How to make money by drawing pictures. Portraits: starting a business, stages of development

Hello! In this article we will talk about making money for artists.

How much can you earn: from 10,000 rubles per month for beginners.
Minimum Requirements: ability to draw, self-discipline, free time.
Is it worth it?: Yes .

General information about earning money for artists

A good artist should no longer be hungry: on the Internet you can easily find income for those who can draw coolly.

Artists who know how to work with graphic editors are in great demand.

In graphic arts, a portfolio plays a huge role. In programming and other freelance professions, you can test an employee’s skills in literally 20 minutes. This cannot be done in graphics simply because each performer has his own style, vision and execution.

If you want to start making money quickly, make sure you do good portfolio.

Method 1. Images for microstocks

Microstocks are sites where you can sell your illustrations for a fee.

Working with microstocks is convenient because after downloading the image remains in the system, and each time you receive a percentage of its purchase. This is peculiar.

There are also image trends on microstocks. That is why the illustrator will have to find a compromise between “I can draw” and “This is in demand.” On top of that, it is constantly growing, and it is becoming increasingly difficult for beginners to get started. You will have to draw 6 - 8 hours a day to build a good database of images.

In order to work with microstocks, it is best to master Adobe Illustrator.

Method 2. Custom design

- a very in-demand profession. In any field, you need a person who can convey graphically what the client wants.

Specialization works best in design. If you really want to earn a lot, you have to choose certain direction and work only according to it. This could be a design:

multi-page sites.
one-page sites.
PC applications.
applications for mobile.
advertising banners.

The workflow for a novice designer is as follows:

choosing a direction -> several invented orders for the portfolio -> searching for clients -> work -> replenishing the portfolio.

The most difficult thing in design is to adapt to the client's requirements. You can see the idea from one angle, the customer from another, and he will be right because it is his project.

Method 3. Paintings to order

This is already full-fledged. I think many of you have come across such communities on social networks “Portraits to order”, “Paintings to order”, etc. This is a great business for artists.

It is best to promote through communities in in social networks. You can use VKontakte with store functionality as a platform, and Instagram for publishing your portfolio.

Portraits to order are in great demand. This is an original gift that can please almost any person. It is more difficult to make money from painting, paintings are in less demand, but nevertheless you can find a buyer.

I have a friend whose great-grandfather was a famous artist in our city. And now his grandson makes money by creating replicas of his paintings and selling them at low prices to those who cannot afford the originals. The demand is such that it allows both him and his wife not to work.

It is very difficult to make money from your paintings. Simply because no one knows you as an artist, and your work is of no value to collectors and art connoisseurs.

Method 4. Selling designer postcards

You won’t surprise anyone with ordinary postcards. Lovers of original gifts often order unique cards to show how much they are interested in the idea.

If you know how to work with a graphics tablet, you can easily collaborate with stores selling unique postcards.

Stores are a great place to start. They provide access to large audience and allow you not to reduce prices to attract customers. There is also the opportunity to run this business yourself. But for this you need to draw an idea, come up with the right words, fulfill your plans.

I have seen more than once how modern poets collaborate with good artists and create atmospheric postcards, and then sell them in their own communities.

Method 5. Drawing comics

Internet comics are many individual images that are connected mainly by the main character, habits and general mood.

There are two options for working with comics: post them in the public domain or publish them in publications. Monetization methods depend on this. If you work with groups on social networks or a personal blog, you can make money from advertising integrations: advertising inserts in social networks, pictures with advertising, etc.

If you work with full-fledged publications, you will need to create a comic book: big story, an illustration of a specific story. In order to earn money in this way, you need to either constantly catch competitions in large print or online publications, or get a job permanent job illustrator.

Method 6. Private lessons

This is a great way for those who can not only draw, but can also teach it. There are more and more self-taught artists. And that means those who want to realize themselves in a certain profession. You can give private lessons via Skype to:

Those who want to learn how to draw.
Those who want to master graphics programs.

