Is there money in citizen news photography? Probably not much, but the
occasional lucky few people in the right place at the right time,
camera phone in hand, can get tidy checks, it would seem. Scoopt, the citizen photo agency from the U.K., has begun reporting on some of its success stories. In its latest newsletter, Scoopt cites these citizen-photo sales:
- A cell-phone photo of Conservative Party leader David Cameron
doing some grocery shopping on the day that he won the leadership
contest sold for US$2,200 to two daily newspapers and a Sunday paper. - A photo of the new “Sycorax” monster character in the Dr. Who TV series, caught coming out of his trailer during filming, sold for US$3,500.
Scoopt serves as an agency for citizens with newsworthy amateur photos, selling rights to traditional media outlets.
