High Five, everyone! Today one of our successful photographers, Kati Molin, shares her favorite stock photo subjects. Good reading for those who are still struggling to find their own way in stock photography. Enjoy, and make sure to get inspired by Kati’s portfolio.

1. HOLIDAYS. I am definitely a Christmas person. I love everything about it: baking and decorating cookies, burning candles, decorating the house, wrapping beautiful gifts and so on. Every year Christmas just goes by too fast, so shooting some Christmas stuff is a good excuse to start the holiday season early. In addition to Christmas, I also like Eastertime. After a long and dark winter, it is nice to see more light and bright colors. These two holidays and the holiday images have made March and November my best months of sales for several years now.

Gingerbread house | Stock Photo © Depositphotos | molka

Todays High Five! has got some recommendations for microstock newcomers from our contributor Mariia Sniegirova, photographer and postcard designer with three years’ experience in microstocks. To view Mariia’s portfolio, please follow this link.

1. Work hard. You should already know that working in the microstock industry takes a lot of time. Be aware that you will have to work as much as you would at a full-time office job – or harder! Of course, the quality of your work is very important; but the stock business demands quantity as well. Every day, thousands of images are uploaded to stock websites, and even the most brilliant image can get lost among the others. That is why, if you really want to earn, you have to produce a large number of images.

Art collage with beautiful woman in garden | Stock Photo © Depositphotos | mariia sniegirova

We’re starting a blog post series called High Five, in which our contributors will share their visions about the stock photo industry. We want to give you various points of view in order to:1)give our newcomers insight into how the industry works, and 2) give our stock “dinosaurs” a chance to get to know their fellow stockers. Please note: We might not always share the opinions of our authors

Today our contributor Alexandr Aleabiev speaks about five things one needs to become a great illustrator. You only need to take a look at Alexandr’s portfolio to see that he knows what he’s talking about.

1. Skills and imagination, and an ability to put them into action. Many of those who start their careers in the stock photo industry believe that they will be able to earn their first million without any effort, diligence, or imagination. Producing a lot of work isn’t the same as becoming successful. Stock images have to be interesting, colorful and bright, and reflect a certain style and taste. Plus, an artist must try to look at his own works from the point of view of his customers, yet at the same time keep some detachment as an artist.

Monsters seamless | Stock Vector © Depositphotos | Sasha Aleabiev