There's a lot on the net free lessons freely available drawings. But your main advantage is individual work. You will be able to explain, show and tell something to your student much faster.

Method 7. Creating your own information product

The most promising way to make money on the Internet is to create your own information products. You are selling what you have already learned. In the case of artists, this could be:

Drawing lessons.
Graphic design lessons.
Ways to find clients.
Ways to earn money for designers.

You can come up with many options. It is very important that you yourself understand what you can teach.

How can an artist find clients?

Let's talk about three current ways to find clients. Each of them is worthy of attention and they are still working today.

Microstocks

In order to register on most microstocks, you will have to pass an exam. Let's look at the list of the most profitable microstocks.

Shutterstock— the largest microstock. Accepts photos, illustrations and vector graphics for uploading. There is an exam: it is enough to accept at least one job out of 10 proposed.

For experienced users there is a bonus program: the more works sold, the higher the deductions.

This is a great starting point for beginners. Images are checked very quickly, and the works of beginners are exhibited on an equal basis with professionals. The minimum withdrawal is $35, but not earlier than 3 months after registration.

IStock— one of the oldest microstocks. Accepts photos, illustrations and vectors.

Part of Getty Images, the largest professional photo bank.

A normal starting point for beginners. The main disadvantage: the high withdrawal threshold of $100. The service also does not show sales statistics well: it will be possible to update the data only after a month.

Fotolia is a microstock that integrates with Adobe products in the form of Adobe Stock. There is no exam here.

Built into Adobe products. There are quite a lot of buyers.

The minimum withdrawal threshold is $50. Among the majority of authors, it is one of the five most profitable microstocks.

Freelancing sites

- the most profitable way to earn money for designers and everyone who works with computer graphics. But every year it becomes more and more difficult for newcomers to break through. Almost all projects will require starting investments: from 800 rubles to purchase a premium account. Without it, you can only access basic orders.

List of freelancing sites:

Freelance.ru.
Fl.ru.
Freelansim.
Work-Zilla.
Kwork.

You can find orders for both graphic rendering of images and drawings on canvas.

Social media

The option is suitable for running a business and making money on comics. The best social network for this is VKontakte. There is full functionality for attracting clients.

You can use the VKontakte community either as a group in which work will be posted, or as a personal store.

You can use Instagram to create a portfolio. This social network has the best format for working with images. You can post photo reviews from clients or a list of completed work.

How much can an artist earn?

Now let's talk about which direction is most profitable to work in. To do this, let’s look at the income figures, the minimum threshold and the time/money spent on each type of income.

Pictures on microstocks— top users earn from illustrations from $1,000 every month. A beginner can count on an income of 100 - 200 dollars 2 - 3 months after starting work. But at first you will have to work really hard to gain a base regular customers and collect a portfolio.

Custom design — good designer with an average workload (3 - 4 hours a day with 20 working days a month) he can freely earn from 30 to 40 thousand rubles. But this will require a good portfolio. A beginner will have to make several orders for himself, invest in a portfolio and work for some time with orders at low pay.

Paintings to order— It is very difficult to predict income. From what I was told, you can earn up to 50,000 rubles a month by selling replicas. There is no information on copyright works.

Sale of original postcards- a very difficult way to make money. By collaborating with a modern poet, you can secure good sales. But the monthly income will still be low - from 10 to 15 thousand rubles.

Making money from comics— there is no information about illustrators who make money from full-fledged drawing of comics. Creative companies often keep this secret. Internet comics are not created to make money. In the Russian segment, this is more a way of creative self-realization and small earnings on advertising.

Private lessons — individual lessons They are quite expensive on the Internet. An hour costs from 500 to 1,000 rubles. But there won’t be a workload of 20-30 hours a week, so you can count on 5-7 thousand rubles a week.

