If I’m going to sell more photos to iStock.com the first thing I need to do is noodle out a few strategies for adding the extra workload. I’ll also need to run some numbers on the possible extra expenses. What I’m posting here isn’t an official Business Plan but it’s always good to have something in writing as a guideline.

Overview:

Goal: I want to increase my revenue and decrease my dependence on eBay as my main source of income.

How I  Plan to Achieve: Use the same inventory I purchase to resell. I plan to photograph the potentially stock worthy items and offer them as stock photos.

What I Know So Far: I’ve already sold a few downloads (photos) on the various stock sites.  Going forward my plan is to look at the items I’ve purchased (or about to purchase) for resale as potential stock photos. The items I think may be interesting to photo buyers I’ll shoot with more care and photo edit them for use as stock.

 Expenses:

Late last year my old Canon Rebel died and I purchased a Canon Rebel T5i – because I was thinking it was mainly for eBay photographs. It produces beautiful photos for selling online and I’m very happy with it. However, if I thought I was going to shoot stock photos I would have purchased a more professional model. So, for now I’ll use this camera, with an eye on upgrading if/when I start receiving a regular income from selling stock.

I  have lights, all the stands, boom light, softboxes and cubes,  a studio backdrop and paper for white backgrounds – no extra expenses. (space is another issue tho).

Tripod, Monopod – check – have them too.

Photo Editing Software: I have Photoshop Elements – good enough for now. Later may need to upgrade.

I did purchase a ring flash for close-ups: $50.00 (on eBay). More about it in another post.

Even more than a more professional camera – I need a better lens. The kit zoom I have isn’t that great. I do have a couple other nice lenses but they are 50mm and telephoto – not right for close-up work.  Right now I’m exploring the options of a prime or zoom wide angle lens.  I expect a good lens will cost between $450 – 700.

I’ve always wanted to learn more about PhotoShop – so as I see revenue coming in I want to take a class. Potentially cost: $250.

Other Roadblocks:

Time: Right now the biggest roadblock I see is time. The extra care and set-up of the product shot including extra cleaning (more than I do now) of the items, extra care with the lighting, special backdrop – white background and extra photo processing time starts adding up.

To cut down on time spent I’m going to implement a couple of techniques:

1) Batch photograph & edit the items I think will be useful for stock. Set them aside for once a week or bi-weekly photo shoots – so they don’t interrupt my daily listing cycle.

2) Try to up my average selling price and reduce the number of items I’m listing on EBay (a goal I’m always working on – which is easier said than done – when one has an eye on cash flow).

Space:

Space in my home based business is always an issue. My partner is adamant about not renting outside space. No storage units, no storefront, no studio space. I have to agree with her – but it does mean space here is tight.

Over the last several months I’ve been working on re-organizing our storage spaces, moving out dead stock and generally trying to buy fewer items. My goal is to buy better – higher selling price items or items with lower margins that sell quickly. The reward: I’m starting to see a little floor space.

Conclusion:

Moving forward I’ll need a better lens, to budget my time for this new project, and watch storage space.  We’ll see how I do as these posts progress.