Making Money
Recently, in our popular "Kracker Barrel" page on our website, a photographer wrote:
How does a photographer begin to make immediate money in this business? I have sent my stock list off
That's a real and honest question. The answer will help other photographers understand how this business of editorial stock photography works.
Let me first describe a business you might want to get into (but probably won't), that promises big dollars.
It's an enticing business and some folks have received $25,000 to $50,000 in a 24-hour period. There's little or no overhead, except the plane flight ($250), the lodging ($100 a night), the meals (cheap!) and the endurance to sit in front of a slot machine over a 24-hour period.
Of course I'm talking about Las Vegas and Atlantic City or your local casino. In a society that measures results in terms of dollars, -- editorial stock photographers walk a different walk. Their cash registers ring with rewards that money can't buy: personal enjoyment, fulfilling dreams, smiling when they wake up in the morning, and seeing their work published. Most importantly, in their later years, they can measure their richness in terms of vibrant memories, travel experiences, personal relationships, choice of living environment, working at their own pace and hours, recognition of talent, thrills of discovery, growth in understanding, and intellectual wealth in their chosen field of specialty. Many, later on, turn their knowledge into consulting on films, theater, business development, teaching, and writing.
The beginning stages are not easy, otherwise everyone would be doing it. You have to feed off your passion. You'll spend a frigid Saturday morning photographing frost in the right lighting. You'll climb the scaffolding of a new building to photograph the rigors of a steelworker. Time is of no importance. It passes quickly and you wish you had even more because your passion brings you joy. If wild horses can't pull you away from your photography, then you are an excellent candidate to eventually get to where you can financially survive at it.
But initially with an editorial stock photography venture you can expect let downs and put downs. You accept the laborious and slow process of establishing contacts, who can, however, become regular and lifetime buyers of your work. Like the brave boxer, you say to yourself, "If it is to be it is up to me." You get knocked down, but you don't stay down. You sometimes fail, but you don't quit.
Breaking into editorial stock photography is not unlike the aspiring actor in Hollywood or musician in Nashville, anticipating the big break, and enjoying every minute along the way as they pump gas or drive a cab. (Almost every successful actor and musician has gone through that experience.)
Creature comforts, in the early stages of a stock photography career, are not one of the benefits. With meager funds, you are willing to pay the price. You shop at eBay, drive a second-hand car, do more with less, so that when you need equipment and supplies, you can buy the best.
In the long run, you will find yourself in a career where the word "retirement" doesn't exist. People usually retire from something that has lost its appeal. But like the artist, writer, composer, sculptor, or musician, you'll still be going strong and may even produce your best work in your later years. There is no "downhill" when you love what you are
In my own experience, I invested my early years in art school with a major in advertising design. I was slated for a lucrative agency position in Baltimore. The dollars were big (aren't they always in advertising?). I came to a fork in the road. I asked my wife, Jeri, "Do we want to make a living, or do we want to make a life?" We chose the latter and found a way to do it.
Thirty years from now, what will you, and others who are reading this, answer to the question, "What did you do with your life?" Was it a life of satisfaction, or regrets? Did you enjoy every minute of it -the joys, the highs and the lows, the heartbreaks and the successes? Or did you settle for less, in order to have immediate financial security? It's the question and decision every artist has to ask in the beginning.
In other words, the answer to your question is that there are really no shortcuts to pulling in those checks faster. It's a case of deciding to weather the slow early going or not. It all comes down to if you love what you're doing, the sacrifices -- and the intangible , exhilarating rewards - are worth it.
Rohn Engh is director of PhotoSource International and publisher of PhotoStockNotes. Pine Lake Farm, Osceola, WI 54020 USA Email: info@photosource.com. Fax: 1 715 248-7394. Web site: www.photosource.com Kracker Barrel: http://www.photosource.com/board
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