How to start making money on photography?

Hello, community

I am getting some ideas that it is about time I start realizing some material gain from my hobby as a photographer. Over the past years I have invested quite a deal into equipment and recently purchased first full frame camera with lens, and plan for some other lenses to invest into in near future.

 

I photograph just about anything. Where do I start looking to find if there are opportunities to make money on what I do? I honestly do not know where to start....

Sports, people, journalism, art, documentary . . . Where are your interests? Are you in a city or out in the country? Do you realize that "photographic skill" is pretty low on the list of requirements for a photographer? The same goes for a "full frame camera and lens". I've worked with crop cameras for almost 20 years and Michael Kenna recently published a book of Holga photographs. Where have you looked? What have you done?

Sports, people, journalism, art, documentary . . . Where are your interests? Are you in a city or out in the country? Do you realize that "photographic skill" is pretty low on the list of requirements for a photographer? The same goes for a "full frame camera and lens". I've worked with crop cameras for almost 20 years and Michael Kenna recently published a book of Holga photographs. Where have you looked? What have you done?

 

 

I did not mean to sound as if I bought a full frame camera in order to start doing business.

My interest are in .. I suppose it can all be called documentary.

I mostly shoot concerts and events. Some street photography too.

What do you mean, when you say "Where have you looked"? I vaguely understand that I will need to "present myself" somehow to some publishers or make myself "visible" by some means. (If this is what you mean). But .. I do not know how to approach...

Well . . . Then you have to look at who might pay you to shoot concerts and similar events.

 

Do you have a concert portfolio? If not, look for some local bands who will let you shoot in exchange for images for their website or Facebook pages. Your end clients will first be local weekly newspapers if you go out and cover "events" (which takes in a LARGE arena of things). Go shoot and then see if you can get an appointment to meet with someone there to look at your photos. They might have some assignments. They may, or may not pay. But, you will need to start getting some images into print before people will come looking for you.

 

Both areas that you are saying are interests are very difficult to earn a living in. Documentary work is very thin anymore as is concert work.

 

When I asked "Where have you looked?" I mean where have you looked to get work? Have you looked at the work of others who are doing what you want to do?

Do you have a web site? Do you have a portfolio of pictures that we can see?

As Ed Farmer said, the ability to take good pictures is perhaps the least important skill in becoming a money-earning photographer. Do you have any business skill, training, or experience? Do you realize that every person who owns a digital camera, especially a full frame "professional" camera, thinks he/she is a professional photographer and is looking for exactly the same thing, a way to make money from their photography. What do you have that sets you apart from everyone else with a camera?

There are a lot of factors involved in selling photographs online. Its a saturated market and your photos really need to stand out in order for them to sell. Just go to a photography website like 500px and look for some images related to the niche of photography you're into. If you feel your photos match the quality or are better, you should consider ways to make money out of it. Here are some ways you can use your current photos to make some extra cash:

 

1) Get yourself registered on stock photography sites like Shutterstock. Since there's no limit on the number of images, try to upload all you high quality images with appropriate titles and keywords. Keep adding regular photos for a passive income. The amount you receive on each image is as low as $0.20 per image, so make sure you focus on adding images regularly.

 

2) Build your own website using a platform like Pixpa or Zenfolio. Once you build a portfolio website, Pixpa will allow you to integrate an e-commerce store on your photos so people can buy digital or physical prints of your works. Make sure to market your website on social media profiles and optimize it for search engines. Once your website starts ranking for business keywords, it'll automatically bring you regular sales.

 

3) There are literally hundreds on online competitions being held around the world. Find the ones in your niche and try your luck with all of them. Some would be free, some would have a nominal fee. Plan according to your budget.

Concert photography is extremely tough when it comes to money making. Photographers fight over unpaid jobs, let alone the ones that pay. And getting paid for it generally requires a very strong portfolio. Quite a few publications now use fairly low quality snaps by their writers.

 

Street photography isn't going to make anyone money.

