How to Start Making Money As An Amateur Sports Photographer! | How I Make Money With Photography 

Glad I was able to assist, Alex! Best wishes in your journey!

Gotta get that dub, Manti 😎

Hello Leo! 1. You should get approval from the Athletic Director for photographing the school's sporting event. If you photograph football or any sport from a team's sideline, its a good idea to ask the coach as well if you are able to sit on their sideline. In my area, every school I've asked other than one has given me the okay to cover events at their school. The other school was in a contract with a different photographer. 2. I am typically as close I can be to the action as possible. For football, I am right on the sideline. Basketball, I am right on the edge of the court. Same for volleyball and any other sport. As mentioned above, it doesn't hurt to ask for approval from the coaches if you'd like to stay on their sideline. 3. School photographers aren't present at most of my schools I photograph at as our budgets aren't like schools in bigger areas. There are yearbook photographers around from time to time. When they are, we both respect each other and try to stay out of each other's ways. I've only had a bad interaction when I first started off, a yearbook photographer got upset at me for getting in his shot. I thought he was going to get me kicked out of the event. When there is a special event going on like homecoming, parents night, senior night, etc. and someone is hired specifically to capture those moments like the walkout, stand still for a photo, and a group photo, I usually put my camera down and let the person hired cover those moments. I don't want to steal the spotlight from them when that is their job. The only time I will photograph someone in this moment is if it's one of my Athlete Coverage/focused athlete signups. Hope that helps, Leo! Thank you for stopping by the video.

Life has been a crazy ride the last few years but I think I finally got a good grasp of it now, Farmer! 😎

Hell yeah great to hear buddy

You got this! I did make a video about how to shoot track and field. Feel free to check it out if you need some insight. Track is my most covered sport of going on four years. So, I’ve grown to know a bit about covering it. It’s a ton of fun!

@@FatalOnion I ran track in high school and college it’s my favorite sport! I been working in the IT field since 2020 and just haven’t been so intact with the sport as much but I’m feeling the rush all over again looking up times, athletes name and of course getting ready to capture them! Your track and field video is what brought me to your page!! It was very refreshing honestly!

That’s great! I appreciate you strolling through a few of my videos then. I know that exact feeling! Although we aren’t running anymore, you still get those race day emotions while around the track. It certainly is crazy seeing how different run times are when I was in track from 2013-2016… these athletes are fast now a days!

@@FatalOnion getting my photos publish in the washington post! i would say it went great!

@@ItsMarionotluigi What an awesome feat! Definitely something to proud of!

Of course! I appreciate you tuning in.

Awesome, I appreciate it! 📸

Thank you, Gordon. Yes, they do! I personally never ordered from Pixieset but I have had a lot of clients purchase prints. Ships right to them! Nothing you have to do on your end other than setup the print shop.

@@FatalOnion Who do you use to Print your shots and do you mail them yourself or the Print Shop?

@@gordon9177 So, the website I mentioned in the video, Pixieset, has an online gallery option where all you do is post your photos, setup the shop with prints and prices, then share it with your clients. From there, any orders from the gallery go through a 3rd party print company that does all printing and delivery. So, it's all hands free after you do the initial setup.

@@FatalOnion yea, that's i thought. Really easy. How does the image look as far as glossy, matted, etc.?

@gordon9177 you have the choice of which print types are offered. As well as the buyer when they go to purchase a print. So, very nice in that regard too. No need to stress about not having certain print types available.

So, this'll only pertain to high school level sports and I am assuming you'll need media passes and such for any collegiate events. For high school events, I contact the athletic director of that school first before taking any sort of reserved slot signups. Once I get the okay from them to attend, I then incorporate the signups. I only had one school out of the many I've photographed at deny me. As long as you are professional about it, they are pretty easy going to grant you access.

Some locations may require to be registered as a business but I didn't need to be for where I photograph. Good question!

I appreciate it, Adam! It looked okay on the camera but once I got it in the editor, I noticed it too. I’ll need to opt the settings some more next time I record.

Happy to assist, Nehemiah!

Hello, Dennis! Currently, I am charging $55 per sign up with a max of 3-5 athletes a game. Images range from 15-30 depending on the athlete's playtime, what event is being covered, and how much variety of photos I am able to get. I use Pixieset for my online gallery. So, I upload the original sizes for the highest print quality if they decide to order prints. Clients can then download the photos at a 3600px size for media posts. I hope that helps you!

@@FatalOnionso $55 per sign up and you send them the Pixieset gallery so they can buy prints? Are the downloads free?

If I know I'll be at a game well in advance, I make a post online about all of my upcoming games with the signup link for photo coverage. As the event comes closer, I continue to post about it up until the day of and sometimes a few hours prior to the event if there are still open spots. If a parent happens to ask how to sign up during the event, I send them over to my social medias/website which will then direct them to the signup page. When I am posting, I include a few of my favorites in posts to show what a signed up individual is expected to receive. Especially, previously signed up individual. Hoping that'll give you some insight!

@@FatalOnion you’re awesome man! Can you clarify where you post online? I know the trick is to get as much exposure as possible, just curious where you’re posting your services? Thanks again!

@@migflowers I am a basic man. I use Instagram and Facebook. I find there's too big of a hassle to market on other platforms with little to no return. In my area, parents are primarily on Facebook and the high schoolers are on Instagram. So, I only have to focus on the two platforms while having more time to work or spend time doing other things than sort through a bunch of social medias. Maybe if I was in a bigger area, I'd branch out to other platforms but for now, I am content with the two biggest hitters. And I gotchu, @migflowers! 😎

@@FatalOnion thanks for the quick response! Makes sense… gotta go where your customers hang out!

You’re welcome!

Tune in tomorrow night with Slothman?

I am not quite sure as I have never shot college sports yet but plan to reach out for Fall of 2023. I know there are some rules to follow for college sports when it comes to selling as a photographer. In this case, you may have to charge the college a fee for your service rather than target each athlete. The size of the college depends as well. If you are shooting D1, typically they have a team photographer. So, your services aren't gonna be needed. But for a small town college with no budget for a team photographer, it could be very possible then. I've also heard the college athletes and parents aren't as interested in purchasing photos and such as they were when they played high school and below. But I'll have to get back to you whenever I get around to actually shooting college level.

@@FatalOnion Thanks

@@FatalOnion What about legal rights from the state high school athletic associations to sell photos shot on school campuses? Have you had to get permission from them?

Hey, Jazzyman 😎

@@FatalOnion OMGGG I'm like your biggest fan can I have your autograph???

@@jazzythesnazzyman9285 It'll cost you an autograph from you too. Pog

An instagram following doesn't determine anything about making money. I use a different instagram page that represents my real business page anyway. If you think a large instagram following means anything about being a photographer, you got quite a lot to learn, my man!