Turn My Photography Hobby Into A Career

Ranked #11,617 in Arts & Design, #215,507 overall

How Can I Turn My Photography Hobby Into A Career Or Business?

Are you asking yourself "how can I turn my photography hobby into a career or business?" Are you the person who always has their camera with them and is constantly taking picutures; trying to take those fun, rare, unique photos all the time?

Photography has changed so much in the past two decades. The price of photography has gone down significantly so that almost anyone can become a serious photographer. All you need is a decent digital camera, a computer and photo editing software to begin a career that can take you to the next level.
Did you know that there are websites that will pay you for those photos?
Okay, maybe not for all of them, but let's take a quick look at what you want to keep in mind and some sites to look at.

First, Photographing The The Right Subjects

First off and very important - is your work what people what? Most website companies that will pay for your images (called stock photography or images) will not be interested in pictures of your dog Fifi or your Aunty Martha on the beach last summer - no matter how good they are!
The images that sell depict concepts, generic objects or succinctly capture the essence of ideas, emotions or travel destinations. Images of the view from your balcony or an abstract shot of your bathroom tiles might very well make an attractive desktop image but they are less likely to persuade a designer to part with their money!

Next, Image Quality

Quality is vital, noisy grainy photos from low-end digital cameras will have limited use. If you want to sell the largest market (both web and print) then you will need good quality, well-lit, sharp, high-resolution images.
We don't need to go on about this topic. It's pretty simple, make sure you keep the quality level top notch!

Websites That Host Stock Photography

Before we go too much further, you're probably asking "what do you mean by Stock Phography"?
Stock Photography companies specialize in hosting photographers' photos (some also sell the images for you).
Stock photography is a term that refers to photographs that can be licensed for public or commercial use, which are usually found on professional stock photography websites. These are photographs that can be used for any purpose in marketing, advertising, or design, as long as it is not illegal or harmful. Rather than shoulder the expense of hiring a photographer to take unique photos, many advertising companies, graphic designers, web designers, and other professionals frequently take advantage of stock photography to fill their design needs.
Stock photographs can be licensed for specific uses. It is used to fulfill the needs of creative assignments instead of hiring a photographer. Today, stock images can be presented in searchable online databases. They can be purchased and delivered online.
Some common sites are:
iStockphoto
ShutterStock
Smugmug
Photo Stock Plus
ShutterPoint
Fotolia
Getty
See "Photographers Needed Worldwide" in this link for more details on how to start changing your Photography Hobby into a Career.

Getting Started Quickly

To get yourself started and on your way, you don't need any special printers or expensive photography equipment because all of the pictures you take will be uploaded directly to the internet! You don't even really need to know anything about digital cameras or photography to get started making money.You can check out this link Photographers Needed Worldwide
You can research the common websites above, each has their own policies.
The simple steps are:
-Take the photos
-Upload them to your chosen sources
-Your Photo gets downloaded
-You get paid
We'd like to get paid a lot rather than just a little. If it was that easy, everyone would be doing it, right? Don't get down on yourself if there are things to learn as you go. And definitely don't let little roadblocks along the way stop you from moving forward!
Okay, how do you know what types of photos get downloaded more than others? Now we're back to knowing what people are looking for.
Who pays the highest rates? How do we get them to accept our work?
There's a bit more we might want to look into, too; like web searches and keywords that get associated with your photos.
In fact Brian Moore covers these and many more, like:
How to ensure you are getting the best fee possible for each photo?
How to easily find websites that will practically beg you for your photos.
How to sell your images offline.
There's Never Been a Better Time to Turn Your Photography Hobby Into A Career! Become a Freelance Digital Photographer!
You will be lead step by step, we'll hold your hand and show you exactly what to do!

Other Recommended lenses

Loading

Reader Feedback

submit

by

PersonalityNCareers

Isn't it time to match our personality to our careers? We take career path quizzes and personality tests trying to find out what we want to be when we... more »

Feeling creative? Create a Lens!