Moving From Hobby To Business: What It Takes To Get To The Next Level

This post is Day 5 of 30 Ways In 30 Days To Redesign Your Life With Photography. This series seeks to provide you with practical steps to get you from wherever you are today, to exactly where you want to be – this year! If your goal has always been to take your photography to a whole new level, hang on and start enjoying a new lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of.

A hobby can be different things to different people.

It might mean taking a camera along on vacations and to family events, snapping up a few images.

It might be taking a few portraits or shooting a few weddings for people you know, making very little, and doing it more for a portfolio.

However you define it, I tend to look at the way the IRS defines it.

The IRS presumes that an activity is carried on for profit if it makes a profit during at least three of the last five tax years, including the current year. A person should be able to able to determine if its hobby or business by asking the following questions:

Does the time and effort put into the activity indicate an intention to make a profit?

Does the taxpayer depend on income from the activity?

If there are losses, are they due to circumstances beyond the taxpayer’s control or did they occur in the start-up phase of the business?

Has the taxpayer changed methods of operation to improve profitability?

Does the taxpayer or his/her advisors have the knowledge needed to carry on the activity as a successful business?

Has the taxpayer made a profit in similar activities in the past?

Does the activity make a profit in some years?

Can the taxpayer expect to make a profit in the future from the appreciation of assets used in the activity?

For me, your photography turns from hobby to business the minute you decide you want it to be a business. If you feel you can in any way generate income from taking photographs, and you are ready to set out on the adventure called entrepreneurship, then you are ready to start a photography business. [Read more…]

Moving From Hobby To Business With Your Photography

The statistics overwhelmingly show that people love their cameras.

77% of U.S. households own at least one digital camera.
Almost 120 million cameras were sold in 2009, with digital SLRs having a 30% growth in sales.
The average consumer takes 72 digital photographs at each event they attend.
They share 55% of all photos taken by email.
And 40% post their images online at sites like Facebook and Snapfish.

So why not take something you love anyway and turn it into a business? Maybe not a full time business, but something you can make money at here and there.

Increasingly, that’s what the photography industry is facing.

As a business coach to photographers for over 8 years now, I’m seeing more and more people making the jump. Though this site is filled with information and ideas on building the business, here are the 7 things you need to do right now to put this into action.

1. What are your goals? Do you want to photograph a few family and friends on the side, and make enough for a nice night on the town once in awhile? Or do you have hopes of turning this into a full time, successful career? Knowing this up front will dictate how you approach your business.

how to turn a hobby to a photography business

2. Choose the right name for your photography business. Once you know your goals, come up with a name that helps you meet your goals. The larger you want to become, the more time you should put into naming your photography business. A small business may only register it with the state or your local area. But a studio with larger goals should secure the domain name, and register a trademark to block others from using it too.

3. Look at it like a business. Find mentors in your specialty or niche. Want to go into weddings? Find a few where you love their work; follow them online, attend their classes, and meet them at tradeshows. Use them as your guidance to grow.
[Read more…]