Being a photographer is another side hustle that takes some investment—but it can pay off. If you have a creative or artistic background, you’ll be especially suited to being a photographer. Most of the time, clients just want professional pictures that look great, they don’t ask about the composition or color theory you’re using.
When you start your photography journey, it can be tempting to buy different lenses and filters to make your images look cool, but most of the paying gigs come from portraits or object photography. Concentrate on the lenses for these applications at the beginning and offer more creative approaches later on. High school seniors will always want senior pictures done. Advertising by word of mouth is a great way to get these clients (and you might not be able to advertise in schools). For Senior Pictures, you might consider coming up with a couple of different packages based on budget. This side hustle is a great creative outlet, and that’s why we chose it for our Side Hustle Master List.
Concept | |
category | Entertainment & Events |
Takeaways | Requires online presence. |
complexity lowhigh  | Capital Required lowhigh |
skill required lowhigh | time required lowhigh |
return potential lowhigh |
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Opportunities
Portrait and wedding photography will always be in demand. Shooting a wedding is a bigger project and you always have the opportunity to hire an assistant as a photographer. Wedding photos have to be done to the client’s standards. There can be some pressure since your photos will be their main visual memories of their wedding. If you want to take off the pressure, you might consider shooting objects like homes for real estate or retail items. It seems a little dry, but it does provide good income potential. As a new photographer, you can charge $25 to $75 per hour, with pros charging $250 and above. Check out the links below for more info on photography as a side hustle.