Making a Business from Photography

Today I got my Massachusetts form ST-1 in the mail, which declares for the world that I can collect sales tax on tangible goods. It's another milestone for my business. The process of going from a person to a sole proprietorship has been relatively simple, and fun for me. what follows is a recounting of the steps I took, and some things I discovered along the way.

The steps to become a business started, for me, with registering in my town for a d.b.a. This is a requirement if you want to do official business under a name other than your own. And Worrest photography is more immediately descriptive than Peter Worrest, photographer. It's a choice that I made, but is definitely optional. I feel more professional doing business as Worrest Photography, and confidence helps in performing ones best. This step costs 25-50 dollars in MA, 40 in Hudson specifically.

From there, I went to the federal government and requested an EIN (Employer Identification Number). At the time I did it under the recommendation of an advice article I had read, and it is something I'm glad to have done, since it shows up on some official forms (i.e. The ST-1) and a sole proprietor without one would have their SSN in the same place, I suspect. It was a fairly simple process, and being the digital type, I even had my confirmation letter and EIN instantly delivered via PDF download. (free)

Armed with my business name and my EIN, I registered for collecting taxes. This was also a simple to fill out form, and is also free. The only consequence is that I have to submit tax information quarterly to the state DOR, via their online filing service, and actually give them those collected tax dollars. It will be much easier to deal with income from prints and art when the time comes to file my 1099s and other income when tax time rolls around next year.

I also set myself up with my web presence of course, and have business cards on the way, so I can get my name out in the physical world, since hoping for people to find me just from this blog is just slightly better than throwing a business card into a tornado, and hoping the people in the tornado will grab it. And it's only better because there actually are people in the internet-tornado looking for a photographer in central Mass from time to time.

My next milestone I'm looking forward to is having my business book go into the black, because at least for now, the only entries in my books are about 250 in start up costs... But the future looks good already. You who are reading this blog can help with that! (shameless plug) Hire me for your event, or for a portrait session in the comfort of your own home (or other location of your choosing!) You will love your photos, and there are many wonderful display options available.