Can you make a living selling stock photos? Considering that the average photo sells for $0.02 per month, you would need tens of thousands of stock images to make a living. However, you can make a full-time living with just a few photos, if you're a very good photographer.
Stock photography, the practice of capturing images that anyone can license for a fee, can be a lucrative side hustle or even a full-time job. For photographers, it can be a steady source of income using both previous works and new shoots in which they call the shots from the subject to the post-processing treatment.
Selling images through stock photo sites is relatively easy, but there are still important aspects to know, consider, and always keep in mind: Royalty Rates – All serious and reliable agencies set up a royalty rate for the artist (thus cutting a commission for themselves).
How much can you make as a Shutterstock contributor? Shutterstock is one of the leading stock photo agencies, and contributors can make a decent income by selling their photos through them. Generally speaking, Shutterstock pays out 15-40% of each sale to its contributors.
1. Alamy. With over 60 million images, Alamy is the largest stock photo website, but they also pay well too. Photographers earn 50% of every sale, and aren't restricted to selling exclusively with Alamy.
Making money as a Shutterstock contributor isn't easy, especially if you want to make a lot. You're competing against other contributors. And they're all trying to sell photos too. With thousands of Shutterstock Contributors, it can be difficult to get your work noticed.
As a Shutterstock contributor, you will earn a percentage of the price Shutterstock receives for licensing your content. There are 6 separate earnings levels for images and for videos, ranging from 15% up to 40%. You can graduate through them independently based on your download count in each category.
If you want to become a stock photographer, the Shutterstock Contributor program is the best place to start. First, it accounts for half of all revenue for most stock photographers. Second, it's a simple dashboard that even newbies can use quickly.
Selling stock photos is a numbers' game. The more images you have on sale the more you are likely to make sales. But the key is quality over quantity. You could have thousands of photos but if they are not of a high standard then they are unlikely to sell.
While stock photography is a money-making opportunity for anyone, don't expect easy and quick revenue. Random sales may appear in 1-2 months (this may be shorter for some stock photography agencies, see Shutterstock vs. Alamy), but regular income is only realistic in 1-3 years.
Some common restrictions that you should be aware of when using Royalty-free images include: You cannot share, transfer, or gift the image to any third party. It should be part of the integral design- you cannot resell or redistribute the picture. You cannot use the photo as a part of a trademark, design mark, or logo.
The best-selling style of images varies from one year to the next, but overall, images of people (or lifestyle photography) are an all-time best-selling genre in stock photography. Other concepts like landscapes, flowers, and beaches are also consistently popular.
While you can never ride forever on the images you upload, it can provide a largely passive income once you get to a certain point. The portfolio you build making stock photography can later be used to secure more traditional freelance photography jobs.
The payment cycle for Shutterstock contributors is monthly. Accrued earnings for the prior month are calculated at the beginning of every calendar month. Contributors whose accrued earnings meet the minimum payout amount and are eligible to receive payment are notified by email once their earnings are calculated.
The minimum payout amount is $35 and the maximum is $2000.
You absolutely can sell phone photos on stock photography sites like Shutterstock, EyeEm, and Wirestock. Stock photo buyers are increasingly looking for natural-looking images of ordinary people in everyday situations. Phone photos taken by everyday people are a great way to meet that demand.
Contributing images to Shutterstock is free and you earn money each time your content is licensed.
For content licensed through iStock, royalty rates start at 15% for photos and 20% for videos and illustrations. Exclusive contributors can earn between 25% and 45%. Getty Images royalty rates For content licensed through Getty Images, rates are 20% for royalty-free still images and 25% for royalty-free video clips.
As a more affordable stock photo site, Shutterstock sells stock images for $0.22, while Getty Images' prices range from $50 to $499/image.
Offer Wedding Photography Services
Wedding photography is particularly profitable, so it's always a good option if you're looking to make money.
Adobe Stock pays 33% commission for images (photos, vectors, and illustrations) and 35% for videos. This equates to $0.33 to $26.40 per image download and $2.80 to $70.00 per video download. The amount you earn per download depends on the plan and license the customer uses to download your image or video.