Hello there Sea Changers. Welcome back to my series of program lists to assist those of you looking to fund your sea change with affiliate marketing. My name is Paul and I have been making money in the affiliate marketing game for the past decade and have created this site to assist those of you looking to do the same.
Today we are going to step out from behind the camera to look at my 13 best photography affiliate programs to snap this year. Photography is an extremely popular pastime and whilst it falls nicely within the lucrative hobby niche where we know people will spend money, there is also the professional use element as well.
There are a number of sub niche possibilities here as well so with a little work, this could be one that can be turned into quite a nice little sea change funding online business.
- Samy's Camera
- Focus Camera
- B&H
- MIOPS
- KEH
- Kelby One
- Photography-RAW
- Digital Photography School
- Zenfolio
- pixpa
- GoPro
- Langly
- Snappa
That's right! Wealthy Affiliate provided me with all of the tools and training I needed to get this post in front of my audience - a.k.a YOU!
You too can start your very own online business here that can make you money from anywhere in the world!!
Before we begin however, I am conscious that there are a number of different areas or sub niches within this subject hence the quantity of affiliate programs to choose from may be just as large. So how have I picked my best 13 photography affiliate marketing program? Well… I really just wanted to give you a good cross section of what is out there so I did some searching around and checked a few out and chose them by looking at:
- What they offer
- Commission rates
- Payment terms
- Cookie duration
- Application processes
- Affiliate/Marketing materials provided
Photography Affiliate Programs
Stats show that people will spend money on photographic equipment online if it can make their lives easier so as long as you are meeting their needs and solving problems, then you are on the right track. And to give you a boost, let's have a look at 13 programs that I have found below:
1. Samy's Camera
Let's start with an all in one site in Samy’s Camera. Samy's is a massive photography site providing access to just about every camera based product available including:
- Cameras
- Lenses
- Memory and storage
- Bags and other apparel
- Video cameras
- Studio and lighting
This is a great site for affiliates as it allows you to cover all aspects of photography and videography in the one spot. In addition to this, they also offer a large range of home entertainment products (so you can show your shots and videos), tablets, computers, monitors, headphones and audio recorders – just to name a few. Oh and drones, they have drones. Certainly enough here to build an affiliate site around.
Commission Rate: 4%
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: 30 Days.
Application required?: Yes, Samy’s affiliate program is managed by Share-a-Sale. You will be required to apply for an account then for the Samy’s affiliate program. You will need to enter personal and website information as well as promotional plans and platforms to be used.
Marketing material provided: Banners, Ads and copy, Text Links,
2. Focus Camera
Focus is another massive photography related site offering a great range of products – in fact, products to cover almost everything required to get a person ready to take that perfect shot. Again, there is so much there that we could not even begin to cover everything here but their main categories include:
- Cameras
- Lenses
- Video equipment
- Accessories
- Lighting and Studio
As with Samy's above, they also offer a nice range of electronics and computer equipment allowing affiliates to promote both pre and post shoot processing options in one place. There is enough here to build an affiliate marketing site around as well.
Commission Rate: 3%
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: 30 Days
Application required?: Yes – You will need to enter personal, business and website/social media information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Text links, creatives, tutorials
3. B&H
Our next site is B & H, an all encompassing photography site that deals with everything to do with cameras and photography. Their main catalogue is similar to the first two sites listed here – i.e. they have everything you could possibly need to do with photography – however they also expand to a great range of Drones and surveillance devices as well as a large professional product representation.
Again this site could definitely be utilised to build a generalist business around as well as a great addition to the professional, drone and audio/visual niches.
Commission Rate: 2 – 8%
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: Not Stated
Application required?: Yes, You will need to enter personal and website information to apply. To be accepted, affiliates must have:
- Multi page website.
- Fully functioning website.
- No broken links.
- Content relevant to B&H's product offerings.
Marketing material provided: Text links
4. MIOPS
Promoting itself as a “manufacturer of products that make life easier for photographers and video producers”, MIOP features a large array of gadgets and addon to assist photographers of all levels to take better pictures with the equipment they have.
This includes (but certainly not limited to):
- Triggers
- Water drop kits
- Camera slides
- Motion boxes
- Remotes
- Gadgets for lighting and capture types
- Cable dongles
- Turntable and tilt stands
This site would make a great addition to any photography based affiliate business aimed at all levels of skill and equipment used. And as an extra source of information there is also a great blog and education materials as well.