 

Sports photography pays, real estate photography pays, event shooting pays. All of these are basically "assignment" photography. If you have a studio, you can do portraits and product shots. Other than sports and maybe portraits, most of this is not "fun" photography, it's a grind and can be very technical. I did well with real estate photography, pay running $250/hour, but I was shooting in a high-priced market. Events paid well, but not that well but required a lot of automation in post, there was a learning process on that. Real estate and events paid on-time every time.

 

Stock photography is a waste of time unless you have a specific niche that doesn't have a lot of photographs. Usually that requires specific access. At one point in time, I had the largest collection of muay thai photos from the US and did very well with it. But nature, lifestyle, architecture, etc., all those categories are filled with great photos.

Spearhead speaks with straight tongue.

 

Nowadays, everybody is a photographer. And many kinds of photography are facing competition from computer-generated images.

 

I don't know what the odds are for an amateur making it to professional status, but I am sure that

"Many are called, but few are chosen"

Matthew 22:14

 

i.e., don't quit your day job right away.

look for some local bands who will let you shoot in exchange for images for their website or Facebook pages.

I don't know where you are, but you can probably find at least a few "open mic" nights, jam sessions etc at which aspiring musicians and performers would love to get some good pictures of themselves on stage. Small club owners and local promoters / agents are also looking for high quality pics for their marketing, websites etc - and many (OK - most) are too "frugal" to hire a professional photographer. Show up early enough to find the best vantage points before the performers start and get some great shots. Carry a tablet to show them to the subjects as soon as they leave the stage. Do not show them on your camera's display! Then promise & deliver prints and/or digital files within 24 hours at a fair price, and you'll probably be able to build a local following within months if you're good. Print up some cards and get out there!

 

 

PS: Editing can really help sell this kind of pic - here it is with the blemishes "adjusted":

 

Edited September 5, 2018 by otislynch

They do love to get them (if they're good photos) , but it may only get you a good seat at their next show, a free drink, and maybe good company at their table. IMO If you want to monetize it, give free samples first, then see if you can make a deal.

They do love to get them (if they're good photos) , but it may only get you a good seat at their next show, a free drink, and maybe good company at their table. IMO If you want to monetize it, give free samples first, then see if you can make a deal.

 

Or a CD.

Or a CD.

Exactly what I've done.

They do love to get them (if they're good photos) , but it may only get you a good seat at their next show, a free drink, and maybe good company at their table. IMO If you want to monetize it, give free samples first, then see if you can make a deal.

You gotta know when to hold 'em & when to fold 'em. Performers with reputations or strong momentum toward a reputation (even if only local) often participate in open mic nights to discover new talent and to sell their CDs etc. If they're already paying for graphics & other support, they'll pay you too if they like your work....and they'll adopt you if they like you more. For those just starting to perform, free work is both a charitable act and a sound investment. And if you connect with the next Springsteen at the beginning of his or her career, you'll grow & prosper together. I've been using USB sticks for years instead of CDs. You can get them imprinted with your name, logo etc for less than $2 each

 

On the other hand, many club owners take advantage of everyone in sight - I wouldn't recommend offering a free sample to them unless you know them personally. I've been a musician for about 60 years, 30+ of them as a member of Local 77 of the AFM. My picture's been taken and used in print and web ads many times for clubs, promoters, party planners etc, rarely with my consent and often without my knowledge. I think the best way to get a positive response from this group is to bring them a few prints of performers at their venues that make their places look really great. If you find a club with pictures of performers on the walls, you might gain business by getting one or more great shots into the gallery as long as you're clearly identified as the photographer & contact info is made available.

Physically handing out images to bands, seriously? In 2018 you “hand them out” on Instagram. Connect with them there and more importantly, with their audience.

"It depends"...

