In a previous issue of Photo Pro, Chris Dickie looked at ways that photographers can get involved in self-publishing their work. Now for the crucial question: can you make it pay?

Words: Chris Dickie

In the previous issue of Photo Pro I described how digital technology has made self-publishing a short-run photo book possible and affordable, and described the key practical stages of getting your work into print. In this follow-up feature we will look at the publishing process itself and whether there is any money to be made. But before we move on to self-publishing, remember that now you can produce a single copy of a book for just a few pounds there is no better way to package your work for presentation to a would-be commercial publisher: it’s so much more effective than a pile of prints and a written proposal on one side of A4. So let’s start with the way the money works if someone else publishes your book.