Can a guy make some money?

[Hartness53]

Does anyone here that is not a proffesional make any money using online places to sell there photos such as Shutterfly Professional Photo Gallery (http://www.shutterfly.com/professional_photo_gallery/index.jsp).
Some of you I am sure have seen some of my photos which aren't always that great, although I do get surprised looks from some friends and family at how good they are. Sorry for the long post, what I am wondering is if a fellow went and got a small loan to boost his gear box and to pay for a year of this sight if that many people really buy off them sites? Please keep in mind I am not trying to get rich and I know it depends what the photos are of. What are some other peoples experiences with this type of thing. Thanks, Christian

[Mike R]

I shoot HS sports and do make money. My customers consider me professional and that's what counts but I do have a full time job that I have been at for 28 yrs, unrelated to photography. You need to find a market. Quite frankly I think the landscape market is flooded and I stay away from Mico Stock agencys. So you need to determine what you want to shoot. The sports has led to other work for me. I use Exposure Manager and since Sept. and it has been worth it. I'm still getting orders from a football team whose season ended in Dec. Feel free to check out my site and best of luck in whichever way you decide to go. You can PM if you have anyother questions but I won't be able to respond until after Feb.24, It's time for me to catch a flight to somewheres warmer than the northeast.

[bwolford]

Does anyone here that is not a proffesional make any money using online places to sell there photos such as Shutterfly Professional Photo Gallery (http://www.shutterfly.com/professional_photo_gallery/index.jsp).
Some of you I am sure have seen some of my photos which aren't always that great, although I do get surprised looks from some friends and family at how good they are. Sorry for the long post, what I am wondering is if a fellow went and got a small loan to boost his gear box and to pay for a year of this sight if that many people really buy off them sites? Please keep in mind I am not trying to get rich and I know it depends what the photos are of. What are some other peoples experiences with this type of thing. Thanks, Christian
People do buy off the sites, but you have to advertise. They have to know about you. I switched from Shutterfly to Engagement Manager to get a more professional site and hide costs from clients (although it wouldn't be hard for them to figure it out, I don't want to make it too easy for them either.

I wouldn't take a loan until you've sold a few and understand what the potential is for revenue based on your client base and sales strategy.

[Dennis_Hammer]

I am like Mike I use exposuremanager also. I do pretty good, I shoot mainly sports, horse shows, and a few weddings a year. In a week I usually make more than enough to cover my website costs for the year.

[Hartness53]

Thanks for the replys guys, I mostly shoot race cars at the local dragstrip, but now that I have a nice camera I plan on venturing out to other tracks. I shoot some landscape and object pics too. I also have a regular full time job and a family, so I am not going to be dependent on this to support myself would just like to see if anyone wants to buy my photos. Maybe this would give me boost into the world of being a true "proffesional" photog. My question with this post is, how do you see the pictures that people have up for sale? I have been trying to find out how for about two hours now. (On both Shutterfly and Exposure manager). Thanks, Chrisitan

[SoundsGood]

How does ExposureManager compare to, say, Zenfolio?

[Hartness53]

Does anyone know how to look at the pictures people are selling on these sites? In other words I'd like to go shopping for pictures!

[sapearl]

Sure Hartness, try this:

http://www.pbase.com/sapearl/cleveland_flats

I took a pretty low tech solution using a PBase gallery; no shopping cart or anything, but it features wedding proofs as well as my fine art work.

Does anyone know how to look at the pictures people are selling on these sites? In other words I'd like to go shopping for pictures!

[PhotosGuy]

I mostly shoot race cars at the local dragstrip I'd suggest that you get some business cards at VistaPrint.com with a great drag shot & your site url & pass them out to the racers.

What image hosting/online sales program do you use? (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=393106)

What are you using to sell prints online? (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=391298)

online hosting and selling (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=99121)

[Hartness53]

I'd suggest that you get some business cards at VistaPrint.com with a great drag shot & your site url & pass them out to the racers.

What image hosting/online sales program do you use? (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=393106)

What are you using to sell prints online? (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=391298)

online hosting and selling (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=99121)


Thanks for the reply PhotosGuy, I am not sure if you put the links up directing me to them or asking me them questions. As of right now I don't have any website, I'm not really interested in that yet. I am also not selling anything yet. I am looking at Shutterfly pro and Exposure manager right now. I am going to look into some of the software that was in the links after I am done posting this. What I am needing now is to find out how you "shop" at Shutterfly or Exp. Mgr., I wanted to look at how they lay out the galleries and get an idea what people are charging and how many photos the average customer has for sale on there. Being it is still winter all the photos I have are with my old kodak P&S. So I need to wait till summer at least anyway. I also want to know how people are going to find my stuff if I can't even figure out how to shop on the sites. Sorry for the long post, but I am long winded!(fingered?). Thanks, Christian

[IndyJeff]

First off, yes you can make some money at this. How much? It depends on how much your willing to work and how you market yourself. You have to find that market or niche where no one has gone before and milk it.

