40 Years in the Stock Photo Industry by Tim Harris
After 40 years in the industry, working with wonderful colleagues, inspiring photographers, and valued clients in the editorial and creative world, many of whom have become my friends, I thought it was time to share some reflections on the way the industry has evolved through my career, along with thoughts from industry colleagues. Enjoy!
How I fell into the industry
My first working day in the picture library industry was 4th July 1983. After graduating from Cambridge with a degree in languages, I was looking for a job in publishing and saw an ad in The Bookseller as manager of a natural history picture library. As I grew up surrounded by pictures (my parents were both art teachers) and I had been fascinated by wildlife and nature since I was a small child, I plucked up my courage and applied. After a rather unconventional interview (which included playing the harpsichord and a nature walk identification test), I was delighted and amazed to be offered the job at NHPA by photographer Stephen Dalton, who had recently bought the agency from retiring founders Hugh and Moira Newman.
The honeybee image left by Stephen Dalton was the first image I ever licensed, for the book cover of Honey by the Ton.
Early days – a steep learning curve
Before I started officially, I went down to Hythe in Kent to meet Moira (Toni) Newman, who showed me the ropes of running the agency, including how to find each photographer’s images (many of them filed in individual shoe boxes) and how to pack up slides to send to clients (often wrapped in old newspapers, I was horrified to find).
So I drove down to Sussex in an ancient Vauxhall Viva, rented a room in a cold and mouse-infested former vicarage, and started work on Independence Day 1983 in a quaint cottage in Ardingly, which the agency shared with the owner’s mother, the formidable Stephanie Dalton who was always known to all the staff as “Grannie”. To start with I was the only full-time employee, with part-time help from a lively American called Mari Zipes, thanks to whom I remember so well the significant 4th July start date. But over the next few years, the collection grew, the sales built and the team expanded too, so I finally had a team to manage!
My early tasks involved picture research, editing, writing delivery notes, posting packages, invoicing, running sales reports, paying photographers, keeping the books, and doing the VAT return each quarter – not to forget hoovering the office and making the tea.
Myles Archibald, Associate Publisher at HarperCollins:
“I started in 1987 at Natural History so not far behind you! There were amazing photos then but digital cameras now allow photos to be taken that were impossible then, always in focus, even in difficult light conditions. In the old days we handled one transparency or a small number. Now the photographer can easily take 100 if not 1000 of one subject, allowing variation and selection after the event. And the picture buyer can easily narrow down pictures online with the use of keywords. There are no transparencies to post, select, insure, return – and loads more people taking photos! So there are better photos and it’s easier to select really good pictures quickly. Download speeds allow instant access and storage is not an issue. In 1987 it was 20mb hard drives. These days some pics are 50mb. But in all the turmoil you still have some of the best pictures around!”
Transparencies, catalogues
Many hours were spent at the light-table in these pre-digital years and I learnt fast how to compare Kodachrome and Fuji 35mm transparencies, medium format originals (especially for landscape photography) and duplicates in different formats up to 70mm and 5 x 4 inches (of which Stephen Dalton was a master). In fact Stephen’s technical knowledge and aesthetic sense have informed my working life in licensing nature photography ever since. I owe him a large debt for his patience in explaining the principles of exposure, shutter speed, sharpness and depth of field, use of flash, and especially the vital importance of lighting and composition in nature photography.
The 1990s were a “golden age” for stock photography as commercial agencies developed to supply stock images for creative projects, often selling rights for advertising campaigns in 4 figures. I remember being very proud to close a deal for a series of 6 pictures for car advertising for more than £20,000 (those were the days!). Agency catalogues became big business and I co-ordinated a huge photo book called A-Z of Nature, which was successful in growing our commercial photo sales, both direct and through a big network of subagents around the world. Working with the design, printer, duping house and negotiating contracts with partner agents was a big lesson in project management. And I still remember a long series of Saturday “catalogue days” as the 5 day working week was too short and too busy to fit in the extra hours needed to bring the project to fruition.
and safaris!
In those days, working in a photo agency could also entail plenty of travel, as I visited photographers to edit their work and to accompany them on photographic trips. Visiting Africa for the first time was an amazing experience, seeing rhinos close-up in Kwazulu Natal, cheetahs hunting and weaverbirds nesting in the Kalahari, and hearing the mournful cry of the indri in the remnant rainforests of Madagascar. Sometimes these trips involved surprises – such as the morning when a spitting cobra decided to visit the photo library where I was editing images near Johannesburg, and had to be extracted from behind a filing cabinet with a cleft stick!
