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Summary of our market study
In France, the market for professional photographers is estimated at around 1.3 billion euros.
The global photographic services market is estimated at around $42 billion, and is growing at an average annual rate of 5%.
The proliferation of high-quality smartphones and the democratization of amateur photography have resulted in a surplus of images available at little or no cost, exerting downward pressure on professional rates and revenues.
Businesses are the main source of revenue for professional photographers, contributing over half of total sales, while private individuals account for just over a third. Almost 87% of customers are French.
Specific photographic services such as wedding and identity photography continue to be in demand.
Self-employed status is common among professional photographers.
Digitization has opened up new opportunities for professional photographers to showcase their work and reach a wider audience.
Start-ups such as Meero have emerged as intermediaries between photographers and customers, offering comprehensive services ranging from matchmaking to image retouching.
The rise of digital advertising offers a promising avenue for professional photographers.
Players in the professional photography market
- Nikon, Canon, Lumix (Panasonic) and Sony are major players in the photographic equipment industry
- Meero is a platform that brings photographers and customers together
- AP Production Paris is a well-known studio on the French market
- CEWE and Photoweb specialize in photo printing, with a particular focus on personalized photo products.
- Caméléon, Alliance and Maison Thieullent have established themselves in the professional photography landscape
- Négatif + and Photomaton have become synonymous with instant photography services
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Summary and extracts
1 Market overview
1.1 Market definition
Photography refers to the practice of obtaining fixed, lasting images of objects through a physical mechanism based on light. Professional photographers are individuals who take photographs for commercial purposes.
The market for professional photographers is characterized by a wide diversity of players on both the supply and demand sides, ranging from photojournalists to craftsmen.
In fact, there are many different customers, which explains the diversity of professional photographers' activities, who rarely confine themselves to a single market segment.
The main market segments for processional photographers include :
- Fine art photography: these are photographs taken by the artist, printed by him or under his supervision, signed and numbered up to a limit of thirty copies, in all formats and media, and which can be found in exhibitions and art galleries.
- Illustration photography: illustration of products, concepts or services (corporate communication).
- News photography: photographs for newspapers and magazines.
- Social photography: photography carried out by professionals in a private setting for private or domestic use: passport photos, wedding photos, school photos, etc.
It's important to understand that these different market segments remain porous, particularly from the point of view of photographers, who rarely specialize in just one sector. According to ARCOM, 80% of photographers operate in several market segments.
In addition to these players, there are alsoancillary activities such as photographic development and printing, networking between professionals and customers (Meero), photo restoration and retouching (retouchephoto.fr), for example.
In France, photography has enjoyed rapid growth since the 2000s, with the practice becoming much more democratic. Thearrival of digital photography, which developed particularly strongly in the 2000s, and the subsequent surge in smartphone sales and the increasing quality of their cameras, have led to a radical transformation in the market for professional photographers.
The professionalization of amateurs, the profusion of images and their massive communication have fuelled growing difficulties for photographers to add value to their business. The main effects have been a drop in rates and therefore in remuneration, the widespread use of the auto-entrepreneur status, an increase in copyright infringement and the trivialization of free photography.
Professional photographers are thus facing new challenges, but can nonetheless count on significant growth levers. The main growth drivers are digital tools that facilitate communication, but also the massive segment of digital corporate communication.
1.2. The global market for professional photography
The global photography industry
The industry is dynamic and diversified, encompassing several segments such as equipment, services, software and media.
According to Grand View Research, the size of the global photographic equipment market was valued at $**.** billion in ****, and is expected to grow at a CAGR (***) of *.*% from **** to ****.
The size ...
1.3. The national market for professional photography
After the disruption caused by the advent of digital technology in the ****s, the photography market in France appears relatively stable.
Let's begin by analyzing the visual arts sector, which includes photographic activities. The visual arts sector comprises photographic activities, artistic creation activities in the visual arts and specialized design ...
2 Demand analysis
2.1. Photography consumption on the rise
With the advent of social networking, the consumption of photographs has increased in recent years.
In addition, the rate of smartphone ownership among households has risen from **% in **** to almost **% in **** (***), making the production and consumption of photographs both faster and more accessible.
Household smartphone ownership rate France, ****-****, in Source: ...
2.2. Photo demand trends
Many factors influence the demand for professional photography, and the different segments involved.
