Aurora / Guides

Selling aurora photos in Poland: real money and the rules

By Paweł. Updated 2026-10-30.

You can make money from aurora photos taken in Poland, but rarely and usually not much. The money comes mostly after big geomagnetic storms, such as the night of 10 to 11 May 2024, when news outlets spend a day or two looking for good shots. Think of it as a hobby that sometimes covers your petrol, not a living.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Correct as of 30 October 2026. Laws and park price lists change. Before a bigger sale, check the acts on ISAP (isap.sejm.gov.pl), call the tax information line Krajowa Informacja Skarbowa (+48 22 330 03 30) or ask a tax adviser or lawyer.

Where the money actually comes from

News media after a big storm

After aurora over the whole country, Polish portals and TV channels publish galleries. In May 2024 the internet was flooded with photos and videos from all over Poland, so supply is huge and interest fades fast. Speed, sharpness and a recognisable foreground (a pier, a cliff, a lighthouse) matter most.

Read the small print on "send us your photo" forms. The terms of TVN's Kontakt 24 say that by sending a photo you agree to free publication across TVN Group media, unlimited in time and territory, with the right to sublicense. That is stated openly, but you will not be paid.

Agencies such as East News or Forum sell pictures to newsrooms. We found no public rates or rules for amateur submissions, so terms are agreed directly. If an editor contacts you, offer a paid licence (template below).

Stock agencies

ChannelWhat the photographer getsNotes
Kontakt 24 and similar formsnothingfree licence with no time limit
Adobe Stock33% (photos), 35% (video)large subscriptions pay a minimum of USD 0.33 to 0.38 per photo
Shutterstock15 to 40%level resets to 1 every 1 January; minimum USD 0.10
Getty Images, iStock15 to 45%depends on your agreement; exclusive contributors earn more
Portal or news agencynegotiableno public price lists

The market is crowded: Adobe Stock shows about 950,000 results for "aurora borealis" and iStock more than 50,000 photos. Shots from Norway or Iceland usually beat a red glow over the Baltic. Your best chance is a recognisable Polish location with a clear caption, such as "aurora over the Baltic Sea, Poland". Expect occasional downloads, not steady income.

Timelapse and video

Video pays slightly higher stock rates, and a smooth timelapse over a Polish landscape may sell more easily than another still. In national parks commercial filming costs far more than photography, and price lists do not say whether a timelapse from stills counts as filming. Ask the park first.

Prints and calendars

Prints, canvases or a calendar can be sold through your own site, Allegro or fairs. That is a sale of goods, not a licence. We found no reliable price data for Polish aurora prints, so cost out printing and postage first. Online buyers have a right to withdraw.

Workshops and night trips

This route carries the most paperwork. A trip combining at least two travel services, such as transport and accommodation, is a package, impreza turystyczna (art. 4 of the Package Travel Act). The organiser needs an entry in the regional register of tour organisers (art. 22(2)) and insolvency protection (art. 7). The act does not apply to trips under 24 hours without an overnight stay (art. 3(3)). A night beach session with tuition is simpler but still a paid service: consider liability insurance (OC) and agree refund rules in advance, because clouds can cancel everything. Paid sessions inside a national park are use of the park for profit, for which the director may charge fees and set conditions (art. 5 point 22 and art. 12(3)-(4) of the Nature Conservation Act). Separately, the act bans manufacturing, trading and farming in national parks outside places designated in the park's protection plan (art. 15(1)(11)). The act does not say directly whether paid workshops fall under that ban. Do not run group workshops in a park without the director's consent.

Social media

A good profile mainly helps editors and buyers find you; platform payouts are uncertain. Credit your photos and add contact details.

Copyright: licence it, do not give it away

Under the Polish Copyright Act a creative photo is a work (art. 1) and the rights are yours. A transfer needs a written contract (art. 53); without a clear transfer clause, a deal counts as a licence (art. 65). An exclusive licence must be in writing (art. 67(5)), a non-exclusive one need not be. By default a licence lasts five years in the licensee's country (art. 66).

When a portal asks for your photo, reply with clear terms, for example:

"I grant a non-exclusive licence to publish the photo [file name] in an article on [outlet] and on the outlet's social media, with no right to sublicense or resell. Fee: [amount] PLN gross, paid under a licence agreement or invoice. Credit: Photo: First name Last name. Please confirm by email."

The press may republish already published current news photos for information purposes (art. 25(1)(1)(c)), but the author is then owed a fee (art. 25(2)) and a credit (art. 34). Whether an aurora shot is a news photo depends on the case. For use without permission you can demand, among other things, that it stops and that twice the usual fee is paid (art. 79).

People in the frame

Publishing someone's image needs their consent (art. 81(1)), unless they are only a detail of a landscape or crowd, such as a small figure on a beach (art. 81(2)(2)). Stock agencies normally want a signed model release from every recognisable person.

National parks, night access and drones

In a Polish national park you may walk only on marked trails; camping outside designated sites and open fires are banned (art. 15(1) points 10, 15 and 23 of the Nature Conservation Act). Directors may charge for use of the park for photography and profit (art. 5 point 22, art. 12(3)-(4)). Wilful breaches risk detention or a fine (art. 127).

It is unclear whether a fee applies to a private photo sold later. If you plan to sell, treat the shoot as commercial and ask the park first. Simpler still, shoot from beaches and viewpoints outside parks, listed in our guide on where to see the aurora in Poland.

Drones. Aviation law bans powered aircraft over national parks and reserves below heights set by the air navigation agency PAŻP (art. 124(1) of Prawo lotnicze). Check DroneMap before every flight. Along the Belarus and Ukraine borders PAŻP keeps successive restricted zones reaching about 20 to 50 km inland. Zone EP R131 (10 June to 9 September 2026) banned all flights at night, drones included. According to the aviation news site Dla Pilota, zone EP R134 replaced it on the same terms from 10 September to 9 December 2026. We found no PAŻP notice on EP R134 itself, so check the current status in DroneMap. Aurora means night, so there the drone stays in the bag.

Tax (for Polish tax residents)

For shots that can sell, see how to photograph the aurora, and check our aurora forecast before going out.

Sources

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