Today I wanna share one cool topic in my blog, it’s about the art of making money through photography based on my 11 years of photographer journey.
One honest word from me,
It’s a Tough Career for Sure!
I was remember that Nina’s mom doesn’t agree when we belong a partner back few years ago because I’m not working in a 9 to 5 office job, for her photographer is no more than a person that only get few bucks from shooting a cheap wedding from day to another day. In other words, she just want to say that Nina’s future will not happy if she married with a photographer just like me.
Bima on the History
That’s me, quite cute right!
By the way I grew up as a boy from the broken family, my mom love me so much but my dad is hard drunker and drug user. I was born in 1985 but in 1989 my mom and day got divorce and all the tragedy is happen. Become a single parent woman is ain’t that easy even since my mom married she already become of the main person in the family. We don’t have any choice back in 1989 so my mom decided to took me to Yogyakarta, a more peaceful city which better than Jakarta to make me grow as a good boy, less of life stress, and get a good care from someone that love me so much.
Thanks to my grand mother, she is a good moslem woman who teach me how to pray, how to read the Holy Quran, and the most important thing is she taking care of me from something that gonna disturbing my life.
Time goes by till I grew up as guy who love capturing moment, I start to draw about my self and my mom than learning architecture just to be able to draw my own house and creating great life ambiance with my mom, wife, and kids. When I was 19 my friend came to my house and show me the vintage Nikon FM10 with 35 mm film inside and teach me how to shoot. This camera is quite heavy because when I touched it than I knew that the body made from metal. He taught me to put my eyes on the view finder and see the circle line and do my best to set the line in straight which is when I able to do that than clicking the camera shutter than I could make a great photo.
When at the first time my mom bought me a semi automatic Nikon F80 with 35mm film than I start to shoot EVERYTHING but nothing better for me when I able to shoot people expression such as smile, laugh, and tears, till lately I will able to find that moment in wedding photography.
If I could telling you my dear friends, my past history about mom and dad relationship without any single happiness within first 4 years of marriage will influence me so much to be a person who love about capturing moments. Just like when I shoot for Jasmine and Arthur wedding in a great triangle Infinity chapel in Conrad Bali, when the musician start to play a wedding song and I saw how Jasmine laugh and get a tears on the cheek at the moment, I suddenly realize that I’m crying to see those kind of happiness. Surely I telling my self that I NEVER see someone loving each other down in the hand of God till they look so happy just like my couple.
So when I puss the camera shutter and capturing the moment, it seems I do it for my self because I wanna get only the best pictures that blow my mind and when I did it than I sure that my couple will love it too. It’s all about the moment and always be like that, so I’m shooting for the moment better than others. I never think about how good it is or it’s a focus or not but as long as I could get the PERFECT MOMENT, than my job is done!
Now look at this picture below,
Why Finally I Choose to be a Wedding Photographer?
I live only once and I want to make it worth it to spend with, for me, working in a job that I don’t like seems to be killing my self softly because I will do it for the rest of my life. What I want is living through something that I love so deep and there is nothing better than photography especially in wedding industry.
The first thing that make me enjoy to do this business is because I could see how people loving each other from the angle of photographer, I love to see how people smile, laugh, and enjoying their day with someone who they loved. Second one and the last thing that make me able to do this business for the rest of my life is I could working together with my wife Nina, the best soulmate and working partner for sure.
No matter where I go, either it is a photoshoot or attending workshop than I always got this beautiful angel right next to me!
Having her in my life and business make me belong to the luckiest guy on earth so whenever I face a hard situation than I feel like I have an unlimited spirit to get up and working day and night. Now we live in Yogyakarta Indonesia and we just planning to move abroad, learning something new and put my self deeper in world of wedding photography industry and the last I hope I could give the best legacy both for my family and this industry about the joy of living as a photographer.
I’m Gonna Stop This Bullsh*t and Let Me Explain More About The Art of Making Money Through Photography
2020 is my 11 years of being a photographer and as I said before that this is ain’t easy life, but if you are a person who love photography better than other business than this gonna be your lifetime happiness for sure. Both me and you will definitely agree than I’m not the best person to talk into this topic but 11 years is not a short journey so, dear my friend let me explain more to you how happy I am to working as a photographer and let me share more about the art of making money through photography.
1 – Shoot for Something That You Love Most
Me personally love wedding shooting so much but here in photography you could capture for something else, it gonna be street photography, fine art, wildlife photos, human interest, or travel photography. Generally it’s up to you but make sure you working with photography niche that you love most so whenever you get stuck about your job than there is always an unlimited spirit that will make you get up over and over again.
I do have a friends who loving photography just for the money, even it’s not false but if you see this person and see someone else who put love while working in photography than the end result will be different, it seems to be someone who put passion and love will make a better result and give the most artworks than someone else.
