# How to Know When You are Ready to Begin Selling your Photos



## gw2424 (Dec 23, 2012)

TPF'ers!

I have been into photography for the last 8 months and have hit this point where my work can get better (alot better) and hopefully will get better. I am having quite a bit of trouble writing this post due to my lack of knowledge of what to say. (hence it is a question) I am 14 and want to build business. Yeah, if I can make $100 at a shoot I will be happy (at this point I don't have to support myself, just my hobby). What I am trying to figure out is am I prepared to sell my hobby? I am quite sure that as a hobbyist this is more of a mental maturity than the quality of my photos. I have traded on the stock exchange, I have sold monetary items; am I prepared to sell a hobby? I am not sure exactly what I am asking...But anything that will guide me in the right direction is more than I expect to hear. You can look at my photos in the link in my signature.

Thanks,

Gabe


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## Derrel (Dec 23, 2012)

There are "probably" some photo jobs/assignments that you can/could complete successfully. I doubt you could say, shoot an ad campaign for a department store, but you probably COULD shoot some skateboarding pics, or shoot some photos of student athletes in your junior high school. The key is to find something that you CAN successfully shoot, and then to figure out who would buy photos of said event(s). I have seen your food photos; your results are as good as those I have seen from many people who are twice to four times your age...so...


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## cgipson1 (Dec 23, 2012)

Some of us have been shooting for 20 or 30 years... and we don't even sell many prints. I looked at your Flickr, and for an 8 month shooter, they are not bad. But I didn't see anything that the average person would pay for. Nor anything that most stock photography sites would be interested in. Why not just leave it a hobby, and not get all wrapped up in trying to sell it?

Most stock sites don't pay worth crap, because there are so MANY amateurs out there willing to basically give their shots away for practically nothing. If you were to specialize in a POPULAR type of photography, and work hard at it until you can consistently get spectacular images... you might sell some to people interested in that particular type of photography.  But unless you get really lucky, you won't make a whole lot. There are a lot of threads on here about this very subject... so do some searching, and see what they say! Also try submitting some shots to some stock sites... but get used to rejection!


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## gw2424 (Dec 23, 2012)

At the end of the day, I want to shoot food, people on the street, and editorial work. I can do the street, I am working on the food, and I have a LONG (LONG) way to go before I can do the editorial work. I suppose I could do some stock photos, but I really would prefer to maintain (most) of the rights to my photos. Heck, offer me $100,000 for the work on my Flickr right now and I will make your coffee and shine your shoes as well. I wouldn't sell all the rights to my work on my Flickr for $1,000 right now. That may sound like a bad move but even though those pictures may suck I will need something to laugh at when I am 80.

Gabe


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## orljustin (Dec 23, 2012)

"I suppose I could do some stock photos, but I really would prefer to maintain (most) of the rights to my photos."

This says you really don't understand the real photo business world yet.  Stick to taking pics of pals for $50 and avoid real 'business'.


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## ceejtank (Dec 23, 2012)

It depends on what the shots are.. I've shot events.. only ones I've felt comfortable doing.. 

that being said I was printing out some 8x12's and some 24x36's for my home.. and some lady behind me saw them and offered me $300 for one.. so just keep working at it if you want to sell them if it's a hobby.  It''ll happen if you have good subject material.


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## tevo (Dec 23, 2012)

Wait until you have fewer academic responsibilities, some knowledge of economics, a car, and more importantly more experience. If people approach you to buy rights to your work, or even just a print, great! But marketing yourself is a completely different animal, and takes a great deal of time and effort. I believe you have the potential to reach the point of selling work, but be patient.


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## STIC (Dec 23, 2012)

...


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## gw2424 (Dec 23, 2012)

Thank you everyone, the advice is great!


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## KmH (Dec 23, 2012)

gw2424 said:


> [h=2]How to Know When You are Ready to Begin Selling your Photos[/h]Thanks,
> 
> Gabe


When you understand how to, and can afford to, promote and market your photos.
Your photos won't sell themselves.

Stock photo agencies get their cut of the licensing they sell, because they spend the money to market and promote the images for the photographer's whose images have been accepted on the stock agencies web site.
As a photographer's stock images are more in demand, most stock agencies pay the photographer a bigger cut, and make more of an effort to market/promote that photographers images.

85% of all the photos that sell, have people in them. The vast majority of those photos are bought by the people in the photos, or by those people's immediate family.
That is what retail photography is all about. Infant, children, high school senior, family, engagement, wedding, portrait, action sports, etc photos are bought by the people in the photos, or by those people's immediate family.

Food photography is tough to make. You not only have to know how to do the photography, you also have to know how to do the pre-production required for making the food ready for photography.

Find out who buys street photography. Find out who buys food photography. Find out who buys editorial photography.