Commission Rate: 10%
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: Not Stated
Application required?: Yes, You will need to enter personal and website information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Banners, Text Links
5. KEH
Now we take a look into the second hand photography market with KEH. KEH is effectively an online camera based marketplace site dealing in a nice array of second hand gear including:
- Digital cameras
- Film cameras
- Lenses
- Video
- Accessories
- Tripods
- Lighting
- Mounts
There is possibly enough on this site to base an entire affiliate marketing site around as there are good options for both the new and professional user as well as those dealing with marketplace type sites. They stock all of the well-known brands and offer most at prices below those of new stock which is great for budget focused sites as well.
Commission Rate: 4%
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: 15 Days
Application required?: Yes, KEH's affiliate program is managed by Share-A-Sale. You will be required to apply for an account then for the KEH affiliate program. You will need to enter personal and website information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Banners, Text Links
6. Kelby One
For this next site we step away from the equipment side of things and look into training and tuition with KelbyOne. KelbyOne is a great site to add to any photography niche due to its huge array of online course options covering such topics as:
- Camera use
- Photography – animals, sports, landscape etc. etc.
- Software – Photoshop, video editing software
- Editing – retouching, shading and so on
There really is so much more that I could keep listing for quite a while – but you get the picture (pun fully intended)
This site is probably not one that you would build an entire affiliate marketing business around however as mentioned above it would be a great companion/add on to just about any photography related niche possible – and maybe even for those dealing with personal development as well.
Commission Rate:
- Baseline 15% Commission on Annual Products (Ranging from $99 – $199)
- Baseline 50% Commission on Monthly Products (Ranging from $9.99 – $19.99)
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: 14 Days
Application required?: Yes, KelbyOne's affiliate program is managed by Rakuten. You will be required to apply for an account then for the KelbyOne affiliate program. You will need to enter personal and website information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Text links and banners
7. Photography-RAW
Photography-RAW is a modern photography blog that over time has developed into what is effectively a training based site to learn the essential skills of setting up, taking and processing the perfect photograph. There really is so much here that it would take your readers months to digest it all which is great for you as an affiliate marketer. In terms of their product range, there are a number of tools and online courses available including:
Presets and Actions
- Affinity Photo Macros
- Capture One Style Packs
- Photoshop Actions
- Lightroom Presents
- Luminar Landscapes and Nature Presets
- Nik Preset and Recipes
Course and Ebooks
- Affinity Photo Workflow Video Course
- Affinity Photo Workflow Video Course + Macro Bundle
Again, there is probably not enough here to base an entire affiliate marketing business around however their offerings would certainly be a great addition to any photography based site. And as above, this site also contains pages and pages of free hints, tips and instructions making it a great option to refer your readers to for extra information.
Commission Rate: 30% (rises to 40% once sales of $500 are reached)
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: 60 Days
Application required?: Yes, you will need to enter personal and website information as well as promotional strategies as part of the application.
Marketing material provided: Text Links, Banners
That's right! Wealthy Affiliate provided me with all of the tools and training I needed to get this post in front of my audience - a.k.a YOU!
You too can start your very own online business here that can make you money from anywhere in the world!!
8. Digital Photography School
With the advancement of technology in this area, it comes as no surprise that sites such as Digital Photography School (DPS) have started to pop up. DPS is a photography training site that provides all of the same materials and subjects that the other listed here do – except it is all aimed at smartphones. It makes sense as I know the camera on my smartphone is better than the one on my old digital camera and DPS provide assistance in this area such as:
- Tutorials
- Shooting and editing assistance
- Workshops
They also offer a small range of accessories such as tripods and lenses for smartphones.
There is probably not enough here to base an entire affiliate marketing business around however their offerings would certainly be a great addition to any photography, hiking, travel or smartphone niche. There is also a fantastic range of free materials and a blog to assist you with post ideas and reviews and well as extra information for your readers. And best of all, commissions for some memberships are recurring meaning ongoing payments on the one sale.
Commission Rate: 40%
- 40% in eBooks and tuition products
- Course commission = $80
- Club membership = $66 pa or $8 per month
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: 365 Days
Application required?: Yes, you will need to enter personal and website information and promotional strategy as part of the application.
Note: Affiliates are accepted by invitation only.
Marketing material provided: Text Links
9. Zenfolio
Here we head into the world of an “all-in-one e-commerce platform to showcase & sell your photography” with Zenfolio. I mean I really couldn't explain it any better myself however this site gives photographers a platform to sell their work with a subscription that gives them:
- Website with domain name and access to blogs
- Pre-order capabilities
- E-commerce capabilities in which to sell photography
- Green screen editors
- Advanced options for specific professions (dances, weddings etc.)
There is so much more to offer depending on the subscription plan chosen such as templates, storage and plenty of other features.
