drklrd Loc: Cincinnati Ohio

I am and have been a pro-photographer. I retired when film went out after about 1500 weddings not counting the school day cares and the other miriad numbers of photo shoots I did. I finally went digital about 5 years ago when I saw the prices dropped and the resolution went to 24 mpx. I went back to work to afford the cameras and other gear I needed to shoot more pictures especially since the only film I could find was what was left in someone freezer and I could no longer deal with labs near me that did not exist any more. So I am back and digital now shooting sports and events in schools with two Nikon D7200's and a D5200 along with almost the same number of lenses I have from film days. Those film lenses sit on a shelf collecting dust. As does my Bronica SQA and the 5x7 view camera.

drklrd Loc: Cincinnati Ohio

drklrd Loc: Cincinnati Ohio

Not ruining it just using it to buy more gear.

jayd Loc: Central Florida, East coast

I work for a company and about 60% of my work is doing photography for them and I make exceptionally good money per hour and I don't have to have my own business that's the only way I know to make money in photography today

tinwhistle

I sell a picture now and then through a few different venues, bringing in just enough money to cover my "gear head" tendencies....I am not a professional.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

It has always been a PART of my professional life. But I now consider it just another medium I use on the way to something else (audio, telephony, Internet, text/print, graphics, and video are the others).

The pure pro photography market is much smaller today than at any time since it peaked in the 1980s. Even the giant, billion dollar portrait company, Lifetouch, who bought Delmar, Herff Jones’ Photography Division, Olan Mills, and many smaller labs and studios, is now selling out to Shutterfly, after shrinking for the last several years.

Many of the “big box in-store studio” companies went bankrupt or merged several years to decades ago.

Several news organizations have reduced or eliminated photography staff from their payrolls.

The mass market is now online. Over 90% of images are there. But there is STILL a market for high end, high quality, high touch professional work. If you intend to be a photographer for the long haul, you need to be an excellent sales person, take time to market your services well, network, and deliver excellent goods and services.

Photographer Jim Loc: Rio Vista, CA

After I retired from education, I sold my photographs at art festivals for about 5 years. I averaged 12-20 shows a year in the western states. This year I closed my business. During the five years, I sold a lot of images, and did OK, but have decided that it was getting to be just too much work for not enough profit. There are basically three factors that make the art festival business difficult. First, the market is soft. Over the past ten years the average money spent at festivals has steadily declined. The recession of a few years ago hurt, and things have not recovered in this market. Second, the cost of doing festivals has continued to increase. Promoters charge more for booth space. Travel, food, etc. continue to cost more. Third, the market is very competitive, especially for photographers. It is not uncommon for shows to slot in 15-20 photographers for a medium to large show. Unfortunately, many of these photographers, mostly those just starting out, under-price their work and are contributing to driving prices down. When you add to that the fact that wall art is a harder sell than craft items like jewelry and pottery, making a profit in the festival business is becoming harder and harder.

Kuzano

If you are so inclined, and if you are NOT buying the annual Photographers Market book, you really aren't that interested. For a time, I picked it up every year. Covers many aspects of the market, plus marketing. The publish one for artists, writers and other fields.

10MPlayer Loc: California

I'm with you. I take photos to try to find beauty in the ordinary or just to record a moment. If I wanted to work at it I'd quickly start to dread picking up a camera.

Echoing MrPentax above, I had a friend years ago who quit his job to become a working artist. Observing his struggle to go from a nobody to a somebody in the local art scene was an education for me. I actually helped him a little by taking photos of his work so he could put together a portfolio to show gallery owners. He spent more time and effort schmoozing the gallery owners, hosting wine tasting parties, and general buddying up to those who could open doors for him than he ever did creating his art works. He did well, by the way because he was willing to put in the time to approach it as a business not a hobby.

canon Lee

Well that is encouraging.

chikid68 Loc: Tennesse USA

I make just enough at the moment to cover an occasional gear upgrade but as my gear and skills are improving so is demand so hopefully soon I can devote even more time to it.

bkyser Loc: Fly over country in Indiana

That's just the number in 1/2 mile radius from my house.

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

It is somewhat ironic but not surprising to me that in a discussion thread about the BUSINESS of photography there as been little or no commentary about BUSINESS! The rudiments of planning, starting and maintaining a business enterprise has not as yet entered the discourse in any detail. Suffice it to say that in business, we don't count pixels- we count money- investments, expenses, costs, fees, profits and losses. In business we should have little concern about equipment and technique, those should be well under control, at a very high level and second nature to begin with- the challenges are in management, marketing and and strategics.

Technically and artistically, you need to know what you are doing and be able to produce a consistently high quality product. It's a matter of creativity and technical excellence on demand. In today's competitive environment, there is no room for shoddy or mediocre work or product in any field. If you are serious about becoming a professional photographer, do not underestimate or negate the need for professional training, education, real apprenticeship or on-the-job experience, combined with formal study and practice. There are reputable private schools and colleges that offer professional photographic courses and training. If you have no time or the financial wherewithal for full or part-time schooling, at least consider membership in a professional photographers association that offers educational programs, seminars and workshops given by recognized masters and craftsman in the profession. Learn from folks who know their stuff and get serious!