The scariness of digital (to scan or not to scan)
When I started my picture library career, it was an analogue and manual world. A typical day involved researching transparencies, packing them up in a jiffy bag to post to clients (or a trip to the local railway station to send by Red Star to Victoria if the request was from a newspaper) and creating a delivery note on a typewriter. Urgent requests came in by telex to a local bureau. This was all about to change! During the late 1980s and 1990s, image libraries had to move fast to adapt to new technology. Firstly computer systems and barcoded transparencies allowed us to track, bill and report image sales much more efficiently.
Then we started supplying for digital projects such as cd-roms (and agonised about pricing and terms for digital use) and finally and most importantly, we had to scan our collections and put them online in order to survive and thrive. Agencies that failed to do this fell by the wayside. Getting a critical mass of imagery online was vital, so an efficient scanning programme (in or out of house) was key. As was the calibre of scanning, since this impacted on the quality of end reproduction. I first started working with Martin Wilmsen at Xpertise more than 20 years ago and with Abbie Enock of Capture back in the 1990s, and I’m pleased to say that these partnerships are still intact today, after two job changes, and as their website and DAM offerings have evolved and become much more sophisticated.
Martin Wilmsen, Xpertise-ICT BV / Infradox:
“I first met Tim when he was still with NHPA – and I came over from Amsterdam for a photo library website demo in 2002. If I remember it well, Tim and Stephen contacted us (Infradox) after seeing the website we made for BBCWild – which later became naturepl.com. We’ve been able to improve what we do with the help of professionals such as Tim. The industry has obviously changed a lot over the years, but the people have always remained a pleasure to work with.”
Abbie Enock, Founder and Chairman, Capture:
“Back in the 90s everyone was worried about the Millennium Bug and whether systems would explode on January 1st, 2000 – and also about the whole transition from analogue to digital, with terms such as ‘jpg’ baffling to many grappling with the cost and new skills involved in scanning gazillions of transparencies. Nowadays many people in the industry have only seen digitally-born files and would look askance at the grainy nature of a scan.
There were no well-understood standards in website design and user journeys, and people wanted to have a site that made them stand out – meaning they sometimes created something as user friendly as putting the steering wheel in the boot of a car!
So many seismic changes we have all had to grapple with, alongside attempting to carry out business-as-usual … but one thing does remain constant: entities that have a well-managed, high-functioning team and scrutinise, and act on, stats and reports to build better results, are more likely to thrive through the roller coaster of changing times and challenges.”
The three images below, all by Stephen Dalton, are all examples of excellent scans of brilliant analogue originals, which continue to be published and to delight people to this day.
Commuting to London
In 2006 NHPA was sold to Photoshot and I embarked on an interesting 3 years commuting to London and working in a general agency with strong press contacts, before in 2009 being offered the post of Sales and Marketing Manager at Nature Picture Library by Helen Gilks. I had known Helen for more than 20 years, initially through the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition and then when she was asked to launch the BBC Natural History Unit picture library, which then evolved into the independent Nature Picture Library.
Helen Gilks, Founder of Nature Picture Library:
“In the 1990s our working life in the BBC NHU Library (now NPL) was much more physical. Up and down into filing cabinets looking for the photos (which were transparencies, Kodachrome and latterly Fujichrome) our clients requested. We packed them into jiffy bags and often ran to the Post Office to get them delivered to our clients in time. If a client lost one of the transparencies they had to pay a hefty fine. Ten years later most of the photographers had switched to digital cameras, the best of the transparency collection had been scanned and business was being done through the website. All our work became screen focused, images proliferated and competition increased leading to downward pressure on pricing. Today there are far fewer photo agencies than there were 30 years ago.”
…. and the move to Bristol
My 14 years in Bristol with NPL have been full of variety, stimulation, and challenges as part of a great team. Working in an all-digital environment of full-frame digital SLR cameras, I’ve also had to get to grips with the world of footage licensing. NPL has built up a contributing roster of videographers documenting animal behaviour, plant growth and changing weather and landscapes, providing content to TV production companies here in Bristol and around the world. And we are still using an Xpertise website, now incorporating video, online pricing and ecom!
Christiane Schreiter, Senior Editor, Weingarten:
“Finding Nature Picture Library was a pivotal point – nobody else had such an amount of stellar animal and nature photos. It gave our products a huge push and has continually been doing so. From the beginning of our co-operation my colleague Sandra and I had a very good professional relationship with the team of NPL, which even developed into a personal friendship. Over the years, digitization made our research work easier and faster. Tempo became a vital issue, however, the digital image bank kept pace by being continually updated and modernized. Getting help with research for tricky topics, and receiving greatly appreciated propositions for new projects has always been a given.”
