Earn money from your photography

Use this guide if you take good photographs and want paid work from licensing images or shooting for local people and businesses. Have a portfolio of your best 20–30 images, a list of your equipment and its value, and an idea of how many hours a week you can spare. This is general information, not legal advice; check anything you are unsure about with an adviser.

Step by step

1. Choose the route that fits your skills and kit

   Stock licensing means uploading images to agencies that license them to buyers; it needs a large, well-keyworded library, model and property releases, and patience, as each licence usually pays little. Local portrait work, such as families, pets and business headshots, needs people skills and a reliable editing process; event work needs speed in poor light; product photography for small businesses needs consistent lighting and clean backgrounds. Decision rule: start where mistakes can be fixed, such as product shots and headshots that can be reshot, and build up to one-off events like weddings only after assisting or second-shooting, because a missed moment cannot be repeated. For any paid shoot, bring spare batteries and memory cards, and for events a second camera body or a plan for what happens if your camera fails. Write down the one route you will try for the next three months, and the three types of image your portfolio needs for it.