How to sell Photography Online - Six Ways to Sell Photos Online and earn recurring income. Anyone can be a photographer. Anyone can sell their photos and make money from their photos. This is not to say that everyone will have equal talent at photography, nor will everyone have equal success at making money from photography, if this is the goal. Anyone can be a hobbyist photographer. But that’s another eBook. ;) In this eBook, we will skip right to the available income-generating options assuming that you are looking for places to sell photos you have already taken or photo you plan to take in the future.
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www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life!
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Six Ways to Sell
Photos (& Make Money from Home!) This ebook is Distributed and
Copyright by P.j. Germain http://www.PureResiduals.com
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www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life!
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Table of Contents
Introduction. Method #1. Stock Photography Part 1- Micro-Stock Part
2 - Actual Stock Photography Method #2. Get Published Part 1 - Cold
Submissions Part 2 - Personal Promotions Method #3. Sell Yourself
Part 1 - Prints Part 2 - Products
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Introduction
Anyone can be a photographer. Anyone can sell their photos and make
money from their photos. This is not to say that everyone will have
equal talent at photography, nor will everyone have equal success
at making money from photography, if this is the goal. Anyone can
be a hobbyist photographer. But thats another eBook. ;) In this
eBook, we will skip right to the available income-generating
options assuming that you are looking for places to sell photos you
have already taken or photo you plan to take in the future. Im
going to discuss three different methods for selling your
photographs and each of these three areas have two-parts, so
technically there are SIX ways to sell detailed in this ebook.
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Method #1. Stock
Photography Overview: What is stock Photography? Stock Photos are
images that are not taken for a specific product, company, or
service, but is a generic or stock model that can be used for a
variety of purposes and a lot of times more than one purpose. For
example: Whereas a large hamburger chain like McDonalds might set
up their own (typically medium to large scale) photo shoots for
their specific products, on the other hand a local diner or
bar/grill might purchase some stock photos of hamburgers to use on
their menu and promotional items. Ever notice how a lot of the
images on take-out menus look the same?? The main benefit to using
stock photos rather than setting up a photo shoot is cost. Some
businesses do not have the budget pay for hiring a photographer and
setting up photo shoot, which could entail additional expenses for
hiring models, make-up artists and hair stylists, renting a studio,
and also potential post-production costs. Stock photography is
usually performed by professional photographers and most of the
stock agencies (well get to that shortly) have quality requirements
and creative criteria. So you know you can get good to excellent
photographs to use without spending as much as you might though
there ARE stock photographs which do cost a pretty penny due to
licensing rights (another topic well touch upon). There is also no
shortage of photographs or photographers out there, so for most of
the common items someone might need stock images for - pets,
plants, household items, landscape scenes, etc. - there is a
plethora to choose from. But at the other end of the scale you have
larger usage needs (such as a national magazine or news site)
photos which include recognizable people/celebrities, buildings and
privately-owned places, brands, exclusive events, etc. where one
would need permission to use the photos thats where we pay the
piper, er photographer, photographed subject(s), property-owner, or
photo-owner. Lets go more into these two types of stock
photography.
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Part 1-
Micro-Stock Micro-stock is the type of stock photography
aforementioned where typically the budget is less and the need for
one-of-a-kind imagery is probably NOT as much of a priority. Theres
a big potential to make money selling your photos on micro-stock
sites and there are a number of benefits. The Advantages of Selling
Your Photos on Micro-stock Sites: 1. You dont need much experience
to sell on micro-stock sites. 2. You can sell photos on micro-stock
sites from home. 3. You can select and sell nearly any subject
matter of photos that youd like. 4. Once your photos are accepted
and up for sale theyre for sale for good! Great long- term passive
income (eg. income you dont have to constantly work for they sell
on their own!) The Disadvantages of Selling Your Photos on
Micro-stock Sites: 1. Its hard to get photos accepted. 2.
Commissions are relatively small. 3. Competition is very great. 4.
Payment takes PATIENCE. Anyone who fulfills the requirements for
any particular micro-stock site can start selling stock photos
immediately. Getting accepted, however, can often prove the trying
and sometimes discouraging part. In additional to technical
requirements, most micro-stock photo agencies have creative
criteria as well. Firstly, you may have to go through a training
tutorial and/or test in order to be approved as a stock
photographer. This application may include a review of some sample
images. If your images are not up to par, you will be rejected.
