11 Top Highest Paid Photographers in the World
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Photography has become a common hobby for many of us. Yet at the same time, photography is no longer considered to be just a hobby. Many are pursuing photography as a career choice. What happens when you turn your hobby into your career? Maybe you will earn less but you will be doing what you want. You will be happy with your work, despite earning less, right? Uhhu, you're wrong. I’ll change your thinking today by highlighting some of the highest-paid photographers in the world.
It is not necessary that choosing your hobby as a career will lead you to earn less. In my opinion, it will do the opposite. You can’t lose interest in what you are doing, leading to never giving up. You will always find interest in learning new things in your career, self-progress. Take photography as an example. Even 20 years back from now, you will find very less people pursuing photography as their career. But now, good photography has become a cash cow for many photographers.
The Highest Paid Photographers in the world
If you are willing to pursue a career and want to get inspired by the professional of that profession then you should definitely look up to the best of the best. Photography is also a very creative field to explore. So, if you are someone interested in photography then get ready to blow your mind with my list of highest paid photographers in the world.
1. Annie Leibovitz
Annie Leibovitz is an American portrait photographer. Annie Leibovitz was born in Waterbury, Connecticut. She was born on October 2, 1949. She is known as the highest paid photographer in the whole world. She is full of artistic talents. She believes she got her artistic talents from her mother. Her mother was a modern dance instructor of Estonian-Jewish heritage and always was involved with dance, music, painting, etc. Annie was heavily influenced by the arts surrounding her.
Annie Leibovitz's turning point came with her famous picture of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, which she took just 5 hours before Lennon's murder with her Polaroid. The photo was taken for Rolling Stone magazine's cover photo. and it is still considered to be one of the most famous cover photos of Rolling Stone.
Out of context but just to let your suspicious mind know on the same date, 8 December 1980, John Lennon who was a famous English musician was murdered just 5 hours after the photoshoot. He was murdered by one of his crazy fans who envied his lavish lifestyle.
Annie Leibovitz’s net worth is $40Million
Check out Annie Leibovitz’s Insta:
https://www.instagram.com/annieleibovitz/
2. Cindy Sherman
Cindy Sherman is an American photographer who was born in 1954. she is a playful photographer who loves to play with pictures' visuals and cultural code of art, celebrity, and gender with her photography. She is a bold photographer who knows the art of crafting woman characters strongly in her black-and-white photography. She loves to experiment with different identities. She once said, "I wish I could treat every day as Halloween, and get dressed up and go out into the world as some eccentric character.”
Cindy Sherman portrays women from a powerful angle. In her series of 'Untitled Film Stills,' she released her influential and celebrated career according to. It was released in between 1977-1980. I series is a pile of 70 impactful images that soon became one of the most influential and successful works in Contemporary Photography. I was purchased by the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA).
Cindy Sherman’s Net Worth is 35 million
Check out Cindy Sherman’s Insta-
https://www.instagram.com/cindysherman/
3. Nick Brandt
Nick Brandt is an English photographer who mostly photographs the rapidly disappearing natural world. He comes under the idol professional photographers. That's what makes his photographs unique and mesmerizing to look at. In the world of climate change soon we will make many beautiful natures vanish. Not only climate change Nick Bandt also is an animal lover. In 1995 Nick Bandt was directing a song called 'Earth Song'. For that specific song, he went to Tanzania. Tanzania is a very beautiful place from there Nick Bandt fell in love with animals and the land of East Africa.
This image taken by Nick Bandt is very famous because of its representation. It is considered a historically significant picture that is almost possible to convey with words. Nick Brandt’s trilogy of books document’s third and final velum is 'Across the Ravaged Land' which includes this image. In that book, Nick Bandt captures the beauty of the dark side of the world.
Nick Bandt’s net worth is unknown but still, he holds the position as the world’s highest paid photographer because of the pictures he took and the big-name companies he works with.
Check out Nick Bandt’s Website: https://www.nickbrandt.com/
4. Morgan Norman
Morgan Norman is a Swedish photographer who was born in 1976 in Stockholm. Morgan got his first big break in 2007 in the exhibition of Commedia Dell’arte. Later in the same year in LIBIDO, I also got the chance to exhibition. He got lucky since that exhibition was in the permanent exhibition of the National Museum, Sweden's premium museum of Art and Design. I was also on the list of "International Top Newcomers" by Hasselblad.
Morgan says his brain functions almost like a move. He captures what he sees. He says it's like everyday life is boring so the brain designs a separate world for itself. So, he sees the world differently than others. And that is the main reason why his photos grab a depth that cannot be grabbed by others.
Morgan Norman’s Net worth is $18 million.
Checkout Morgan’s Website: https://www.morgannorman.com/
5. Lynsey Addario
Lynsey Addario is an American photojournalist. She is covering the conflicts and humanitarian crises of all over the world. She is also covering women's issues around the world. However, she focused on the Middle East and Africa for her assignments for The New York Times and National Geographic. She has served The New York Times and National Geographic for more than two decades.
Lynsey herself is a victim of sexual assault during her visit to Libya during the war investigation. In her word, she said “As a woman, I haven't been raped, but I have been assaulted in Libya. I was groped repeatedly, and I decided to talk about that very openly because I think as a survivor, it's important to try to strip away the stigma.” In the left side’s picture, the woman standing is named Ayak who got pregnant after being raped during the heavy fight in the south Soudan.
On the right side’s picture, you are looking at Bibi Aisha. She was on the cover of the Times. She was an example of how women are treated in corners of the world. Aisha said that she got married when she was about 12 years old. Her husband is a member of the Taliban. Her husband cut off her nose. Her husband used to beat her brutally. One day Aisha left the house in search of help. She somehow ended up at an American military base. They found her address and sent her back home to her husband. Her husband got so angry with her because of leaving the house without his permission. As punishment, he called his Taliban fellas and they pinned her down at a place up to a mountain. Then her husband cut off her nose since she brought shame to the family.