Creation of an information product- income depends on the value of the product. A large initial investment of time and effort is required for training (from a week to a month) and promotion costs - the minimum level is 20,000 rubles.

Conclusion

Internet provides great amount earning opportunities for people with creative professions. It’s enough to take the issue of earning money seriously, start studying and don’t stray from your path.

Modern technologies destroy the stereotype of a constantly hungry and poor artist, whose work is seen only by the walls of his studio. The publishing house Mann, Ivanov and Ferber published the book “Create All Day” by Lisa Congdon, which shares psychological and practical tools for successive steps of work in the field of creative industries: from searching for sales channels to choosing a forwarding company. T&P publishes several chapters along with real stories people refuting the myth that it is impossible to make money as an artist.

Lisa Congdon

artist and illustrator from California. Designs books stationery, fabrics and household utensils. Participates in many exhibitions, speaks at professional conferences, and writes a popular blog about life and work.

Research different sources of income

So, your ship leaves the pier, taking you into the stormy seas of an artistic career. The shape your creative business will take needs to be determined from the very beginning. You have several options, which we will talk about in the pages of this book. For example, you can sell originals of your work or prints, do illustrations and provide usage rights. But where to start? My words may sound like a hackneyed truth, but best advice The message I received when I began my career in art was: “Follow your heart.” There is no one way that will work for everyone; so the decision about what is best for you personally is determined by the unique circumstances of your own life, yours strengths, goals, resources and experience.

Some artists are completely self-sufficient by focusing on the only source income, for example from illustrating or selling works of art. But in general, in our time it is common to have several such sources. Income diversification is a great way to keep your art venture interesting and dynamic, plus you won't be dependent on the only way earn a living. When one of the sources begins to dry up, another will come to the surface. In addition, you can temporarily turn to another type of income if you get tired of a particular way of selling your work. Once the original drawing is sold, the option of receiving passive income, such as granting the right to use, will not require much extra work, while you will be able to receive income from this source for many years and continue to work on new original works.

As you read the next chapters of this book and evaluate your possible sources of income, consider which ones will give you more satisfaction and be a better fit for your job. Don't allow yourself to choose one or another potential option just because you think it looks more profitable. If your source of income doesn't align with your values or makes you unhappy, it will end up demotivating and leaving you feeling unfulfilled.

The smartest approach is to start with something small, especially if you have other work besides art. If you start with too many sources at once, they can overwhelm you. Therefore, it is better to limit yourself to one or two, and having found the main channel and starting to earn money, start thinking about others. You may find that running your online store is too time-consuming and that communicating with customers who buy your illustrations is difficult. creative process. If one of your sources of income does not work for you, do not worry, this is in the order of things. Research process in various ways realizing your work or generating income from your talents requires repeated attempts and large quantity time, and mistakes are inevitable. But with patience and openness to the world, you will eventually find your personal niche.

Drawing up a marketing plan

I recommend creating a marketing plan for every quarter throughout the year. Depending on the season, your career aspirations and what you're working on this moment work, your marketing plans will look different for each quarter. For example, in the third quarter, when you're busy leading up to the holiday season, you can focus your marketing efforts on getting new orders, and in the fourth quarter, you can focus on increasing in-store sales. If you're starting your career as an illustrator, it's best to start promoting in the first quarter so your cards don't get lost in the holiday rush in the editorial offices. Think strategically, do marketing every day, not just during slow times, and your efforts will pay dividends in the future.

Your marketing plan should take into account all components of an advertising campaign, including press releases, posts on your blog - all the way to a large social media campaign. Make a table for each quarter, planning in it marketing events by week. List all the actions you need to take and the deadlines for completing them. The better you organize your advertising campaign, the greater the return you will get from it.