As for whether you should get a loan to buy some more equipment, what if you don't make any money? How will you pay for that loan? Instead of going in the hole why not start selling a few images here and there and saving up for the new equipment you want to get. This is a very volatile business where one week you can be making a barrel full of cash and then a month later you can't give away a shot.

[sapearl]

You may want to consider blogging - if you use Blogspot, owned by Google, then Google looks "favorably" on its little sibling when searches are made. It doesn't guarantee you'll get hits, but it does a little bit of SEO on your behalf.

And in the blog, have a link to an online gallery. This will generate a little bit of traffic in that direction possibly. That's how I sold a 19x25 print to a gallery back in December. One of the gallery reps was working on behalf of a designer who was assembling an executive's office. He wanted a particular urban motif, and my online gallery popped up in one of her searches. This sort of thing is not guaranteed, but it does help push the odds a bit in your favor.

I also agree with IndyJeff - don't go putting yourself into debt until you've made a little money at it. It took me years to move up to my desired gear level, but I don't regret it. I don't owe anybody anything ;).

......... I also want to know how people are going to find my stuff if I can't even figure out how to shop on the sites. Sorry for the long post, but I am long winded!(fingered?). Thanks, Christian

[sapearl]

Christian, by any chance are you a student or near a college/university?

Back in my dorm days I made quite a fair little income shooting fraternity and sorority house group pictures, dorm portraits, all sorts of groupings of students. Typically I'd print B/W 8x10's in a darkroom but I was always getting repeat and referral business.

I made enough profit from all this to buy a second body and additional lenses.

[Nick Pro]

Does anyone use the pro smugmug? It isn't cheap, But it looks really nice.

[Kadath]

Wow I've not needed to make any business cards in a long time, but finally after hearing you guys pimp vistaprint.com for so long I finally gave it a shot tonight. Was all set to just blow it off but then I saw how easy it was to make a fun and colorful card using my own images... Then I saw the price tag and was all set to blow it off a second time, when I saw they had a coupon code slot.... Quick google, clicked on an 80% off code, refreshed my order and got 500 cards and 140 mailing labels, full color, two sides with images, shipped for about $30... I think the last time I made my own cards up was back in the 80s and I paid more than that for a simple black and white card with no logo =)

Will see what the quality looks like but it wont be hard to impress me at that price.

Sam

[Stime187]

Does anyone use the pro smugmug? It isn't cheap, But it looks really nice.

I use whatever the middle SmugMug account is.

My website: www.LightOfTheWild.com

It works well for me and does exactly what I need it to do. It was easy to set up too and easy to update.

[e r y k]

a little OT, but some of you vista print users should do a google search on vistaprint scam.
also, check your monthly bank statements, as they've been known to take money without your permission.

[<AkulA>]

wow, thanks eryk - I was about to check them out, then read up on Vistaprint on Consumer Affairs - they sound nasty!

[PhotosGuy]

I also want to know how people are going to find my stuff if I can't even figure out how to shop on the sites. I told you, "get some business cards... & pass them out to the racers." Talk to them so they get to know you. They're the people who will most likely buy. While a blog might get you a sale or two from spectators or other interested people, you need to hit your target market first. also, check your monthly bank statements, as they've been known to take money without your permission. You can avoid that by not signing up for their "one-month free" promotion. People do & forget to cancel it.
Their cards are cheap & pretty good quality, so I still use them.

[Kadath]

Yeah I made sure to opt out of that, if you dont pay attention to what you are clicking you agree to its probably not hard to blame them for it, but they made it really easy to opt out, as you had to actually click to agree to it.

[e20ci]

I have been using Fotolia (http://us.fotolia.com/partner/318516) for a few months and made about $50 so far :lol: ... Not bad, considering I just uploaded old shots I had already taken. They sell small versions (1200x800 pixel, I think) for $1 each and give you half, but that adds up easily, and its not like you're giving away the full high quality version to anyone for really cheap. Just upload as many good shots as you can, and eventually, someone somewhere will see it and buy it.

[sapearl]

Hi photomaker - interesting post. Are you currently using these folks? I was curious about their arrangement so I read a few things on their site... basically you will receive .25 to $2 for each image which sounds like some sort of micro stock. They really make it sound like it's possible to earn big money with their system:

"As an example, here are some of our members’ portfolio’s and earnings:
- John : 7800 photos in portfolio / 5 years experience in domain / about 9000$/month
- Mark : 1400 / 2 / 1800$"
It sort of looks like you give away your copyright though, which may or may not be an issue depending upon your goals:

"The user who downloads your photo has the right to use it in leaflets, magazines, sites, but has no rights to sell it."

Interesing place.

Here you will find tutorials about how and where to sell photos on internet or in your
town !

www.how-to-sell-photos-online.com (http://www.how-to-sell-photos-online.com)

Best Regards!