 

This thread's not about business planning for photographers, but you're describing what's really a strategic plan - so it's certainly relevant. Your vision for the business determines your strategy for achieving it, and your strategy drives your choice of tactics for execution. Social media play a major role (sometimes the only role) in marketing for many performers. But you need to elicit the "voice of the customer" to learn each one's approaches & preferences, so you know if and how your approach would fit with theirs. Only after you know what pleases a potential client can you most effectively implement your business development strategy to engage him/her/them. Having backed major national acts on guitar, bass, keys, and horn for decades, I can attest to the almost unbelievably wide spectrum of personalities & preferences among performers. They all bring joy, some when they arrive and some when they leave :)

 

Although many artists take to the web for communication, many (especially early in their artistic careers) still prefer a personal connection with potential business resources even if web content & social media are the intended pipelines for presenting their work & communicating with their audiences. Go over and meet each one after shooting a set. Their response to a friendly overture begun with a compliment & a smile will establish a relationship that will tell you more in 30 seconds than you'll ever learn about them by simply posting their pics on Instagram. Even if you take the social media route, they'll have a connection with you if you give them a USB stick or CD or whatever you like with a few great images and your contact info. I put a small gallery of my pics on it, add 1 or 2 of the "recruit" on the fly (editing with Snapseed on my tablet, if necessary), and include all my web references. But, as I said in an earlier post, I don't think freebies are appropriate for all comers.

 

BTW, I absolutely love your work, Phil ! Your website is an inspiration.

Giving away images on Facebook or Instagram can be a way to introduce yourself to the band and their fans but it does nothing, maybe worse than nothing, to promote your business. The social platforms are built around a "free" model. Moving from their to selling anything is a difficult path. When you post on Instagram, the band and their fans can download your image, use them as wallpaper or even print them, all without any control of the image by your OR the band. You're talking about giving something away without the permission of the subject. Not a good business practice or model.

 

Give the band prints and tell them that you can deliver digital files for their use.

With tongue in cheek I'll tell you the best way to make money with photography, either write a book on "how to make money with your camera" or just sell all your equipment and walk away. Kind of like the old saying that the two best days in a boat owner's life is when they buy the boat and when they sell it.

 

Seriously, with the prevalence of dslrs and cell phones with excellent cameras, it's really, really hard to make money with your camera. Best options are either sports team photography or weddings. Neither of which is the most fun or fulfilling.

I don't know if you are referring to my post, but here's the thing.

 

It doesn't matter what I think. What matters is what the potential client thinks. And the vast majority of those people think that their DSLR is just fine and they don't want to pay for photos. Especially when all and I mean all (when was the last time the normal person wanted a print of anything?) of those guys just want a photo sized 3x4 so they can post it on the web.

 

Photojournalism--"citizen journalists" with cell phones are giving photos to news organizations for free. Portraits--"Uncle Bob has a brand new Canon T3i-why would we want to buy photos when he'll shoot them for free and we can post to the internet in minutes", Concerts--"Hey dude, I see you want to listen to a concert for free and will give us photos for free--that's cool", Business photos--"Jim in advertising has a great new Nikon D3500--he'll do all the photos for the annual report and portraits of all our execs and we don't have to pay him any extra because he already works for us", Real Estate--the realtors are doing the photos with the exception of the truly high end market.

 

About the only place where people still demand and expect pro quality photos is sports team photos--only because they want those great action shots a true pro can deliver, and weddings, and for weddings you really need to be able to do video in addition to stills.

I see your point, but that market is a very small portion of the overall group of people who want photos. Are there businesses and individuals who value good work? Absolutely. Is that market being served by the existing pool of professional photographers? Most likely, making it very hard for the OP to break into the market. Can it happen? Sure. Does it happen often? No.

As for me, I've worked as a professional portrait photographer, wedding photographer, photojournalist and photo editor for the past 40 years. I've worked for a local portrait studio, the Las Vegas Review-Journa, the Los Angeles Times, Gannett News Corp, and The Associated Press. I have seen the field of professional photography drop like a rock for the past 10-15 years as digital cameras and the internet have become the norm for taking and displaying photos. I can't even count the number of people whom I've known who have left the field either by choice (because their business dwindled) or by layoffs.

 

I guess my bottom line is: Give it a shot if you want, but don't give up your day job, even if you are the best of the best.

Phil, I think we're jousting at windmills.