It could be super unique and eternal so my suggestion is go break down your passion and find the photography niche that you truly love for the most!
I spread all the love of making wedding photos on my portfolio, go enjoy it and hope you get inspired by seeing all those beautiful moments
2 – I’m Using My Photo Expertise to Sell a Digital Products and Creating My Own Future Empire
Talking about digital products will as same as we talk about the future, everybody knows that know we live in different world and this is the digital era. Back in 2010 I learn internet marketing from lovely Singaporean guy named Fabian Lim and he truly open my mind that if I able to combine between photography and internet marketing than it will become ‘something big’.
Here is this blog you could see that I’m selling Wedding Photographer Nightmare ebook and Photoshop Tutorials video guide, there is no-one buy and download this products at the beginning of my journey but when time goes by than one by one starting to download it and deliver me more money into my account which is it’s gonna be great business in the future. Nowadays I already have over than 25 ebooks that using my photo expertise and yes for sure I sell it online and it become of my future investment and digital assets.
3 – When I’m Not Shooting for Wedding, Than I Will Shoot (and SELL) My Travel Photos
I believe that every photographer in this globe will love traveling so much so at this time traveling is just become of my annually activity which come into two benefit, the family holiday and surely my way to make more money by shoot on travel photos.
What I consider in my mind is,
I never thinking about getting rich within a night because something that I made today could earn nothing for now but I believe that it belongs something big in the future and surely the rest of my life, so for this 3rd part than I will working for my future assets and investment. It seriously takes time but this is why you must love and enjoying your life as a photographer.
Now see some photos below,
From the most delish street food in the whole world till city corner that I visit during my family holiday than I always keep shooting it more and more and use it for future assets both for my digital products like ebooks, podcast, tutorials till selling it directly to global market in Shutterstock.
4 – Collecting for My Travel Accommodation Rewards and Save It for My Cuture
You know what, since 2010 I already book a hotels with my self so rather than having a discount from some agent than I better do it with my self and collection all my travel accommodation reward for my future income.
In internet marketing’s word it called as an affiliate business!
So if you travel by using Agoda, Booking, or Airbnb than you will always allow to sign up as an affiliate marketer which is you can use it for your self or deliver great information to all your blog readers, in other words you can write a review and out a booking links which is containing your affiliate restricted code, so look at this screenshots below,
I collected all my Agoda reward for my future income, it can be booked my me or my readers so generally it could be the real passive income that could be great someday. How much Agoda gave me money reward for each recommendation or affiliate booking that my readers made? it just 3-4% but imagine if it spread worldwide.
By the way I used to spend around $500 per night just to stay in 5 star resort like Lux* Maldives, a great place to stay during Billy and Dickie Ma’s pre wedding but now do the math of I could earn 4% or equal than US$20 per night and collecting this money for the entire life or encourage someone else to use my links to book their hotels for business and traveling….it can be Boom!
5 – Saving My Photographer’s Fee to Create an Airbnb Property Business
Since 2002 I always dreaming to own a hotel and stay with my guest just like what Richard Branson had in his island called Necker Island and if you ever watch it on National Geographic than world celebrity like Kate Winslet already stay there for holiday. So since 2013 I use my free room in my house to be a guest house than in 2014 I using my aunt’s house to be my second guest house, and in 2018 I also using my grand ma’s house to be my 3rd guest house.
Generally I need 16 years just to realize my dream to own a hotel and stay together with my guest that coming from over than 40 countries worldwide
So overall it’s a looooong journey and need a patient to realize my kid’s dream. What I think in my mind as a ordinary guy is, “It’s cool for me to own a hotel chain by investing my photographer’s fee”
Go read my story about how to make money with Airbnb by saving my photographer’s fee!
6 – Improving My Food & Beverage’s Desire by Updating a $3 Coffee Maker till Owning the La Marzocco Espresso Machine
I love cooking and serving simple drinks to all my couple and Airbnb guest so while they checking all the photos that I’ve made or take a joy morning relax in my terrace than I used to cook some cheap sandwich till serving local coffee in my house.
In my 1st house, I made a morning coffee by pouring a cheap coffee in a sachet that cost for just $0.10 and steer it manually in a cup than serving all of this simple stuff to all my guest, till now I could buy the finest coffee bean from the local roasters, brew it on my La Marzocco espresso machine and deliver better coffee for the morning joy.
Here you also can read my suggestion to run a small coffee company!
Last Things Before I Watched Night Movie..
I know that you might be working and achieve better than me but I hope by reading this story than you could have a new friends, which is me! and find that you’re not alone in this photography business. At the end, The Art of Making Money Through Photography is one great topic that must be shared to someone that love this niche better than others.
I hope you enjoy with this story and I will make another life journey that surely shared on this blog on the next few days, god bless you dear all my photographer friends and big love from me!
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