My 10 Years with Adobe Stock as an ASD Individual: A Story of Not Making Money (and Why I Kept Going Anyway)
There were earnings accumulated in an account I had left untouched.
I only realized this fact just the other day.
While researching AI side hustles, I suddenly remembered,
“Come to think of it, I registered for stock photography a long time ago,”I thought.
I hadn't even logged in for years.
I had forgotten the password, too.
I had even half-forgotten that there was a time I was trying to do this seriously.
I reset it and nervously opened the dashboard.
There, the numbers had been quietly piling up even while I had forgotten about them.
[Total DLs: 793 Earnings: $808.6 (Converted at 160 yen to the dollar: 129,376 yen)]
It's not a large amount when you consider it over 10 years.
It's certainly not an amount I can be proud of.
But it wasn't zero.
Even though I left it alone, forgot about it, and didn't put any effort into it.
Even while I was at a standstill, it hadn't stopped.
I wanted to write down everything I felt in that moment, along with the record of these 10 years.
As a “story of not making money.”
And as a “story of what remained anyway.”
Why did I choose stock photography 10 years ago?
To be honest, my initial motivation wasn't a positive one.
I don't have to talk to people.
I don't need meetings.
No one rushes me to “hurry up.”
I can just calmly build it up without being evaluated.
To me at the time, it looked like a “way of working where I could stay without breaking down.”
I finally understood the meaning of that intuition after I learned later that I have ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder).
And, why I left it alone
The reason is probably what you imagine.
It didn't sell.
No matter how many I uploaded, the response was weak.
I couldn't read the 'atmosphere' of what was good and what was bad.
Eventually, my heart wore thin.
Waves of depression came, and I couldn't even think about stock photography.
I stopped logging in, and eventually, I forgot about its existence entirely.
That is the end of my 'story of not making money'.
What I write from here on is everything that 'remained anyway'.
It is a record of 10 years of failure, the truth about the sales that didn't disappear even though I abandoned them, and the discovery that perhaps it was actually suited to me because I have ASD.
I wrote this to be useful as a registration guide for those about to start, so they don't stumble.
And also for my past self, who is trying to start again.
1. 10 years ago, that day I registered (A registration guide for those starting now so they don't stumble)
First, for those about to start, I will write the registration flow as gently as possible.
Because I stumbled here 10 years ago, I don't want you to stop in the same place.
Create an Adobe ID Adobe ID can be created for free by clicking 'Get an Adobe ID' from 'Login' at the top right of the Adobe official website, and simply entering your name, email address, date of birth, etc. The registered ID can be used for trial versions of software and free apps. (If you already have one, please use that.)
Apply from the Adobe Stock Contributor site To apply to sell your work from the Adobe Stock contributor site, log in to the dedicated portal, upload your work, enter metadata, and then 'Submit for Review'. The specific steps to ensure the review process goes smoothly are as follows. Adobe official YouTube
Complete identity verification and tax information registration Identity verification and registration of US tax information (such as W-8BEN) for Adobe Stock are done from the Adobe Stock Contributor Portal. If you do not complete these procedures, a withholding tax of up to 30% will be applied to sales in the US.
Upload your work To upload your work to Adobe Stock, access the Adobe Stock Contributor site and log in with your Adobe ID. You can easily do this by clicking 'Upload' at the top of the screen and dragging and dropping the photos or illustrations you want to sell. (It is convenient to save the site to your bookmarks.)
Add titles and tags (keywords), and submit for review When submitting work for review on Adobe Stock, you register it with a set of 'a description that accurately conveys the content of the photo or illustration (title)' and 'words that are easily searched (keywords/tags)'. By entering this metadata appropriately, the probability of catching a buyer's eye increases significantly. Adobe official YouTube
The parts where you are likely to stumble are 3 and 5.
[The parts I got stuck on the most: English notation for tax information / image size requirements / not knowing how to add tags, which broke my heart after the first few photos]
I want to say one thing first.
Everyone gets rejected in their first review.
That doesn't mean 'you are no good'.
It's just a specification.
10 years ago, I took it to heart and deleted everything.