How to find your niche

If you're considering getting into illustration, ask yourself, "Which segment of this market would my work be best suited to?" or “Which field of illustration interests me most?” When I first started, I created a special “inspiration board” for myself, where I noted what kind of work I would like to do and the areas of illustration that corresponded to my passions. Since the main thing in my works is color and cheerful attitude, and not conceptual content, I understood that it was best for me to work on the design stationery and household items. In addition, I was attracted to illustrating books, so I had to work on the plot and thematic component of my portfolio.

Taking the time to explore the potential areas of your talent and where you'd like to focus will help you decide which areas of illustration to target and what changes you'll need to make to your work.

How to make full use of your downtime

The key word that characterizes the career of a free artist is unpredictability. But even when business is slow, there is always an opportunity to get things in order, learn something, and lay the foundation for future growth. During such periods, it is important to regularly certain time at work and develop your art business in the following areas:

Create a portfolio. This is one of the best ways make use of downtime. Start creating new artwork that you can later use on commercial products, such as planner covers or tea towels. In this way, you will enrich your portfolio with samples of work that future clients may decide to use in the manufacture of their products. In addition, you can contact the gallery and agree on organizing a display of your new works.

Volunteer. Chapter 4 talked about the importance of getting involved in your local art community as a means of networking and making contacts that can later have a beneficial effect on your art career. So, the “low season” can be used to work in a non-profit art organization, at an art venue, or as an intern at a gallery. Working in a gallery, you can learn a lot: how works of art are sold to collectors, how exhibitions are organized and held, what the relationship between artists and gallery owners is like. By volunteering for a nonprofit arts organization, you'll learn how to obtain grants, how to get your work included in planned exhibitions, and how to participate in large events such as auctions.

Do marketing. Use your free time to get your name out there. Review your marketing materials: is it time to update your website information? If so, add samples of new work to the site, media reviews, information about awards received, and think about improving the design. How long have you been communicating on social networks? Take time to communicate on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and explore options for expanding your online presence. Haven't you written on your blog for a long time? Then start a new personal project and write about it. When you're in last time sent art postcards to your dream galleries and art directors? Take advantage of this new time to design a card featuring the best of your new work.

Nikki McClure

Artist, master of paper art, Olympia

At the very beginning of Nikki’s career, his “samizdat” annual calendar in his signature black and white brought him fame. fine style paper plastic surgery is the best practical demonstration of her advantages, including patience, the ability to work hard and take care of what is really dear to her. Nikki also produces posters, books, postcards and T-shirts. Nikki McClure is a shining example of how to live out your values to thrive in art and business, and how to share through your writing with the world what you hold dear: the power of love and hope, the beauty of everyday things, caring for environment and about the opportunity to change the world for the better.

Lisa Solomon

Artist working in style mixed media

Lisa holds a B.A. applied arts University of California at Berkeley and M.S. fine arts Mills College. Her work, reflecting an interest in the combination of styles in craft and home furnishings, has been featured in exhibitions around the world, from the San Jose Museum of Art to the Koumi-Machi Kougen Museum in Japan. Lisa's work has been exhibited in various galleries, including the David Weinberg Photography Gallery in Chicago and art Gallery Garson Baker in New York. She currently works with Walter Maciel Gallery in Los Angeles, known in San Francisco as Fouladi Projects. Lisa's works were published as a monograph Hand/Made. In addition, she is the author of a book on the art of embroidery, Knot Thread Stitch. But, despite being actively involved in creativity, Lisa finds time to blog and teach art to students State University San Francisco.

Esther Pearl Watson

Artist, illustrator, Pasadena

“When you are just starting a career as an artist or illustrator, it is worth agreeing to most of the orders that are offered to you - this is how contacts are made and a portfolio is formed. And, besides, this is the only way to understand which activities you like and which ones you don’t. Later, when you understand this, you can choose companies and projects about which you will be confident. We also believe that it is important to get paid well for your work. If a customer says: “You will get great fame, but we can’t pay you,” - for us it’s like a red traffic light! If we are already working on an order, we increase the reward amount. Extra work must be paid!”

