Popular online photography community 500px launched a new global photographer directory that allows consumer and business clients to search for photographers of all disciplines and locations around the world to fulfill their custom imagery needs. Already 50,000 strong, the service is open to any photographer and allows for listings under multiple genres of photography.
Built as an extension of the company's on-demand service for corporate clients such as Lonely Planet, Directory will now be the starting point of any 500px on-demand business search as well as searches by consumers for photographers local to them that can fill their needs from event coverage to personal headshots. Joining the photography service requires any 500px account – free or paid – and takes as long as it takes you to upload a few portfolio images and input your personal information.
For current 500px users that opt-in to the Directory, a new Services tab will appear under your profile, where your offered services, contact information, and services-specific portfolios will be displayed. Portfolios for individual types of services can be created. One of the smartest features is that you don't have to worry about your background image, as potential clients searching for wedding photographers will automatically be greeted by an image from your wedding photography portfolio when they pull you up. Another client searching for headshots will see an image from your headshots portfolio as your featured image.
500px also announced a partnership with Adobe that will see a highly curated selection of 100,000 of its images made available to millions more customers through Adobe Stock Premium.
Learn more about the Directory or sign up to be included under your city's listings.
Featured image courtesy of photographer John Wilhelm and 500px.
Just a quick addition to the article published here. The title image was created by John Wilhelm (http://www.johnwilhelm.ch/, https://www.facebook.com/johnwilhelmisaphotoholic/). Check out his other stuff too, his work is unbelievably creative!
WOrth being aware of the rate cut if using 500px to sell photos:
https://petapixel.com/2016/03/21/500px-cuts-royalty-rate-70-30-non-exclu...
ummmm... I got an email from 500px directory will be exclusive to paid accounts. It was for free during the beta only. As a fashion, editorial portrait photographer focused and this article only mentioning 1 client which specializes in travel... for me its not worth it yet. If they had clients that needed or used fashion or editorial portraits then yea I'd join.
Thanks for the comment, Chris. I was told otherwise about who the 500px Directory would be available to, but I will reconfirm and will get back to you.
It would also be fair for me to note that Lonely Planet just one of many companies that have worked with 500px through its on-demand service (which has been around for a number of months, now), but Directory will be a way for anyone (even your neighbor) to look up photographers for any particular need in the future.
Assuming I heard correctly and anyone can join, there seems to be little downside to being a part of it to me. But as I said, I will get back to you after reconfirming a few facts. Stand by.
Yea I just checked and tried to make a portfolio for it to be viewed on the directory and I have to pay for the portfolio. I checked that email and here's the quote
"Starting March 1, 2017, you will require a Plus, Awesome, or Awesome + Adobe membership to keep your Services profile active and to stay listed in Directory.
As you’re one of our first members to join the beta release, we’d like to offer you a 15% holiday discount on your membership.
Upgrade today—this offer expires January 1, 2017."
I got that email on December 20th by the way.
Thank you for this. I haven't yet received a response, but I will update the post when I do.
Oops, it took quite long for me to discover this article. But it sounds so interesting and since I already have a 500px account, I immediately set up the listing for this directory.
Now I'm a little bit disappointed. I wanted to promote my little photo site http://www.fotowelle.ch in Switzerland, but it looks like my work for the setup of the 500px directory listing was not helping. I guess I must have a paid account to make it really working. Sad. 500px should declare this from the beginning on.