I don't want you to delete yours.
2. The story of the failures I, an ASD individual, made
From here on, this is a record of failures that you are welcome to laugh at.
【Failure 1: Perfectionism that stopped my submission pace】
I tried to make every single image perfect, and in the end, I could barely upload anything.
“Publishing only after it's perfect” was, for me, the same as “never publishing at all.”
【Failure 2: Not being able to read the “vibe” of what sells】
I never really grasped what was in demand until the very end.
What I thought was “good” and what the world wanted were completely out of sync.
To start with the conclusion, the biggest reason is that there is no “what will the buyer use this photo for” on the buyer's side, compounded by deductions for processing and composition.
To summarize, there are four points.
1. The purpose (reason for purchase) is not designed
Stock photos are not bought as “art,” but as parts for advertisements, articles, and web design. This image lacks a central concept, and no copy space has been designed for text, so designers cannot imagine where to use it. Moreover, landscape-only shots are the most saturated category in stock; unless it's a spectacular view or a world-famous landmark, it rarely even surfaces in search results.
2. Low search demand for the subject
The mountain is Mount Asama. Local mountains have significantly lower search volume compared to Mount Fuji, and buyers are limited to local tourism, municipalities, or real estate. The few buyers who do look for them choose “definitive shots from the best season.” This image is in the seasonal gap of
brown fields after snowmelt + bare trees + patchy residual snow—it has neither the “beauty of winter” nor the “feel of spring,” so there is almost no search demand for it.
3. The processing is dated and unnatural
The sky is an unnatural dark blue with significant unevenness due to vignetting (a typical failure pattern of polarization + HDR).
There is an HDR-specific halo around the ridgeline and branches, and a magenta cast on the residual snow in the foreground.
This “early 2010s HDR-style tone mapping” is the look most avoided by current buyers, and it stands out immediately when placed in search results where natural RAW processing is the mainstream.
4. The foreground functions as “dirt”
The pile of stones and rubble in the center foreground acts as a foreign object that stops the viewer's eye, and the patchy snow in the fields doesn't look like “beautiful residual snow,” but simply dirty. The building on the far right is also cluttered, and as a landscape photo, the frame hasn't been cleaned up.
If I were to sell the same image now: I would take it on a clear morning right after fresh snow, use natural processing without HDR, choose a composition that avoids foreign objects in the foreground, create a set of two—one landscape with copy space in the sky and one portrait—and publish it with English titles and keywords. Only by doing all that could I “narrowly capture local demand.”
【Failure 3: Hyper-focusing on numbers and burning out】
I checked the sales graph dozens of times a day. When the zeros continued, I felt like the world was rejecting me. And then, one day, I just snapped and couldn't do anything anymore.
3. Five things I, as I am now, think you should absolutely not do
After 10 years and a period of neglect, here is what I can say clearly.
Don't delete everything because of a rejection. What was rejected was one image, not you.
Don't check your sales graph multiple times a day. The numbers won't increase just because you look at them. Only your peace of mind will decrease.
Don't chase trends at the expense of your own strengths. If you don't enjoy it, you'll eventually stop uploading.
Don't burn yourself out by uploading a massive amount in one day. "A little bit, for a long time" is the true strength of this job.
Don't immediately decide to quit just because you aren't making money. I will write the reason for this in the next chapter.
4. Why were there still sales even though I had left it alone?
This is what I most wanted to write about this time.
Even while I had forgotten about them, the works I had uploaded in the past continued to live on the site.
Someone had found them and used them.
Even when I stopped, the past version of me was earning money little by little on its own.
I think this is the essence of the stock photo system.
Once you create something, it remains as an asset.
It doesn't drop to zero even if you stop working.
For someone like me, who has waves of depression and cannot work at the same pace all the time,
"income that doesn't disappear even when I stop" meant more than I could have imagined.
I had always thought, "I couldn't make money."
But in reality, perhaps the me from 10 years ago had set up a "way of working that remains even if I break down."
5. My ASD traits were actually suited for this job
Seeing the sales from when I had left it alone changed my thinking.
Far from being incompatible with stock photography, my ASD traits actually had aspects that were strengths.
