Okay, folks, as the last batches of Christmas baubles and trees are being cleared up from the pending line, there come the loads of colored eggs and bunnies in all kinds of places and positions...
As for me - ever since the Christmas kidding I've not stopped thinking about the meaning of "meaning" and twisting thereof. So here it is me again, reflecting upon the issue.
First, the meaning of Easter, or the day in which Christ was risen. Bunnies (whatever their position) and eggs (in spite of their color) are by no means a representation of that. Neither are frogs, ducks or any other animals you've got in the vicinity... so is it also with colorful blooming flowers and anything you'd entitle hot and sexy.
Although most Germanic languages such as English and German have picked up the name of an Anglo-Saxon goddess of the spring, in a large number of other languages the name of this celebration is tied much closer to its original meaning - that of which the Bible speaks about. So, if you want your image to truly speak of Easter, then it needs to have content that reflects and/or represents that original meaning (which, by the way, is still highly valued by a vast amount of your audience).
So, if you're eager to represent the Great Day (as it is called in Bulgarian, for instance), you may actually want to consider a true Christian composition. Otherwise, a spring photo might sell better with spring-like keywords. :)
It actually took me to go through about 6-8 pages of 60 images per page till I got to see a somewhat religious image in a search for "easter". Now, you may argue that if people want eggs you ought to give them eggs. That's fine. But don't immediately disregard the people who are on the look for something which is more descriptive of the celebration.
Plus, should you choose this option a simple 10minute search-and-browse exercise will show you that you'll have little competition. For comparison, a search for "christ risen" returns the humble amount of 32 images.
If you search for "easter" and look at the most downloaded images, apart from the few grass shots and eggie ones, etc. you'll notice also quite a few strictly Christian themed images. So, if you haven't spent time into taking such photos or making such illustrations simply because you thought "there ain't no market for that" - think again.
The exploit thereof. So, there is market for Christian images... Now let's all race to see who'll exploit that the most. :) No, that's not quite what I had in mind either. My reflections are more towards what a photographer/illustrator puts into the art being produced and how that reflects its message and quality. So, try to understand a bit more about the subject before you run to take photos and you'll see that your final work will have a much stronger impact.
Lastly, if you're still wondering "Fine. But what can I take of that and use it in the long term?" Here's the tip: creating stock images can often lock you in a box of prejudices. It didn't take me long before I discovered that an image that really stands out has to be different. And if everyone's snapping around colored eggs in baskets, then what chances does your egg photo have of standing out among the 15000+ images that the "easter" search returns currently? The same thing applies for any other subject. Don't let yourself be restrained by what you've seen already in the database, but learn from it and strive for something that you haven't seen. Yes, it will take some more time, energy, as well as thinking, but I'm sure you'll be much more delighted by the results yourself, not even talking about other contributors who will be inspired by that, or customers who'll make you happy with some more income.
Sleep over it and after you wake up - try to remain on the outstanding side. It's worth it.
P.S. - It is no surprise that the empty tomb image is Level 4 :)