Speed of distribution
Today, the speed with which photographs are distributed, whether on the Internet or social networks, inevitably influences our relationship with them. For several years now, we have been witnessing a growing increase in photo searches ...
2.3. Levers used to stimulate demand
A number of initiatives have been launched to boost demand for professional photography.
The number of photography competitions is on the increase.
In addition, France boasts some fifty photography fairs and festivals that contribute to its international renown (***).
The Arles Festival, in particular, is considered the world's leading photography festival, and ...
3 Market structure
3.1. professional photographers' value chain
The value chain for professional photographers in France extends from equipment to the distribution of photographs to the general public, including creative financing and remuneration activities.
Source: ****
Equipment
This covers everything from camera manufacturers, for example.
Creation
This is one of the most important stages in the professional photography market. It ...
3.2. The different players in professional photography
There are two main types of players in the professional photography market:
independent professional photographers, who make up the vast majority the platforms that put photographers in touch with each other
Freelance photographers
These are mainly self-employed or freelance photographers, working full time or as a complement to another activity, without ...
3.3. Business model for professional photography
Let's analyze the business model of professional photographers.
First of all, we note that photos are largely consumed by the French free of charge(***).
Free or paid photo consumption France, ****, in Source: ****
Photographers' remuneration has evolved in step with the economic logic of the market, with highly disparate situations depending on ...
4 Offer analysis
4.1. Photographer typology
We can attempt to draw a portrait of a professional photographer in France.
Over the years, we have seen an increase in the average age of a photographer here between **** and ****.
Age pyramid for photojournalists France, ****-****, in Source: ****
What's more, professional photography is a male-dominated profession overall.
Women are over-represented ...
4.2. A changing profession
The photography profession has undergone profound changes in recent years, leading to a certain reorganization of the sector.
The black spot is the increase in casualization in this sector.
According to the **** Racine Report, which took stock of the situation of artist-authors, between **** and ****, the number of photographers affiliated to Agessa ...
4.3. Supply trends
Several trends are emerging in the professional photography market.
Sectors on the rise
Firstly, certain sectors, particularly since the Covid episode, are becoming increasingly buoyant. One example is the culinary and lifestyle photography sector , thanks to confinements that have seen the emergence of "home-made" products, as evidenced by the **%-plus rise ...
5 Regulations
5.1. Current regulations
Legal status
Auto-entrepreneur / Micro-entreprise: Most beginner photographers choose this status because it offers tax and social security advantages, notably a simplified income declaration system. However, this status is limited in terms of sales (***).
Sole proprietorship (***), SARL, EURL, SAS: For photographers who exceed the micro-business thresholds, or who wish to structure their ...
List of charts presented in this market study
- Revenue growth between 2021 and 2022 for photographers
- Breakdown of the professional photography market by market segment
- Breakdown of the social photography segment
- Breakdown of the illustration photography market
- Breakdown of the news photography market
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Latest news
Generative AI: visual creation platform Omi raises €13 million - 18/06/2024
- Amount raised by Omi 13 million euros
- - Main investors: Dawn Capital, with the participation of Founders Future and business angels
- - Omi: Production and enhancement of photo and video media for marketing teams, based on product photos.
- - Percentage of sales generated outside France: 15%
- - Year of Omi's 3D technology development: 2020
- - 40 employees
- - Main markets targeted for expansion: the US market.
Getty launches its own artificial intelligence image generator - 26/09/2023
- Getty Images competes with image generators such as Midjourney and DALL-E.
- Getty Images relies on generative AI trained on its own image base, not on billions of images extracted from the web like its competitors.
- Getty's image database does not contain photos of celebrities or brands.
- Getty Images has around 830,000 customers. Getty promises an AI that masters the legal rules of each country and totally eliminates legal risks.
Myphotoagency wants to dust off the class photo - 19/04/2023
- 30%: percentage of revenue generated by photo sales donated to schools by Myphotoagency.
- 3,500: number of photographers in Myphotoagency's address book.
- 30: number of schools Myphotoagency began working with in January.
- 500: number of schools Myphotoagency aims to convert over the next two years, focusing on nursery and elementary schools in the Paris region
- the purchase rate is close to 90% for kindergartens and primary schools. It drops to around 70% in junior high schools, and then to 50% in high schools.
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the professional photographers' market | France
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