Each micro-stock agency has its own standards for acceptance and I
would encourage you to read their individual guides and
requirements prior to submitting in order to save you some time in
the long-run.
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Secondly, after
being accepted then each image you upload into your online stock
photo portfolio will have to be approved before going live for
sale. Your photos will be inspected for technical quality on both
digital file aspects as well as photographic expertise. Some of the
Technical Requirements May Include: File size: The larger (in MB)
your photo files are - the better. Even better, shoot RAW.
Resolution: Again, bigger is better. Keep your original files as
uncompressed as possible, always shoot at the highest quality your
camera can muster. Pixelation: Blurry is bad. (with the exception
of aesthetic intent) Sharpness is good. View your image at 100%
actual size and if you can see any pixels thats bad. Retouching:
Your images will be personally inspected by a human who will zoom
in to see if any obvious sizes of (bad) retouching are apparent.
This is not to say, dont retouch your photos. You definitely should
retouch your photos. But retouch well. Lighting: The micro-stock
inspection human will also look for your lighting quality of your
photo. Most photos with hot spots or over-exposed areas will be
rejected, as will any photos which are too dark. Any photos with
big shiny spots on someones forehead or obvious glares from flash
photography will surely be rejected. Lighting is a skill which
takes some experience and study this is an area that could separate
the professionals from the amateurs. White Balance: Another thing
to watch is the white balance of any submitted photo. I wont go
into the technical details of this, since thats for another guide,
but the gist of this is you want the white in your photos to be
white (color hex code #FFFFFF), the blacks to be black (#000000),
and the grays to look gray (#). This can be most easily achieved at
the scene of the photo; using either a gray balance card, or in a
pinch, anything that is bright white, like a piece of paper or
person wearing a white t-shirt. Then, a custom white balance is set
using the cameras settings menu. The other way of ensuring your
photos are properly white-balanced is to do it in post- production,
which can be hard but often its your only option, such as when
youre shooting on-location or shooting an event.Its much easier to
take the time to get the picture perfect white balance when youre
in a controllable shooting environment, such as an indoor studio
photo shoot with lighting equipment.
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! But if you have
to do it in post, the most important thing is to make sure your
computer monitor is calibrated! If the color of your monitor is
off, then your color editing will be off before you even begin!
There are various ways to test the color and to color calibrate
your monitor, though I wont go too far into that, since its not
very relevant to this eBook. What I will give you are three basic
ways. 1. Use your computers internal settings. Somewhere in your
computers control panel and/or using the monitor buttons (on a
desktop) there are display settings and most likely some built-in
calibration tool. Try this first. 2. Use online diagnostic tests
and tools. There are some free tests you can find online which can
help check the accurateness of your screen color calibration, as
well as the brightness, sharpness, and other options. Use caution
when relying on these methods though, since accuracy can vary. 3.
The best method that will provide the most accurate screen and/or
monitor calibration would be to use color calibration software.
There are various different products available on the market, so if
you have budget for a software purchase or you just want to get the
best possible color accuracy for your photography, then consider
purchasing one of these. **Dont assume because your computer is
brand new that your screen is color calibrated. Its probably not.
Definitely run through your computers built-in screen settings
first and then take it from there.** Besides technical quality
assurance, theres also a set of criteria for the creative aspects
of your photos. Your photo(s) may be rejected simply because it
doesnt meet the agencys standards from a marketing perspective. In
other words, neither the major stock agencies nor the micro-stock
sites have any use for images which no one else wants to buy
either. Stock photo buyers are looking for specific types of stock
photos, so keep that in mind when selecting photos to submit and
also when shooting for stock.