This would make a great addition to any photography site aimed at professionals and hobbyists alike as well as a baseline for those looking to assist photographers looking to monetise their passion into a nice little business.
Commission Rate: 30% (On paid plan sign up only)
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: Not Stated
Application required?: Yes, Zenfolios's affiliate program is managed by Partnerize. You will be required to apply for an account then for the Zenfolio affiliate program. You will need to enter personal and website information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Text links, banners
10. pixpa
As with the site above, pixpa is an all-in-one platform for photographers, designers and creatives to build their portfolio website, online store, client galleries and blog – all in one place. This includes a range of products and services as follows:
- Website builder
- Client galleries
- Online store
- E-commerce galleries
- Mobile gallery apps
This is another great site that could be used to base an affiliate program on if you are looking to assist photographers in selling their craft. Alternatively, it would work well as an add on to any photography, online business or e-commerce creation site as well. There is also a great blog to provide more information for your readers or as blog post ideas for your own site.
Commission Rate: up to $150 on each referral plus a 50% share of the first-year revenue from your referrals.
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: 30 Days
Application required?: Yes, You will need to enter personal and website information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Text links, banners
11. GoPro
Ok, so this one is probably more of a video camera than not but let's face it, GoPro products are so popular that I just had to include it – and they do take traditional still shots as well so I am not really cheating too much. GoPro has revolutionised action photography with a small range of extremely durable, waterproof and shockproof cameras that are used in actions sport and activities all over the world. Oh, and there is a good range of accessories as well.
This is a great site for those working directly within the photography niche or just about any other sports, outdoors, travel or camping niche – or in fact, anything that may need a camera that can handle fast paced action in the dirtiest of circumstances. And for affiliates there is the extra advantage that in addition to their popularity, they do cost a little more as well making for some good higher ticket earning potential.
Commission Rate: 5%
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: Not Stated
Application required?: Yes – GoPro’s affiliate program is managed by CJ Affiliates. You will be required to apply for an account and then for the GoPro affiliate program. You will need to enter personal and website information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Text Links, banner, product feed
12. Langly
Langly is a cool little site with a small but effective range of camera bags, straps and holders. Their products are designed to enhance the “lives of freelance photographers and nomadic professionals looking for something to protect their gear with style and ease”. There is also a range of outdoors apparel as well.
Obviously this site would work best as an add on to any photography related site especially as a great gift idea or for within the travel or outdoors niches. There is also a fantastic ‘how to' blog allowing for some great post ideas and/or bonus information for your readers.
Commission Rate: 10%
Payment Terms: Monthly.
Cookie Duration: 30 Days
Application required?: Yes – Langly’s affiliate program is managed by Refersion. You will be required to apply for an account and then for the Langly affiliate program. You will need to enter personal and website information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Text links and banners
13. Snappa
And finally we look into photo editing and graphics software with Snappa. This graphic design tool allows photographers to turn their snaps into any number of designs and display options such as:
- Posters
- Post cards
- Edited pictures
- Social media pictures and banners
If you are in the photography niche you would probably not be able to base an affiliate program on this one however there are obvious add on opportunities for all spectrums of use levels and needs. And best of all, commissions are recurring meaning that if for example your referral signs up and pays their monthly membership for 12 months, you get paid each and every month.
Commission Rate: 30% recurring
Payment Terms: Monthly
Cookie Duration: Not stated
Application required?: Yes – You will need to enter personal and payment information to apply.
Marketing material provided: Text Links
Amazon Associates
Alternatively, should you wish to set up your site up with a range from a few different brands or companies on the same site then you can do so via Amazon. Amazon provides access to a good range of photography related products and has a fairly good affiliate program as well. So if you wish, join the Amazon Associates program, locate the best products relevant to your site within Amazon itself and you can post links on your own site as well.
Amazon's commission rates are not too bad and some prefer this avenue due to the sheer amount of traffic and trustworthiness that comes with a company site of this size.
How to find your own affiliate programs
As stated earlier, by outlining the sites above I have really just tried to give you a good cross section of the types of programs that are out there by listing the really good ones in each ‘category'. That does not mean that you cannot find affiliate programs that better suit what it is that you are trying to do within this space especially as I could never even begin to cover every photography related requirement or sub niche in the one post. Luckily for us, there is a simple way to find these programs online.
All you need to do is enter “affiliate: niche type” into your search engine (substituting ‘niche type‘ for whatever product it is that you are choosing to sell).
There are photography related affiliate programs for everything else that we have listed at the top of this page as well – you will just need to have a look around until you find one or two that suit your site. Once you have completed your searches, you can look through and find programs that:
- Relate to your niche/problems that you are solving.
