I make a living doing it only because I have a talent that's rare for artists- I am excellent at marketing.
I make my income from photography. It isn't my passion any more, it's part fetish, part ball and chain. I do portriats, damn good national award winning ones, but I won't post 'em for obvious reasons. I feel like an indentured slave to it.
BUT, I am forcing time in my life for art that is more soul feeding and I'm branching out into painting and mixed media. As soon as my studio is free from critters and is clean, I'll be working on a series of "family portraits" using photographs I have taken of the interesting people in my life, stencils, spray paint and old corrugated aluminum. The first is from a series of images I shot of my brother just before he began his career as a criminal drug addict complete with all the anger and lost potential. I'm working with spray paint and corrugated aluminum because it is part of my family history.
I have a couple shows lined up this year already for photo work, but I'm going to try to turn them into shows of my other work. People just don't know me for it yet.