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Part 2 Stock
Photography If you are at the level of professional photography
where you have high-quality equipment, expertise, and experience
then you may want to move into the business of high-end stock
photography. The way to do is this is to gather your best stock
photos into a pretty package and visit each of the major stock
photography agencies websites, find their submissions page, and
submit. Its as simple as that. Or as difficult, since the standards
for major stock photography are much higher and there is a lot of
competition. It may take days or weeks to hear back from any
application also. The benefit of applying to and hopefully being
accepted into a major stock agency is that you can; A Go on and/or
be given assignments, which is generally guaranteed (and relatively
quick) payment unlike micro-stock sites where you have to wait for
downloads and to reach earnings minimums before cashing out, and B
You will make considerably larger commissions per photo because of
the licensing & usage rights. Major stock photo agencies deal
in large-scale usage; such as for television, nationwide campaigns,
product launches, or editorial publications. In the case of
large-scale usage, the buyer of a stock photo must pay a variable
cost depending on how/where the photo will be used. Additionally,
the images often contain persons, events, or property which may
require special permissions and/or licensing. **IMPORTANT: For ANY
type of photography sales for stock usage, in merchandise, for
publication, or otherwise ANY photos sold for profit (eg;
commercial use) must have the proper photo and/or property release
forms signed by ANY and ALL identifiable subjects in the photos.**
Here is a sample Photo Release Form by iStockPhoto that you can
print and use. Here is a sample Property Release Form also by
iStockPhoto. Other agencies may have their own release forms to
download. If you can recognize him/her/them/it you need a release
form to sell it!
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Here is a list of
Micro-Stock Agencies where you can sign-up to sell your photos.
Alamy Dreamstime Fotolia iStockPhoto Shutterstock Top Stock
Photography Agencies Apply Within (if/when youre ready! Good luck!)
These links will take you directly to the Contributor Submissions
information for each agency Corbis Getty Images
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Method #2. Get
Published Get published. Sounds simple right? Far from it and often
far less glamorous than it seems, though it IS a kick to see your
photos in use somewhere - for me, this feels just as exciting
whether its seeing one of my photos in a magazine complete with
credits in the margin, as it coming across one of my stock photos
out there being used. The not-so-glamorous part comes in the form
of the paycheck. Though its a resume-building credit to be
published in any respectable magazine, its also one of the lowest
paying photo gigs out there, at least in terms of having your
photos used commercially. But we still want to be published right??
Right! How do you get your photos published, aside from being
someone who knows someone or a friend of the band, and if you dont
have a photography agent which, if youre reading this eBook, you
probably dont. Part 1 - Cold Submissions One way of getting your
photos published is the same method that has existed for as long as
humans have engaged in business commerce, and that is COLD sales.
In this particular case, Im not suggesting cold CALLS though it
wouldnt be unheard of nor unambitious that would probably be a
frustrating process without first having a direct contact of
interest to speak with. Instead, a great way to become published is
to submit directly to a list of prospective publishers and/or
buyers of your photos. Ideally, youll want to decide which photo or
photos you are pursuing for publication and then compile a list of
potential clients, along with their contact info. You may find some
companies or publications are reachable by email or an online
contact form. But, in this day of too much email and even more
spam, I would suggest preparing an old fashioned snail mail
campaign. And when I say campaign this can be a short campaign or a
campaign planned over time, depending on the feedback you receive
and on how much you want it! A short campaign might be as simple as
a letter with link to your website or a customized designed
postcard with your work. It could also be a package with a CD or
DVD of a collection of images that are either available for sale or
as a freestanding portfolio slideshow of your work.
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! If you wanted to
put some extra marketing budget into your mail campaign, you could
send your portfolio on a mini-USB flash drive. Ideally, you will
engage in a multiple blast marketing campaign if you are taking
this route, as typically consistency and persistence produce the
greatest results in marketing. Start with a letter of inquiry or a
postcard. Follow-up with a DVD. If you can get someone on the phone
and youre good like that, try to get the contact on the phone.
However aggressive you want to be on your self-promoting marketing
campaign or not, you can choose which tactics you feel most
comfortable in. Where do you find contacts and/or who to contact?
