2 Ways of Passive Income for Photographers Videographers & Digital Artists

I called this ‘passive income’ because you only need to set it up once.

You need ‘YOU’, maybe a camera, skill in photoshop or video editing software, and some skills to tweak and do tricks to bring your image to a higher level so that people will buy it. What I’m trying to emphasize is that be creative in such a way you are most good at doing with digital art.

What do I like about these 2 platforms?

Setting up is only once. No monthly fees. Set up and you are done, you'll wake up one morning and be surprised, an email sent to you that you have sold your image or footage. Sounds great right?

I understand there are thousands of pieces of information out there on the internet already but sure will take you hours to learn.

So here I am saving you a lot of time. Please do take note, I am not an affiliate of these platforms. Not even an endorser. I share because I care and easy for me to write as it has been working for me.

1. THE BLACKBOX GLOBAL

Footage from 5 seconds to 20 seconds without sounds.

These days, many companies are buying footage from filmmakers or videographers.

I have been into BlackBox for about 3 years now. I am a stand-alone person who does all my footage. From filming, editing, uploading to the platform, and curation.

BlackBox helps free creators from the “gig economy” and “feast or famine” cycles of freelance and contract work.

Because when creators actually own their fair share of the content they make, they can do the work they love, earn more, gig less, and have better lives.

That’s Creator Freedom. Source

To join the platform is free. Before you start uploading short footage, you need to read the terms and conditions.

Footage must be stable. The footage is done in one direction shots. You cannot combine clips.

You will need a Filezilla app to upload your footage on the BlackBox platform.

Once you are set up, the next one will be just that easy.

There are many platforms similar to BlackBox but I try to save my time and submit all my footage and BlackBox then do the rest for me, such as marketing and distribution to agencies such as Shutterstock, etc. Yes, Blackbox gets some commission from your sales.

Tips:

If you do not want to be a contributor (filming), you can just be a Curator in Blackbox.

When I started, I have no idea what I do with curating my footage. Inside Blackbox dashboards, there are people who you can ask to curate your footage and you give them a percentage of what you sold.

The disadvantage of this curation is that the person will also be getting the passive income when footage is selling. (Your 1 footage can sell many times) each time your make sales, your curators make a commission too.

I do not see it as an issue but it is to some filmmakers. Kindly let me know if you need help with curations.

2. FINEART AMERICA

The next company that I go uploading my images is Fineart America

The platform has print-on-demand services that are called Pixels. You can check out my page (Elvie Lins ) on the Fineart America website.

I have been with Fineart America since 2016. The day I closed my studio.

There is a free membership and a premium membership that cost $35 per year. It is an annual fee not per month. I am into premium members as there are more benefits than the free one.

You may also check out the traffic that Fineart America is getting. They are somehow getting popular these days.

Integration to Personal Blog

What I like about Fineart America is that I can integrate it into my WordPress website. You can integrate it to Shopify and another platform as well but did not do that so far.

Below is a screenshot of a page from my WordPress blog site. From pillowcases, blankets, mugs, t-shirts, canvas print, etc.

The setup is very easy. HTML code is inside your Fineart America Dashboards ready to be copied and paste to your WordPress page.

When you upload a file of a photograph or a transparent file, it will show you multiple products that are automatically set up for you.

The above image is a sample of products you find at the Fineart America website inside the members' area when you upload one image.

Having many options can give you high chances of making sales. No inventory, no warehousing, and you do not need to send the orders to the customers. Everything is done by the print-on-demand partners with Fineart America.

Tips: You do not need to be a photographer to create digital art. Go to (canva dot com) for any designs. I suggest downloading your designs in PNG transparent.

To Conclude

If you get noticed, I can be in any part of the world. I can make sales, make money by just taking short footage and capturing images whenever I can. This is my additional source of income.

It does not really make you rich overnight but it can help you in the long term if you start now.

This article is part of my 21 days quarantined in Singapore. Day 11 at Fairmont Hotel.

I hope you like this article and hope it can help you.

I write travel, photography, health, and making money-related articles.