How to Start a Successful Photography Side Hustle

You have a long list of options when it comes to making money with photography. To ensure you pick a side job that’s sustainable, enjoyable, and profitable, there are a few factors you’ll need to consider.

Time commitment

Decide early on how much time you want to commit to your photography side hustle each week. This will prevent burnout and make you more likely to stick with it in the long run.

For example, if you’re already working a full-time job, you’ll have to find a flexible side gig that fits in with your work schedule.

If you’re a college student looking to earn some extra cash over the summer, you’ll want to choose a photography side hustle that you can do wherever you are in the short term, doesn’t take a long time to start paying off, and you can continue to do once you’re back in school.

How you plan to make money

Regardless of which type of photography you plan to do, there are three main ways you can make money with a photography job:

• Start your own business: This can be tough to do alongside a full-time job. You’ll have to invest a lot of time and money to get your business set up and take extra steps to market your services and ensure you’re operating legally.
• Work for a company or agency: There’s plenty of competition for part-time and freelance gigs, but it can be a low-stress side hustle you can do without quitting your day job.
• Make affiliate deals: You can make money by advertising products or services if you have a blog, vlog, or podcast with a large audience. This will earn you passive income, but it takes time and effort to get the ball rolling.

In most cases, it’ll take a while before your earnings pick up. As you gain experience and get into a flow with your work, your side gig will become more profitable.

The best side hustle for you depends on how much time you have to spare, how much money you’re willing to invest in startup costs, and whether you intend to eventually turn your side hustle into a full-time job.

Do you want to set up the building blocks for an eventual career in photography, or are you just testing the waters to find out if you can make it as a photographer? Your answers will affect which side hustles are suitable for you, although they may change over time as you gain experience.

Blogging and content creation

If you’re looking for a self-directed job that allows you to work at your own pace, then consider making money through through photography-related content creation:

• Writing a blog: You can write blog posts about photography or use your blog as a place to share your photos. With enough time and effort, your blog could gain traction, potentially allowing you to make money from ads and affiliate marketing. This won’t be very lucrative in the beginning, but it can pay off if you learn enough about data, analytics, and SEO.
• Creating a YouTube channel: You can make money on YouTube in a similar way to making money blogging. Starting a photography channel or vlog gives you the chance to express yourself and make money through affiliate deals if you gain a decent following. The same goes for other popular video content services, such as TikTok.
• Starting a podcast: Create a photography podcast on a niche topic. If it becomes popular, companies may be willing to pay you to promote their products or services through ads that air during the podcast.

These can be especially good choices if the photography you’re interested in doing is highly competitive or isn’t particularly commercial. Wildlife photography, for instance, can be very hard to break into, but if you start a blog about it and it takes off, you can make money indirectly.

However, bear in mind that for a blog or website to generate income on its own, you need to be prepared to work long hours on the parts of running a blog that aren’t as fun and sacrifice time spent on the more enjoyable parts of photography.

Selling photos on the side

A more straightforward approach is to simply sell your photos. You can try a few strategies:

• Taking photos for local businesses: Go around to local businesses and offer to take photos for their websites. Many companies need fresh, professional pictures to market their products or services.
• Selling stock photos: License your photos and put them up for sale on stock photo websites. This is a very easy way to earn a passive income from your photos, although your earning potential probably won’t be very high.
• Selling prints: Sell physical prints of photos you’ve taken, either through online websites or platforms or in person at galleries, markets, or art festivals.
• Making photo-based products: Use your photos to create practical products and gifts. For example, you could make postcards or calendars.
• Selling photos of yourself: This encompasses every form of self-photography that you can use to make a profit. For instance, you could take photos of yourself modeling outfits for an online clothes retailer or sell your selfies.

To make the most of these options, you have to be willing to do a little extra work to market yourself and find buyers.

Photography side hustles that you can turn into a career

If you’re willing to invest a significant amount of time (and money) into your side hustle, then look into these options, all of which have the potential to eventually become your full-time job.

