is on the way. Since I consider autumn to be a season of change, it seems appropriate that my business is changing as well. After seeing my microstock income fall over the past year, despite uploading regularly, I have decided to try a couple of different things.

First, I have signed up for 2 new up and coming stock sites. I hope they will be successful. I chose these because the first one, Graphic Leftovers asked me to contribute. Once I got past the initial thrill that a new site personally asked me, I took a look and I like the site. It is small but well designed, and even better, they charge a flat rate for each image rather than selling credits or requiring a subscription. I think small sites like this will help the microstock industry stay competitive and keep the giants from controlling it all. This can only be good for the contributors as well as the customers.

The other site I am now contributing to is The 3D Studio. This is a website that has been around for 13 years but only recently started expanding into stock photography and images. Their main focus is the 3D market and they already have an established client base to work from. Like Graphic Leftovers, they charge per image but also change the price based on the size of the image. I like the idea of expanding into a market with a different focus.

In fact that leads to another thing I am working on. I have downloaded Blender and am going to try to teach myself to make 3d objects. This has a dubious chance of success as I am totally overwhelmed with just the workspace. But I'll work on it and hopefully learn to make more than the initial box that the program opens with. My main instructor is an online tutorial site called lynda.com where I've had good results learning other programs in the past. In addition to my virtual learning, I'm doing some other art related activities in the real world, but will comment on them later.

2000th Image Celebration

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 20:45:00 +0000

Polar Bears on Vacation

It’s been just over 2 years since I signed up with Dreamstime and started uploading pictures. Although I haven’t sold as much as some, I’ve learned a lot and improved my skills. The point of my first Dreamstime blog is to celebrate my 2000th image upload which also happens to be my first assignment image accepted, and my only exclusive image with Dreamstime. I hope to build on this modest success by improving my skills in order to create more attractive and salable images.

Summer Almost Over

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 01:57:00 +0000

Seamless Heart Background

As I finish up my project for BCC's 40th anniversary celebration, I'm looking forward to autumn and concentrating on my own art. Tomorrow, I'm exhibiting at the 1st Annual Riverside Artisan Marketplace. Unless it rains, in which case it will be Sunday.

Spring Semester Almost Over!

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 03 May 2009 22:44:00 +0000

Wine Label

Only 1 more week to go and 5 classes done! Exams end a week from tomorrow and I can't wait for summer. I will never take this many classes at one time again! I designed this wine label in Graphic Design as a redesign of an existing label. I have learned a lot and in the fall will go ahead with 2 more classes followed by 2 next spring. Then we'll see where it all leads.

Shutterstock Marathon 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 15:59:00 +0000

Green and Yellow Kaleidoscope

The 2008 Shutterstock Marathon is now over for me. In 25 weeks, I have gone from a portfolio of 2826 images to 3708 images/footage clips. That's a gain of 882 images in 6 months! Although I am pleased with the growth of my portfolio, I'm not thrilled that the time and creative effort spent haven't paid off financially. I will continue to upload in 2009 but probably won't be concentrating on microstock quite as much. So I've decided not to join the 2009 Marathon that is gearing up. With all the classes I'm taking this spring, I will be working on classwork and getting back into painting.

The image above is an experiment with importing a photo into Ultra Fractal and applying a kaleidoscope mapping to it. The process has produced several interesting images.

Hearts

On another very happy note, my husband and I are celebrating our 26th anniversary today!

Happy Anniversary, Evans!

Wrapping Up the Old Year Soon

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:23:00 +0000

Heart Texture Background

This year has just flown by! I have worked on goals set last year and maybe not done as well as I should have. However, I'm not unhappy with my progress in the art world. I have shown a micro-profit overall which makes me happy. I'm finally not just throwing money into the money pit that is called "art supplies". I'm looking forward to an interesting and exciting year in 2009 and will work on new goals in the Bahamas this weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving!

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 11:00:00 +0000

Cornstalk with Pumpkins

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Fabric Design?

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 15:50:00 +0000

Retro Floral Background

I uploaded a series of images based on the same retro style flowers in two different color groups. When I looked at this one and another seamless tile, I realized that they could very easily be quilting fabrics. This is a fascinating possibility as I love fabrics (the brighter, the better) and quilting (which incorporates actual texture along with the visual). My immediate interest now is squarely in the seamless wallpaper category with the obvious additions of greeting card samples, using the same basic images. Of course, this will have to wait until after my anthropology essay exam, due Sunday!

Happy Halloween

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 13:26:00 +0000

Cat Silhouette

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

Taking Stock on Tuesday, October 21, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 12:29:00 +0000

Halloween Kaleidoscope

After much deliberation, I have decided to remove my images from Fotolia. I have not been uploading anything for quite awhile already because I had such a high percentage of rejections for inexplicable reasons. If sales were better I would continue trying, but it seems that Fotolia customers don't like my images. That's okay. Every site has their own unique customer base that prefers some images over others. And many photographers and illustrators are doing well at Fotolia. But with school and work, I just don't have time to worry over it and would rather make a clean break of the site than beat my head against a wall. Some say it is stupid to remove any images from any site, but for me, this is the way to go. My portfolio will be deleted by the end of the year, hopefully making a final payout in that time.

Greeting Cards

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 22:21:00 +0000

Mola Butterfly

We went to Burlington County's Arts in the Park event Sunday and although it drizzled a little in the morning, the rain cleared up for the rest of the afternoon. As we left, just after 5:00, heavy rain clouds with pronounced lightning rolled toward us, so we were really lucky.

I'm happy to say that I sold 10 greeting cards, showing that my pricing is acceptable and there may be a market for my work. This is good news as we are going to try selling them from the BCC Gallery Art Store as soon as the display arrives. Now I have to work on the business end of the cards and decide on printing and marketing materials.

