Shutterstock.com: Make money from your digital pics

Nowadays, it seems like just about everyone has a digital camera. While that may not be true, just about everyone has a cell phone and most cell phones of today have built-in digital cameras.

And with easy access to these picture taking devices, people are turning into amateur photographers. Just today, for example, I went hiking out in Hauula on Oahu's windward side. While I forgot my digi cam at home, I did have my cell phone. As such, I was able to click a few pics, including the one posted here.

You may not be aware of this, but there is a market for your digital camera pictures. One place that I reviewed is shutterstock.com. The deal with shutterstock.com is you submit pictures that you have taken. Shutterstock.com lists many dos and don'ts for picture submissions, including the fact that pics submitted must be at least 4.o megapixels, which eliminates all of my cell phone pics plus even the largest pic on my ancient 3.2 megapixel digi cam!

What is the compensation ($$)? You get 25 cents for every pic of yours that someone visiting the site sees and then downloads. Nope, not a lot of bucks but if you submit a bunch of pics over time, the chances of making some spare money is more likely.

Additionally, you can make some money from shutterstock.com by referring buyers to the company. According to shutterstock.com, if you refer friends and acquaintances to the site and they sign up, you'll get an incentive bonus. So, for example, if you clicked here, checked out the site, liked it, and signed up, I'd get a bonus.

I read one guy's review of shutterstock.com and he said he has submitted 200 pictures and takes in about $80 to $100 a month.

Other sites similar to shutterstock.com where you can make $$ for pictures you take are www.istockphoto.com and us.fotolia.com

Is working at home a good fit for you?

Back when I was in my 20s, I worked as a loan adjustor for a Servco Financial Corp., a locally based Hawaii company. For those wondering what I did as a loan adjustor, basically I was a debt collector. In other words, I called up or visited face-to-face people who had fallen behind on loan payments to the company. As an adjustor, I was given some latitude in negotiating repayment terms with delinquent customers. For instance, I was able to waive late fees and in some cases delinquent interest payments.

I worked out of Servco Financial’s main branch on King Street right next to Fort Street Mall. I was fortunate to have the company pay for my parking (big issue and headache, particularly for folks working in downtown Honolulu. Plus, I got a mileage allowance if I had to go out in the field to collect debts. I mention all this here because I could have very well done much of my work from home.

This is not to say that I would have done an effective job at home, but given a telephone and access to the company’s computer network (not available back then but easily available nowadays), I could have done much of my “adjusting” work from a desk in my home.

An ABC news bit about the pros and cons of working at home posed some questions to determine how good of a fit a work-from-home situation would be for people. And those questions included.

1. Are you highly disciplined and goal-oriented?
2. Can you be effective without a support system?
3. Do you have a dedicated work space?
4. Can you thrive without office camaraderie?
5. Can you work well without constant direction?
6. Can the work you do be done from anywhere?

People who can answer yes to all these questions will find that working home will be feasible.

Photo credit: David A. Harvey (sol.as.arizona.edu/~dave/)