In 2014, Kevin McCoy created the world’s first NFT known as Quantum on the digital image blockchain, and since then there has been a significant amount of growth in the NFT market. If you're new to the whole world of NFTs, you might be asking, what are NFTs and can photographers make money selling them?
The first NFT to make a real splash was Beeple’s collage, Everyday: The First 5,000 Days which sold for a whopping $69 million dollars at Christie’s. Since then the likes of Instagram, Associated Press, baby photographer Anne Geddes and even Magnum photos have started selling NFTs and there is some serious money to be made.
According to Traders of Crypto who recently did a report on the biggest influencers across all social media platforms, Gary Vaynerchuck (often referred to as Gee Vee) came out on top, due to his enormous amount of Twitter, YouTube, TikTok and Instagram followers.
An NFT influencer is someone who has more experience than most in cresting, collecting or investing in NFTs. People follow their social media accounts based on the advice they give about navigating the NFT space and explaining it in a way that is easy to understand because let’s be honest, it can still be a bit of a minefield. We've put a guide together on how to sell your photographs as NFTs but knowing which NFTs to invest in is where these influencers can really help.
Rank | Celebrity | Estimated value of NFT portfolio |
1 | Steve Aoki | $5,650,000 |
2 | Snoop Dogg | $5,500,000 |
3 | GaryVee | $2,720,000 |
4 | Alexis Ohanian | $1,400,000 |
5 | Logan Paul | $901,437 |
6 | DJ Marshmellow | $787,878 |
7 | Neymar Jr | $666,335 |
8 | Beeple | $626,003 |
9 | Mark Cuban | $571,009 |
10 | Justin Bieber | $570,427 |
However, perhaps more impressive than the most influential NFT influencers is the value of NFT portfolios owned by celebrities. For example, American electro DJ Steve Aoki owns an NFT portfolio worth over $5.6 million. He is closely followed by Snoop Dogg who has a portfolio worth $5.5 million and tailing behind the top two is indeed GaryVee who’s portfolio is worth over $2.7 million.
The NFT space is continually growing, with more artists, photographers and creatives minting work than ever before. Some NFTs sell for an extortionate amount of money. But it’s worth remembering that while you can make a lot of money from NFTs, the majority don’t have quite as much success.
Like investing in the stock market, it can be a risky business and unless you have the cash to splash, it might not be worth investing in an NFT that you can’t sell on for as much as you hoped.
Read more:
NFTs and photography: a passing fad, or here to stay?
The best cameras for beginners
The best cameras for Instagram