Selling photos online
You can make a profit by selling photos online. It depends on the skill, the amount of time you are willing to devote, and the amount of money you intend to earn.
E-commerce has transformed the business sector, and everyone now has an online presence. People used to print photos and preserve albums, but that is no longer the case. Everything is now digital.
The internet photo and video sector are predicted to increase at an average rate of 9% annually and be worth roughly $27 billion by 2026.
Selling photos online has become a very profitable and popular business among individuals these days, so if you want to start one, be prepared for competition. But we will guide you on how to handle that competition, and run a profitable photography business.
What you should know about selling photos online?
- You need to get approval before uploading them to professional stock sites.
- your photos must fulfill quality requirements.
- Photo prices are set by stock sites.
- Popular stock photo sites provide you with visibility, but they are competitive.
- Commission payments vary.
- Some sites require exclusiveness and you will not be able to sell your photos to other stock photo websites.
- You will keep the copyright when you sell your photos on stock photo websites under a royalty-free license. This means the buyer has certain rights to use them for marketing purposes such as a website or a brochure. They cannot resell your photograph.
Easy steps for selling photos online
Niche
Your photography category or niche can be:
- Nature
- Wildlife
- Product
- Model
- Daily life photos
Keep clicking different types of photographs until you discover your favorite niche.
Equipment
Common photography equipment includes: Your photography equipment depends on your niche. If you have chosen a product niche, you will need:
- Professional Camera
- Lens
- Tripod
- Memory cards
- Flash
- Backdrop
- Filters
- Reflectors
If you wish to shoot lifestyle photography or models, you needed a studio. For product niche, you need a photo booth in addition to the common equipment.
Portfolio
Whatever your area of expertise is, take your camera and start shooting. Once you have a sufficient number of photos, select the best ones, edit them, and include them in your portfolio. Build your portfolio with a collection of beautiful photos and upload them to stock photography websites. Check the websites’ quality guidelines as this can assist you in setting a standard for yourself.
Keep in mind that you will need to submit your work to stock photo sites for approval before you can begin selling on that platform. Also, ensure that your portfolio accurately represents your business and contains only high-quality images.
SEO
Now that you have your photo collection ready to upload, it’s time to take care of SEO. Selling photos online needs a collection of photos on their website. For visibility and ranking, you need to optimize your site to SEO requirements.
Marketing
Now is the moment to concentrate on promoting your work to the appropriate audience so that it is noticed and you may make money selling photos online.
Choosing your channels is a critical step toward successful marketing. Nowadays, social media are excellent channels for marketing. So simply upload work samples to Instagram and Pinterest and reach out to potential customers.
Best places for selling photos online
Shutterstock
- Most popular stock photos website for over 15 years.
- Have millions of photographs, movies, audio tracks, and, most importantly, millions of paying clients.
- So far they have paid out over $500 million to its contributors.
- They allow you to retain the copyright of your photographs.
- Contributors can earn anywhere from 15% to 40% dependent on how many times their clients download your work at the end of each month.
- They allow you to publish and sell your work on other sites.
Foap
- ABC News recognizes Foap as a profitable photo-selling app.
- The site describes itself as a personalized visual-content platform built by creatives for creative professionals.
- Users make 50% as a commission.
- Their clients include Sony and MasterCard, Nivea, Volvo, and Heineken.
Alamy
- The process of registration with Alamy is easy.
- It has paid out up to $180 million to contributing photographers.
- Its commission rate is 40 -50%.
- Quality control process before accepting your photos.
iStock Photo (By Getty Images)
- Getty Images owns and operates the service.
- The commission is 15 – 45%.
Stocksy
- They are not as popular as Shutterstock but they are worth considering.
- The vetting process is rigorous. So. acceptance chances are not great, but if you do, you’ll have an advantage.
- They pay the highest commission between 50-75%.
- Anyone is welcome to apply. We frequently seek artists with a knack for storytelling or who have completed bodies of work.
- They are now looking for new international talent from Southeast and East Asia, the Middle East, Australasia, and Western Europe for traditional beauty norms.
Getty Images
- It is very popular in the stock photo industry.
- With over 1.5 million consumers in over 200 countries, your images will be seen by a global audience.
- To join, you must first download their mobile app and complete the application.
- The commission is between 15 – 20%.
Adobe Stock
- It has a reputation for producing the most popular photo editing software on the market.
- Photos you publish to the marketplace can be accessed in other Adobe applications.
- It does not require you to grant them exclusive selling rights, you can sell your photographs elsewhere.
- The commission rate is 33%.
Selling photos online on freelance job sites and online marketplaces
In addition to the above sites, you can also sell your photos online to freelance job sites which include:
- Fiverr
- Upwork
- Freelancer
- Guru
- People Per Hour
- Etsy
- Fine Art America
- Society6
- RedBubble
- Artfinder
- Café Press
- Saachi Art
Summary
Selling photos online and getting paid is easy. Selling photos on your website is the simplest and most cost-effective solution because it gives you complete control over your income. However, if you want to gain more exposure, you can start selling photos online on sites like Adobe Stock, Alamy, Shutterstock, and others highlighted in this post.