Dolan Gaiman

Mixed media artist, Chicago

Dolan Gaiman grew up in the Shenandoah Valley, where he wandered the neighborhood, climbed into abandoned houses and collected various items. His childhood in the countryside left a strong imprint on his paintings and collages, which he creates in a unique pop-folk style. Dolan attended James Madison University in Harrisonburg, and after graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, he soon set off for Chicago by car, armed with a stack of paintings, a small supply of provisions and a fishing rod. Here he wanted to declare himself as an artist. Several years later, Dolan would create numerous works and prints. In addition to running an Etsy store and serving as a juror for art fairs, Dolan works with international retailers that sell his original artwork as well as the inexpensive art gifts and decorative items he creates. In addition, he licenses his works to companies such as Anthropologie, Fossil, Pendleton Woolen Mills and Urban Outfitters.

Today, many artists successfully work on the Internet. They earn good money, can afford to travel a lot and support their family. However, this lifestyle is fraught with many pitfalls for which you need to prepare.

Firstly, independent activity will require organization and composure. When becoming your own boss, it is important not to relax and not put off work. This is the only way you will begin to receive good material returns.

Secondly, be prepared for unstable earnings. At least in the first months of independent work. Regardless of the chosen direction of activity, time must pass for your name to become known and recognizable in professional circles.

Third, be prepared to learn new things. For example, to create a good website, you should learn the technical side of the issue. Those who choose computer graphics need to have a good understanding of working programs, etc.

If you have available funds, you can order a website. Otherwise, do not rush to leave the stable workplace. Gradually “prepare the ground”: study topics on website building, programs, popular areas, etc.

How can an artist earn money?

There are many ways for artists to make money on the Internet. If you don't want to leave real drawing, pay attention to interactive art salons where works are sold modern masters pencil, pastel and brush. Conclude an agreement, and your works will replenish the “shelves” and become available for purchase.

Artists who can clearly explain and clarify the nuances of their work can try their hand at teaching. The first option is to create your own courses. For example, in the form of a blog, website or CD for sale. The second way is to give lessons. Drawing today is very popular and fashionable (a kind of mainstream), so there will be a lot of people interested.

If you are ready to learn something new, master computer graphics. You can post the created images on numerous microstock sites, where designers, webmasters, publishers, graphic designers, etc. are looking. To make a stable income, you need to create a large portfolio, define your style and work with several resources at once. If consumers like your images, within three to four months you will feel good financial support.

Pay attention to the unique online exchanges for artists. There you can find orders for remote work. However, be patient and ready to compete.

My story of earning money began during my student days, when, like many students, I experienced a huge lack of two things: time and money.

Finding a permanent well-paid job at that moment was a utopia, since, firstly, no one wanted to employ a student without experience, and secondly, it was simply impossible to work according to a clear schedule due to the scattered classes at the institute.

But we had to come up with a way to make money. Unlike most other poor students, I had a talent for drawing from birth, which, by the way, developed as I studied at the art department architectural university. I decided to paint portraits to order.

First steps

“To start doing something, just start,” that’s what my mother told me all my life. And I started doing what I know how to do, namely, drawing portraits, without really understanding how exactly I would start making money from it. I drew in every free moment, just to hone my skills first. At first it didn’t work out very well, to put it mildly, but pretty quickly my drawings began to resemble real portraits, the people in them looked similar, and most importantly, attractive. Friends began to like my portraits, and while I was painting them, I simply gave them my portraits for advertising. And then, lo and behold, a friend of a friend once approached me with a request to draw a small portrait of his girlfriend for money for her birthday, as a gift. This was my first order. She charged a purely symbolic price for the work - 150 rubles. Later, other friends of friends came up or called in the same way, and the price was still the same symbolic as for their own.

