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Making money as a travel photographer?


4 years 7 months ago #659800 by Kid Prodigy
The one thing I have always wanted to do is travel the world with my camera.  But reality always sets in and I come back to the conclusion that I have no idea how I would make money to survive and pay bills that are waiting for me back home.  

Yet, on Instagram and social media channels, I see photographers doing just that. So how are they able to make money?
Canon EOS 7D|Canon EF 70-200mm F/2.8L USM |
Canon EF 50mm F/1.4 USM |
(2) Canon Speedlite 480EX II
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4 years 7 months ago #659818 by effron
They find people that'll pay them for photos or just advertise....more great photographers go unnoticed then otherwise....
Why so serious?
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4 years 7 months ago #659843 by Kenya See
You could sell prints, stock and try hitting up restaurants in the locations where you are traveling.  Schedule weddings.   
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4 years 7 months ago #659849 by Kid Prodigy
Cool beans, thank you.  When you say hitting up restaurants, are you talking about food photography or taking photos of guest?  
Canon EOS 7D|Canon EF 70-200mm F/2.8L USM |
Canon EF 50mm F/1.4 USM |
(2) Canon Speedlite 480EX II
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4 years 7 months ago #659943 by icepics
I don't know if places would contract with a photographer travelling through; I wonder if they'd more likely hire someone local? I don't know if there would be a market for prints but it seems like you'd have to find someplace wherever you're going that would let you consign prints for sale (I know how it works locally, not sure how that would work overseas or in tourist locations, etc.). 

What about asking the travel photographers who are posting on social media how they went about it? 

Part of how they're making money if they're posting videos on YouTube is from ad revenue that accompanies their videos. So maybe they aren't really making a living from photography, are they also doing other sorts of jobs? do they have benefits/insurance etc. or paying for that themselves? are they paying into retirement or social security? There's a lot to consider and I wouldn't assume they're managing all that just from travel photography - maybe they are, maybe they have other means of income.
Sharon
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4 years 7 months ago #659947 by garyrhook
I'm listening to the most recent episode of The Candid Frame podcast, and Ibarionex is talking with Jeffrey Saddoris about this very subject. Well worth the listen.

The fact of the matter is, few people are going to able to do that, because it's extremely challenging. Also, they live very modest lives, with low overhead. I'll also bet that they learned their craft while funded by someone else. And they've figured out how to sell their services to someone, which means they're focused on building a business. Not just taking photographs.

You might look into travel blogging, too.

But yeah, try to contact the folks that appear to do it. Research podcasts to see if anyone is talking about that. Do a lot of googling.
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4 years 7 months ago #659979 by KENT MELTON
@Gary - I was just looking for good photography podcasts, any others you would recommend?

Thank you!
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4 years 7 months ago #660078 by garyrhook

KENT MELTON wrote: @Gary - I was just looking for good photography podcasts, any others you would recommend?

Thank you!


While On Taking Pictures is defunct, the existing 325 episodes are well worth the time. As is all of the TCF backlog. I listen to Tips From the Top Floor, but it's mostly technical, and not always of interest to me. After OTP stopped, Jeffrey Saddoris started some different ones, and now publishes them under Everything. Brooks Jensen's LensWork is one of the best, IMO, but it's not technical, rather art and craft. For business, Momentum: The Marketing Podcast for Photographers is pretty good.

The best thing about all of these is the talent doesn't think it's all that and a bag of chips, not snarky, and not pretentious. I don't have the patience for people who think they're more clever than they are.
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4 years 7 months ago #660098 by Pettigrew
Try setting up a website and selling prints, offer travel advice and perhaps offer tours if you know these areas well enough. 
Canon EOS 7D SLR | XT W/18-55 Kit Lens | Canon 50mm 1.8 | Tamron 17-50mm 2.8 | Canon 28-105mm | Canon 75-300mm | Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro | Canon 100-400
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