Make money with photography

AERIAL AND DRONE PHOTOGRAPHY

Aerial photography has been around forever, but with the advent of high quality, affordable drones, (like the mega-popular DJI Phantom), that require a relatively short learning curve, this genre of photography has blown wide open. For less than a couple thousand dollars (about the same price as the average DSLR camera) you could be creating stunning aerial images and videos.

This type of photography, now vastly more accessible to photographers and clients, is becoming increasingly popular. Eternally creative band, Ok Go, just released their latest music video, and it featured some jaw-droppingly impressive drone work.

If you always loved remote control toys, and photography, there couldn’t be a better way to make money than drone photography. Look into it.

BIRTH PHOTOGRAPHY

This type of photography still gets an eyebrow raised, and a “Really? People want that?” when we bring it up, but I can tell you, from personal experience, that birth photos are among the most amazing images a client could ever own. I’ve been fortunate enough to be on both sides of the lens here, and I’m not surprised at all that this genre of photography is growing rapidly.

Birth photography requires a particular sensitivity, and a whole lot of stamina and dedication, but it is also one of the purest expressions of what draws so many people to portraiture – love, amazement, and joy.

If this type of photography piques your interest then check into it further. It’s becoming more and more accepted, and in demand, and a great birth photographer could quickly become worth their weight in gold. Literally. (Ok maybe not quite literally…)

BUT WHAT ABOUT FINE ART? OR LANDSCAPE??

Now this certainly was a point of discussion here, and I’m sure that convincing arguments can be made either way.

But here’s what we decided.

We were looking for specific ways to make money as a photographer. When it came to things like wedding photography or real estate photography, it was clear to us that you could be hired to shoot those things, and you’d make money simply by taking the photos (and, presumably, delivering the files).

But landscape photography? Fine art photography? By and large, those genres of photography require a different approach in terms of making an income. Landscape photographers make their money by selling prints, books, teaching, or running photo tours. They aren’t generally hired to go out and create photos. They do it on their own, and then have to work to sell the images afterwards. Fine art photography is the same thing.

Are there exceptions to this? I’m sure there are. I’m sure there are fine art photographers out there who are commissioned to shoot something, or landscape photographers who are hired to go and shoot a mountain.

But generally speaking, they use the “Other Ways” to make their income. And so we didn’t include them as a way to specifically make money.

What Do You Think?

But what do YOU think? Are we wrong? Should landscape and fine art be on the list? Did we miss something else? Do you disagree with what we did include? Do any of these surprise you? Interest you? Have questions about an idea?

Let us know what you think in the comments below! This list is, above all, a great way to start a discussion. Making money as a photographer can be challenging, but when we have more ideas of ways we can turn our images into an income, that challenge becomes a little bit more manageable!