[photoguy6405]

Hi photomaker - interesting post. Are you currently using these folks? I was curious about their arrangement so I read a few things on their site... basically you will receive .25 to $2 for each image which sounds like some sort of micro stock. They really make it sound like it's possible to earn big money with their system:

"As an example, here are some of our members’ portfolio’s and earnings:
- John : 7800 photos in portfolio / 5 years experience in domain / about 9000$/month
- Mark : 1400 / 2 / 1800$"
It sort of looks like you give away your copyright though, which may or may not be an issue depending upon your goals:

"The user who downloads your photo has the right to use it in leaflets, magazines, sites, but has no rights to sell it."

Interesing place.

I'm sure the results part should add a "results not typical" disclaimer like all the weight loss tv ads have.

As far as giving away the copyright, that would discourage me from using their service. In concept, I'd have no problem selling a jpg for use as a background or for use in a digital photo frame for personal use, but I would not want to also allow them to use it in printed publications without a separate agreement and payment.

[sapearl]

They don't say you are giving away the copyright, but IMHO I believe that's what's happening in practice.

Perhaps there's some small print I've missed, but the way they ad is written I have a suspicion that any small print of that type is designed to benefit them. This almost, but not quite smacks off those late night infomercials: " GET RICH RIGHT NOW USING OUR REAL ESTATE METHODS!!"

I don't see anything about a separate agreement for somebody making a bazillion brochures with your image - it comes right out and says this is what people will do; hence publication rights out the window. I could be wrong here, I'm making a lot of assumptions, but that's how it appears.

Buyer Beware: Read All Fine Print Carefully.;)

I'm sure the results part should add a "results not typical" disclaimer like all the weight loss tv ads have.

As far as giving away the copyright, that would discourage me from using their service. In concept, I'd have no problem selling a jpg for use as a background or for use in a digital photo frame for personal use, but I would not want to also allow them to use it in printed publications without a separate agreement and payment.

[Nick Pro]

So I signed up for the middle smug mug. Do you have to wait for the 14 day trail to expire? I NEED to put up an address now.

Also, can you use your own address? Do they ship, sell and send you money like the pro account?

[Riffmax]

Right now, I have a site hosted by godaddy, but am still looking for a nice site for an affordable price. Thanks for this thread. Just joined this afternoon and can already tell I will be here frequently!

[sapearl]

Hi Riff - welcome to POTN.... stick around for a while, it's quite an informative place and keeps you off the streets; except when you're taking pictures.:lol:

GoDaddy is great for domain names. Regarding an affordable site, were you looking for something with a "shopping cart" or just a place to upload? I use PBase myself which is very basic by a lot of standards and has no real "shopping" interface, but I display my wedding and event proofs there as well as other galleries. It's relatively inexpensive and fairly user friendly and has a huge user base. - Stu

Right now, I have a site hosted by godaddy, but am still looking for a nice site for an affordable price. Thanks for this thread. Just joined this afternoon and can already tell I will be here frequently!

[Stime187]

I use GoDaddy for my domain and SmugMug for my hosting. Its been a great combination for me. My website is www.LightOfTheWild.com.

[TroyRaymond]

I just ordered business cards from VistaPrint, full color both sides. $43 for 2000 plus shipping.

I have a pro smugmug account. I really like it. There are several private galleries that are not viewable unless you have the direct link. I'm just getting it finished so I'll have to keep you posted (It will forever be under contruction). ;) I'm having a little trouble with bold text in the theme I'm using. Should have it fixed soon.

My smugmug is not only my gallery, it is my entire website. Photography is my new form of art, so its not the only thing marketed on the website.

I have never used an easier gallery. If you just completed a shoot, login, click 'add photos', create a new gallery and choose what category to put it in. Then select your preset (custom) pricing, upload.... Done.... Oops, almost, edit the gallery to right click disable (protect) and limit the size of choices that can be viewed. (not the original).

The last time I made a new gallery it had about 30 images... Not counting upload time was less than 3 minutes.

The front door, Envision Creative Imaging (http://www.envisioncreativeimaging.com) . The slideshow here can be operated manually by a mouseover to see the controls.

Private hidden galleries:
A 'different' photography based gallery I think would interest you. The Mast (http://www.envisioncreativeimaging.com/gallery/3981802_zuYrB) 27 images. Notice the thumbs are squared up, another easy step.
A painting gallery I put up for a customer that wanted to see his helicopter being painted. Agusta A109 (http://www.envisioncreativeimaging.com/gallery/4278567_Zuv6g). 31 images.

Edit: Forgot to mention, An image was created for the watermark, it placement and opacity can be adjusted in the gallery. The watermark is not on purchased prints.

Troy

[Kadath]

Got my vistaprints. Wish I had known the glossy was one side only, I'd have reversed the side that got the glossy treatment. Other than that they rock!