Where Can I Sell My Photographs

If people are constantly complimenting your pictures and begging you to take snapshots for them, you might find yourself asking: “Where can I sell my photographs?”

There’s nothing wrong with trying to make money from your talent. What’s more, with the popularity of the Internet, selling photos online is easier than ever.

The Internet is saturated with photo stock agencies. These companies act as a liaison between you and the seller. Photo buyers visit these sites and can quickly search through thousands of images before purchasing. Conversely, you enjoy the benefit of having your photos seen by millions of potential clients without having to deal with them directly. Moreover, you get paid a commission from each photo sold.

The first step involved in selling pictures online is to thoroughly organize your collection. Websites that sell stock photography are inundated with new photos each day. To increase the odds of getting your snapshots sold, you need to weed out pictures that don’t represent your best work.

Once you’ve selected your top photos, it's time to select a company to do business with. Amateur photographers should seek out microstock agencies. They are also known as "royalty-free digital stock photography communities.” These companies don't pay as well as traditional royalty-free photo companies; however, they also don’t employ the same strict restrictions as full-fledged royalty-free agencies. Microstock photo agencies cater to novice photographers who are passionate about taking pictures, want to share their work with others, and are interested in generating cash from the process.

The following online microstock photo agencies are considered the most popular in the world:

• iStockPhoto
• Fotolia
• Dreamstime
• PhotoStockPlus
• Shutterstock
• Stockxpert.com
• Featurepics
• BigStockPhotos
• PantherMedia
• ShutterPoint

It's important to keep in mind that while there is no fee to post photos on a microstock site, companies do not accept all images. Each microstock photo agency employs a team of reviewers who methodically look at every picture submitted and rate it according to technical quality, as well as artistic and commercial merit. If your picture scores well, then it is accepted and posted on the site.

In addition, prices for your pictures are often (but not always) determined by the microstock agency and are typically based on image size. The majority of microstock agencies price pictures between one dollar for a small image, and up to 90 dollars for extra-large photos with extended licenses.

Since you only pocket a fraction of the price paid by the client, selling your photos on microstock sites is not always very lucrative. For example, if you have a photo listed with an agency that prices it at five dollars, and it gets sold based on a 20 percent commission, the agency ends up making four dollars on the sale while you walk away with a dollar.

Another factor to consider is that most stock photo companies feature more than a million images on their sites. Your best photos are facing stiff competition, so it's important to be realistic about your earning potential.

If after learning the ins and outs of stock photography you still find yourself asking: “Where can I sell my photographs?,” consider checking out the myriad of books that offer helpful advice to amateur photographers looking to make money from their hobby.

The books contain advice ranging from capturing the best angles to securing optimal lighting, along with a host of other tips that will help you take photos that will sell. They also include tips on moving from the world of amateur photography to life as a professional photographer.

It may be extremely difficult to make a living selling your photographers on stock photo sites. If you are looking to get your foot in the door and expose your work to millions of potential clients, however, you'll find that microstock agencies can be very valuable.

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