Tip: Using keywords with a photo in the Image Search box

Keywords get you started on a search, but they can also be used to refine your search when you've added a photo to the Image Search box at the top left of the site. Here's how:

1. If you want to find more images that are pretty much EXACTLY like the photo in the Image Search box, clear all keywords and hit GO for a new search. Our search will combine the visual information and the tags from the photo and find very similar photos.

2. If you want to refine the image in a particular direction of subject matter, type a keyword in the text search box with the photo remaining in the Image Search box. For example, you could have a picture of a car in the Image Search box and could be looking at similar photos of other cars. Typing in 'sports car' in the text box will refine the search in that direction. 'Economy car' will refine it in a different direction. But in all cases the photos in the search results will have some visual similarity to the photo in the Image Search box.

3. You can also click on any of the tags associated with the photo in the Image Search box - they are presented below the text search box. This will pop them up to the text search box, and place more emphasis on this particular tag (or tags - you can use more than one).

Try it! It's fun.

Why I love visual search - Top Ten List

1. I can start searching the way I think – by design elements as well as words.

2. Sometimes I need to match photo colors to a creative piece, and it has to be pretty exact.

3. I find the right stuff a lot faster than by trying 15 or 20 text searches.

4. The xcavator traces function allows me to specify photo composition or key features.

5. It’s a lot more fun! Like a toy or a game.

6. The color wheel on the Advanced Search page is really precise – really helpful.

7. I also sell photography through agencies – I can quickly check out which one needs what I have using visual search at xcavator.net.

8. The xcavator.net site gives fast results, and I can quickly look at 40 images at a time.

9. Big databases of images aren’t overwhelming anymore.

10. I can find stuff CHEAPER that still works for a project.

Submitted by Jen Hanover, Freelance graphic artist – Web, Print, and Video

What Happened When the Stock Photo Business Moved Online?

In the old days (the mid-90s) the stock photo business was not on the Internet. People would shop for photography by requesting samples on CDs. In ancient times, a sales rep would show up with a large glossy book that showcased photos in a particular category of interest. Sometimes a buyer wanted to see more than one category, so these sales people never needed to go to the gym. But the Internet changed all that. In the very late 90s, companies began sprouting up that had images online. These companies enabled people to browse using keywords, and make selections without assistance, while sitting in a comfortable desk chair. Shopping carts and broadband were added later, and a person didn’t need to even pick up the phone to buy something and download it.

This revolutionized the stock business, and reverberations are still being felt. Many new market entrants used this new Internet distribution model as a platform to create a lower priced tier called the Microstock agency – where photos could be purchased for just a few dollars. Quite a bit of market share was gained by the Microstock entrants, at the expense of the larger, well-established players. At the same time, these larger players were buying up niche agencies that had extensive collections of Rights Managed and traditional Royalty Free photography. So what’s the end result? The big players got even bigger, and the new players in the new Microstock category continued to gain significant market share.

This is a fantastic new world for the stock photo buyer, as there is more inventory than ever at a wide variety of price points. In 2008, equilibrium may be setting in between the various categories. Experienced stock photo buyers know that they need to spend the extra money on a Rights Managed image for a certain project need, but can use Microstock to get something perfectly great for another project at a bargain price. The market share numbers and average price points may still be moving around a bit, but all three categories remain vital – Rights Managed, traditional Royalty Free, and Microstock.

At xcavator.net, we are catering to busy stock photo buyers in a new way. They can see right away that we’ve got millions of images in multiple categories, and use our visual search tools to quickly find exactly what they need.