how to start making money

HI im going to be turning 16 soon and all my friends have jobs and get paid. I shoot my brothers hockey games this year and all the parents were telling me that they were really good and better then what the professional did there. If i want to make a little money what do i have to do?

laselects06 wrote in post #12179674
If i want to make a little money what do i have to do?

Sell something. Sell your services, prints or specialty items. Now that you know the secret, you should be rolling in the dough

So, you are ambitious and want to sell adults product.

Have your parents set you up with a smugmug account.

Work out what percent of your sales will go to the hockey team when you shoot.

Then, post all photos, price them, provide the web link to all parents and tell them that a portion goes to the team as a fundraiser.

Then, remind them every time you shoot that you are doing that.

Don't worry about making money with photography right now, work on your portfolio and concentrate on learning. Having went back and looked at some of your stuff - and seeing you wrote you started about seven or so months ago - there's just no need to rush. Trying to worry about making money is not what it should be about at that state (even if you were 52 years old and just starting 7 months ago). Should be learning, learning, learning, followed by learning some more.

Now, you've already taken the first steps and are on this board asking questions, you're out shooting what you can it seems (hockey/surf I saw), and you're thinking before acting, putting in some work and research, you're FAR ahead of many others!

So, first step is keep shooting - go to your schools games, any sport, learn, try new things. Every time you go to a game make sure you are researching the game, i.e. search around online for some shots and see what pros are doing. Go and practice different angles and work on exposure, timing, etc. Learn!

You start getting proficient, then you can set up an account with Smug Mug or Exposure Manager, any of those services. First thing you need to remember though when selling someone a product, like prints, is that you're providing a service and need to supply quality no matter what your age. Personally with any image that goes online for that I will NOT post it unless knowing it will make a good looking poster print. Think through their eyes, not yours, yours are biased as it's your photography.

You also have to really research your area, price wise and what to cover. Prices are not pulled out of the air - you have ten pros in the area charging $10-20 for an 8x10 and you come in not looking around and start charging $5, well you just not only undercut yourself but all the pros around you. Also, stepping on toes is a really bad idea - you have to find your gigs and land the job, many newer photographers will undercut and do any shady thing they can just to land a job, no matter who it hurts or even if they can deliver on it. Do your homework and know what you do will come back around on you.

Once you have a site set up you promote yourself, give out cards, work with the teams, etc. Honestly I hate the suggestion that you approach teams saying you'll give x-amount of each sale back to them, it's common nowadays in some areas but not all. I never bring that up, if they do I tell them straight out it's fine but I have to charge more if you want a percentage back because there's cost of doing business involved. Not one league I do that with, besides one T&I one year, never been asked. It may not be common in your area, so again it's the homework - do it, research what the others are doing. Not just in your town, but 30 mins to 2 hours away, look around.

Questions to ask though...

1) Is there a school photographer already, will you be stepping on toes?

2) Does your school allow the selling of prints? Oddly enough, some do not.

3) Is it seriously something you want to do or just a hobby you want to make some money at? IF it's about the money, you'll make more getting a part time job after school somewhere, print sales are TOUGH! If it's about establishing the ground for doing it down the road the long haul, it's going to take a lot of work.

laselects06 wrote in post #12179674
all the parents were telling me that they were really good and better then what the professional did there.

Is the pro there for every game, or just once a season?
I can understand wanting to make some money doing what you like to do, but I think you should test the market this year. Show them the best prints again & ask if they'd pay $20 for one. No? How about $10? Yes? Collect their money, if you can. Now you know if you even have a market.

Or maybe you could offer to only shoot their kid for $50 for the night & include web & printable images on CD.

Otherwise, I tend to agree with Mike. Shoot for yourself this year. Get better at it & build a portfolio.
Need Info on Sports Photography

PhotosGuy wrote in post #12180824
Is the pro there for every game, or just once a season?
I can understand wanting to make some money doing what you like to do, but I think you should test the market this year. Show them the best prints again & ask if they'd pay $20 for one. No? How about $10? Yes? Collect their money, if you can. Now you know if you even have a market.

Or maybe you could offer to only shoot their kid for $50 for the night & include web & printable images on CD.

Otherwise, I tend to agree with Mike. Shoot for yourself this year. Get better at it & build a portfolio.
Need Info on Sports Photography

I was a tournament and the was a pro photographer taking pictures of all the teams

I got an idea let me know what you think. Ok...
I live by a beach with a bunch of surfers and I was think I would sit up at the walkway and offer to take 100 photos or so and send it to them on a cd for like $25-50

What do u think?

