It can be difficult to get picked up by a high-quality stock agency. While just about anyone can submit to some stock photo sites like istockphoto.com, higher end agencies pay for more per image. You'll have to work harder to be in this elite group of photographers, but it can be done, partly with the help of photo manipulation software.

Step #1: Learn How to Use Photoshop

It can be Adobe Photoshop or some other visual editing program, but you'll need to make sure you are able to clean your images up and really make them pop to get the attention of a stock agency. There are so many images submitted to microstock sites that it's hard for professionals to compete except by doing a very good job with post processing.

Though the learning curve is steep, you can learn to use Photoshop to manipulate otherwise ever-so slightly flawed images into ones that will be useful to a stock agency.

Step #2: Take Your Pictures With Photo-manipulation in Mind

Sometimes you'll find yourself presented with a shot and you know exactly how you can manipulate it into a fantastic piece for a stock agency. This might include pictures on a plain background that can be merged with another landscape or sky shot.

Another example might be taking very wide shots, knowing that you want to use just a portion of it, because you like the way the wide angle lens makes the subject look. You can always crop the rest of the shot out later. This is not only liberating, but also makes it possible for you to use images that might otherwise be less than perfect, expanding your repertoire and putting that many more quality images out there.

Step #3: Punch Those Images Up

You're doing this for professional work, so your images have to look great. That means shooting in *.raw format because it's retains far more detail than the more common *.jpg format that most point and shoot cameras employ.

You may very likely need to use noise reduction software (everyone does). You can use a filter within Photoshop, available as a plug in or without, as a separate program. Layer effects are also useful -- it's always good to keep an unaltered layer for clarity. Try to use all your modifications in moderation, so the photos look natural even when you're doing major changes, like adding a background layer.

Look for obvious faults (even if they're what you consider to be artistic license), and edit the pictures you submit to a stock agency. Those that aren't accepted - and there will be plenty when you're starting out - you may submit to each of the stock agencies that you're working for or applying to. The competition is stiff, so you really need to submit all your work in its best possible format to be accepted at the larger stock agency sites that pay the best rates.

For more tips on preparing images for submitting digital photos to a stock agency, listen to the 7PhotographyQuestions.com podcast: Stock Photography - an Interview with Scott Stulberg. You can subscribe via iTunes or listen directly on the 7PhotographyQuestions.com site.