Lynsey Addario’s net worth is $10 million
Check Out Lynsey’s Insta for more unique content- https://www.instagram.com/lynseyaddario
6. Zhang Jingna
She is the inspiration of most of the youngsters. She has set the example of living dreams at a young. Jingna Zhang was born in Beijing but raised in Singapore. She is now a fine art photographer and art director at some places in the USA like New York, Los Angeles, and Seattle. She is inspired by the Japanese culture and Japanese animations. She recreates Asian aesthetics with the pinch of Western art style. That brings a unique and different look each time.
This picture is just an example of how hard she is dedicated to her work. This is an underwater photograph where she took a photoshoot underwater with Alli Sim at Harper's Bazaar Singapore. and the pictures left the viewers stunned. It had a profound impact on her career. Zhang said she didn’t have to struggle a lot since she and Alli were at same age. They bond along pretty well. She is also on the list of Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 list for Art & Style in 2018—big achievements at a young age.
Zhang Jingna’s net worth is $5million
Check out Jingna’s Insta for similar images- https://www.instagram.com/zemotion/
7. Timothy Allen
Timothy Allen is an English photographer as well as a filmmaker. But he is best known for his photography of indigenous people. Regular watchers of BBC will recognize Timothy Allen or his works easily. He has worked in the landmark series called "Human Planet". He has traveled a lot for his work of documenting the tribal people's lives. How they lead their life by isolating themselves from the world.
Allen started his career with The Sunday Telegraph. Then soon he switched his job and started his career with a long-term job at The Independent. But he is famous for his remarkable work of storytelling art of indigenous people.
In 2018 Timothy took a 6 weeks journey to Mongolia. On that trip, he explored the Altai mountains of Western Mongolia. The above picture was taken from the trip. They traveled the mountains on a very tight budget and that was a real challenge for them. They have (Tim and his partner Thom) to fund them for this project. And this turned out to be a success.
Timothy Allen’s net worth is $1.6million
Check out Timothy’s Insta for more such images- https://www.instagram.com/timothy_allen/
8. Andreas Gursky
How can you not involve Andreas Gursky while writing a blog on highest-paid photographer in the world? Ones one of his photographs gets 4.3 million dollars, which holds the record for the highest-paid photograph in history. Now you know why we can't skip Andreas Gursky from this list.
He is so talented that his photographs sell for more than a million dollars. He is quite famous for his work and the dollars he earns for the pictures. He is a German photographer and also a university professor for large-format architectural photographs.
This is a picture of 99 cents. Andreas got inspired one day to create such a photograph. While driving in Los Angeles, he got fascinated by the 99-cent store's similar store windows. Basically, he was fascinated by the organizing design of the store. The color combination, price coordination, and the view of the store.
Andreas Gursky’s net worth is $30 million
Check out Andreas’s website for more pictures like this- https://www.andreasgursky.com/
9. Gilles Bensimon
Gilles is a famous French photographer who has his amazing work published in various fashion magazines and Elle magazine as well. He also got his hands on America's Next Top Model TV series. He has worked with various famous celebrities and captured Haute Couture. He is very passionate about the fashion industry and has an interest in photography.
This image is from Gilles Bensimon's watercolor series. This series two years to complete. But it is worth the time and effort since they signify a specific departure from his well-known earlier figurative oeuvre. This watercolor series has a touch of both fashion and culture. He was able to capture the natural beauty of flowers and the wonderful color palate through the intimate associate verities.
Gilles Bensimon’s net worth is $30 million
Check out more of his work on his Insta- https://www.instagram.com/gilles_bensimon/
10. Marco Grob
Marco is the master when it comes to portraying people. He is the magician of film industry photography and constantly works with many big-name actors and actresses. He has worked with Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Sir Elton John, and many more. He also was a part of major Warner Brothers, Marvels, and also Walt Disney. He photographed the superhit movie posters like 'TRON: Legacy', 'The Avengers' and many more.
This image is one of my favorite ones because of course it features Julia. This image already shows how smart and talented she is. Her professionalism is reflected clearly in the image. That’s why I love Marco’s work.
Marco Grob’s net worth is $1 million
If you are interested in seeing more of Marco’s work, Check out his Insta- https://www.instagram.com/marcogrob/
11. Steve McCurry
I have already covered Steve McCurry in one of my previous blogs. He is famous for his viral photo click of 'Afghan Girl'. He spends his 30 years traveling for the sake of photography. His photograph of the green-eyed 'Afghan Girl' got the lame light of many magazines. In 2001 National Geographic also found out the girl and recreated the photo.
I have already covered the background story in my previous blog of famous photojournalists in the world. You can check out the link to read about some amazing photojournalists.
Steve McCurry’s net worth is $1.5 million.
Check out McCurry’s website to get his photography- https://www.stevemccurry.com/
Shutting Down With
That’s what I have in my bucket for today. I hope you find your favorite photographer on this list. The list that I have shown above is all well-established and pretty successful in their field. You can check out their website and Instagram to have a more in-depth idea of their clicked photos. And also, if you want more content like this do visit our blog page, and keep an eye on it. And as I always say if you are a photographer and looking for a perfect photo post-processing website then Color Clipping Ltd. is the place you are looking for. Do check out the website to get a brought idea.
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Anika Wahab
Hello, it's Anika, Content Executive from Color Clipping Ltd with a devotion to contributing my skills and knowledge more simply. Keep learning and growing with us.
