Monetization of Creativity

From my ten years of experience, I can definitely say that a photographer’s ability to take good pictures does not mean that he can make good money on them.

Why does this happen? It’s because at the present moment the market is saturated with this kind of creativity. Unfortunately, everyone who picks up a photo camera thinks of themselves as a photographer, without having created a single good picture. In 99 % of cases these photos are very similar to each other, which lead to their devaluation and the devaluation of creativity in general.

As of today, I can cite three types of photographers who, in my opinion, can make a decent living from their creativity.

The first ones take commercial photos for various organizations and enterprises. Photographers do not shoot people, but they shoot clothes, machines, furniture, fittings, food, real estate, and many other things. This is a quite hard work and you have to love this kind of work, so that after a couple of years of this kind of shooting you don’t burn out morally.   

The second type of photographers is those who shoot weddings. This is a very nerve-racking and difficult job that requires constant training and years of practice. Wedding photographers often shoot corporate parties, children’s parties and other events. The disadvantages of this kind of work are working on weekends, working until late at night, and a lot of physical activity. This is a job for young and very active people.

The third type of photographers create individual author’s content and have their own distinctive style. There are very few such photographers. Because of this, with the right marketing strategy, their creativity will be valued quite high. Payment for one photo session with such photographer will be dozens of times higher than with other “stock” photographers.

But only a few out of millions of photographers have the ability and skill to find their niche, to create their own recognizable style and can express themselves in narrowly focused photography.

Everyone, who picks up a photo camera, decides what they want to be and how they want to make money. For many, it’s just a hobby and an opportunity to express themselves. For others, it’s their main livelihood.

In the next article I will tell you, my friends, about ways to monetize photography!