Getty Images Explained
Insights from 20+ years inside the world’s most powerful photo agency — and what it takes to survive today
This article is part of my ongoing series Making Money with Photography — practical, no-nonsense insights on how photographers can build sustainable income today. You can catch up with the main chapters here: Part 1: The Mindset That Matters, Part 2: The Work That Pays and Part 3: Everything Else (That Might Work)
For more than twenty years, I’ve worked with Getty. Few names in photography spark the same recognition — Getty is the giant, the marketplace, the agency that sets the pace for much of global editorial and creative imagery. But what most outsiders don’t realise is that Getty isn’t a single monolith. It’s divided, layered, and internally structured into very different worlds.
I’ve seen Getty from almost every angle: as a contributor, a stringer, staff photographer, and even as an editor. I have always been treated with respect, and I still believe Getty is one of the best companies in the industry to work with. That said, the work has changed. There is more competition, more pressure, more targets to meet. What follows is my view from inside.
The First Divide: Staff vs Contributor
At the heart of Getty lies one big division. You are either:
Staff Photographer
On salary, dispatched on assignment, with travel, access, and editors backing you. Staff shooters cover Olympics, red carpets, war zones, or political summits. They operate inside the Getty machine.Contributor
Freelance, agency partner, or individual supplying imagery. You don’t carry a Getty staff badge, but your images can still land on the front pages of newspapers worldwide or inside ad campaigns. Contributors upload, pitch, and hope to catch the eyes of picture editors.
This split defines everything. Your opportunities, your income, and even the level of respect you get from desks.
The Editorial Desks
Within Getty’s editorial side, the work is broken down into desks. Each has its own editors, its own pace, and its own style.
News
I have worked 99% in news, and it is the most unforgiving but also the most rewarding. Being a good photographer is only the beginning. To survive as a Getty news contributor, you need more.
And here’s the hard truth: getting into Getty is often the easy part. The real challenge is making a decent living, paying the bills, and sustaining a normal life while working under constant pressure.
Understand the news world — know what matters globally, not just locally.
Be proactive — don’t wait for distant editors, find and anticipate stories yourself.
Edit ruthlessly — file your 10–15 strongest frames, not your entire card.
Deliver fast — file before the competition, even when tech fails.
Adapt to chaos — bad connections, failing laptops, missed deadlines are no excuse.
Work when others don’t — nights, weekends, and even Christmas morning.
Sport
Sport is its own universe inside Getty, with ruthless competition:
Technical mastery and reflexes to catch the decisive split-second.
Fight for positioning — the best image often depends on the best spot.
Anticipate the play — read the game, not just the action.
File in real time — the goal photo is worthless if it lands after the whistle.
Endure the grind — endless travel, brutal weather, and tight schedules.
Entertainment
Glamorous on the surface, demanding in reality:
Access is everything — without credentials, you don’t exist.
Work the angles — one of dozens in the pit, competing for the same frame.
Understand the market — tabloids vs magazines want different pictures.
Long hours — red carpets mean hours of waiting, then filing late at night.
Build a style — editors remember contributors who deliver a recognisable look.
The Creative Division
If news, sport, and entertainment are about reacting to events, Creative is about inventing them. I also hold a Creative account, though I’ve done far less work here. The demands are different:
Think like a client — images must solve a brand’s problem, not just look good.
Production value matters — lighting, styling, models, post-production.
Balance authenticity with aspiration — different collections demand different tones.
Consistency and volume — not just one great shot, but a complete set.
Market awareness — diversity, cultural nuance, global relevance.
Patience — sales often come months or years after the shoot.
Workflow Discipline
Shooting for Getty means speed and discipline. There is no time for Photoshop or artistic post-processing — news images must be filed clean, fast, and accurate. You need to master Getty’s proprietary software, learn to embed IPTC metadata correctly, and caption your images with precision. An image without a solid caption is useless, regardless of how visually appealing it may appear. Speed and accuracy go hand in hand.
The Getty Culture
One thing that has always impressed me is the culture of cooperation inside Getty. Editors and photographers work as a team, not in opposition. I have always been treated with respect, whether as a contributor, stringer, staffer, or editor. The relationship with the desk is built on trust: they know you will deliver under pressure, and you know they will support you in getting your images into circulation.
How It Has Changed
Two decades ago, you filed images over slow FTP lines. Today, transmission is near-instant, and paradoxically, that has made the work more stressful. Deadlines are shorter, expectations higher. Sometimes you work wired, with editors sitting right behind you preparing and filing in real time. And sometimes, despite everything — strong pictures, clean edits — the technology betrays you. The Wi-Fi collapses, the line doesn’t cooperate, and your pictures never reach the desk. That pressure is part of the modern Getty world.
The Harsh Reality for Getty Contributors
Even if you’re talented, hard-working, and connected, surviving as a Getty contributor is not easy.
Falling Prices — The price per image today is far lower than it was twenty years ago. Subscription models and oversupply have crushed royalties.
Insane Competition — At Downing Street or a Champions League final, you may be one of 100+ photographers. Only a handful of frames will matter.
Chasing the News — No one spoon-feeds you. You need to anticipate and get there first.
Entertainment Shift — Papers now use celebrity Instagram posts or their own photographers. Agencies sell fewer celebrity shots than ever.
A Hard Living — Getting in isn’t the impossible part. The real struggle is making enough to pay the bills and live a decent life while competing against hundreds of others filing the same story.
✦ Up to here, you’ve seen how Getty is structured, how the desks operate, and how the culture has evolved.
The real question photographers ask is: how do you actually work for Getty today, and make it part of a sustainable career?
👉 What follows isn’t secret — nothing in this industry really is. It’s my honest take, shaped by two decades at Getty and by running an agency with over 20 photographers under the Getty banner. (Paid subscribers can keep reading below.)