Hyperfocus: On days when I'm really into it, I can finish a huge amount at once. Since this is a job where having waves is fine, this is a real asset.
Strength in repetition: I can accurately repeat the same tasks (tagging, exporting) without finding them painful.
Attention to detail: The accuracy of metadata and keywords is the lifeline of searchable works. My meticulousness pays off here.
Deep diving into niches: I can dig into a single theme endlessly. In fact, niches have less competition and are easier to keep relevant.
No need to interact with people: This isn't a weakness; in this job, it's just an aptitude.
There are certainly things I'm bad at (reading the room, following trends, selling myself).
But there were definitely things I was suited for.
6. Things I secretly kept in mind when uploading
【Why this image of the 'Gokayama Ainokura Gassho-zukuri Village' is my best seller】
This is the exact opposite of a bad image; it is a photo where 'who is buying it and why' exists from the very beginning. I will break down the structure of why it sells into four points.
1. The subject itself has search demand
The World Heritage 'Shirakawa-go and Gokayama Gassho-zukuri Villages' is a landmark that buyers actively search for.
"gassho-zukuri" "japan village" "world heritage japan" "japanese countryside" For keywords like these, there are always 'buyers with budgets' such as travel agencies, inbound media, and publishers.
The difference from the previous Asama-yama photo is not about skill, but rather the difference in the playing field (search volume).
2. The usage is instantly imaginable
Lead photos for travel features, tourism PR banners, websites for visitors to Japan, guidebooks, and 'traditional Japanese villages' in textbooks.
Designers can imagine how to use it the moment they see it.
Because it is a 'descriptive image' with a wide-angle, slightly overhead composition that explains the entire village, fields, and relationship with the mountains in a single shot, it can be placed directly at the beginning of an article.
This is the strongest quality in stock photography.
3. It is a landscape that also contains a 'concept'
It is not just a mountain village; it carries the concepts of 'Japan's original landscape, hometown, traditional life, and satoyama' all in one shot.
Buyers purchase it not only as a 'photo of Gokayama' but also as material for abstract themes like 'traditional Japan' or 'nostalgia.'
This is one of the few patterns where landscape photography sells.
4. The trifecta of condition, competition, and finish
Peak season: Deep green of midsummer + clear skies, making the whole village a 'definitive best-season shot' full of vitality.
Supply gap: Gassho-zukuri is an overwhelmingly competitive area for winter light-ups and snowy scenery.The summer green version has relatively less competition and can be used year-round.
Natural development: Unlike the previous HDR, the saturation of the green is within a realistic range with no halos, and it can withstand printing. It doesn't 'stand out' when lined up in search results.
If you want to expand on this strength: Use the same formula of 'searched landmark x best season x descriptive composition' to collect other seasons of Ainokura (snow, rice harvesting, morning mist), the Suganuma village, and other Important Preservation Districts for Groups of Traditional Buildings, adding portrait orientation and copy-space versions for each.
Since a best-selling image is 'proof of a winning keyword,' the standard strategy is to fill in the surrounding area.
Think about tags by asking, 'What would I type if I were the one searching?'
Release multiple images for one theme by changing the composition and colors.
Upload and schedule in bulk on days when you feel good, and do nothing on bad days.
Don't blame yourself for 'not being able to put out a single image today.'
7. To those starting now. And to myself, who is trying to start again.
Perhaps this article wasn't about how to make money.
After all, I did it for 10 years and didn't make any.
But those numbers that didn't disappear even when I left them alone feel like they are telling me something.
“There is a way to work that remains even if you break down or stop.”That is what they say.
To those just starting out:
It won't sell at first.
That is normal.
So, please build it up little by little at a pace that won't break you while it's not selling.
A day will come when the past version of you earns money for you, even on the days you stop.
And to myself, as I try to start once more:
This time, I'll start from here again, not to 'make money,' but to 'build without breaking.'—I'll start from here again.
I will write about what happens next, one piece at a time, in the series 'The Complete 10-Year Record of ASD x Adobe Stock'.
If you'd like, please take a look at my Adobe Stock as well.
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