• Wedding photography: This is generally recognized as the highest-earning type of photography. There’s consistent demand for wedding photographers, and the pay is generally higher for wedding photos than other types of photos. You’ll also get the added benefits of being booked far in advance and having a predictable income.
• Portrait photography: You can take headshots and photos of individuals for special occasions, job applications, social media, and even dating profiles. This has some overlap with the category above as it can also include taking engagement photos.
• Family photography: Take pictures of families and newborns. This type of photography offers the potential to snag repeat customers.
• Pet photography: Capture photos of people’s pets. If you love animals or you have an interest in wildlife photography, then this could be a good option for you.
• Paparazzi photography: Follow celebrities and take photos to sell to magazines or online publications. This job isn’t for the faint of heart, and some would argue it’s an unethical practice, but it can be lucrative.
• Street photography: Take photos of public areas, capturing people or objects in candid shots at a particular moment in time. You can then sell the photos as art to galleries, collectors, or publishers.
• Club photography: Go to nightclubs and take photos of people partying. If they’re good photos, the club may be willing to pay to use them for their website or promotions.
• Concert/gig photography: Attend musical gigs and take photos of the performance. You can then sell these photos or use them to build a portfolio that gets you a stable job as a music photographer.
• Real estate photography: Get a job taking photos of houses and apartments for a real estate company, interior designer, or letting agency.
• Sports photography: Take photos of sports competitions for local newspapers, work as staff for a professional team or college sports department, or freelance for Sports Illustrated or ESPN. You could even work for the sports teams in the US Navy, Army, and other branches. Great examples of sports photographers include Amanda J. Cain of the San Jose Sharks and Elise Bressler, director of social media and photography for Texas Tech Athletics.
• Event photography: Get paid to capture photos at personal or corporate events. These can be birthday parties, anniversary parties, charity or award events, festivals, or other special occasions.
• Product photography: Have companies pay you to take photos of products they want to sell. You can specialize in taking photos of particular products, like tech devices or clothing.
• Food photography: Hone your food photography skills enough, and you could one day photograph a cookbook, freelance for a food-focused publication, or be on staff at a restaurant taking photos that are used for their marketing. Examples of photographers who have made money from photographing food include Charissa Fay and Joann Pai.

Professional photographer Kirsten Alana told us that of all these types of photography, street photography is the easiest to get into “in terms of skill level and equipment required.” However, she warned that “it could tend to be the lowest paying unless you have gallery connections or know people who will immediately collect your work.” Nevertheless, Alana knows a few street photographers who’ve made a living selling photography books or doing commercial work in “street photography style.”

The bottom line is that these may not be great options if you’re looking for a minimal time investment with a large payoff, but if you’re ambitious, hope to make a full time career out of photography, and are able to invest the time to build your portfolio, they’re well worth considering.

Other miscellaneous photography side hustles

Not all photography-related gigs revolve around selling or showcasing your own photos. You can also look into these photography jobs:

• Teaching photography: Put your photography expertise to use by offering photography classes or workshops. Like some of the side hustles listed above, this also has the potential to become a full-time job.
• Offer photo editing and retouching services: Use your photo-editing skills to touch up photos for other photographers or companies.
• Assist other photographers: Get a job as an assistant or second shooter to a professional photographer in your area. They’ll pay you a base wage, and you’ll be able to build up your photography skills. However, not all photographers will let you use the images you shoot for them in your portfolio, so make sure to ask for permission beforehand.

To set up a photography side hustle, you’ll need the right skills and resources. We spoke to several photographers who gave us pointers on what you need to get started.

Cameras, lenses, and photography equipment

Having a decent camera and lenses that suit the type of photography you’re doing is important. To give you a basic idea, we asked Alana and Jeff Thatcher, a wedding photographer based in California, what an aspiring wedding photographer might need to start their career.

Here’s a combined list of what they recommend for a wedding photographer starter kit:

• Camera
• Basic 24–70 mm kit lens for a full-frame camera
• Additional 70–200 mm camera lens
• Flash
• Computer for processing images
• Hard drive for storing images
• Good SD cards
• Batteries for your camera
• Tripod for group portraits

Of course, your kit might look a little different if you’re planning to do another type of photography. For example, underwater and aerial photography require special equipment, and you need different gear for domains that involve a moving subject, like sports or concert photography.

Do you really need high-quality photography equipment?

It’s worth noting that professional photographers disagree on just how important the equipment is for a successful photography career. For example, Thatcher told us the gear “doesn’t matter,” and you don’t need a whole lot of equipment to get started.

By contrast, Alana stated that she completely disagrees with this standpoint. “Professional, fast gear makes or breaks wedding photos,” she said. “Dealing with an unhappy bride because your equipment couldn’t hack it or you couldn’t is not something anyone wants to go through.”

This disagreement really boils down to one simple takeaway: You don’t technically need much equipment to begin making money with photography, but you do need professional-quality gear to earn respect in the industry and turn photography into a lucrative career. How much you should invest in your kit ultimately depends on your long-term goals. You can always start simple and gradually build it up as you go along.

Photography skills

Your prospects will look a lot different if you’re completely new to photography than if you’ve been a hobby photographer for years and are looking to make the transition to professional photography.

Assess your current skill and experience levels. If they’re not quite where they need to be, consider spending some time building them up before you try to make money with your camera.

Alana recommends paying to attend a photography workshop to boost your skills in your chosen area of expertise. “You’ll have fun and be able to network with other photographers who might refer you, all while honing your craft,” she added.

Adam Chandler, a professional portrait photographer who runs his own business, recommends working as an assistant or second shooter to a photographer in your area and learning everything you can from them.

Studio and/or market space

Think about the space you need to run your photography side hustle. This includes both:

• Where you’re going to take pictures
• Where you’re going to sell your photos

Some jobs involve on-site shooting and online selling, whereas others require you to rent out or set up your own space.

For example, if you’re shooting headshots, clients will expect you to have a proper studio with backdrops and lighting. If you want to make money from selling your photos at your local farmer’s market or at an art fair, you’ll need to set up a booth or stall.

