How to Make Money as a Travel Photographer Through Stock Photography
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- By: Peter Orsel
Many travel photographers dream of making money with their photos. Online advice on how to do that ranges from vague to wildly optimistic, so let’s start with something more useful: how it works, and what a realistic outcome looks like.
One option is stock photography, licensing your travel photos and videos to companies and individuals through stock platforms. I have been doing this myself since late 2022, and this guide covers how to get started, what kind of content sells, and which platforms are worth your time. If you want the exact numbers behind my own stock photography income, I keep a running earnings page updated year-round.
In This Post
What is stock photography?
If you are into photography, you have probably heard of stock photography before. You license your content to companies or individuals, and you get paid a fee in return. This can apply to photos, videos, illustrations, and more, but this guide focuses on photos and videos, since that is where my own experience lies.
Is stock photography something for you?
I once mentioned my profession to a barber, and he told me he wanted to buy a camera, take some photos, and sell them on Shutterstock. My first response was: don’t.
That is not me discouraging anyone from a new hobby or business. But if the only reason to buy a camera is to sell stock photos, you are chasing money rather than a craft you enjoy, and it will take a long time to earn that camera back while you are still building both your skills and your portfolio.
Stock photography works best in two situations: you already have a large pile of travel photos and videos sitting unused, or you are a photographer who wants to build a long-term, passive side income alongside the work you already do.
Isn't stock photography dead because of AI?
Not from what I’ve seen so far. AI image generation has changed the market, and low-effort, generic content now faces more competition than it used to. But two things have kept stock photography working for me despite that.
First, real travel content is harder to fake. AI tools can produce endless generic images of “a person walking on a beach,” but they can’t replace an actual, licensable photo of a specific location, at a specific time, with lighting conditions a buyer can trust.
Second, several platforms have started paying contributors when their existing files get used for AI training, which is a new bonus rather than a threat. It has added a small but tangible amount to my payouts since 2024.
None of this means AI has zero effect. It means the effect, at least so far, has been more mixed than the “stock photography is dead” narrative suggests. For the exact numbers, including how much AI training specifically added to my income, I break it down on my earnings page.
Microstock or macrostock?
Before you upload anything, it helps to understand the difference between microstock and macrostock.
Microstock
Microstock means selling your files at a low price, for a wide range of uses, on a non-exclusive basis. You keep ownership of your files and can license the same photo to many buyers, or stop selling it whenever you want. It will not make you rich overnight, but it adds up over time. Adobe Stock, Shutterstock, iStock, and Envato Elements are common microstock platforms.
Macrostock
Macrostock usually means selling a file exclusively through one platform, which can lead to fewer but bigger individual sales. The tradeoff is that you often give up ownership of the file entirely. Getty Images and Unsplash+ are examples. Another option is AmazingAerial. I’m currently exploring my options to become part of their network with selected footage as well.
What did you choose?
I currently stick to microstock myself, mainly because I want to keep the freedom to take a file offline whenever a client wants to license it directly and exclusively. I have written a full breakdown of why I stay away from Unsplash+ specifically: Unsplash+ Contributor Pay: Why I Turned It Down.
What kind of content sells?
If a photo or video is interesting enough for you to shoot, it’s usually interesting enough for someone else to buy. Metadata matters as much as the shot itself, since buyers find your files through keywords. Think about what a photo or clip represents, not only what it shows.
In my experience of selling travel content, drone content sells the best. Aerial perspectives are still less common than ground-level shots, and demand for them stays steady. I also keep my edits natural rather than dramatic. Buyers are usually not photographers themselves, and a shot you would never post to your own Instagram might be exactly what a buyer wants.
My best-selling file from my first year has a reflection I don’t love and a slightly overexposed boat, and none of that has stopped it from selling.
Model and property releases
One rule you cannot skip: recognizable people or private property need a release before you can sell the file. Without one, you can still upload the file as editorial content, meaning it cannot be used for commercial purposes. Demand for editorial files is lower, so I would not build a strategy around it.
Some buildings are protected even from the outside. Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany and Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro are both examples I have run into myself, files I simply cannot sell because of property restrictions.
Which platforms should you start with?
Most of my own income comes from four platforms: Adobe Stock, Envato Elements, Shutterstock, and iStock. I would suggest applying to all four when you start, since none of them cost anything to join. Only shooting video? Consider Blackbox instead.
Smaller platforms exist too, but many barely reach their own minimum payout thresholds, so I would not spend much setup time on those until your four core platforms are running. For the exact percentage breakdown per platform, including which ones I would actively avoid, I keep a running, up-to-date page with the full numbers, linked below.
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What the process looks like
Once your files are edited and ready, the real work is getting them uploaded, keyworded, and submitted across platforms efficiently. Distribution tools exist that let you upload once and push files to multiple agencies at the same time, which saves a lot of manual work once your portfolio grows. Another development is the usage of AI keywording. It’s not perfect yet, but it saves you lots of time.
I won’t walk through every step of my own workflow here. Keywording, batching, and improving your acceptance rate all come with their own learning curve, and it’s a big enough topic on its own that I’m considering turning it into a dedicated resource down the line.
Consistency is key
Stock photography is not a get-rich-quick method. My first five months on Shutterstock, November 2022 through March 2023, added up to about $13 in total. It was discouraging, and it would have been easy to stop there.
Then April 2023 alone brought in $12.45, almost matching those first five months combined, and the number kept climbing from there: $46.71 in September, and $127.59 in October, my best month that year.
I kept uploading anyway, and the income did grow from there, slowly at first and then more steadily. That’s the whole lesson: consistency compounds. Keep adding files, keep your accounts active, and the numbers move in the right direction over time.
Interested in all the real numbers?
This guide covers how to get started. If you want to see exactly what stock photography has earned me, year by year, including the full platform breakdown and answers to the questions I get asked most, I keep a running earnings page updated throughout the year. My first-year report is also worth reading in full, including a viral $20,000-a-month claim I had to fact-check.
About Me
Peter Orsel is a Dutch travel photographer based in Bali, specialized in drone and landscape photography. He has visited over 40 countries and writes detailed, no-nonsense guides based on firsthand experience.
2 Responses
What a helpful article, thank you!
One question I have: you mention that you need permission to post footage of private properties. I am assuming you are referring to video rather than photo? Surely you only need permission for the interior and not for the public facing facade?
Hi! Thanks for your reply. Buildings can be protected from the outside. Think about certain castles, or trademarked buildings. Photos of these can’t easily be sold. One example I encountered was Schloss Neuschwanstein. Their website states clearly that no money can be made from selling footage of the castle. The same works for certain government buildings et cetera. Hope that helps!