PhotoShelter has enhanced its Virtual Agency feature, which gives like-minded photographers a platform to band together and create niche agencies and collectively market their photos online. The recent updates enable photographers to brand their Virtual Agency with a custom name or logo, and introduces a simple navigation and background template. This provides a more consistent user experience for Virtual Agency visitors while maintaining the agency’s branding. PhotoShelter also welcomed WILD Photography, a new Virtual Agency which combines the work of legendary outdoor photographers Art Wolfe, Thomas Mangelsen, and David Doubilet. Each has embraced direct-to-client sales of stock photos instead of the traditional agency model, says PhotoShelter.

PHOTOSHELTER’S VIRTUAL AGENCY HELPS PHOTOGRAPHERS CREATE NICHE PHOTO AGENCIES

New features let photographers group images together and create branded stock photo agencies, enabling outdoor photography legends Wolfe, Mangelsen & Doubilet to launch WILD Photography

New York, NY, July 13, 2009 - PhotoShelter, the leader in portfolio websites, photo sales and archiving tools for photographers, today enhanced its Virtual Agency feature, which gives like-minded photographers a platform to band together and create niche agencies and collectively market their photos online. Today PhotoShelter also welcomed WILD Photography, a new Virtual Agency which combines the work of legendary outdoor photographers Art Wolfe, Thomas Mangelsen, and David Doubilet. Each has embraced direct-to-client sales of stock photos instead of the traditional agency model.

Today’s updates enable photographers to brand their Virtual Agency with a custom name or logo, and introduces a simple navigation and background template. This provides a more consistent user experience for Virtual Agency visitors while maintaining the agency’s branding. Virtual Agencies are a smart alternative for selling stock and editorial photos - especially for experienced pro photographers who understand their niche market. Participating photographers have full control of editing and pricing, the licensing transaction occurs directly with each photographer, and PhotoShelter takes a minimal sales fee of 10% vs. traditional stock agency fees which can reach 70%. Plus, art buyers familiar with specific Virtual Agencies get an accessible, searchable resource that can assemble the strongest selection of images for licensing quickly and easily.

“With these changes to our Virtual Agency, we’re proud to place more marketing power in the hands of independent photographers,” said Allen Murabayashi, CEO of PhotoShelter. “We’re honored to help the WILD team - and thousands of other photographers - face a changing industry with the best tools to succeed in selling their photography online.”

WILD is a perfect example of the power of PhotoShelter’s Virtual Agency. WILD consists of the three most celebrated American outdoor photographers: Art Wolfe, Thomas Mangelsen, David Doubilet. Art Wolfe is the host of the hit public television program Art Wolfe’s Travels to the Edge. Thomas Mangelsen owns galleries across the US and is best-known for his striking wildlife images. David Doubilet has created the richest collection of underwater images in the world and has been featured in 75 National Geographic articles.

“Neither the buyer nor the photographer has been well-served by existing agencies” said Art Wolfe. “We can provide a deeper and wider collection from our long careers and license them for less than the big agencies thanks to low overhead and a higher percentage going to us. With PhotoShelter’s platform powering WILD, everybody wins.”

Any paid PhotoShelter subscriber can create and contribute photography to Virtual Agencies for no additional cost. To search the PhotoShelter Virtual Agency directory, visit: http://pa.photoshelter.com/ref/VA

About PhotoShelter

PhotoShelter is the leader in portfolio websites, photo sales and archiving tools for photographers.

Over 40,000 photographers worldwide use PhotoShelter to power their success online, with customizable website templates, searchable galleries, e-commerce capabilities, and bulletproof image storage. Photographers can create a professional PhotoShelter website in under five minutes, or customize PhotoShelter to power their existing website. A true solution designed to make the business of photography easier to manage - PhotoShelter offers security, global accessibility, and advanced marketing tools so photographers can make their images work harder for them.

To join our community, visit www.photoshelter.com.

Your Comments