Editorial work used to be done by staff photographers. Those editorial staff jobs are long gone, and most of those people went freelance until they started starving and had to change careers.
There are some successful freelance editorial shooters out there, but the skills that keep them working as photographers are business and networking skills.

This is cheap and has 1500 contacts - 2013 Photographer's Market: The Most Trusted Guide to Selling Your Photography


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## keith foster (Dec 23, 2012)

I agree with Derrel and his advice is the same I would give you.  If you want to know how your prints rate, the quickest way to find out is have your 10-20 best shots printed and framed in a variety of sizes and go get a space at a local art show or art fair.  If people stop and oohh and ahh over your photos then you are doing well but need to improve.  If people buy your prints you know you have found a niche and pursue it enthusiastically.


I also have a suggestion about one of your photos.  Be careful of using selective coloring.  It can be amazing in some shots and an absolute disaster in others.  Among photographers it is considered cliche' and sometimes even shots where it improves the process it won't be appreciated by your peers in photography.


I really admired most of your food shots.  You have a better understanding of what works that is much better than many of the people I have seen trying to do it so try to find someone who shoots those kind of shots and see if they will mentor you and teach you the tricks of the trade.

With that said one of shots is a disasterous use of selective color.  


In this shot   IMG_2521 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!  it looks like a Zombie is serving the sandwich.  There is no way any restaurant would want to use this look for advertising their food.  The only way selective color might work on this is to take the color completely out of his hands and leave the rest as it is.

I did enjoy this shot though because it made me think of Zombies and the dang Zombies are very popular right now.

Keep shooting and posting.  You have talent and in a few years and many thousands of photos from now you will be ready to look at marketing your work.


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## kathyt (Dec 23, 2012)

You are very talented. I enjoyed looking through your work, and it seems you have a really good eye for composition. I love that Aloe Toad shot. I would just continue on with what you are doing, and I bet in a few years you might be getting somewhere. Right now though....I just don't think it is a good idea. Focus on school for now because you will have plenty of time to make money in the near future. The business side of things really sucks and I hate it. I wish I had someone to handle all of that for me. Stick to photography as a hobby as long as you possibly can. Good luck.


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## texkam (Dec 23, 2012)

Yes, your work has value. Shooting for money comes with tax responsibilities when you hit a certain threshold, so learn the business end of things and stay legal. Consider doing pro-bono work. There are many good causes that would be thrilled with your level of work. You most likely would be working with better, more sophisticated clients than say Joe's Pizza Barn who wants a cheesy shot of him and his dog for a church bulletin ad. It would be more rewarding work that would also look good on a resume.


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## Pallycow (Dec 23, 2012)

You are ready to sell your photos when people are ready to buy them.  Period.

You are never ready to stop learning.  So practice, learn, and enjoy your hobby.  If people want to buy your work, sell it.  If people want to pay you to shoot for them, do it. 

I would not actively try to market yourself just yet as you have other things in life to worry about, you'll see.  Just keep learning, and keep shooting, when the time is right...you'll know it and things will fall in place.


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## Light Guru (Dec 24, 2012)

Your 14 don't worry about trying to make money from your photos.  Go get on the yearbook staff by the time you are a senior you could be the editor of it.


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## STIC (Dec 24, 2012)

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## gw2424 (Dec 24, 2012)

Go ahead, the main reason that I used the selective color on that one was because there was a very distracting red cup behind the cutting board.


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## gw2424 (Dec 25, 2012)

texkam said:


> Yes, your work has value. Shooting for money comes with tax responsibilities when you hit a certain threshold, so learn the business end of things and stay legal.



I think it is $1,000 in Florida.


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## KmH (Dec 25, 2012)

As a business entity in Florida you are require to collect and forward state sales taxes, and pay any applicable use taxes. FL Dept Rev - Florida Sales and Use Tax
FL Dept Rev - Use Tax on Out-of-State Purchases

Being self-employed, you also have to be mindful of federal income and social security taxes, plus state income and reemployment taxes. FL Dept Rev - Reemployment Tax

Welcome to the Florida Department of Revenue web site


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## pgriz (Dec 25, 2012)

Calendar age is much less relevant than is maturity and experience.  Although these usually increase with age, some get it much earlier than others.  What is important in generating business, is to create demand for what you want to sell.  That's what marketing is all about - to create a "brand" that people want.  The difference between selling a picture, and selling a picture made by "XXX" is huge.  There are many brand-building techniques that you can use - entering and winning competitions (real ones, not the fake web ones that grab the rights to your images), doing exhibits of your art in shows, getting your images published.  You've already have been given a lot of good advice.  You have one other benefit that others don't have - you don't (yet) have to pay your own way, and besides school, you don't have many commitments on your time (unless you're into sports and extra-curricular activities, have a part-time job or two, or have to contribute to the running of your home).  So that means you have more time to spend on studying, researching, photographing, and learning the skills of the trade.