Search for clients

Quite quickly, I realized that my circle of contacts was dwindling, I didn’t have enough orders from my own people, and the income from them was minimal, so I needed to look for clients. I posted an ad on various city forums, attaching photographs of previous works, setting a price of 400 rubles for a portrait in A4 pencil from a photograph, and 1000 rubles for an A2 portrait on canvas. A reasonable question immediately arose - what to “catch” with, if there are so many good ones around? professional artists. In order to break into any field, you need some kind of “trick”. I decided that my advantage as an artist would be a record high speed of work. Firstly, it attracts clients who, for some reason, need an urgent portrait. Secondly, it is convenient, as it allows you to earn more by completing more orders per week. And thirdly, by constantly drawing portraits of friends, I have already reached a level of skill that allows me to really quickly make a high-quality drawing. As expected, orders poured in.

Formation of a stable client base

“To keep a client, you need to give him what he wants,” wrote one motivational book by Dale Carnegie. This is very words of wisdom, which I applied in my activities. If a client wanted to get a portrait the very next day, I did it, even at the cost of my own lack of sleep and absences from college. If they wanted the wrinkled grandmother in the portrait to look young and impressive, that’s how I painted her, with a minimum of wrinkles and without three extra chins. When they said: “It should be the same as in the photo, just make it in a national shirt,” I made a portrait in a national shirt. In other words, she tried to fulfill every whim of the client. As a result, I received a lot of gratitude and a stable client base, because satisfied people recommended me to their friends.

Results.

Working according to the principle described above, I managed to get on my feet on my own, and already from the third month of such work my monthly earnings were approximately 12,000 rubles, but I must say, I worked a lot. The first two months were spent promoting the business, although it also brought me quite impressive money, as for my student time. Later, having already graduated from college, and having gotten a job first as a salesperson, and a year later as a computer graphic designer at a small printing agency, I didn’t give up my part-time job on portraits, and in fact, I’m still doing this, gradually raising prices as my professionalism grows. By the way, getting a job helped to significantly expand my client base through new acquaintances. It’s true, I don’t paint much now, only in the evenings and for my own pleasure, because my monthly earnings from portraits range from 8 to 10 thousand rubles, but I think this is not bad for a part-time job.

Not finding a job in real life an artist can also earn decent money while sitting at home. This is due to the active global development of computer and electronic technologies. Since the World Wide Web is filled with new sites and blogs every day, artists initially create designs for all of them in the form of beautiful illustrations and pictures.

In this article we will look in detail at the question of how to make money from drawings on the Internet, where you can sell them and how to get started.

The content of the article :

What do you need to make money from drawings on the Internet?

Before you figure out how to make money from illustrations on the Internet, you need to find out what tools and programs you may need for this process:

Computer program

Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop are two of the most popular and accessible programs with which you can draw a picture from scratch. It is the formats of these programs that are accepted different services for selling images (we'll talk about this in more detail below).

Digital pen (optional)

A modern tool that appeared on the consumer market not so long ago. This pen usually comes with a scanner module that can be placed on a regular A4 sheet. After the artist creates a drawing for her on paper, she will translate it into digital format. This way you can create a full copy of a regular image.

Graphics tablet (optional)

This tool is also designed to transfer written information to a PC. The set includes two items. The first is a pen, the second is a flat tablet (due to its high sensitivity, it can respond to pen pressure and even its proximity). Some companies include a special mouse with the kit.

Draw a sketch on paper, scan ( Accordingly, you will need a scanner) or take a photo and upload the image to the editor. In the future, when you start earning good money, you can draw pictures on graphics tablet, where you can immediately make sketches in computer graphics. By the way, if the sketch is successful and bright, then it can be sold as finished graphics.

In addition to technical and specialized requirements, of course, in order to make money from illustrations, an artist at home needs:

Creative thinking;
Wonderful imagination;
A great desire to work and earn money;
Commitment to improvement.

How to make money from illustrations on the Internet

Those who are interested in how to make money by drawing on the Internet are recommended to study in detail the information about microstocks.

