I’ve been so busy after the celebration of my birthday last week that it has been very difficult to work on my sites but thank God, everything is going in order now so from next week, i will bounce back :). We have another awesome guest today and, she has something interesting to share with us. Lets hear her out ๐
Whether you are an aspiring amateur or a professional photographer, you probably have never thought that there is a very easy way to turn your favourite hobby into a job. That’s right, there is a pretty simple way to make money shooting and then selling your stock photos. Here is how it works.
First, you create a nice library of your best photos. Then sign up with some stock photography company and offer them your works. After that, every time someone buys some of your pictures, you will receive a percentage of the sale.
Here are a few useful things that you need to know before you start selling Stock Photography.
What to / not to shoot
Even though it seems to be a piece of cake, as any other business, there are some basic rules which you will have to follow. First of all, as soon as you sign up with the stock photography company, you will have to get aware of its specific needs. This will be very useful for your work in the future, since you will know what kind of photos customers prefer. Are you supposed to offer them nature landscapes? Or perhaps family pictures? There are a lot of different aspects of photography and you will have to understand which one fits you the best. This is the only way to sell your product.
How to/ How not to
This is another very important thing. Before you start selling your stock photos, you will have to get known to all the different photographic styles and techniques. Macro photography, high speed photography, panoramic photography, vintage photography, black and white photography… the list is endless. Choose your favourite ones and go!
What about the rejected images?
At least at the beginning, you will definitely get some of your photos rejected, As we already said, it may take you some time to understand what kind of pictures you are supposed to shoot. But if you want to make some progress, you will have to know how to learn from your mistakes. Every time they reject some of your photos, you have to ask for the reason. No matter if it is small and insignificant one, or the image is totally inappropriate. This will help you very much in the future and you will be able to learn from your mistakes.
The Necessary Equipment for starting a Stock Photography Business
As we already said, it doesn’t matter whether you are a professional photographer or an amateur. What really matters is the quality of your photos. After all, no company will agree to buy your product, if it is not of high quality. In this train of thought, if you want
people to buy your photos, you will have to select very carefully your equipment โ the camera, the computer etc. It is not necessary to buy the most expensive ones. But they definitely have to be chosen according to your personal preferences and needs.
What is so great about selling Stock Photoraphy?
Well, if you are keen on shooting, then you probably know what is so great about taking pictures โ it is art; it requires a lot of creativity and inspiration and it is fun. Now imagine that you can make some money out of your art. Selling your own stock photography gives you the great opportunity to see your photo into the magazine; on some random billboard on the highway and even on the bus. It is a great start to save some money and develop your own business in the future.
Thanks for reading my post here and, i will be waiting for your questions and comments on the comment section below. Please, help spread the word by sharing and tweeting this post :).
Harleena Singh says
Hi Jane, and welcome to Theodore’s blog ๐
Oh yes…we are ALL looking forward to hear more about your birthday and all that took place Theodore, which we hope you’d share with us pretty soon now ๐
Coming to the post, yes, I’ve heard that selling photograpghs is a great way to earn money, especially if you are a photographer or wanting to make a career from it. Nowadays you ever see anyone with a good camera, take professional pictures and upload them to sites that pay, and I think you can well enough quite a deal in that way too.
It reminded me of the time when I was fond of photograpghy, though that was ages back….no time seriously for it now. Nevertheless, I’m sure those who are into photographs are going to love the information shared here.
Thanks for sharing. Have a nice week ahead, both of you ๐
Jane Mires says
I hope so too, because I am one of them ๐
Thank you for the kind words!
Ryan Biddulph says
Hi Jane,
Great to see you here at Theodore’s fine blog! Smart post too…one that makes sense for me as I am frequently traveling and snapping photos from all over the world. Learning the rules of each network is key. Find out what certain stock sites allow. Discern what seems to be popular.
Improve your eye by shooting frequently. As I practice taking snapshots each day I am more easily able to snag some winners ๐ In time, and with some patience, I can see anybody developing a prospering career by selling their stock photography.
Thanks for sharing your insight Jane!
Ryan
Ryan Biddulph says
Forget to mention too, happy belated Birthday Theodore! Hope you enjoyed it buddy!!!
Jane Mires says
Thank you Ryan, I’m glad you liked it (:
Enstine Muki says
Hi Jane,
Good to see you here on Theo’s blog and thanks for sharing this money making opportunity.
It’s such a wonderful opening for photographers to monetize their activities. Good luck to photographers who want to give a try to this unfailing money making method
BTW, happy birthday to you Theo. Many more years ahead bro
Jane Mires says
Thank you Enstine!
Pst Bless says
Hi Jane, i admire your style, you are becoming greater by the day. Thanks for this concept. I appreciate.
Jane Mires says
Thank you! I am so happy that everybody likes the article. (:
Chetan Gupta says
Really It’s a great experience for me to read this post which help me to learn something new and interesting. Thanks for your explanation. ๐
Jane Mires says
Most welcome!
Neulabs says
Hey Jane, very nice article on photography. The tips given on how to/ what to/ what not to are wonderful and very helpful.
Jane Mires says
thank you ((:
Mitch says
Hey Jane,
and Theo, Happy late birthday!
it would have made more sense to me, if you said you loved photography and wanted to start a photography blog, or a photography forum etc.. and want to monetize it,
but selling photos online make no sense to me!
in my mind, the only people that would be interested in buying such pictures would be web designers, and most of them are coders and understand the web language and can easily download and save the picture without having to buy it,
even you edit your pics to add a logo or something, everybody now can use Photoshop and fix it!
it would cost wayy allot more securing the photos from being hacked than you’ll ever make selling them!
I’m sorry i don mean to be negative, but i like to question everything ๐ ,
Many thanks and Best wishes!
Jane Mires says
In many countries the original author rights are highly honored and people prefer to buy stock photos instead of stealing them. And you can always ask for your rights if someone has stolen something that you own. And you have to! That is my opinion.
And, Mitch, thank you for your honest comment, I appreciate it.
Connor Harley says
I have always tried selling photos to have an extra income aside from the fact that I love taking pictures. But I haven’t tried yet. Thanks a lot for these tips you shared.
Jane Mires says
Thank you Connor (:
allmoneyideal says
I have heard about this many times but don’t really have the time to check it out. But one question, will any photo sell? or there are some types of photos one can sell. I will tried it anyway to see how things will turn out. Thanks for sharing.
Jane Mires says
Try to take pictures that would be helpful to a specific business like pictures of food, vegetables etc. or maybe a working person, a cleaning person, a person that cooks.
I Hate Writing Articles - Three Methods To Get Fresh Free Articles! says
Thanks greatly i will give it a try
Amit says
Hi Jane! Awesome article as always. Could you provide me some sites where I can sell my photographs and on an average how much can anyone earn from a single good quality photograph?
Jane Mires says
Hello Amit,
I am afraid I can’t provide you with information like that. There are many factors it depends on ( the concept, originality, the stock image website itself etc).
First you need to do a research on the most searched types of stock images and the niches they are related to.
The sites are many, here is an example where you can find more information how to register and sell etc. http://www.istockphoto.com/sell-stock-photos.php
dhiraj says
Good thought…
May i get some sites name where top quality photographers are selling thier photos?
I want to see it…
Ashvin says
Hi Jane,
This is one of the best article, I have ever found about Stock photography.
I usually buy photos for my personal collection and project from shutterstock but donโt yet think about selling stock photographs.. After reading your guide, I got some knowledge about itโs working which will help us to make money.