About the microstock Bigstock (formerly Bigstockphoto)

For a long time, I have been meaning to write a few words for a review about a small microstock like Bigstockphoto or Bigstock, how to properly say and write it since 2010. I don’t know why; perhaps this rebranding was done for simplicity’s sake. Along with this, the online service of this microstock underwent a redesign, and later it was sold to a more prominent competitor called Shutterstock.
So, Bigstock. Bigstock is a relatively small but quite promising microstock. I would classify it as being in the second tier of microstocks in terms of level and earning potential. Currently, the promise of the Bigstock microstock is largely due to its owners. If you didn’t know, the current owners of this photo bank are John Oringer and his Shutterstock. Now you understand why Bigstock is promising?

Earnings on Bigstockphoto are not very high compared to market giants, but certainly higher than most small microstock services. However, the Bigstockphoto is steadily developing and gradually increasing sales of photographs and illustrations from its authors. I should note that for any notable sales on this service, a fairly large number of works is required.

Newcomers to the Bigstock microstock will be pleased to find no exam required for registration. You will only need to pass a simple theoretical test. No documents are needed for registration on Bigstockphoto.

Bigstockphoto Features

I offer you a brief overview of the main features of this microstock:

• website address Big stock photo – https://www.bigstockphoto.com;
• image database size – 5,272,000;
• no entrance exam, a theoretical test is required;
• no documents required for registration on Bigstock;
• types of licenses: sRF, extRF, editorial;
• no exclusivity;
• Bigstock accepts photos, illustrations, 3D, and vectors;
• the minimum accepted image size is from 600 pixels on any side, with a file size of no more than 10 Mb;
• IPTC data is recognized;
• image uploads to Bigstock can be done via both browser forms and FTP;
• Bigstock accepts vector in EPS or AI format with JPEG preview (not mandatory), with a minimum size of 3000 pixels on one side;
  – the resolution of the image does not affect its selling price;
• Bigstockphoto operates exclusively on a per-item sales model;
• author earnings on Bigstock under standard license range from $0.5 to $3 per download and from $2.5 to $80 for extended;
• the minimum amount for withdrawal from Bigstock is $50. Payments are made upon request through payment systems Moneybookers, PayPal (withdrawal takes an average of 5 to 10 days), and also via bank check (takes 1.5 to 2 months);
• all calculations on Bigstock are conducted in US dollars;
• interface language – English.

Pros and Cons of Bigstock

Perhaps, the main advantages of the Bigstock microstock I would note are:

• the presence of a very convenient process for attributing images on the microstock. By the way, when uploading a new image to Bigstock, the categories for it will be automatically set while retaining the option to make changes at your discretion;
• no overly high quality requirements for images;
• no exams or need for document submission when registering on Bigstock.

But like everyone else, this microstock also has some drawbacks:

• low sales levels, considering the five-million image database;
• there is a limit on image uploads. Daily, you can upload a maximum number of images for acceptance on Bigstock. The allowable number of images depends on the acceptance rate of your images on the microstock;
• the selling price of images does not depend on the resolution of the image.

So, this is Bigstock – a decent microstock, though not too great. However, in my opinion, Bigstock must be on your list of photo banks for earning, as it does contribute its share to the overall pot. In the next article, I will detail the registration process on Bigstock and how to upload images to it, although it’s quite simple if it’s not your first microstock to work with.