One of my hobbies is photography. 

I started with a Nikon d5100, and I clocked its shutter to 179,156.

Yes, I was taking photos of anything and everything.

The d5100 is a great camera for someone starting to learn the basics.

If I knew what I know now, I could have made money with a photography blog.

So, if you’re a protog, or even just starting out, and want to make money with your hobby, this is for you.

How to make money with a photography blog? You do it by doing. Let’s goooo!

How to get RICH with a photography blog

Many make a good living by blogging about photography. The following are just some of the blogs you should aspire to:

1. Fro Knows Photo – Run by a guy with a lot of hair, Jared Polin. This guy sells eBooks on how to, well, take photos. He sells shirts, caps, beanies, and accessories. And, I’m pretty sure he makes money with sponsors. Don’t forget his Youtube channel that amassed a following of 1.27 million subscribers. Probably more by the time you read this. You bet that he is making a great deal of money from his youtube and blog.
2. FStoppers – Back in 2010, Patrick Hall and Lee Morris decided to share their love of photography on the web by blogging. A decade later, the website is the go-to source of 1.5 million photographers. F Stoppers have been featured in many tech blogs and brings in more than 6 million page views. You can only imagine how much brands are willing to pay for this type of exposure. Sponsor deals, ads are just some of the ways you can monetize a blog.
3. iPhone Photography School – Run by Kate Wesson, teaches everyday people how to take better photos on the iPhone. Kate is inspiring me to start an android phone photography school. I mean, how many people have a phone camera these days? EVERYONE! I think this is a great niche to break into.
4. Clickin Moms – The blog was founded in 2008 for Kenda Okolita and her friends to talk about photography. It has grown to 16,000 people who love to click! Clickin Moms make their revenue with a membership model.

I can go on and on! 

These businesses started in their garage, closet, and bedroom that grew to a massive money-generating photography blog. 

Now that you know that blogging about your photography skills and knowledge can be a life-changer, it’s time to start your blog.

How to start a photography blog that makes money or die trying

Alright, you may not die trying, but you need to stick to this for the long term. You can’t just start, do it for three months, see no return, and quit. Be patient. 

The following is what you need to get started blogging:

• Passion
• Niche down 
• Expand
• Review
• Edit
• Don’t over-edit
• Workshop works
• Know your audience
• Drink coffee

Passion

Passion is the top prerequisite when it comes to blogging. Blogging is a long game; you have to love what you are writing. If you hate what you’re doing, it will show in your blogs. Without passion, you’ll quit after a year or less.

So, make sure that you love photography, and you see yourself doing this until you die. Okay, maybe not die, but a good five years.

Niche down

In the early days of your blog, you might want to niche down. Photography has many facets. There is street photography, landscape, portraits, and learning all these at the same time can be overwhelming. 

I loved taking photos of landscapes for a while, then my interest changed and switched to street photography.

Start writing about what you’re good at or love. Then, after you covered everything about a single topic, it will probably take you a year. It’s only natural to write about other topics relating to photography. 

And this brings me to my next point.

Expand

If you want to make money with your wedding photography, you should concentrate on wedding photography in your state. And you should learn about local SEO to get you the best traffic to your blog.

Start writing about photography services in [state]. Or, questions that a bride or groom might be asking when they are looking for photographers on their wedding day.

You will run out of things to write about in time. Once you do, start expanding your skillset. Learn new things and share what you’ve learned with your readers. Not only will your audience appreciate you, get more content ideas, you’ll also gain more followers wanting to learn what you know.

If you want to stick to your niche, like street photography, start reviewing gears.

Review

One of the best things to make money with your photography blog is by reviewing camera products. 

The latest full-frame camera can go up to 3K, and you’ll get a good commission by referring people. 

Let’s say you refer someone to Amazon to buy a Canon 5D that costs $3,399 by this writing time. When someone purchases, you’ll get a 4% commission. That’s $135 on autopilot. 

Be wary of running an affiliate site. Google mentioned that a heavy affiliate site might rank lower than blogs that offer value first, profit second. 

In saying that, there are still review blogs on the web that outranks some sites. If you are planning on running a review site, consider reading the google guidelines linked below.

[source: Google guideline to affiliate programs]

Edit

Do you know how we love opening up our Adobe Photoshop or photo editor to create magic? Well, with blogging, it’s the same! 

Jot your ideas down in a draft, then correct grammar and spelling mistakes. Your readers will get distracted when your writing looks like you just drank ten shots of vodka.

Don’t over-edit

Perfection is the enemy of a writer. You’ll never hit publish if you are never 100% happy with your “essay.” 

Aim for 80% and hit publish. You can always go back.

There are no more passive blogs these days. If you do create a passive blog, you will lose rankings. 

The only thing I can think of that can be a passive blog is one with low competition. Where a topic so rare that no one writes about. 

There are many blogs on the internet. And, Google will always update their algorithm to bring its users the best and fresh results.

Workshop works 

Information is free on the internet. Heck, you’re reading how to start a photography blog right now. Selling eBooks is profitable when you have plenty of die-hard fans that are willing to pay you for things they can get on the internet for free. 

However, you may not get millions of views with your blog and only a dozen screaming followers. With your workshop, you can charge a fair amount of money to people willing to learn from you. 

For example, charge $500 for each session and share what you know in person or a zoom call. If you get only a dozen people per session, that’s already $6000. Do that once a month every year, and you can earn a good living. Even if you get six people a month, that’s $36,000 a year.

As you build your fan base and get good feedback from your workshop, you can increase your price. 

Don’t be afraid to charge thousands for your expertise and hands-on training. Double your price until you get a decrease in demand. Your price is a reflection of your skills, after all. 

Know your audience

Knowing your audience is easy. You are writing for people who want to learn about photography or potential clients.

Before you start writing, remember who you are writing for and cater to them. Don’t write about how to take better photos of dogs when you want to score a wedding client. 

You want to display your wedding photos from you or past clients. You don’t need to educate them in detail on the best gear for wedding photography.

Write daily

You may not be a good writer now. I know I was crap when I first started blogging. I promise you, the more you write, the faster you’ll get better.

When I compare my old articles to the new ones, it’s like black and white. 

Write from sunrise to sundown and you’ll improve your writing skills in no time.

Drink coffee

Studies have shown that coffee makes you lose weight. So even when you’re stuck in your chair, writing for hours, you’re expending more calories with coffee than without.

Coffee also increases mental alertness and performance. I agree. I’m on my fourth servings of caffeine today. And, I’m still coming up with ideas! 

Conclusion

No idea. Need coffee. 

What are you waiting for? Start your blog today.