Often it seems the Net was made just for photographers. On a social level it lets us share photos with friends and families, we can get together and talk camera gear and photographic technique, and it helps a lot of us overcome the isolation that commonly goes side by side with a photography career.
On a professional level, it provides the wherewithal to showcase our work to Clients, access new markets and conduct the entire stock photography sales process without leaving our desk. It also offers the resources to monitor trends, watch what our peers are doing and see what material our clients are using.
And for all that, the sad truth is, for many photographers, the pure volume of info and options becomes more of an impediment than a helping hand. They only have so many hours in a day, and choosing what’s worth their attention and what isn’t becomes a chore, and as a result they have an inclination to brush over the important stuff and get way-laid with the trivial.
Well if you find yourself in that scenario, here’s a bare-bones list of the 5 necessary site types every freelance photographer should have bookmarked and will be using continually.
1. Stock Photography Library
Few freelance photographers would not have a picutre agency presence of some kind, but plenty of photographers still leave it as something to do later when they are better established, or have more suitable material. These days that’s not mandatory and the simplest way tosell your photography online is to start early and add to your stock catalogue consistently over a period of time.
Stock photography is a long term business though, so do take it steady and find a stock photo agency that is a good match for your work and your style. Confirm it leaves you in charge of your work and does not need you to hand over your rights, or give your work away, solely to access their services.
2. Photography Price Calculator
To this end, make sure you bookmark a good online stock photography price calculator. We all used to manage this with hard-copy books, but things move fast these days and new sorts of photography-uses emerge every week, so a live stock photo price calculator is essential.. Be warned though, most photographers are blown away when they first use these… because most photographers seriously under-price their work.
If you have never looked at a Stock Photography Price Calculator before, I’d recommend you jot down a list of 5-10 of your key markets, and then list 2-3 ‘average ‘ uses for each. Then open the calculator and work out a price for each use. Keep it convenient and you have a ready-reference guide if a Client ever places you on the spot, but just as significantly, you will get a completely new understanding to the value of your photography.
3. Photography Business Reports & Info
If you are ardent — and you don’t mind sitting at a P. C. all day — you can subscribe to many different newsletters and blogs to attempt to start recent with goings on in the industry. Or you’ll find a single Photography/Business site that does it all for you.
There are quite a few extremely good websites out there if you go looking. My suggestion is to check them out and follow a couple until you find one that does the job right for you, your field of work, your interests, your location etc. The best websites will give you all the vital stuff in summary then include links for more in-depth info if you need it, so that you can stay up to date and get all the info you need, without the info overload.
4. Shopping & Auction Internet Sites
It’s widely known, photographers are gadget-junkies! We are always hunting for that next piece of must-have camera kit that we simply cannot function properly without. The incontrovertible fact we’ve already functioned quite alright for years without it doesn’t matter… After we know it’s out there we must have it. Sound familiar?
The flip side is, often we have got equally as much gear we should really get rid of… And once again, if the Net was made for us then I am sure the creators of eBay are either photographers themselves, or they’ve a few in the family. So bookmark it and use it. If you’ve a cupboard of old camera gear that hasn’t been put to work in years get it out and put it up for sale, while it still has some value to someone!
5. Online Photography Community
Professional photography is often a solo career so the ability to engage with your peers online should not be taken lightly. We all see dozens of images on any specific day, but to be able to look at new images and discuss them with other photographers is priceless. Pre-Internet, it was something that only happened at Camera Clubs or waiting around at the Pro-Lab, but the internet forums and portal sites now give working photographers to ability to have interaction with their peers, share ideas and info and really grow as artists. And if you’re not making efficient use of them, you are quite possibly stagnating!
Well that is my top 5 must-bookmark internet site types. The Net offers us the opportunity to ’round-out ‘ our photography businesses in ways that we never could before, so make sure you are getting maximum value from the time you spend online… And remember all work and no play, leads to a boring photographer!
Matt Brading is a stock photographer & writer with GlobalEye Digital Stock Photography. For other photography business articles be certain to visit their Sell Stock Photos blog & resources page.
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