How to Sell Your Photography Online?

Photography is an artistic pursuit, and like all art forms, the attraction lies not in its earning potential but in the person's desire to do something fun, creative, and worthwhile. The opportunities for photographers to turn their passion into profit have never been more abundant. Whether you're a professional or an amateur, you can monetize your photography by selling your work online.

From large corporations, small and medium-size businesses to bloggers, graphic designers, marketers, and publishers are buying and using photos regularly. With countless platforms and diverse audiences, selling your photos can be a lucrative way to earn money while doing something you love. In this article, we'll explore some of the best methods and platforms for selling your photography online, along with tips to maximize your earnings.

How to Sell Your Photography Online?

1. Stock Photography Websites

One of the most popular ways to sell your photos online is through stock photography websites. These platforms allow businesses, designers, and individuals to purchase licenses for images, which they can use for websites, blogs, social media, and marketing materials.

Tips for Success:

• Upload high-quality images: Stock websites have strict quality control, so ensure your images are sharp, well-lit, and meet the platform's technical specifications.
• Diverse content: Stock photography buyers often look for a wide variety of themes, including landscapes, cityscapes, people, and business-related photos.
• Keyword optimization: Properly keyword your photos so they can be easily found in search results. Accurate and detailed tags can significantly improve visibility and sales.

2. Print-On-Demand Services

If you prefer selling physical prints of your work, print-on-demand (POD) services offer an excellent opportunity. These platforms print and ship your photos as physical products, including canvases, posters, and other merchandise like phone cases or T-shirts, every time a customer makes a purchase.

Tips for Success:

• Offer multiple formats: Ensure your work is available in various sizes and formats (canvas prints, posters, framed prints, etc.) to cater to different customer preferences.
• Promote on social media: Boost your exposure by promoting your work on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook, linking directly to your product pages.
• Create unique, niche designs: Standing out in a crowded market is key. Niche images or specialty themes often perform better than generic subjects.

3. Create Your Own Photography Website

Building your own website is one of the best ways to sell your photos online without paying commissions to third-party platforms. Having your website allows you to take full control over pricing, sales, and branding.

Tips for Success:

• Offer exclusive content: Selling directly from your website means you can offer exclusive content that buyers won’t find anywhere else.
• Build an email list: Collect emails from your website visitors and regularly send them newsletters with your latest work, special offers, or behind-the-scenes content.
• Blogging and SEO: Consistently blogging about your photography can help you rank higher on Google, attracting more visitors to your site.

4. Selling Photography as NFTs

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are taking the art and photography world by storm. An NFT is a unique digital asset stored on the blockchain, and you can mint your photos as NFTs and sell them on platforms like OpenSea or Rarible. While still a relatively new market, NFTs have provided photographers with a new way to monetize their digital works.

Tips for Success:

• Choose the right platform: Popular platforms for selling NFTs include OpenSea, Foundation, and SuperRare.
• Build the following: NFTs thrive on community and collectors. Engaging with crypto art communities can help promote your work.
• Scarcity: Creating limited editions of your photos or unique, one-of-a-kind pieces often appeals more to collectors.

5. Licensing Your Photos

Another profitable way to sell your photos is by licensing them for commercial use. Many businesses, agencies, and media companies need professional-quality images for advertisements, campaigns, and editorial purposes. Licensing agreements let you keep the ownership of your work while selling usage rights to others.

6. Social Media and Patreon

While social media platforms like Instagram and Pinterest are mainly used to showcase photography, you can also use them to generate income. As your following grows, you can earn through brand partnerships, sponsored content, or directly selling your images to followers.

Platforms like Patreon allow creators to receive direct support from their audience. You can offer exclusive photography content, tutorials, or behind-the-scenes videos in exchange for monthly subscriptions.

Top Platforms for Selling Your Photography

1. Shutterstock

Get paid for photos, illustrations, and video clips. Rates vary on the subscription plan, exclusivity, and type of vector. They have over 200 million images, videos, and music tracks for folks to purchase royalty free which also means they have millions of purchasing customers. The site says you can earn up to $120 per image download and 30% royalty on every clip purchased.