If you’re doing in-person sales, making a space that’s welcoming and properly displays your work is crucial to attracting customers. Lance W., who goes by the artist name sssssnakesssss and frequently sells his art at markets, told us that “a nice setup goes a long way.”

We’re not just talking about essentials like tables, chairs, and walls for a market stall (though these are important). It’s the little things that make your space unique and welcoming. For example, Lance uses a candy bowl as a way to make conversation and draw people in.

Photo editing software

Unless you’re selling raw images, you’ll probably need software to edit your photos to a professional standard. Buyers generally expect this, and it’s part of what they’re paying for.

Don’t worry about getting the highest-end software. Alana says if you have free access to software that came with your camera, begin by using that. If not, explore free photo editing software such as Snapseed. Eventually, when you’ve got steady business and more photo editing experience, you should use a program like Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, or Capture One.

A solid portfolio

Building a portfolio of your work is crucial for pretty much any photography side hustle. Whether you’re doing portrait work, taking photos for a company, or selling personalized products online, you’ll need to be able to show potential buyers the type of work you do and the quality level they can expect from you.

The easiest way to display your photography portfolio is online. You can build your own website or use a photo-hosting website like Adobe Portfolio or Zenfolio.

You don’t necessarily have to start your own company to begin earning money as a photographer. But if you do, it’s important to understand your obligations and responsibilities as a new business owner.

Choose a niche

If you want to make money with photography, you have to decide who you’re marketing to. Are you appealing to individuals, families, couples, or businesses? Even within these categories, your options are countless. Figuring out who your target customers are will allow you to get business more quickly by building a portfolio that appeals to a select clientele.

Alana told us that if she had to start her career all over again from square one, she would specialize sooner rather than pursuing a “generalist” career in the broad categories of wedding or travel photography.

For example, within the field of wedding photography, Alana pointed out that you could be a photographer who only does high-end destination weddings, surprise elopements, or budget weddings. As a travel photographer, you could choose to only photograph hotels, only shoot for magazines or guidebooks, or go a different route by leading workshops around the world. In her words, “The sky is the limit!”

Register your business

Depending on your situation, you may need to register your business. This is a process that establishes your photography company as its own legal entity. While it may seem like a hassle, it’ll give your business certain protections that it wouldn’t have otherwise.

You may not need to register your business if you’re doing everything under your own name. In other cases, it may be as simple as just registering your business name. To confirm what steps you need to take, consult a licensed attorney and an accountant in your state. Be aware of both state and federal rules and regulations.

Get organized

Alana’s number one tip for aspiring photographers is to “do your research” and take steps to set up your photography business right from the start. While one element of this is registering your photography business, she also recommends getting an accountant and an attorney.

Chandler had similar advice, recommending “hiring a good accountant or bookkeeper once you have jobs coming in regularly.” He also suggests using a good customer relationship management (CRM) program like 17hats to organize and streamline client communications and send invoices, questionnaires, and contracts.

Set your pricing

Establishing a pricing structure for your photo products and services will make things simpler for both you and your customers. You may feel inclined to start off with low prices if you’re inexperienced, and that’s fine. Just make sure to set prices that you’re comfortable with and that make the job worthwhile.

Most importantly, don’t be afraid to increase your prices once you’ve got a bit more experience. On this point, Chandler told us, “it took me a while before I was comfortable raising my prices. I wish I’d done it sooner.”

Alana similarly expressed regret over charging too little at the start of her career. “Now, I don’t accept unpaid work and I regularly do research to try and find out what others are charging so that I am never unintentionally undercutting my colleagues,” she added.

It’s important to recognize the value of the work you do and choose prices that reflect that. Alana recommends using tools like the Getty pricing calculator to also understand rates among your colleagues and other professionals in your industry.

Advertise and market yourself

A huge part of running a successful photography business is advertising your services and products effectively. There are a few ways to do this:

• Paid advertising
• Social media
• Bulletin boards
• Cold outreach
• Referrals

According to Thatcher, “You NEED to market yourself.” He says that paying for ads is a big investment, but it’s definitely been worthwhile for him. Paying around $1,000 per month in ads gets him $8,000–$10,000 per month in revenue.

Not everyone will have this sort of success, but it shows that the investment can go a long way. Like Thatcher, Alana also eventually started “taking out ads” and actively marketing herself after getting a bit of hands-on experience taking photos for friends.

However, Thatcher emphasizes that you need to work with an expert to ensure that your money is being well spent. Otherwise, you might just be throwing it away.

Also, never underestimate the power of word-of-mouth advertising and referrals. Networking with other photographers and gathering testimonials from satisfied customers will help you continually grow your business.

Photography is a great side hustle for two main reasons. First, it’s incredibly versatile. There are dozens of ways to make money with a camera. Some are low-stress and easy to do alongside a full-time job, and others give you the building blocks to make photography a lifelong career.

Second, choosing photography as a side job allows you the opportunity to make money doing art. This is a rare luxury that few people get to enjoy.