Practically everyone has (or uses) a camera and the vast majority of them these days are digital. It's great because you can send the photos right to the computer (or printer). Then of course, you may upload them to any of dozens of free websites where friends and family may enjoy them.

This is all fun and socially wonderful. It is also a lot of work, just to bring a little joy to your circle of relatives and friends. What if you could get paid for some of that hard work?

If you haven't heard, there are websites where you're photography can earn you some money. And no the photos don't have to be award winning works of art. This is the field of Stock Photography. Clear, well focused photos of ordinary things and concepts.

What do you think a web designer does if she needs a photo of a quarter for a new site. I'll make it easy on you. She goes to a stock photography website, pays fifty cents to a dollar (maybe less) and downloads one. Look at some of the photos on the websites you visit. You'll realized that with a little sprucing up and a little more care composing that yours would be just as good.

How to Get Started

Do- Search on any of the search engines for Stock Photos. When you get there, you'll see a link somewhere that says 'sell your photos' or 'become a member' or something similar. Getting started is as easy as signing up and selecting some of your best work for them to review. If they like them, you're in.

Do- Learn what they want. They don't want snapshots. They want clear, focused, uncluttered, thoughtfully composed images of everyday things. Some of the categories you may submit to would be:

• Architecture
• People
• Travel
• Objects
• Animals (they have plenty of family pets, but you may try)
• Flowers/Plants (They have a lot of them, but are always open to a new approach)
• Nature

One more don't- Don't think you'll get rich right away. Some experienced photographers with good marketing skills make a lot of money, but most just make a few dollars here and there.

And one more tip- There are some sites that are to fussy for most of us. They want you to upload highly professional work and then pay you peanuts for it. Sort through them and you'll find many that will accept the efforts of a careful detail oriented semi pro (you).