Now iOS and Android users can sign-up to become a contributor straight from the app and start making money from their mobile imagery instantly. Users may access the contributor application for iOS here and for Android here. To learn more about the mobile contributor sign-up process, click here.

2. Adobe Stock

Adobe Stock is a stock photo marketplace by the maker of the most popular photo editing software solutions like Photoshop and Lightroom. It has been around for over 10 years and is known to be the very first online platform to sell photos. The royalty share is also higher than the other online shops.

3. Getty Images

Getty Images hands over 15% of an image’s sales price, but promise a bigger cut if you make the pic exclusive to the site. Photos typically sell for £7 or £20 a go, but the type of license or subscription plan the customer buys determines how your slice is calculated.

4. InstaPrints

Simply upload your Instagram photos to InstaPrints and determine your prices. When a customer purchases one of your prints, InstaPrint will finalize all the details. A couple of other ways you can make money on Instagram are by selling your own Instagram images. Or if you have a LARGE Instagram following – you can work with brands to make $5,000 – $10,000 per Instagram post.

5. PhotoShelter

PhotoShelter is an online shop to sell and deliver prints to the clients. They allow you to set up your template for sharing the photos. You need to buy the space on their platform to upload the photos. There are multiple plans for monthly and yearly options with different features.

6. Envato Market

Price your items, pay the Envato fee (which varies on exclusivity and how much you sell) and the remainder is your seller fee. See site for a detailed fee table.

7. Scoopshot

Earn money by completing photo and video assignments via Scoopshot. This money making an app is available for both iPhone and Android systems. Money is made from a direct photo and video purchases and also via revenue sharing options.

8. Foap

Download the Foap application (available for both iPhone and Android operating systems) to your smartphone and upload your photos. Once your image receives five positive ratings from other Foap users – your photo will be published for sale. You will earn $5 each time someone purchases your photo.

9. iStockPhoto

iStockPhoto is a great place for those just starting out selling stock photos. Its popular forums and resources will help you to find your feet, and to understand the world of photo sales. The standard royalty payout for iStockPhoto starts at only 15% per download, but this can increase to 45% depending on the popularity of your photos. If a customer purchases a photo using one of the subscription “credits” however, royalty rates are 15% by default.

10. DepositPhotos

Commission depends on the license type under which the image is uploaded and the resolution in which it has been purchased. It is also influenced by your author level and status on the website.

11. Stocksy

This company is founded in 2013, it is a royalty-free stock photography website where you find stock photos and stock videos. It gives 50%-70% royalty when some download or purchase your photos.

12. Alamy

Alamy has over 60 million images and videos for sale on its website. It’s because it offers photographers a huge 50% royalty payment on each photo sold. The site also allows photographers to sell their photos elsewhere. It now has a huge number of monthly visitors.

Tips to Do with Stock Photography

• If you are planning to click stock images with people in them, then you will have to get a model release signed by each and every human whose face is visible in the photos. That’s what elements of photography come into place.

• You might also have to get a release signed by the authorized person, in case you are clicking a private property such as a house or a building.

• Leave some breathing space around the subject as the agency or individual who buys your stock image might want to add some text to it. Think like an advertiser.

• Take multiple shots of the same subject from different angles, you never know which one is chosen by the advertiser.

• Uploading bulk images is a better idea as it increases the chances of an image getting selected by the buyer.

• Explore stock image website and check their best selling images, then plan your shoots around those images for better sales.

Conclusion

Selling photography online has never been easier, thanks to all the amazing platforms available for both digital and physical sales. Whether you're submitting images to stock photography websites, setting up your online store, or leveraging the growing world of NFTs, there are endless opportunities to monetize your passion for photography. However, success requires dedication, patience, and creativity. Focus on producing high-quality work, understand your target audience, and use multiple platforms to diversify your income.

Stock photo from Abscent