Review of Colourbox

Today I want to share a bit about the new photo bank Colourbox. Colourbox itself is not that young; at least, the information provided on their website states that they have been operating in the market since 2003.

That may be true, but I only learned about them this year. Moreover, there was no point in working with them earlier, as payments were made through methods that were not very convenient for residents of the former Soviet Union, such as bank checks. However, since February, it has been possible to withdraw money to Skrill, and everything has become much more enjoyable.

Information about Colourbox

So, what is the microstock photo bank Colourbox? The headquarters of the photo bank is located in the hometown of Hans Christian Andersen, the city of Odense, in Denmark. The company’s office is housed in a 150-year-old renovated building of an old farm.

According to statistics presented on the Colourbox website, their user count is 40,000, with users downloading over 120,000 various images and videos from Colourbox each month.

Earnings on Colourbox

Registration on the photo bank

Registering on the photo bank and working thereafter is quite simple and should not pose particular difficulties for those who already have experience with photo banks.

To become a contributor on Colourbox, you need to follow the link to colourbox.com/suppliers and complete the registration. After registration, you will need to pass a not very difficult exam by uploading 5 of your works for review.

The new photo bank does not require scanned documents, so beginners without a passport are welcome!

How to work on Colourbox

The Colourbox photo bank accepts photography, video works, and vector illustrations for sale. Works can be uploaded both via FTP and through the browser.

For photographs, a resolution of at least 10 megapixels is required. For raster images, the minimum size on the shorter side must be at least 2500 pixels.

For videos, full HD with a resolution of 1080p is required. Previews for videos must be uploaded in .flv format with a resolution of at least 480p.

Keywords must be in English, with a recommended quantity of 12-15.

By the way, Colourbox has an interesting approach to images requiring a model release. The photo bank does not check for its presence, fully trusting the authors in this matter.

Royalties for downloading images

Royalties for downloading your works on Colourbox are fixed. The currency for calculations is euros, which is not surprising, as the Colourbox photo bank is located in the eurozone. Moreover, the main audience of the photo bank is primarily users from Scandinavian countries.

Thus, for downloading a photo or raster image, the author receives €0.20; for downloading a vector illustration from Colourbox, you can earn €0.35, and for downloading a video, your earnings will amount to €0.70.

The minimum amount for withdrawing money from Colourbox is €100. Payments to Skrill are made weekly, provided that the minimum amount is reached automatically.

Disadvantages of Colourbox

However, not everything is perfect in the Kingdom of Denmark. It should be noted that Colourbox has its drawbacks, such as:

• when attributing images and videos, fields for the title and description of the image are not available;
• if you are uploading vector illustrations, adding keywords must be done directly on the photo bank’s site;
• images and videos on Colourbox can be downloaded for non-commercial purposes, which reduces the author’s royalties by half;
• if an image or video is downloaded by educational organizations, then the author’s royalty is not provided at all.

The main drawback of the Colourbox photo bank for earnings is the unclear downloads. That is, there is a strong suspicion that at present, most downloads are made not by real users but by the photo bank’s bot.

In principle, this is understandable and quite justified, as Colourbox needs to attract as many authors as possible to increase its image base. We all remember how Depositphotos made test purchases. But how long will their budget last for such purchases?

Also, against this background, I find it puzzling that images are downloaded for free from seemingly educational institutions. Of course, the Colourbox website states that educational institutions can gain access to the photo bank’s database for all students and teachers by paying a one-time educational license.

According to statistics, free downloads of images begin to appear after a certain number of paid downloads. It all seems to be just some script with specific settings.

And many images are downloaded that have never been purchased on large photo banks. Although, again, if we look at the conditions for buyers and the absence of daily download limits…

Well, never mind. What does it matter to us? Colourbox pays, and that’s the main thing!

By the way, I wouldn’t recommend massively uploading all your portfolio or all your works to Colourbox. In my opinion, it would be sufficient to select works that do not sell or sell poorly on leading photo banks.

! Interesting fact. Did you know that in 1982 in London, a small electronic punk group named Colourbox emerged, named after today’s review hero, which played a mix of punk, reggae, funk, and dub music? They existed for only five years, fading into the shadows at the peak of their fame in 1987, but left their mark on the history of club music.

I still hope that the microstock photo bank Colourbox will operate for a long time and stably in its niche, bringing good earnings to its authors.