- Have quality products – your brand can be severely damaged if you promote poor quality products.
- Have solid payment and customer service arrangement.
- Pay decent commissions.
- Have good testimonials covering commission payouts and quality of product.
In most cases, you will need to apply for the program before you are allowed to promote their products – don’t take this step lightly or you will be rejected. Affiliate programs will generally want to know:
- Your website name.
- Traffic levels.
- Why you want to join – (so I can make money by selling your tripods is unfortunately not generally a good enough answer).
- How you plan to promote their products.
Conclusion
So… There are 13 of the best affiliate programs for photographers to snap this year. I hope it has been helpful for you as you commence your own photography based affiliate marketing business and as usual, please do not hesitate to comment below if you have any questions, need some advice or have any experiences to share. Oh, and especially comment if you have any experience with these, or any other programs as well.
Until next time
Have fun
Paul
Note: If you make a purchase from this page, there is a very good chance that I make a commission from it – these commissions do not increase your sale price. This may include sales made via Wealthy Affiliate.
Do you want further assistance with any of the above or need help to build your own photography based website?
Are you looking for a comprehensive training platform that can give you step by step training, 24/7 support, tools to develop and host your very own website, ongoing assistance with SEO and social media and access to some of the best affiliate marketing minds on the planet, then click on the following link to read more about Wealthy Affiliate.
Introducing Wealthy Affiliate, My #1 Recommendation for Setting Up Your Own Online Business
When I started, I knew I wanted to work online, but had absolutely no idea where to begin! You see I had watched friends of mine run a sales party to sell essential oils and someone asked if they could just sell them online?
Then, as I sat on the bus heading into my office job, I started to wonder if I could do just that, sell essential oils online.
Anything to stop having to catch this bus to and from work every day right!
The trouble was, as I mentioned above, I had no idea how to even start.
So of course I started to look around online and found all these courses! They all promised me riches then took my money but left me with no riches!
Then I stumbled across the program that didn’t promise me riches, but told me it could help me get started even with no experience!
So I did that, joined Wealthy Affiliate that was it, and the rest as they say, is history!
But it doesn’t come without work!
That is the key here! I began on their starter membership and did the training! I then joined as a member and did some more training!
Each night after work, I would do a little more, then a little more.
And to cut a long story short, after 10 months I realized I didn’t really like writing about essential oils, so I sold the site for about $2000. But I had learned so much that I started another – about fishing and camping!
Then, after 18 months (by which time it had earned me close to $10k), I was offered $17k for the site, so I sold it too.
Now, through my travel blog, I’ve been able to fund my passion for travel and explore different places around the world.
In the past few months, I’ve been fortunate enough to travel to some amazing destinations, including Bali, Los Angeles, Dallas, Vancouver and Las Vegas.
The success of my travel blog has allowed me to fully fund my travels and explore new destinations with my family.
Try the Wealthy Affiliate as a Starter Member and Build your First Hub!
As you start your journey, Wealthy Affiliate is there for you with the most comprehensive training package I have ever seen – And as I have mentioned, I have used a few in my professional career trust me.
To get you started, Wealthy Affiliate has recently introduced the Hub.
The Hub
The hub is an AI based niche and website creation tool that will get you up and running with the foundation of your OWN business in just a few minutes. This includes:
- Your website – hosted and inclusive of a WordPress editor
- Your brand
- Your ‘done-for-you’ research
- Your blueprint
- A task list that is going to help you drive the creation and growth of your business moving forward.
The hub makes the website creation process simple which allows you to get started on the training with a solid base and understanding of the processes.
All you need to do is choose your subject – which is known as your ‘niche’ – and follow the steps on the screen.
Oh, and as you run through the training below you may realize that what you created above is not exactly what you want. That’s ok, you can just create a new hub!
Wealthy Affiliate Training
Then as you continue your journey, the Wealthy Affiliate Hub is there for you with the most comprehensive training package I have ever seen – And I have used a few in my professional career trust me.
Above we discussed the use of the Hub to set up a website. Once you have done this, you will be able to access the “Step-by-Step Core Training”.
This is available to all members including starter members and will give you everything you need to know to continue to create your online business.
Member Training
There are also Live weekly classes taught by REAL industry experts on a range of topics like artificial intelligence (AI), SEO, YouTube, WordPress, PPC marketing and more.
Great, What Else Does Wealthy Affiliate Have To Help You?
So, let’s keep this short, Wealthy Affiliate is a one-stop-shop platform that provides:
- The Hub – this is the starting point and uses AI processes to assist you in determining your niche and creating your brand.
