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This article will look at some important aspects of how to make money from photography. Learning to make money with a camera and becoming a professional photographer, whether full time or part time, is both personally rewarding and lucrative. There are freelance photographers pulling in big bucks for doing something they love. What better a way to make a living than at something you love and are good at?

The days of needing a darkroom and loads of equipment are gone, today's digital cameras don't need darkrooms at all, you will however need a home office or suitable place to work with a PC and some good graphics software like say Photoshop, which is pretty much the industry standard. Knowing how to use Photoshop effectively can greatly add to the range of services you can provide. Techniques such as altering color balance can make for some really striking imagery that could be used in local firms advertising materials. Black & white pictures with just one color can make for stunning shots and of course there are a myriad effects that can be achieved.

Other things you will need are patience and a desire to learn. Photographers must take their business seriously if they want to succeed. They all want to stand out as being a little different in style from each other, you too will need to develop your own style to set yourself apart. Part of this will come from the decision you'll make as to what niche areas to specialize in. Do you want to be a portrait photographer or one who specializes in pets for instance?

The skills you need to be successful are constantly changing as both the technology and the market itself continues to evolve. You will certainly need to stay aware of the changes and continually educate yourself in new techniques and equipment developments. In some ways the value of photos has dropped as more stock photography became available online however numerous specialty areas have opened up and niche always spells opportunity. Niches from specialised sports photography to pet photography have boomed in recent years. If you think for a moment how people spend ridiculous amounts of money on pets you will see the potential income opportunity in that niche area of photography.

Having organized your office and thought about your specialty areas to focus on you really should now crystallize your business idea into a business plan. A business plan may sound a little scary but really its just a document to set ut what your business is all about, who its customers are and how the profit is made. The plan should also incorporate your pricing model as well as set out some key milestones to target for your business. By having these targets you will be able to review your progress and work out which aspects of your business need to change.

Your plan should also set out how you intend marketing your service, that is how you will get clients to use you and not the competition, this may involve some element of price structures as well as advertising methods. The plan should be written as if persuading someone else to invest in the business as indeed you might someday wish to get a business loan or persuade a venture partner to join you.

So got the ideas and know how to use a camera? You're just about ready for this rewarding pursuit - good luck!