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J
John PDX
Inspiring
October 27, 2022
Answered

Demand for vintage photos on Stock?

  • October 27, 2022
  • 7 replies
  • 1352 views

I have hundreds of vintage photos primariliy in the form of 35mm and medium format glass slides.  These were shot by my uncle in the 1950's and 60's.  I am his assignee and hier so the rights are owned by me.  I have documentation that will refelct my ownership of the rights.

Before I cull through and scan them does anyone know if there is there a market for these?  Also, will there be a burdensome process to show I own the rights?

He was a fine photgrapher so some are really nice shots.  

Thanks, John

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer Mat Hayward

You must meet the quality standards which is very difficult with scans. Recognizable people must be accompanied by signed model releases. If they are deceased, you must be able to verify they have been dead more than 75 years. I do not recommend uploading this type of content.

 

-Mat 

7 replies

J
John PDXAuthor
Inspiring
October 31, 2022

For anyone interested, I submitted the below photo Friday and it was accepted. 

 

    Jill_C
    Community Expert
    Jill_CCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    October 31, 2022

    Congratulations! Did you have to do much editing? I guess that your experiment proves that vintage images are acceptable, even if they're not up to current technical standards.

    Jill C., Forum Volunteer
    J
    John PDXAuthor
    Inspiring
    October 31, 2022

    Thanks.  I did the following:

    • Adjusted the exposure including setting the white and black points
    • Adjusted the white balance to make it less yellow
    • Smoothed some blotches in the sky
    • Increased the saturation to restore dull colors
    • Removed some dust spots
    • Blurred a license plate and the faces of both children.  

    I didn't apply any sharpening or noise reduction.

      M
      Mat HaywardCorrect answer
      Inspiring
      October 28, 2022

      You must meet the quality standards which is very difficult with scans. Recognizable people must be accompanied by signed model releases. If they are deceased, you must be able to verify they have been dead more than 75 years. I do not recommend uploading this type of content.

       

      -Mat 

        RALPH_L
        Community Expert
        RALPH_LCommunity Expert
        Community Expert
        October 28, 2022

        You will not have to show proof that you are owner. By uploading you already acknowledge that you are owner. Your biggest problem is taht after scanning, the quality of the images will probably not meet the strict Adobe standards.

          T
          Test Screen Name
          Legend
          October 28, 2022

          As I understand it, Adobe's contract requires that the account holder is the photographer. A rights holder cannot submit the work of others. Also... Adobe evaluate all photos according to specifications made for modern digital cameras and techniques; vintage work is not likely to pass. There are many great pictures Adobe won't take. For example a unique shot of an incredibly rare animal in the wild doing something of huge scientific importance; rejected if it isn't perfectly in focus... 

          J
          John PDXAuthor
          Inspiring
          October 28, 2022

          I'll probably give it a try with a couple of them.  As Jill mentioned, there are other vitange photos already avaiable on Stock that clearly fall short of the standards applied to modern photos.  If they reject them that's fine.  Below is an example of something already on Stock from the same time period.  Some of mine appear to be as good or better quality.  The challege will be the medium format slides.  It will take a backlit flatbed scanner to scan those.  I'm not going to invest $500+ for this experiment.

            Nancy OShea
            Community Expert
            Nancy OSheaCommunity Expert
            Community Expert
            October 27, 2022

            If the images are high quality and of any historic significance, Getty might be interested in them.  

             

             

             

            Nancy O'Shea— Product User & Community Expert
              Jill_C
              Community Expert
              Jill_CCommunity Expert
              Community Expert
              October 27, 2022

              If you search the existing Adobe Stock database using the word "vintage", or "vintage landscape" for instance, you will see some definitely old images, complete with the film scratches and dust marks. The progeny of those images is unknown; perhaps the original photographer is the one who uploaded them, though that seems unlikely. Certainly, any images with people in them would be impossible to get approved because you wouldn't be able to get signed model releases. Adobe's preferred property release doesn't seem to handle such a situation. On the other hand, since the copyright has now been transferred to you, maybe you can just upload them without providing a release. It might be worth the effort to find a few of the best and most saleable ones, scan them in and correct any issues in Lightroom or PS, then upload and see how it goes! You've got nothing to lose except a bit of your time.

              Jill C., Forum Volunteer
                Abambo
                Community Expert
                AbamboCommunity Expert
                Community Expert
                October 27, 2022

                no chance to get them accepted here. but may be you should just go ahead an prove me wrong.

                 

                If you are new to stock, you should consider these resources: https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/tutorials.html
                Please read the contributor user manual for more information on Adobe stock contributions: https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/user-guide.html
                See here for rejection reasons: https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/help/reasons-for-content-rejection.html
                and especially quality and technical issues: https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/help/quality-and-technical-issues.html

                ABAMBO | Hard- and Software Engineer | Photographer
                J
                John PDXAuthor
                Inspiring
                October 27, 2022

                I'm not sure I could figure out how to scan the medium format glass slides anyway. They are housed in metal sleeves. The photos are neat though.  This one shows some cars that are over 100 years old.

                Jill_C
                Community Expert
                Jill_CCommunity Expert
                Community Expert
                October 27, 2022

                Google "how to scan medium format glass slides" for some guidance.

                Jill C., Forum Volunteer
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