- Complete training programs to assist with the development of your own affiliate marketing website in your own niche.
- Website creation and publishing tools including access to WordPress editors and themes.
- AI Content article design and content creation
- Domain name purchasing (you get a free domain when you upgrade to the Premium membership).
- Website hosting, security and backup.
- Online help and chat forums.
- Weekly live training events.
- 24/7 support.
- Keyword access tools.
- SEO assistance.
The platform has been active for over 15 years with the original developers and owners, Kyle and Carson, still extremely active in its day to day operations – especially as they rollout their AI capabilities.
You Can Try it Yourself For Free
Now of course I can tell you all about how Wealthy Affiliate works (because it does) until I am blue in the face. But every other program out there – including the shams and scams – will tell you the same thing!
So how about you just try it for free yourself. The Wealthy Affiliate Starter membership is free to join and gives you access to everything you need to get started – all without the need to spend a cent!
With the starter membership, you get:
- 1 Limited Business Hub
- 1,500 AI Word Credits
- Try the AI Author Platform (BETA)
- 1 Practice Website
- Jaaxy Starter
- Limited Help & Support
- Core Niche Training (8 Classes)
And of course I will be there to help you every step of the way as well!
Look, in the interest of transparency, whilst Wealthy Affiliate does offer a free starter membership, this is designed to give you a look around, have a practice and see if it is worthwhile for you – which is a really great option.
However, as with all new businesses, you will need to make some investment so if you are serious about making money online , you will need to upgrade to a premium membership as this will give you access to all the tools you need in the one spot to succeed!
Afterall, every business needs tools to grow!
So How Much Does This Really Cost?
Wealthy Affiliate does not use upsells once you join – but as I mentioned in the video, to succeed here you will need to invest in a membership. There are a couple of options that provide access to all the tools, training and assistance that you could need – and a free domain as well.
Wealthy Affiliate offers a trio of membership tiers, as detailed on their pricing page.
You can opt for the Starter membership at no cost, the Premium membership for $49 per month or the Premium Plus+ membership for $99 per month. That’s the full extent of it – and you can absolutely build your website without having to spend another cent.
You won’t encounter any unexpected additional charges or covert fees and as a Premium member, you’re equipped with all the essentials to initiate, develop and expand a thriving online enterprise.
Those who opt for the Premium membership are provided with
- Hosting for their websites
- A complimentary domain name
- Access to hundreds of hours of current expert tutorials
- Various marketing and research tools
- Personal guidance from seasoned professionals in the field
- And much much more
And for those of you who want to make a serious investment into your future, there are some yearly options as well below to give you peace of mind that you have a whole year ahead of you to get stuff done!
And Don’t Forget the Personal Coaching
Once you join, not only do you get plenty of assistance from me, but you also have access to expert coaching, support and mentorship from real industry experts.
I mean, you can have access to all of the top-tier affiliate marketing training in the world, but inevitably, questions arise, particularly during the initial stages.
With an exceptionally dynamic and engaged community that boasts over 2.7 million members, Wealthy Affiliate offers an environment where you, as a member, can fully immerse and leverage this network.
You’re never alone; you have the collective wisdom of an entire community at your fingertips, ready to assist at any moment.
Plus, there’s always-on, rapid-response website support to handle any technical queries you may encounter.
Wealthy Affiliate Works: Real Results From Real People
As I have mentioned a number of times, Wealthy Affiliate has helped me make real money online though its training and tools.
I have made money each month as well as a sale for $17,000.
But again, those promoting other programs will tell you the same thing!
So let’s get away from me and see what others are saying:
To start with, Wealthy Affiliate has a 4.9 out of 5 Star TrustPilot rating, which is a remarkable accomplishment in any industry, let alone the online business industry.
And here are some of those reviews:
And this is what people are saying within Wealthy Affiliate as well:
So, Let’s Make a Decision!
Let’s be frank, you have read this far so why not go all in, click on the button below to get started on the way to your very online business.
And once you are in and have had a play around with the hub, look for the little envelope on the top right and there will be a message from me. It is of course automated so respond to let me know you are there and we can start this journey together.
(oh, and the profile is mine so you can find me that way as well)
See you there
Paul
7. Digital Photography School is no longer accepting applicants.
We are no longer taking signups for new affiliates. The only way you can become an affiliate is by specific invitation by our team.
https://digital-photography-school.com/affiliates/
Thanks Michael – I have highlighted that in the post
Paul
6. Photography-RAW link is missing.
They did away with their program?
Hmmm – maybe – I will check it out
Paul