Are 5 sec shots worth it?

Over the past few years I have acquired footage from a number of countries, specifically China.

In some cases, either because of time constraints, pressure, peculiar situations (such as sneaking into a Chinese factory), or impatience, I did get a good shot, but it's only 5 or 6 seconds of length.

Are these short videos at all worth uploading at Pond5 or other stock video sites? Do you have any feedback if they would be usable for other editors?

So far I have uploaded a few, but most shots I've selected from my portfolio are longer. Any ideas and suggestions would be great (like any comments on my modest portfolio in general)!

You will find most producers actually only use a few seconds of a clip. The advantage of a 15-20 second slip is it gives the producer more to make a selection from. Indeed a 5 second clip has value if it is quality. Most agencies require at least 5 seconds so they also believe that is long enough.

You have beautiful clips! In my opinion over 5 seconds it's OK.
Upload it. Nothing to lose.
All the best!
Sev

Thanks for the upbeat comments guys! I'll continue uploading in the coming days, weeks, and probably months too. It's going to take me a (long) while to get anywhere close to the portfolio you both have though (impressive). Happy to hear that 5 seconds are useful to other editors.

I guess China and Pakistan are nice niches to start with, India & Sri lanka to a lesser extent as well. Learning every day still... cheers!

Oooh.. Looks like I'm gonna be having some competition! Bring it on buddy and best of luck! Just do me, and yourself, a favor and raise your prices ;-)

Thanks grayscale! And also thanks for the message you sent me.

I'll definitely look into the prices and Pakistan for sure deserves higher prices than some of the footage from China. It's still trial and error for me at the moment but I'm getting closer to at least some kind of 'balance' in pricing.

And I'm not sure about the competition that much grayscale, you have unique videos of equally unique situations, and of course I looked at everything with 'holiday glasses' on ;)

One of the most beautiful countries I've ever been to though, Pakistan, both people (everywhere) and nature in the North. Definitely hope to be able to make another visit one day!

Also have patience. Just because a clip doesn't sell in a month or two does not mean it's priced too high. I probably would not have sold any faster at any price. Stock video is a long term business. Six months or much longer is needed to compare and analyze.

If 5 seconds is all you have for a interesting clip, OK. Normally I upload 10 - 12 sec clips giving the editor handles on either end. The handle on the front end, should be interesting - as the thumbnail should be also. For example, with a zoom out start tight and pull out to wide. Those first 1.5 seconds of the buyers appraisal are all you get. If after a protracted period of waiting for your shots to sell (the vast majority won't) you can try some http://www.stockvideoseller.com/public_html/topics/pricing-stock-footage-to-se.html. Recently, I have achieved some pretty great results, income wise, re-pricing and doing price and positioning analysis. It works for me...

It's great to get replies and suggestions from such experienced video makers, thanks everyone!

Your collections are very impressive, and your website is very helpful Terry, some very useful insights on how the stock business actually works.

I'll continue to look into pricing and understand it's crucial to compare your clips to those of others with similar footage. A clip of Hong Kong's skyline is therefore probably worth a lot less than a video of a remote part of Western China. On the other hand, Hong Kong is probably a much more popular search tag. Tulips would probably need lower pricing than Swiss edelweiss.

I only briefly looked into stock video before and mainly made my videos because I loved doing it. Now I've gotten involved in a whole new kind of world which is much more exciting, demanding, and interesting than I first thought.

Glad to be on Pond5 as my main site too, it's user friendly, open, and from what I see has a very active list of contributors with years of experience! Who knows where the road will take us all...

Sometimes all you are left after shooting something on the fly is 5 seconds that has exactly what you were hoping to see in the 2 minutes you filmed.
Take it and get the most out of it for sure.