You've received some really good advice so far in this thread. It is always nice to receive compliments on one's photography but in reality these are friends and acquaintances of your family and what else are they going to say. I'm not discounting your abilities but you need to look at the source of the comments, what else are they going to say, they aren't going to tell you that your work stinks. There are many people in this forum that decide to take on paid work because their co-workers, Aunt Sally, the boys down at the bar and so on have said their work is better than some pros that they have seen.

My advice would be to get a real job to help you finance your gear requirements and continue to work on your techniques and portfolio. You would have to sell alot of pictures even to equal what you might make flipping burgers.

Simply because you have taken these shots at the hockey games does not necessarily mean that you will bump out those that are there shooting. Many sports contract photographers where this can be done at the team or league level. If you really think that you are capable then you should be contacting the team and/or league to see what you have to do be a photographer of record, so to speak. Your age may very well work against you in some respects but you have a full long life ahead of you to conquer these things. When I say that you are capable of doing this I mean not only taking the shots but setting up your own personal infrastructure to take orders, receive payments and deliver the prints in a timely fashion. Once you step into the realm of being a paid photographer you are in essence a small business and you need to act like one too. There is way more to this photography thing than simply taking pictures.

laselects06 wrote in post #12181182
I got an idea let me know what you think. Ok...
I live by a beach with a bunch of surfers and I was think I would sit up at the walkway and offer to take 100 photos or so and send it to them on a cd for like $25-50

What do u think?

I like how you're thinking, but it honestly seems really tacky.

First thing is it's REALLY cheap, this is kind of like a game fee where someone hires you to come out and shoot their event, but at about 1/10th the cost. Sale of two or three 8x10's would get you that amount and not be undercutting yourself. The 70-200 is short for surf shots, though looking at your thread you got a few closer ones, having never done it someone else can chime in on that aspect. Third is these are probably younger guys to and not bringing much money to the beach to surf, they also probably don't care as much about the images as say parents do about youth league - again though, someone with surf shooting experience can take that one.

Is it the money you're worried about here - or what's your overall want to do it?

lifes so much easier with rich parents, haha. Socal beach by any chance?

step one and most important is to get your parents involved. you will not get past most legal aspects in receive and sending money at 16 and without a credit card. definitely will need parents information into a lot of things you setup. so lets start with that if you havent already.

btw. hilarious signature quote. and big ups to you for pursing such task at an early age! Godspeed Jake

I looked at sports photography.... once.

While I have not looked at any images you've posted, a dividing line exists between "liking" a image and "purchasing" an image. A fairly common price for a single 4x6" photo is in the neighborhood of $5-10. The next time you take photos and have prints to show around when someone mentions that they "like" one, ask them if they would like to purchase it from you. Offer up a reasonable price and see how many you can sell.

laselects06 wrote in post #12179674
I shoot my brothers hockey games this year and all the parents were telling me that they were really good and better then what the professional did there. If i want to make a little money what do i have to do?

Maybe as a start, get a smugmug page and business cards. Take shots at those games and handout cards. Be willing to talk to parents that may want shots of their kids and then concentrate on getting some of them.

Let the coaches know what you are doing, they may make some of the parents aware. Also, get a vest (or something) and have the name of your business and smugmug link visible on it.

hey i just saw your work. Please take no offense but only use this as constructive criticism and encouragement to strive to be the best.

The hockey shots really arent that great to the point that id buy one, looks like something any other parent there could have shot to be honest. More than likely the parents were trying to be nice and encourage you, which is great, but gives you false feedback that could damage you even more.

Continue shooting and learning and then you will get great enough to start selling, but if those were my shots? id toss them out and keep going.

BEST OF LUCK JAKE!

S.Horton wrote in post #12179991
So, you are ambitious and want to sell adults product.

Have your parents set you up with a smugmug account.

Work out what percent of your sales will go to the hockey team when you shoot.

Then, post all photos, price them, provide the web link to all parents and tell them that a portion goes to the team as a fundraiser.

Then, remind them every time you shoot that you are doing that.

This is great advice!

If the parents like your work and buying your prints puts money back into the program, it is a no brainier. If some young man could take good photos of my child playing games and part of the money went back into the team, I would most certainly buy them. I think most parents would. They get to help and young, ambitious man and their own child at the same time. I have a soft spot for young ambitious kids. Every time I see a Lemonade stand I stop and get some. I had my first company in 7th grade. The neighborhood I lived in started a new development and I went and made a deal with the builders that I would cut the yards for them while they were on the market for $xx if they gave me every home. Once I got the first builder, the other two jumped on board as well. Over the past 25 years, I have worked for myself longer than I have someone else. If you can start now and build relationships within this sport it can take you places. Everyone has to start somewhere, and you already have an 'in' because your brother plays. Just keep at it.

Good on you young fella' for having a go.