For me there have been two resources Ive enlisted to find contact
information for people Ive sent direct mail campaigns to: 1 The
Photographers Market This is an annual directory book which has
tons of listings for publications, advertising agencies,
newsletters, trade publications, book publishers, and other
businesses that buy stock photos. The great thing about this
directory is that many of the listings not only have direct contact
info for photo submissions, but many listings have photo guidelines
(which are important to follow if they are offered!) and some of
them have the pay rates for accepted images. Youll see rates for
cover photos as opposed to insert photos for magazines. There are
all different genres of companies and publishers, and the range of
subjects they accept photo submissions for is surplus. There are
places to submit your landscape photos (such as travel
publications) just as surely as there are places to submit your
fashion photos. Get this book on Amazon now. 2 The mastheads. This
refers to that long column of credits on one of the front pages of
the magazines you want to be published in. Look for the Photo
editor if you can find him/her. Otherwise, direct your cold sales
pitch to whoever is closest to it. Art Director, Photo Assistant,
etc. If you are looking for the most success in submissions and
without pissing anyone off with spam: Do your Due Diligence. In
other words, take your time, do the research, and send the best
possible marketing package to the best possible prospects
personalized and tailored to each contact. If you really want to be
in ABCDE magazine - you should understand the kinds of photos ABCDE
magazine publishes. Understand the content and make sure your
photos are suited to the buyer. And if there are photo submission
guidelines in place ABIDE by them!
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Part 2 - Personal
Promotions We touched upon personal promotions already in Part 1,
with utilizing a mailing campaign. But there are additional methods
of personal promotions I want to discuss briefly before moving on
to our last section. In addition to old-school salesmanship, youll
want to use the modern marketing tactics of today. Put up a Website
Build an Email Mailing List Start a Facebook Page Market on Twitter
Upload on Flickr Join & participate in Photography Forums
Submit to Photo Contests These are just a few of the ways you can
gain visibility to your photography brand. I wont go into detail
about each of these marketing tactics now, but in future eCourses
we will discuss personal promotions and self-marketing in more
detail. The essential part of Personal Promotions is to garner a
larger audience for your work. You should also connect all of your
photography promotional avenues together. For example: Youll want
to link your photography Facebook page from your photography
website and vice versa. Cross-promotions will only expand the
number of ways that people may come across your photos and items
for sale. Fill out your profile in Photography Directories and in
your micro-stock profiles, forum profiles, etc., and create
standard signatures with your main URL, so that you can capture
traffic from all directions.
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! Method #3. Sell
Yourself Part 1 - Prints Theres money to be made by selling your
own photos for yourself. You can set-up your own online store or
put a store page on your existing website where you can sell print
of your own photos. Of course, the same rules of Photo Releases
applies here make sure you own all the rights to the photos you are
selling and also, that you have photo releases and/or property
releases signed by any recognizable subject(s) in your photos or
anything recognized as someone elses property, or intellectual
property for that matter. (eg; brands, trademarks, labels, etc.)
Even a street sign or legible sign in the background could be a
problem for any photos you are selling commercially. But lets get
back to business. You can sell prints through a photography
services or you could partner with print companies and/or picture
framing businesses who offer special rates to photographers. If you
want to be totally independent of any paid services, you could sell
individual photos yourself using a simple shopping cart integrated
into your site along with a payment processing service like Paypal.
There are many ways of setting up your prints for sale, its just a
question of how much time you want to put into it, or are you
looking for the quickest, easiest, or most profitable system? There
are different services and systems for each answer to that. Here
are a few services that Ive used, tried, and/or heard about:
Instaproofs This is a service where you can upload your galleries
and then set your own pricing. They do not provide printing
services, which is good because you can then choose your favorite
printing company or use the most economical instead of the huge
marked-up prices that some printers charge. This system has a lot
of options, you can create picture packages, photo set prices, add
special services or product add-ons, etc. The catch is that the
processing fee is 8-15% - which can force you to mark-up your
prices a bit more than some other services, in order to make a good
profit. The galleries
www.PureResiduals.com 2013 Get Paid For Life! are great though,
a lot of nice features, and Ive processed some orders through them
with success. DotPhoto PhotoShelter ShootProof Part 2 - Products
Similar to selling prints, you could also turn your photos into
photo-merchandise and sell to your website visitors or to your
photography clients, if youre doing service-based photography as
well. Create a pet calendar or a travel calendar from your summer
trip overseas. Use your photos to customize mugs and mouse pads or
design some humorous greeting cards. Or write an eBook ;) and use
your own photos for graphics! Here are Resources for Creating Photo
Merchandise (besides prints) to Sell Fotomoto Shutterfly
Zazzle