Joining trade associations
BAPLA
Throughout my career in the picture industry I have been grateful for the support provided and knowledge shared by generous industry colleagues. The British Association of Picture Libraries and Agencies has greatly helped me and the agencies where I have worked over the years, with standard documents, networking opportunities and answers to questions on copyright, licensing, technology and all the other intricacies of the photo agency world. For many years I worked on the BAPLA Pricing Committee, which with the advent of the Competition Act became the Rights Group. I also served on the BAPLA board for a number of years, many of them as Treasurer. Thanks BAPLA for all the industry knowledge you have imparted, and thank you BAPLA friends and colleagues for the stimulating discussions, industry events and general support, not to mention the gossip over a glass of wine or two….
Isabelle Doran, CEO of The Association of Photographers and ex-chair of BAPLA:
“Persuading Tim Harris to re-join the BAPLA board, was the work of our fabulous Susanne Kittlinger who managed the organisation at the time from within. As Chair I was delighted to have Tim’s astute focus on all matters relating to finance and, importantly, on the ever shifting image trends of our industry, which served BAPLA members well.”
Lynne Bryant, co-founder of Arcaid Images and ex-chair of BAPLA:
“Tim has negotiated the tsunami of change that has devastated the picture-licensing industry. Who can remember the time-consuming editing of transparencies for inclusion in weighty picture catalogues posted to a list of professionally trained picture researchers and buyers? Then the costly making of duplicate transparencies to fulfil the demand the catalogues created. This was a part of Tim’s job when I met him all those years ago. All that professionalism and mutual respect between researchers, agencies and photographers. Sadly, mostly gone.
The ubiquity of the online image is making us blasé. We are accepting bad and mediocre imagery as normal, we are looking but not seeing. I believe that if professional photographers took back control and began to starve the cheap outlets of good material, limited their work on social media and reduced or rejected subscription deals, people might start to notice. We have to bring back the value of a well-considered composition, and all that creating it entails.”
CEPIC
The picture library world is an international one, and one of its charms is the chance to work with photographers, clients and partners across the world. One of the highlights of my industry year is the CEPIC congress, which has taken place in more than 20 cities across Europe, from Barcelona to Istanbul and Copenhagen to Malta. This year’s event in Juan Les Pins was a great post-pandemic chance to connect with agencies and technology companies from all over Europe and across the world. And to meet with partners, explore new co-operations and learn about the hot topics in the industry. This year AI was of course the big talking point….
Sylvie Fodor, Executive Director, CEPIC:
“It’s a disruptive industry on the one hand, but on the other I see that there is a lot of stability. Look, you are still here after all has happened these last 25 years, and me too! It’s an industry that has shown a great amount of resilience. The only thing I regret is that the number of middle-sized companies has shrunk. We now have at least three relatively large companies, and many smaller ones with reduced staff. Competition needs investment, as technology makes the difference, as we see now with AI …”
DMLA and FOCAL
The North American market has always been an important and lucrative one for photo agencies, and the DMLA conference (previously PACA) which takes place annually in a major US city provides a different perspective on industry trends and events, and an opportunity to meet with our US partners at Minden Pictures. Trade fairs are always a great opportunity to connect with picture researchers and clients. Some of my favourites are the Frankfurt Book Fair, International Spring Fair in Birmingham, and a series of different dedicated picture library events, starting with the BAPLA Picture Buyers Fair, then Picture House, Fotofringe and now Image and Footage Marketplace, run by the indomitable industry stalwart Bob Prior.
I’ve also valued the industry advice, networking opportunities and the picture requests we receive from FOCAL, the industry body for footage libraries.
PICSEL
Another important development I have witnessed in the picture industry is the emergence and growth of collecting societies, including PICSEL, the first one dedicated to the interests of image libraries. NPL joined PICSEL on its foundation and we are very grateful for the hard work of Paul Seheult and his team in collecting secondary rights revenue and protecting our photographers’ interests.
Paul Seheult, CEO PICSEL:
“The industry was already changing with the emergence of the digital era, jerked sideways with the financial crisis and has been hit further by the pandemic. And at each step the fall guy has been the picture licensing industry where fees have been challenged to what is for some an unbearable limit. It’s always favoured to blame the largest agencies, but they are simply on their toes running competitive companies. The real issue is a massive oversupply of images where the finger has been kept pressed on the shutter button with no discernment over quality, just a quest for quantity. This oversupply could hit warp speed with generative AI. We will counter AI by labelling our content as AI Free to present truth, reality and quality. But we have to rely on this impressing the buyer. Will it, do they care, or is budget, contract terms and deadline their priority?