If you can arrange it, try and join a local photo club where you can get mentoring and lots of good, free advice.  Most photoclubs have some working professionals as members, and you can try to offer to help them, in exchange for experience and mentoring.  The point is to try and learn as fast as possible, and to waste as little time in trial-and-error efforts on your own.  If you are prepared to put in the effort, you can go a long way.  But I would suggest staying away from selling your stuff until you have built up your credentials and experience.  And if you do end up selling stuff, do it the right way, with a registered business entity and all that that entails.  In the long run, it's much less trouble.


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## pic_chick (Dec 25, 2012)

humm why not put together a portfolio of your best work and see about getting hired by a protog whose work you like. watch how they run there company and learn from them ether how to or how not to make a company work. All so while working for them they should have you covered for ins. Tell them at the interview what your goals are and why also how you see working for them can help you reach those goals.

Do not think I am just a kid. Or other will think that to. If you want to walk this path then do it make it happen Put on a some grown up paints and be perpaird to have to prove your worth over and over again. keep your head up spirits high and do what you want. The best bit advice I have eer gotten was "No matter your age you are in the end your only boss in this world"

Open a savings account and save 1/2 of what you make for later in life and have fun with it.


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## vfotog (Dec 25, 2012)

pgriz said:


> Calendar age is much less relevant than is maturity and experience.



This is just one example of the bad advice in this thread. The OP is FOURTEEN. *Age is extremely relevant.* The OP says he doesn't need to make a living yet from his photography, so the odds are he's not self-supporting and is living at home with the folks. Unless he is on his own as a LEGALLY emancipated minor, he's not an adult in the eyes of the law. He can't sign a contract without his legal guardians co-signing. Smart photographers do business legally and use contracts, releases, and licenses. He can't sign ANY of the above on his own. If he were the subject of a photo, he couldn't even sign a model release on his own; I've yet to see a model release that has a line not only for the minor model's guardian but for the minor photog's guardian too. A guardian will have to cosign everything, and that's not going to be convenient or professional.  As for getting hired by a photographer, at 14 the rules are very restrictive and a huge liability for the photog. At such a young age, how long you work, when you can work, what you can do...  it's all very limited. You've hardly any experience; now is the time to really study your craft so that when you're able to legally do it, you'll be closer to being ready. Shoot as much as you can, but also read up on business, business laws & regulations, etc. and find some time to being young and without responsibility. Enjoy it while you can.


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## fjrabon (Dec 25, 2012)

Yeah, I have to agree with vfotog.  At 14 you won't be able to make real money at photography.  About all you could do is make pictures, promote them and hope people buy them.  It's virtually impossible to make real money that way.  How most photographers make money is by being contracted for a job.  At 14, almost nobody is going to contract you to do a job for serious pay.  The other route is to get a job as a photographer, but again, that's out the window because of age.  When it comes to working and getting paid, age most certainly DOES matter.  

You have your whole life to work.  Stop worrying about making money with photography at this point and just enjoy it, learn who you are and be ready to rock and roll when you're of age and can enter into legally binding contracts on your own.


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## Light Guru (Dec 25, 2012)

vfotog said:


> pgriz said:
> 
> 
> > Calendar age is much less relevant than is maturity and experience.
> ...



Vary well said.

Go get on with the school year book and with the school news paper. If there is no school news paper get together with some students who like to write and start one.


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## tevo (Dec 25, 2012)

vfotog said:


> pgriz said:
> 
> 
> > Calendar age is much less relevant than is maturity and experience.
> ...



Thank you for posting this. I dont think age should be a barrier to pursuing photography or the love of the art, but from a business perspective age is relevant.


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## STIC (Dec 26, 2012)

...


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## keith foster (Dec 26, 2012)

STIC said:


> gw2424 said:
> 
> 
> > Go ahead, the main reason that I used the selective color on that one was because there was a very distracting red cup behind the cutting board.
> ...





This is a vast improvement on this shot, Stic.  Nicely done!  

Gabe the above advice about staying in school and enjoying your photography while you are doing it is the best advice.

If you go out right now and try to become a business you stand a good chance of ruining any chance you have in the future to do it.  If you start now, and deliver a bad shot or poorly processed shot to a client they may pay you and not say a word.  And then never call you again and spread the word you are a kid and your work looks like a kid does it.  A few times of not delivering properly and your career is over.  Wait till you can sign paperwork and do things legally.  You will be smarter and much better than you are today at everything.

Heck you can still take pics of friends and family, go to parades, festivals, local high school sports etc there are unlimited oportunities to take photos and learn.  Ask for food photography books for birthdays, food styling books.  Read them and practice you will be amazed how much difference it will make in a couple of years.


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