Taking Stock on Tuesday, September 23, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 11:00:00 +0000

Abstract Spiral

I'm holding my own in the Shutterstock marathon around 9th place. I am increasingly concerned that even with massive uploads, I am unable to boost or even maintain my sales. I'm disappointed, of course, but I know that everything changes in time and nothing is for certain. I still enjoy making and working with my images so maybe one day I'll reap more financial benefits.

Since change is inevitable, my list of things to learn has expanded. Not only do I want to get the Graphic Design Degree at BCC, but also learn HDR (High Dynamic Range imaging) which produces the most extraordinarily vivid photos, 3D rendering, animation, cartooning, website design and more about digital photography. I'm sure there's more I want to learn but I don't even know what I don't know yet! :)

Accepted into Alamy

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 22:08:00 +0000

Angel Wings

I now have a (very small) portfolio at Alamy. They require much larger images than the microstock sites do, so I have been working on re-rendering some of my fractal images to comply with their standards. Although it might take awhile, maybe years, to catch up with my Shutterstock portfolio, I will work on it when I have the time. It's another venue and may pay off at some time in the future. In any case, it's fun to revisit some of my older images.

Taking Stock on Tuesday, September 16, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:00:00 +0000

Colorful Kaleidoscope

After much deliberation, I've decided to give midstock a try. I've uploaded the required 4 images as a test to Alamy and am now awaiting a response. Alamy can take up to 25 days to process the images which is a lot longer than the microstock sites. But if I am accepted, it seems the reward is greater, even if I stick with the royalty-free portfolio. I'll have to study it more before I decide on other licensing agreements. I want to make sure I understand it all before jumping in. It will also be useful to see if my images are mid-stock worthy in the first place.

Taking Stock on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 11:00:00 +0000

Ladybugs and Leaves

Although it still feels like summer, fall is on its way. I love the autumn season and look forward to the holidays and crisp cool days and nights.

But this fall, I'm really busy. I was right about my uploads suffering because of work and classes. To be frank, my income from microstock isn't increasing in proportion to my portfolio size. I'm sure there are many reasons for this, including market conditions and my questionable skill as an illustrator, so I'll continue to upload as I'm able. But the income from my job and the prospect of getting the AAS degree and a better job in the field have to take precedence right now.

I will be teaming up with the art gallery to attend an art show later this month. It is called "Art in the Park". It should be interesting and may provide an additional outlet for my printed works. The next show at the gallery is called Fall Frenzy and I will enter one or two works into that as well.

New Job

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:50:00 +0000

Retro Rainbow Burst

I've finally started working at the BCC Student Art Gallery. Since I'll be working part time, as well as taking 2 classes, I don't expect to be submitting to microstock as much as I did this summer. I'm glad I pushed my uploads as much as I did last month. One of my classes is the first in the Graphic Design and Digital Media program. My other class, cultural anthropology, is online and should also be interesting.

A Shutterstock Milestone

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 21:21:00 +0000

Blue Bunny

I'm trying my hand at cartooning again, although I'm still not very good at it. My characters seem to lack a certain liveliness that I appreciate in good cartoons. But I remain hopeful that practice is the best way to improve on this. My daughters say that this blue bunny is actually a teddy bear who wants to be a bunny so I obviously have some work to do!

But the better news is that I reached a new payment tier at Shutterstock and got a raise starting this morning. I had hoped I would reach it before the fall sales cycle started and am gratified that all the uploading has paid off. Now I'm ready for fall!

Taking Stock on Tuesday, August 12, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 11:00:00 +0000

Textured Background

The image above started as a photo of clouds on a blue sky background. I've been playing in Photoshop with brushes, art history brushes and filters to create different style artworks, some of which started as photos. They are mostly textured background images, which are a dime a dozen in microstock. But it's fun and will be interesting to see if any of them sell. So far, August sales over all are looking pretty dismal. But as long as I am learning new techniques in the realm of digital imagery, I'm happy.

New Adventures Ahead

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 23:00:00 +0000

Retro Rainbow Background

Summer is rapidly winding down and new adventures lie ahead. I've signed up for a couple of classes at BCC to start working toward an AAS degree in graphic design. Since I'm a student, I qualify for working in the BCC student-run art gallery and will be starting in a couple of weeks. I'm looking forward to earning a little to supplement my microstock earnings, which aren't rising as much as I hoped they would. Maybe Labor Day will signal not only classes starting, but also the beginning of fall purchasing for microstock buyers.

Taking Stock on Tuesday, August 5, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 11:00:00 +0000

Native Pottery

I'm spending time learning to process photos for microstock and haven't been uploading as many fractals and virtually no vectors. So my position in the marathon is slipping. But some good things are on the horizon. Dreamstime has finally implemented its new commission structure. And by the end of August, I will have earned a raise at Shutterstock. Now I'm hoping that sales pick up soon like everyone says they should.

Beautiful Bahamas

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 02:21:00 +0000

Bahamas Church

I was fortunate to be able to spend 5 days in Nassau, Bahamas last week and enjoyed a wonderful vacation. I didn't realize how overcast and gray New Jersey is until I saw the clear blue skies, turquoise water and colorful architecture of the Caribbean. I played with my camera, trying different settings and compositions. And when I got home, I uploaded a batch to see how they would fare in the microstock world. Shutterstock actually accepted 5 photos, of which Bahamas Church is one. This picture was not post processed to any extent: the colors are what we saw. I'm hoping to go back this winter and in the meantime, will work on my photography and Photoshop skills.

Taking Stock on Tuesday, July 22, 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Joan) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:00:00 +0000

Pastel Flower

I've been working on the UF animations and 2 of them have been accepted by Shutterstock as footage. I haven't figured out how to post the picture of it but the link to one of them is here.