Once you get a few photos up for sale in stock agencies (get your start here), you can boost your income by photographing current trends.
Like avocado toast. Which, if you’re not familiar with it, is toast with avocado spread on it.
It’s a big trend among millennials. It also happened to be my breakfast this week!
So, I put my camera on a tripod on the counter, like this:
… and snapped a few photos while I prepped my meal.
These simple shots are now up for sale in my stock portfolio:
I also heard on the news recently that Americans are consuming less cow’s milk, reaching for options like soy, almond, oat, and other non-dairy drinks.
So, I set up a few shots with almonds and a glass jar of almond “milk.”
Including people in your stock photos can help them sell. And, if no one is around, you can always use yourself as a model. This is an excellent way to practice, since there’s no pressure, and it’s a sure bet for a model release.
For these, I put my camera on the tripod and set the timer.
With a few extra minutes in the morning, I made my (very trendy) breakfast, enjoyed a non-dairy latte, and took a series of new photos that are all now up for sale online.
A couple of tips if you’d like to try this:
1. De-clutter. Before you shoot, clean off all of the surfaces that will be in the background of the photo to get a nice, clean shot.
All this kitchen clutter had to go:
2. Keep it simple! Notice how I’m getting in close to my subjects and excluding anything that doesn’t add to the photo.
3. Remove or hide logos. Easy enough in this case – I just peeled them off:
Personally, I love edible props, but you can do this with any aspect of your life, from your hobbies, to current projects, to family time… and even the workplace.
Buyers want photos that look authentic. Which means that the more you incorporate this into your real life, the better!