Specialized Internet sites on which any author can post his works for subsequent implementation. Moreover, such resources allow both self-taught artists and professionals to earn money.

Micro - because the content is sold at a low price, and stock - because you can upload not only photographs, but also videos, illustrations, drawings, etc.

After purchasing the posted content, the author receives a monetary deduction at a rate specifically established by the resource. The low cost is compensated by the opportunity to sell the same illustration or picture many times ( no limits), which significantly increases the author’s earnings. Due to the automated process, the transaction is completed instantly.

Today they sell and buy:

Photos;
Vector graphics;
Raster graphics;
3D images;
Flash.

Sites where you can make money by drawing

We have already addressed the question of whether it is now possible to make money by drawing using the Internet. Now let's move on to the description of existing online resources.

Reference! It should be noted right away that the author does not necessarily have to choose one specific microstock. On the contrary, it is recommended to start earning money on several first. With the passage of time and the experience gained, one can judge which trading platform is more profitable.

One microstock has an off-the-charts rating for the number of sales, while another is famous for its higher price for content. Therefore, each author must determine for himself what suits him. As an example, here are the 4 most famous and recommended sites where you can make money from drawings while simultaneously posting your work on all stocks:

– today this microstock is one of the largest trading platforms and its database contains more than 20 million pictures and other content. The authors receive 60% of the cost of selling uploaded illustrations and images. Pays annual royalties to authors in the amount of $450 million.
– one of the popular microstocks, completely executed in Russian, which is in 2nd place in terms of sales. In addition to the fact that the system does not require you to upload scanned passport pages during registration, authors do not need to pass a specialized exam.
– a simple and understandable mid-level microstock for sales, suitable even for beginners due to the fact that there is no need to pass an exam. You can start selling immediately after registration. From a purchased image, the author can receive from 30% to 50% of its cost.
DepositPhotos – a relatively recently created (in 2009) microstock, the interface of which is completely made in Russian.

Who buys the drawings

Clients of microstock sites include designers, advertising agencies, bloggers, newspapers, publishing houses, magazines and those who cannot go a single working day without purchasing an image (or other content).

For example, most of the images on our site were purchased from microstocks, namely Shutterstock.

Using such a resource is an excellent opportunity to buy quality content at an affordable price. At the same time, all copyrights are not violated and even papers are provided.

This proposal is especially suitable for small projects for which it is simply unprofitable in terms of material and time costs to hire a stranger and explain to him all the intricacies from scratch. And it’s not a fact that in the end it won’t turn out that the customer and the contractor were unable to understand each other.

How much can you earn from illustrations and drawings on the Internet?

The question of whether it is now possible to make money from stock illustrations is very popular among artists. The answer to this is definitely positive. In addition, today it has been noticed that the sales volume of illustrations has already reached the number of photographs. And the authors get much more higher fee with the same number of works in the portfolio of the illustrator and photographer.

At the top you can see how much money each image has earned since it was uploaded and how many times it has been downloaded. The author spent on the first picture 3 hours, and she brought him more all the time $2200 .

Below you can see the income of the collections (images collected by topic):

The first selection has 102 drawings, and they brought $9,283 . Our friend the author worked on microstocks for only 4 months, and then stopped uploading work. But he still gets monthly payments, albeit not so much anymore (around $100, despite the fact that he hasn’t been doing this for 5 years) since his works remain in demand.

The royalty from the sale of one illustration or picture varies approximately from 0.25 to 0.40 cents. For half a day spent on creating content, this is of course not enough, but considering that one work on a microstock is bought many times, in the end it comes out to a decent amount.

That is, the more unique illustrations and pictures the author adds to his portfolio, the more he will be able to earn. And if you have a huge amount of work, you can even go on vacation for a month and all this time receive deductions in a decent amount.

From the transaction price of one purchased image or illustration, the author receives approximately 20%-40% or 0.25 - 0.40 cents. But if your image was purchased through an advanced subscription, then you can receive between $2.85 and $70 per sale.

