How to Cash in on Photography

Digital cameras have opened up the world of photography for the amateur. With dozens of automated settings and photo editing programs it's easier than ever for the Average Joe (or Jane) to take professional looking photos. However, is there a way for an amateur photographer to make money from his photos? The answer is yes, and all without spending a penny on storage or membership fees.

The easiest ways to make money using photography are microstock websites. These websites allow photographers to sell their photos online without worrying about fees and marketing problems. Photos submitted are usually screened by the company for quality before being posted for sale. Any photo that does not meet the site's requirements is disapproved for sale, and the photographer is notified of the reasons so that they may make corrections and resubmit. During the screening process the photo is also checked for possible legal issues. While these issues vary site by site, a few recurring requirements include model releases for any person recognizable within the photo, property releases, and the exclusion of copyrighted material from the photo unless written permission is given by the company.

There are several reasons microstock websites offer the best solution for amateur photographers looking to cash in on their hobby. Unlike other websites offering an easy method to sell photographs there are no fees for the use of microstock websites. Microstock websites also allow the photographer to control the rights of his photographs. If a photographer decides to make a photo exclusive they may not submit it to any other site, while this cuts down on the number of sites hosting your image it increases the profit from every sale by a percentage. A few sites also offer the ability for the user to set the prices on photos they are submitting. This ensures that the photos will be sold for a reasonable price that is neither too low nor too high.

How does one register for a microstock website? How easy is it to submit photos? It's extremely easy to both register for a service, and upload photos. For this example I registered to Image Vortex (http://www.imagevortex.com/).

1. On the main site of Image Vortex is an option for photographers to register. Clicking on this link will open a webpage asking for a username, password, e-mail address, and usage plan. Don't let the sound of that scare you, this option simply sets up what webpage the user will encounter after logging into the site. For this purpose, select "submit photos for sale".

2. After completing registration it is time to begin uploading photos. The webpage for uploading allows for one image at a time; however there is also an option to download a bath upload tool. For the purposes of this walkthrough I selected the batch upload. After selecting the batch upload option an option to download a program appears. Save this somewhere easily accessible.

3. After downloading the program run it to install the complete program to your computer.

4. After installation is completed run upload tool. When choosing files to upload there are two options; either select the individual files or a folder. Because I had edited the images in Photoshop to increase their quality, they were saved in an individual folder. After selecting the folder, the photos were listed in the program.

5. Now the program requires the user to scroll through the list and fill in details for every photo being submitted. Some details are optional such as details and keyword. However "Release" is a required selection. Either select: 'Available' or 'Not Required' depending on the situation.

6. After all required details have been filled in the photos may be uploaded to the site for screening.

As of writing this walkthrough the photos I submitted are still being screened for quality, however the ability to set the photo's price and the high profit from each sale makes Image Vortex one of the best options for microstock photography.