How to Make Money From Your Photography (Microstock)
Posted on June 6, 2008
Filed Under Digital Cameras |
By trade I’m a web developer and my wife is a graphic designer. Together we began selling our photographs through the internet over two years ago as a way to earn a little extra cash from something we enjoyed doing. At the time we only had a little 4 megapixel point-n-shoot camera but my wife knew about editing photos from studying Design in college. At the time we thought we knew about photography as well, however we now know what we didn’t know then.
In our first month we only earned $16, yet with some persistence and a lot of internet research we raised this amount to $270 in six months. Since it was only a part time hobby we certainly weren’t expecting it to earn so much so quickly, yet this early success convinced us of the potential that was there and we quickly invested in a digital SLR. That was 2 years ago and we’re now earning around $600 per month and have a modest portfolio of approximately 700 photographs listed with eight agencies. We still consider ourselves hobbyist photographers who create stock photos in our spare time.
You may be wondering, “Who sells photos in the microstock market?” Through the internet I’ve connected with hundreds of other microstock contributors. You would be surprised at the amazing variety of people who contribute to this market and each has a similarly impressive variety of reasons. There are many retired couples who simply want to see their work published; there are also people who earn tens of thousands of dollars each month. There are a huge variety of people in the middle for microstock is their job or who, like me, have microstock as part of their monthly income. Yet one of the largest groups are photography students - both students who have formally chosen photography as their career and hobbyists who study for fun.
Why is microstock so good for students? There are three main reasons: freedom; money; and education.
To participate with Microstock is free and there are no set work hours, no bosses and most importantly, no due dates. Microstock pays money which is great given that photography isn’t a cheap endeavor. If you are interested in learning about the commercial side of photography Microstock is also a great way to educate yourself. What better teacher than a global market of photo buyers?
Yes, Microstock is a controversial endeavor. You may have heard it is ‘bad’ for the industry. The microstock concept is relatively new as it only works with the Internet and high quality digital cameras. Because of that there are many professional stock photographers with strong feelings about the impact microstock is having on the industry.
I have personally spoken with some of the world’s most successful stock photographers and they tell me that they’re not noticing any impact on their business from microstock. Photos compete on quality and not price (microstock photos sell cheaper but in higher quantity) and there will always be buyers interested in the top level of the market, regardless of the price.
It’s also understandable that many of the photographers who now make a living with microstock have displaced some ‘traditional’ stock photographers. This happens with any technological change as big as the Internet and digital photography and it’s understandable that those on the receiving end are not happy about it.
To be sure, Microstock has brought new buyers to the market. Prior to Microstock small businesses, charities and bloggers weren’t big purchasers of stock photos when each image cost $350 or more. Now that blog size images are $1 and print size images are $10, you can imagine how sales have increased.
So how much can I earn in microstock? The amount depends on both the quality and quantity of photographs you can produce. Those who work full time with microstock and have a portfolio of 7,000 high quality images or more can easily earn over $20,000 per MONTH! On the flip side, those contributors who have only a handful of images earn just a few dollars. Like me, you’ll most likely find yourself between these two extremes.
I typically will earn a little under $1 per photo per month. On the internet you can find monthly earnings figures and links to portfolios. With some research you can easily compare your portfolio or photography skills with others to determine more or less how much you could expect to earn with your photos in the microstock market.
Is microstock easy? Not at the beginning, it isn’t. Many online agencies require a test submission which is generally stricter than their typical review process. Microstock agencies also review submissions based on what sells, which is images that are super sharp, noiseless and commercially appealing. Because of this initial review many of the established and highly skilled photographers experience early rejections and quickly dismiss the microstock opportunity. You can start with some of the middle tier agencies which don’t require you to pass a test. In doing this you can easily get an idea of what types of photos are being accepted and which ones sell well. After that, it’s relatively easy to start earning money.
Here’s two of my best selling photos. Each is a simple shot taken with the intention of selling for stock, but with no more preparation that being in the the necessary place with my camera. Both these photos earn over $30 per month though their success varies between agencies.
It’s also not easy creating above-average success. Average per-photo earnings of top microstock contributors can be up to ten times what I earn, so you can imagine the difference in the quality and appeal of the photos they produce. They also need to repeat this many times to create a portfolio large enough to raise their earnings above average.
How can I improve my chances of success? Here are my top suggestions for people who want to get started selling their photos in the microstock market:
Managing your expectations can often sound easier than it actually is. A typical sales pitch might read, “click here to start earning money from the photos sitting idle on your computer”. That’s not exactly realistic and you’ll soon quit if you begin with this expectation in mind. Do your own research to figure out what sells, create these photos well, and be smart about how you contribute. Concentrate on workflow.
If you are planning on contributing many photos it’s important to have an efficient workflow so time is not wasted doing unnecessarily repetitive tasks. Do your research and refine your workflow so you can put quality photographs into the market as quickly and efficiently as possible. Microstock is business. If your photographs are more artistic than commercial you may want to seriously consider if you and microstock are a good match. Artistic photos will not sell as well as commercial photos, however they will sell in the microstock market.
Research. I’ve already given you some ideas to research but don’t stop with those. Get every one of your questions answered prior to beginning so you save time and don’t do anything that doesn’t work to your advantage. There are many things written on the internet for people who are interested in selling photos in the microstock market.
6 Microstock Sites Where You can Make Money from Your Photos Here are a number of Microstock programs that offer photographers money for their images: Shutterastock, Dreamstime, Crestock, fotolia, 123rf, Stockxpert.
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