 

Yes, I do think that if you want to do photography, there is a very low barrier for entry--however, that entry entails working for next to nothing for most people. Also I do believe that it is hard to come up with a sustainable business model because of the existing pool of photographers and a market which is much, much smaller than it was even 10 years ago, let alone 20 or 25 years ago. Can you be the one of 100 who makes it? The possibility is always there. Is it more likely that you will end up on the cutting room floor after leaving your current job, blowing through your savings in a few months and ending up a stressed-out individual going back to whatever you were doing before? Also possible.

 

If you have the commitment to "make your bones" and don't have any responsibilities that preclude you from trying--go ahead give it a whirl. And never have I said it's impossible to make a living in photography--in fact if you read my original post, I said that the best way to make it is to go into sports photography or weddings.

 

I know you'll want to get the last word in, but believe me, I sincerely wish to see the OP succeed. I hope he can. I am reticent to say--"Yeah, it's no problem, go for it."

Guess I've never lived on The Big Rock Candy Mountain or Land Of Milk & Honey Photo style - jobs / money have never been hanging on trees. There is money to be made in photography most places. It requires a great deal of work, skill at sales and interpersonal relations and decent photographic ability. Developing a business plan based on analysis of the OP's area is a first important step. I believe most will find turning a hobby into a business less enjoyable than expected.

Developing a business plan based on analysis of the OP's area is a first important step. I believe most will find turning a hobby into a business less enjoyable than expected.

What makes it so is the simple fact that you can no longer ignore or denigrate what you don't like. As I posted earlier -

This thread's not about business planning for photographers, but you're describing what's really a strategic plan - so it's certainly relevant. Your vision for the business determines your strategy for achieving it, and your strategy drives your choice of tactics for execution.

Assimilating one's knowledge, skill, experience, and interests into a practical and achievable vision for a business (any business) is the critical first step - and skipping this is a common cause of failure. In combination with inexperience and overconfidence, it's a recipe for disaster.

 

Hope is a lousy business plan.

...it means less competition for the rest of us in the game. The money is out there, as it ever will be. I mean it's practically hanging on the trees. You just have to know which ones to shake...

That's true enough, Phil. But technology has changed the game completely - the rules, the playing field, the tools, and even the trees. When emulsion ruled, small businesses needed pros to make marketing materials. Brides & grooms needed pros to archive their weddings. Proud parents dragged their kids to the photographer for annual documentation of their growth. Even nightclubs & cruise ships had photographers. Doing it yourself was difficult, expensive, and frought with peril. Good results were not guaranteed and you simply didn't know if you had any usable images at all until it was too late. So people accepted the cost of a photographer as necessary because they wanted usable pictures & couldn't reliably do it themselves.

 

We're not in Kansas any more. The closest most restaurants or clubs come to having a photographer now is when the waitstaff use the customers' cameras to take their pictures. Many couples today designate a friend or family member as their wedding photographer. It's easy to make usable pictures anywhere now. And, as someone pointed out in a prior post in this or another similar thread, most people just aren't very critical when the choice is free pictures of moderate quality or costly ones of top quality.

 

The best analogy I can offer is one I know well - the music business. I played 3 or 4 weddings, Bar Mitzvahs etc every week for years in the '60s & '70s. Recording studios had lists of players on call for jingles, backing solo artists, etc. The main reason I didn't become a full time musician is that I simply wasn't good enough to be a first call session player. You had to be able to play a score you'd never seen before exactly as the producer wanted it the first time through, playing with the entire band. At thousands of dollars an hour for top studio and band time, one mistake and a redo was so expensive and disruptive that you wouldn't be called back. The talent was huge and the money was outstanding. Even as a second call player in lesser studios (I never got called to do Canada Dry commercials or be in the band at the Oscar ceremony), I made enough money to pay for my entire college and medical education.

 

Fast forward to today, when everybody records on his/her computer and uses software to correct timing, pitch and other performance errors before emailing the part to the mastering lab. You don't have to hire sidemen because you can play every part on every instrument with a synthesizer and lay each track down individually to make a recorded band - everybody's a producer, performer, and recording engineer. Live music is rare at parties because DJs are both cheaper and more available. Musicians and photographers have a lot in common - many people who would have been clients in the old days now do it themselves. Is it as good? I don't think so, but they seem quite satisfied.