Reference! Having accumulated about 500 works in a portfolio, the author can receive approximately $100 per month from them. If their number increases to 5 thousand, then the monthly total income will be 1 – 5 thousand dollars.

All figures are approximate; it is possible that the author, with a small number of works, will earn much more than $100, and such real examples in life there are quite a few of them. It all depends on the skill and demand of the images.

For example, a pot with a flower will not be popular at all, but a simple person with a diplomat in his hands may have good sales on the topic of business.

How to start making money by drawing on the Internet?

To start making money by drawing pictures using the Internet, you need to find a popular commercial topic and draw images from good quality and bright, attractive colors.

If the author is able to create high-quality illustrations or images, then he can sell them directly. To do this you need to prepare in advance good resume, tell in it the history of your training, work experience, as well as indicate prices and attach as an example your most best pictures or illustrations. After a high-quality order is completed by the artist-performer, customers will contact him on subsequent occasions and may even pass on his contacts and recommend him to other friends or colleagues.

Another possible way to sell drawings is exchanges for freelancers.

In addition, the author can additionally create personal blog(or an account in), tell about yourself in it and post your own unique works. will be subscribed to different people, among which there may even be large customers.

Anyone can make money from pictures, the main thing is to choose for which niche they should be drawn.

It’s nice to depict a beautiful sunset, a couple in love, a delicious cookie or a puppy, but more often than not, a disassembled computer or a fan of currencies from different countries looks much more interesting.

Identify niches on microcurrents that are popular, but have few pictures, and try to find yourself there, which will allow you to start earning money faster, since in popular areas the level of competition is simply off the charts.

How to make money from stock illustrations

You don’t need to be a highly professional artist or web designer to make money on microstocks by selling illustrations. It’s not even necessary to work on a graphics tablet; for some, basic knowledge is enough Adobe editors. Both raster and vector illustrations are allowed for sale, but the latter are more popular.

It should also be noted that microstocks put forward certain requirements for illustrations that must be taken into account by the author. For example, the format for vector images – EPS 8, color model – RGB, size – maximum 15 MB.

Download a program for creating or editing illustrations.
Create a unique illustration.
Convert it to the required format.
Upload it to microstock.

Also, the author must additionally upload a preview file to the stock (format – JPG, and size – from 4 to 25 mp). If the moderators approve the work, then after a while it will appear on the site and will be available for sale. After that, all that remains is to continue creating new illustrations and wait for the moment when they start buying the first one.

Those who are actively looking for information on the topic of how to make good money from drawings on the Internet are advised to pay attention to a number of the following tips:

Find several blogs of famous stockers and try to learn from their experience. This will save a lot of time and help prevent common mistakes.
Constantly improve your work skills Adobe program Illustrator by watching video tutorials.
Set your priorities correctly and most time to spend on creating illustrations or teaching.
Regularly review works that are in the top on microstock. In order for a picture to be in demand among buyers, you need to draw not what is in your head, but what is constantly bought from other authors.
Monitor the elaboration of the illustrations, even if it is a small logo (you can see it at keyword“Logo”, which is currently the most purchased of such content). It's important to pay attention to detail and create good typography.
Create not one option, but several (make not one frame, but several, or not one icon, but a set).
Don’t stop there and constantly continue to expand your portfolio with quality work.

With all this, you should not try to compare the quality of your illustrations with the works of experienced and top stockers. For every unique picture, sooner or later there will be a buyer.

Conclusion

In this article, we looked at how to make money from drawing using the Internet and special sites, which are also called microstocks.

Earning money from drawings on microstocks needs to be taken seriously. If you treat it as a hobby, then there will be no changes in income, since it is painstaking and daily work. The reward for such activities is constant self-development, free schedule and self-realization.

Today, this is one of the profitable and uncomplicated ways for people with the skills of artists to receive not only additional, but also basic income.