By Peter Girling  

As we all know, there are many ways to make money in your home. They range from outright scams to good sensible ideas such as craft work, home laundry service, dog walking etc. Many of these ideas require some money to get started and in some cases, a lot of hard work! I'd like to focus here on what I believe is one of the best opportunities and is one which I use to make extra money.

This idea does not require any capital to get started IF you already have a digital camera and an internet connection. I assume that as you are reading this on the internet, you have at least got an internet connection! You may not know it but there are many Photo Libraries on the internet who are desperate for YOUR photos.

Once you have uploaded your photos to their site, they will market them and when they sell you will be paid a commission. Each photo can be sold repeatedly and each time they sell you recieve another commission! Your pictures could be sold to newspapers, magazines, book publishers, advertising agencies etc. You can normally upload your pictures to several sites. Think about that. If you upload 400 pictures to five different sites, that will be like having 2000 pictures for sale! You do not have to pay anything to the photolibrary to register with them.

So what kind of pictures are they looking for? Here is a list of some popular subjects;

Popular Subjects

Anything to do with business or finance. That means pictures fo people in meetings, using computers, sitting at desks. Photos of money, credit cards, financial charts etc.

Anything to do with medicine. That means pictures of doctors, nurses, medicine, medical equipment etc.

Pictures of people in everyday situations, playing, eating, shopping etc.

Pictures of food. Plates of food. A table set for a meal.

Close ups fo everyday objects.

This is by no means a complete list. I'd suggest that you visit some of the libraries and look at what sells. I've listed some libraries further down. Photolibraries say that they don't want any more pictures of sunsets, nature, pets and insects.

Photo Libraries

I can recommend the following photo libraries;

Fotolia.com
Picture nation.co.uk
Crestock.com
Shutterpoint.com

Hints and Tips

When you submit photos they should be sharply focused, well composed and have good colour saturation. Don't submit what you might call "holiday snaps." However cute your pet is, the libraries wont be interested in pictures of it unless it is studio set or doesn't look like your pet - if you follow me. Think about the photos you see of cats, dogs and other animals that you see on calendars. That is the standard of animal picture that they are looking for.

When submitting pictures of people you must have what is called a 'model release' form signed by the person/people in the picture - if they are recognizable. This is a legal form (which you can download from the picture library site) where the person/people in the picture are giving their permission for their picture to be published. This, of course, provides you, the photographer, with a problem if you have some super pics of a football crowd. Getting the signatures of several hundred/thousand people may just put you off!

I enjoy this way of making money because after I've uploaded my photos I can forget about them and just wait for the commission to roll in. I've been doing this for quite a while now and it's very nice to be paid repeatedly for pictures that I uploaded a long time ago.

In Conclusion

I believe that this is probably one of the best ways to make money in your home because it costs nothing to start - if you already have a digital camera. You can of course make special journeys out and about to take photos but I only take photos 'out and about' if I'm out shopping or on holiday. If you'd like to see some of my pictures that sell regularly, (they might surprise you) visit my website where you will also have the opportunity to sign up for a FREE weekly newsletter on money making photography tips. The link is at the bottom of this page. Get shooting and make some money!

Good luck, Peter Girling