There will always be the demand for quality rights managed content, but you must be careful to ringfence your rights. Only with my involvement in PICSEL am I beginning to appreciate what “all rights in all media” really means in the global digital world, and that’s without accounting for AI. I once laughed when a publisher asked for “all rights in the known, and yet to be discovered, universe.” I’m not laughing now. They were serious. Their terms are truly turning RM images into RF, if accepted. And this is where I draw enormous inspiration when I see an agency stand up and say “no”, in the face of the threat that they’ll never be used again, and not only win but have their rights protected moving forward. By you protecting your rights, it makes it easier for the likes of PICSEL to fight for fair remuneration within collective licensing which will explode soon. A final parting thought – copyright is the only stable constant in the face of AI exploitation, and only you can protect your rights effectively. Be brave.”
Amalgamation and consolidation
One of the major industry trends I’ve experienced over the last 40 years (sometimes at first hand) is that of amalgamation and consolidation. In the early years of my career there were many more small specialist image libraries and collections, and also many more independent publishers, calendar companies, and magazines. Over the years on both sides of the fence, the trend has been for smaller specialists to be acquired by larger general agencies and publishers. So that the current landscape is very different, increasingly dominated by a much smaller number of “big players”.
In this sense, Nature Picture Library is a rare survivor as an independent specialist agency, providing both high quality content and experienced specialist support to editorial, commercial and merchandising clients. We have had to adapt to survive and to focus on what makes us special – authentic, high quality specialist content and friendly, efficient personal service.
Do we value images?
Another trend to flag is in the perceived value of images. When I started working in the 1980s, there was far less competition than today and average image prices were far higher. Average licensing fees have fallen steeply in the last 30 years, due to a saturated market, newer licensing models such as royalty-free, microstock and subscription, and downward pressure exerted by volume deals and the trend for all-media licensing.
One of the results of this is that photographers are less able to make a living from licensing their images, and have had to diversify into other income streams, which has had the unfortunate effect of reducing their ability to shoot great images for stock. The ubiquity of images online and in social media (much of this content unlicensed) contributes to the perception of images having less value than before.
Julia Ruxton, Copyright Consultant/Picture Editor:
“The use of photography has blossomed over the last 40 years and one of the areas where incredible strides have been made is in photographing the natural world. Clever and imaginative use of technology to photograph behaviour that would previously have been impossible to capture, has changed the way we see the world and hopefully raised awareness of the fragility of the planet and all of its inhabitants. The rise of microstock sites where images can be purchased for a few pounds/dollars must have an impact on the earning power or dedicated professionals who have spent lifetimes following particular species, understanding their lives and what they need to survive.
In educational publishing I find that more and more I am asked to find free photos and the wealth available on photo sharing websites where amateurs, often dedicated aficionados of particular species, post their photos has made this much easier. I spend much less time actually contacting photographers – though more time checking whether their identifications are correct. When fees are paid they have drastically reduced since I first started working in publishing – both for the reproduction fees and for the research fees.
In many cases I find myself offering about 10% of what would have been paid when I started out in the 1990s and likewise my own pay has dropped – by about 75% with some publishers. This is obviously partly a reflection of the much easier access to photos but also a decreasing value placed on knowledgeable and detailed research by both photographer and researcher. But nevertheless publishing is still a great environment to work in because of the people in all the different trades that contribute to it.”
Supporting great photographers
As the authorised representative of specialist photographers, travelling to remote places in difficult conditions to create great photographs of rare subjects, we constantly have to fight to maintain the recognition of the value of our photographers’ work and to defend their copyright. They are the lifeblood of the agency and we must always defend their interests. We depend on our photographers to be able to provide a continual supply of new, cutting-edge images covering the threatened animal and plant species of the world and the environmental threats to the planet.
Andy Rouse, professional nature photographer (and failed pole dancer!):
“I met Tim right at the start of my career and he has been my agent ever since. Together we have seen massive changes in the industry. Initially it was pretty easy to make money from stock wildlife photography, then over the years budgets have been squeezed and the market has become saturated. As a wildlife photographer the challenge now is to make your images stand out from the crowd, which is tough when everything has been photographed extensively. I guess that’s the real challenge these days, taking images that help keep the wolf from the door yet keep to our own personal values. Certainly I see the next few years in stock as a challenging time and life as a professional photographer will continue to be a tough one.”
Laurie Campbell, professional nature photographer:
“The internet and the appearance of online photo libraries and then social media platforms revolutionised the way picture editors could view work. No longer had they to play a guessing game of contacting several photographers who may have coverage on the subject they were looking for, then wait until they received the padded envelopes containing the transparencies by post to see if they contained anything suitable.