 

The only way to succeed in media (and many other areas) today is to reinvent the business so you can differentiate yourself from the competition, even if the competition is electronic. I share your optimism that it can be done. But it takes a clever, innovative, and even disruptive approach to define a new business model, build a market that embraces it, and capture that business. Maybe there's a market for pros to create real time assistive software for amateurs or to open rapid response services that get a photographer to a scene immediately (think GrubHub & UberEats). We haven't seen a new approach to camera design in years - playing with sensor size & format is just more of the same. There are opportunities for photographers to regain essential roles, but we'll have to design and implement those roles ourselves. Those old trees are getting bare - we need to plant new ones to shake.

The only way to succeed in media (and many other areas) today is to reinvent the business so you can differentiate yourself from the competition, even if the competition is electronic. I share your optimism that it can be done. But it takes a clever, innovative, and even disruptive approach to define a new business model, build a market that embraces it, and capture that business. Maybe there's a market for pros to create real time assistive software for amateurs or to open rapid response services that get a photographer to a scene immediately (think GrubHub & UberEats). We haven't seen a new approach to camera design in years - playing with sensor size & format is just more of the same. There are opportunities for photographers to regain essential roles, but we'll have to design and implement those roles ourselves. Those old trees are getting bare - we need to plant new ones to shake.

 

I see your point. And I've known some people who've done just this in the past. Pete Leabo was an Associated Press photographer and he and others developed the Leaf system. The Leaf system was a portable (well, it weighed about 15 pounds!) scanner which allowed the photographer to scan in negatives and then transmit them to a distribution point, in our case, the AP. It was wildly successful before digital cameras became the norm. Then there was Jim Domke, who was tired of using camera bags that just weren't designed for working photojournalists. Of course, his bags are still among the top sellerso of shoulder bags to pj folks. But the thing is this, while both of these people led very successful business ventures, they both left the field of photography to do it. The things you mention require software design, a service to dispatch photographers, and engineering--none of them involves that actual taking of photos. If people could do the things you mention, and I believer they are very good ideas, they could make a very good business out of them, but they wouldn't be out taking photos, they'd be too busy running their new companies. Actually, I don't think the dispatch idea would work too well, there are already many people taking photos on their cell phones and sending them to news outlets, and while the photos aren't all that great, the news organizations are happy to use them because they are free and immediate--as we used to say..F8 and be there, beats perfect exposures every time.

If people could do the things you mention, and I believer they are very good ideas, they could make a very good business out of them, but they wouldn't be out taking photos

Sorry - those were just a few ideas I had at the moment. My point was not to suggest that future success requires abandoning image capture. It was to suggest coming up with new ways of doing it and/or adding value to the process. We have to differentiate our roles from the traditional photographer’s role because “just taking pictures” now belongs to everyone with a camera.

 

Just knowing more isn’t enough - we have to find positive, innovative ways of bringing superior skill sets to a market & justifying their value to buyers. This is not easy! Consider the family physician whose bread & butter practice has been taken over by nurse practitioners. Without a new role for those docs, there’s little marginal value in the extra years of education followed by residency. Without new roles that add value to consumers’ dollars, photographers face a similar fate.

 

I don’t have answers on the tip of my tongue. Maybe there’s a market for a new kind of e-magazine that tells stories with great images and voice-over, in essence a photo podcast. How about real time photo-based navigation? The images in current nav programs & apps are not even close to real time, so they’re often inaccurate & unreliable. Regular updating by skilled photographers and videographers could confer a sustainable competitive advantage. There could be a market for pros to work with DIY photographers from planning to editing & presentation. Help them set up their equipment, give them an hour of basic education, receive their images in real time via WiFi etc, edit them, and provide albums & slide shows in 48 hours for half the cost of shooting it yourself.

 

Innovation is the key to surviving as a success. I’m sure many of you can run with this ball - but the business will not survive without change. Banjos and turntables are now niche businesses. Photography will join them if it doesn’t add value to buyers’ dollars.

turntables are now niche businesses.

What goes around, comes around!

Link

Vinyl Sales Are Not Just a Hipster Thing Anymore