In 2014, Kevin McCoy created the world’s first NFT known as Quantum on the digital image blockchain, and since then there has been significant growth in the NFT market. If you are new to the whole world of NFTs, you might ask, What are NFTs and can photographers make money selling them? (opens in new tab)
The first NFT to make a splash was Beeple’s collage, Every day: The first 5000 days which sold for as much as $ 69 million at Christie’s. Since then, such as Instagram, the 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 (opens in new tab) who recently made 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 huge number of Twitter, YouTube, TikTok and Instagram followers.
An NFT influencer is someone who has more experience than most in creating, collecting or investing in NFTs. People follow their social media accounts based on the advice they give about navigating the NFT site and explaining it in a way that is easy to understand, to be honest, it can still be a bit of a minefield. We have put together a guide on how to sell your photos as NFTs (opens in new tab) 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 |
But perhaps more impressive than the most influential NFT influencers is the value of NFT portfolios owned by celebrities. For example, the American electro-DJ Steve Aoki owns an NFT portfolio worth over 5.6 million dollars. He is closely followed by Snoop Dogg who has a portfolio worth $ 5.5 million and behind the top two is actually GaryVee who has a portfolio worth over $ 2.7 million.
The NFT area is constantly growing, with more artists, photographers and creative embossing work than ever before. Some NFTs sell for a hefty sum of money. But it is worth remembering that although you can make a lot of money on NFTs, the majority do not have as much success.
Like investing in the stock market, it can be a risky business, and unless you have the money to squirt, it may not be worth investing in an NFT that you can not resell for as much as you hoped.
Read more:
NFTs and photography: a transient fad, or come to stay? (opens in new tab)
The best cameras for beginners (opens in new tab)
The best cameras for Instagram (opens in new tab)