At about the same time, interest in photographing nature as a pastime boomed, with digital cameras and associated technical advances resulting in the craft of using manual-focus lenses and properly exposing low ISO slide film becoming largely redundant. With many more people enjoying their photography resulting in a tsunami of technically competent imagery, it quickly became a buyers’ market, with online photo libraries in fierce competition with each other, driving down prices.”
Robert Thompson, professional nature photographer and writer:
“I have known Tim since I joined NHPA 35 years ago. The photography world has seen considerable change since then. Pre-digital not everyone was a photographer, post-digital everyone is. But there is a distinct difference. Anyone can take a picture but not everyone can make a picture. Therein lies the difference.
Pre-digital you had to learn and be completely familiar with the science and the understanding of the photography process, techniques and practice. Agencies have also had to evolve and look at new and innovative ways to represent their photographers and maintain their client base amidst the evolving fees of the stock photo market and the growth of social media. The digital medium is much more forgiving in terms of exposure among other aspects of the photography process. A few tweaks with the mouse renders images that would have failed pre-digital into usable images
Making a career in the photography industry is much more challenging than it was in the past. I feel you have to have an approach and a new and innovative way of producing imagery if you want to have longevity in the industry and that’s no easy task today. As photographers, we will have to yet again adapt to this change in the best way we can while at the same time providing imagery that is of the highest calibre and not a manipulation of reality or what we see before us. Perhaps this will be the biggest challenge of all.”
Conservation and the future
The latest evolution in my picture library career has involved the transition this year of Nature Picture Library to an Employee Ownership Trust, thanks to the vision and generosity of our founder Helen Gilks. Not to mention the challenge of succeeding Helen in the role of Managing Director! Our new mission statement is Supporting Conservation through Great Photography. This is our vision for the future – to support great specialist photographers in telling the fascinating stories of the natural world and its unique animals, plants and environments. I look forward to the challenges of the years ahead, working together with a great team of colleagues and photographers to supply nature images and video to illustrate projects that will help our clients make a difference. And most importantly, to raise awareness of the need to protect the fragile ecosystems and biodiversity of our amazing planet!
Isabelle Doran, CEO, The Association of Photographers:
“Having forged a career in the photo industry, for almost 30 years, much has changed. Beginning my professional career when analogue was the mainstay of photography, commissioning photographers for their skill, vision and talent was the principal approach, with specialist picture libraries becoming part of the range of options for photographers and commissioners alike.
Nothing stands still, and no truer words are said in relation to our industry over the last few decades. We’ve seen a major transition from analogue to digital photography shape our industry so distinctly. Although I do miss those long lost days of searching through boxes, files and draws of prints and transparencies to find the ultimate selection for clients’ requests and ordering courier bikes to race across London as fast as they could pedal. Now of course, we’re facing a new existential challenge to the industry, with the arrival of text-to-image generative-AI and the enforcement of copyright.
Thirty years ago, when I started in the industry, editorial and advertising photographers, along with photojournalists, were household names. In the age of social media, and technical advancements such as the camera phone, we are witnessing an upsurge of billions of images online every day. Of course, that is not to say everyone is suddenly a professional photographer, the sheer volume has made its mark and the demand for authentic photography grows evermore.
One aspect remains constant however, and that’s being recognised as a specialist in your field, whether as a professional photographer or picture library, and one key trend we must focus our efforts on is the environment and sustainability, a trend that is also close to Tim’s heart.”
Tim’s tips – 4 lessons learned – one for each decade
- It’s the people that matter – personal contact will always be valued.
- Embrace new technology – but treat it with caution!
- Never lose your passion for what you do – it will sustain you through the tough times.
- Always focus on quality and detail – they make you stand out from the crowd.
And finally
A thought from Bob Prior, industry guru whose knowledge I have valued for four decades:
“I’m a great believer in change – especially of oneself – and the speed of change since the end of the 70’s and beginning of the 80’s continues to this day. Thinking back I notice on my bookshelf Stock Index 2000. Stock agencies took a page for their company and there are 260 agencies on 260 pages. I would be lucky to find 40 to 50 agencies today to make up such a book and the numbers continue to shrink. Quality is no longer the benchmark – it’s ok, we haven’t got time – let’s move on. And with that mantra comes loss of respect for the professional. So what is the photographic content worth? The revenue it generates. In the past creativity was respected as it was acknowledged that it was the very core of revenue.”
Bob Prior, CEO of Creative Events and Web Publishing, The Publishing Factory
