I think I do not make a major mistake writing that every amateur photographer wants to earn some extra money selling their photographic works. Your presence on my blog and reading this post may be some kind of proof. Nevertheless, that's not a sin to earn extra income from one's own creative work as each art related activity and photography in particular needs money for an artist to be able to create it.
I, like many other artists have tried to sell my works on websites like Fine Art America, RedBubble, etc. The success was rather of mere nature, I must admit. For money earned on that sites I would need to live another 200 years to buy my new dream photo camera. I have no 200 years to live and I am not going to give up my dreams. So, following an old Polish adage saying that the need is the mother of all great invention and discovery, I have invented my own ways of promoting my art, getting wider exposure and I am going to share them with you. First of all,
Look through the Internet to find blogs writing on topics close to your photography. Write to the blog editor to ask if they would be interested in using your phography in their posts for free but giving credits to your website in exchange or maybe publishing small article about you with a 'Thank You' note? Whether you find a proper blog to cooperate or not,
Create your own blog on a topic that would best reflect your photographic work
There are numerous free options available on the Internet to start blogging on any topic you wish. Blogger and Wordpress are among the most popular ones. Instead of spending hours chatting and clicking likes on Facebook, start creating the foundation of your own business. You may find that your beloved fine art photography is just an addition to your blog and it is the blog and what you write on it that actually brings you money. However, with each post published accompanied by one of your photographs you as an artist are getting wider exposure and recognition.
This indirect way of promoting your photography may turn out more profitable than trying to reach first ranks in the very competetive photography business.
Sometimes to get results we want, it is better not to try racing with champions but creating your own Olympic games, where you are the one who deals the cards. I wish you success with self-promotion and remember,
The doors of opportunity are only closed in your mind and ... sometimes in the photo:)
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| Old House in a Bydgoszcz City, Photo by Danuta Antas, 2011 |
If you have some great solutions for marketing your Art, please share the ideas with other artists.
Enjoyed the read Danka. I'm a painter but the ideas work just as well for me. I particularly like the idea of creating your own Olympics and being in charge. Thanks for making me think about my direction. It is so easy to get in a rut and carry on doing things the same old way.
ReplyDeleteHi Glenn:) Thank you for your feedback. Much appreciated:) Yes, the ideas apply for all creatives. I, like we all, make the same mistakes with self-promotion to find out finally what works and what fails. I think that we all are misled with marketing tips spread by big social websites. We do not really need to be no 1 in Google, in Art contests, etc. to win our game. I also remind myself all the time that big things have always started with single person and single thought:) I wish you success while following your own artistic path:)
DeleteThank you for the article. It has made me consider starting a blog and maybe doing a once a week entry. I do enjoy photography so perhaps I will enjoy writing about it. I love the photo of the closed door.
ReplyDeleteHi Billy, thank you for your comment:) I am so glad to learn that you find my post helpful. I am sure that every photographer has their unique approach to art and has lots of interesting things, views, images to share with others. Enjoy beautiful and creative time:) Danuta
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