World’s Best Photography

Startup Seeks to Be Online Destination for World’s Best Photography

 

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Name: 500px
Quick Pitch: 500px.com is a modern online community of photographers from all over the world.
Genius Idea: In the age of insta-photography, 500px celebrates the art in professional photography.

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Amidst a seemingly congested crop of photo services — think mobile-focused newcomers like Instagram, long-time veterans like Flickr and every other photo app between — is there opportunity for yet another photo community to standout?
With 35 million pageviews per month, 1.9 million uniques per month and 500% growth over the past 6 months, nearly two year-old Toronto-based 500px may not be an overnight success story, but it does seem to be on the cusp of its breakout moment.
500px photographers can use the site as a portfolio website, choose a theme and layout, and organize their photos into collections. They can also opt to sell their shots. Photography fans can use the site to discover amazing photography, follow their favorite photographers and purchase prints of the shots they love most.
500px, pronounced “five hundred pixels,” is turning heads in photography and internet circles with a primary focus on being the destination site of the world’s best photography.
“We are about the best photography and the best user experience for aspiring and pro photographers,” says 500px director of marketing Andrey Tochilin.
The startup’s most popular photos, along with the curated collection of editor selections, demonstrate the sophistication and quality of the site’s growing user base of mostly professional and artistic amateur photographers.
Plus, at a time when the iPhone is the predominant digital camera of choice for photo-sharers, 500px users are posting photos taken by their Canon EOS 5D Mark IIs, Nikon D90s, Canon EOS 450Ds and Canon EOS 50Ds — the four most popular cameras among the site’s users.
Mobile applications, while not yet available, are in the works and will be released soon, Tochilin says.
500px, initially created by two guys in a basement, is now a five-person team. The startup was bootstrapped until May 2011, when it raised $525,000 in funding.