Thursday, December 2, 2010

Using Digital Photography To Make Money

By David James


You might want to consider using digital photography to make some extra money. The fact of the matter is that digital photography is the fastest growing hobby. With a little know-how and some creativity, you can turn your hobby into a money-making business. There are several different ways that you can use your camera to make money.

All it takes is a little imagination, a flair for showmanship, a bit of salesmanship and the willingness to do some work - and you are set.

Odds are that you already own the equipment needed to begin, if you already enjoy digital photography as a hobby. The first thing that you are going to need for this is a digital camera with features similar to those of a SLR film camera, along with a tripod for some occasions. You will also need an excellent printer or printing service.

You will also need good digital photo editing software. The best known applications include Adobe Photoshop CS3, Adobe Photoshop Light room, Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 and Corel Paint Shop Pro X

Investing a few hundred dollars in marketing materials will get you off to a good start.

Now, we should discuss a common misconception before going any further. Many people think that it is not possible to make money taking pictures this day. They point out that almost everyone has a digital camera or at least a camera phone. I can hear you saying, "Why would people pay for pictures when they can take their own?"

You can do it this way. The fact of the matter is that everyone has some sort of camera. But how competent are they at using it?

You might want to take a look at how many pictures individuals take. Let's be honest. There is more to photography that point and shoot. There are usually motion blur pictures from holding the camera the wrong way. Poor color. Awkwardly posed subjects. Basically, they do not possess composition skills. Dark shadows obscuring a subject's face. Even those people that know how to use photo editing software may need help when it comes to taking amazing pictures. There is only so much you can do to correct a poor photograph.

And what do you suppose happens when these people try to print their photos? Undoubtedly, you've seen some of these images. The prints have poor resolution. This happens when the photographer had no idea how to adjust the camera settings to produce printable photos.

This is where you come in. Use your extensive digital photography skills to work up a few samples that you can show to potential customers and reel them in.

Are you still apprehensive? Recently, I attended a friend's birthday party. The host paid an amateur photograph who wanted to start their own business just like you.

Almost everyone at the party brought their own digital cameras - but once the party got rolling, who remembered to take pictures? And those shots that we did take were unplanned and poorly positioned.

The photographer received payment for her services. A couple of days later, the photographer posted the photos on a web site. People that went to the party got the link to the pictures through email. We downloaded the photos we wanted and printed them or saved them to our computer.

The photographer didn't even have the expense and work of printing and delivering photos - but was paid generously for her services.

How cool is that? You could to it, huh? Develop your photography skills, get a marketing plan and say Cheese!




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