June Photo Challenge Theme: Body Language

May’s Photo Challenge theme, “Silhouettes and Shadows,” introduced a fun way to take saleable people photos without needing a model release. I’ll send you May’s winners next Wednesday.
Today, scroll down for June’s Photo Challenge theme, with another way to take saleable stock photos that include a human element — without needing a model release…
Lori Allen
Director, Great Escape Publishing
P.S. If you can master the elements of a saleable stock photo, you could make a living — or a nice side-income — selling your photos as stock. Once they start selling, you just sit back and collect the checks. Learn what makes a saleable stock image, and how to live life on your own terms, making money as a stock photographer, at the Ultimate Stock Photo Workshop coming up.
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May 27, 2009
The Right Way to Travel, Weekly Photo Tip
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BODY LANGUAGE
By Shelly Perry in Portland, OR
People photos sell. You know that. It’s been our mantra around here for the last few years. And it’s true. My best-selling stock photos all include people. But not all of them reveal the person’s whole body, or even their face.
A lot of themes, concepts, and emotions can be expressed with only one or two body parts, like gesturing hands. And if you don’t include faces in your photos — or anything else that could blow your subject’s cover, like tattoos, for instance — then you don’t need a model release to sell them as stock.
So, with that in mind, June’s Photo Challenge Theme is: “Body Language.”
What I’d like to see from you is one strong, stock-quality photo, including a person or people, that:
A. focuses only on certain body parts, like hands, legs, etc. and…
B. Successfully communicates a theme or concept.
Before you get out your camera, think about images you can make with body parts (hands, arms, legs, neck, shoulders, feet… ) that you might see in an ad… on a website… or someplace else to illustrate a concept. To get you started in the right direction, here are a couple of examples that sell well on iStockphoto.com:
This one has a strong business concept. Notice that the focus is on the hands:

And here’s one of my photos that fits a popular theme throughout the last few years — a soldier’s goodbye. It’s a high seller for me on iStock, and there are no identifiable people in it:

This photo includes part of a face, but the person is still not identifiable:

Of course, before you enter, make sure your photo is in-focus, properly exposed, and well-composed. And keep it decent, please — this is a family-friendly e-letter. We’re not afraid to delete any photos of body parts that wouldn’t be fit for prime-time TV.
Only one photo per person may be entered, and the photo must be taken by the entrant.
To enter, send us your ONE best theme-appropriate photo. Multiple entries from the same photographer will be deleted before judging.
Submissions for June’s Photo Challenge are due by 8 a.m. EST on Monday, June 29, 2009. You can submit your photos by clicking on the “This Month’s Theme – Enter to Win!” link on the right side bar of this page.
[Editor’s Note: Learn more about how you can turn your pictures into cash in our free online newsletter The Right Way to Travel.  Sign up here today and we’ll send you a new report, Selling Photos for Cash: A Quick-Start Guide, completely FREE.]