When you sincerely feel confident that you are ready to start a business your first objective should be to construct a business plan. This is not an easy task and you may require the services or advice of a professional business adviser or certified accountant. If you have previous business and/or management experience, all the better. Since you business will eventually have to support your lifestyle and your family you need to assess you own “salary” requirements as your enterprise will be the source of your paycheck. You must be able to pay yourself- you are your most valuable and essential employee. Start off by listing ALL your personal expenses and costs. Then you must assemble ALL the REAL costs of doing business. Expenses such as rent (even if you use a part of your home), insurances, automotive expenses related to you work, business taxes, permits fees, office expenses, accounting and bookkeeping costs and fees, telephone/internet/communication expenses, maintenance of premises and equipment, educational and association dues or fees, any additional part of full time employee's wages, advertising/promotional expenses and whatever else you can think of that will become a fixed expenses.

You must separate your fixed expenses or overhead from COSTS OF SALES, those are supplies, goods and services you purchase on behalf of your clients on a wholesale level such as outsourced lab services, albums, mounts, picture frames, CDs, film and darkroom supplies (if you still use them) printing ink and paper, gear rentals and makeup art or hair styling services etc.and casual labor or assistant's fees.

Once you have all of you personal and business fixed expenses listed, you will have some concept of how much revenue you must generate in order to cover your own expenses and those of your business. You the can, based on your real costs and required profit margins, construct a realistic fee schedule and price list. You then need to project the volume of business you will need to cover your costs and generate profits. Without this data, you will not be able to set goals, monitor you progress, make adjustments and manage your affairs. Good bookkeeping and accounting procedures will enable you to monitor your business on an ongoing basis and get ahead of any financial downturns and make corrections.

You prices list and fee schedule must reflect you own personal and business requirements and can not be determined by the so called going rates alone.

Marketing and promotion of your business must be planned parallel
to the financial aspects. You must consider your level of quality and service, your financial requirements and select a market that can accommodate those prerequisites. Marketing and sales promotion must be approached on a multi layered basis. Simply having a decent website or promoting on social medial just won't cut it! Those venues are so over-saturated with wannabees an low-ball prices that it is a wonder that any high quality operator can benefit from posting there. Perhaps your Facebook page can appeal to your “fans” and reinforce you other efforts but it is not a promotional staple. You will need to consider targeted advertising, direct networking, cold and warm sales calls, participation in public events and displays, exhibiting at specialized trade and consumer shows and garnering word of mouth referrals by always supplying exemplary products and services.

Here's my philosophy: There are photographers who TALK a good job and photographer who DO a good job. In the past theses were two separate entities, nowadays however, you gotta do both. You need to promote somewhat aggressively but at the end of the day, you have to come up with the goods and service on time and on the money.

Wherever this subject comes up there are the doomsayers and the sour grapes. Yes , there is a great business mortality rate in the photography business. Many photography business fail plainly because the quality and service is not there- the product becomes undesirable and that eventually ends the viability of the business. Sometimes, sadly enough, the photography is excellent, artful, craftsman-like and beautiful but the business is under-promoted, mismanaged, under priced and/or operating in the wrong marketplace and comes to its untimely and financially tragic demise.

When folks bitterly lament about closing their business, "cheap customers", “PIA clients” and that folks no longer buy photography, theses are not bad people but they were probably operating in the wrong market, did not attain the level of work to accommodate a potentially good market or simply mismanaged some aspect of their business. Perhaps they did not have the patience necessary to deal with customers- that can be challenging at times. I am extremely patient and I love people and I love and enjoy both photography and business but there were days that I seriously considered becoming a hermit!

Photography is a PEOPLE business, even if you never professionally photograph a person, a child, a model or shoot weddings or events. Even if you professionally specialize in photographing inanimate objects, buildings, bugs and birds, germs through a microscope or whatever, you need to be an amicable people person because you are always in selling and public relations mode when you are running a business or operating in a business environment. You need to work alongside others, gain cooperation and access, encourage teamwork, direct and encourage employees, deal with bureaucracies, cut through “red tape” and manage to survive and profit. One very basic hard and cold fact is that most people will NOT spend their hard earned money with someone who they don't like!

ryanwrightphoto Loc: Colorado

Thought I'd go ahead and chime in, it's a big topic and one that I know pretty well.

I have made money with photography, not a ton but a decent amount which has lead me to keep shooting, posting, etc. Most of that money was made through shooting weddings and portraits. I used to scoff at doing weddings and portraits because there are so many that do it "average at best", but then real life came calling and I needed money. I was getting a number of wedding clients after I said yes, I was doing them cheaply because I didn't know what I was doing. That was mistake number 1, I never sat down to write out a plan for weddings. I didn't GO where the weddings were, I didn't market to get more weddings, etc.

All the while my desire and skill with landscape photography was improving and I wanted to focus more on that side of my photography. I have sold a fair number of prints now and I've never sold anywhere near the amount of prints necessary to do photography full time. Now I'm developing a plan for my photography, I'm taking steps to write out how I can improve my business. See, if you want to get really good at photography then study photographers and learn their secrets. If you want to make money with photography, study business and learn its secrets. My focus was in the wrong (or right depending on your viewpoint) area for a number of years.

Having said that, I think now more than ever is actually a great time to make money on photography...if you can distinguish yourself from the others. That's the key nowadays, what is your distinguishing characteristic and who is your audience? Answer those to two questions and you'll be on the right path.

BigGWells Loc: Olympia, WA

the best way to make money in photography is to sell all of your gear and put in a CD...