Your motorcycle is more than just a machine. It’s your freedom, your mobility, an expression of your personality. It’s also practical. You need it to get to work and other places. Any car or motorcycle is a major investment for most of us. The risk of financial loss is part of owing any vehicle. It can get stolen or vandalized. Accidents cause even more damage, especially for motorcycles, which don’t fare as well in crashes. Fortunately you can afford to repair or replace your bike if you buy motorcycle insurance ahead of time.

Motorcycle insurance is a wise investment, since it provides protection for your motorcycle and you. Every time you take your bike out, whether it’s to race on a track, or to ride to the store, you face the risk of an accidental collision. All it takes is a moment of carelessness, either on your part or someone else’s. Motorcycle insurance is a must to protect your investment in your bike. More importantly, it covers medical expenses in case you or someone else are injured.

There are three main types of coverage to look for – personal injury, investment coverage and liability. Just having the minimum insurance required by your state is not enough. You need to make sure that you’re covered for what you think you are. The last thing you want after an accident is to find out that something you thought was covered isn’t included in your policy.

Personal injury coverage is of paramount importance. Look at the policy carefully. What is the cap on medical expenses? Is it enough in the event of a major accident? Will they pay for lost wages if you can’t work? Are passengers covered?

Investment coverage is the insurance on your motorcycle. If your bike is damaged or destroyed, this insurance should pay to repair or replace it. It’s very important to look at the caps on this coverage. Also, ask what hazards you are covered against. Some policies might cover you in case of an accident, but not for theft or vandalism. Some even pay for repairs in the event your motorcycle breaks down.

Liability insurance covers you for any damage caused to others in the event of an accident. If you are responsible for a crash and the other party has vehicle damage or injuries, they could sue you for those costs. Most states require you to carry a minimum amount of liability insurance, but it’s pretty low. Take a look at the coverage amounts offered, and think about whether they’re sufficient to cover damages that might occur. The other party could still sue you if you have insurance but it’s not enough to cover their damages. You may consider your own financial situation – how sue-able you are – in deciding how much liability coverage you need.

The better the coverage you get, the higher the premium will be. You will probably choose not to get the most expensive policy with the highest coverage limits. But you need to know exactly what isn’t covered on the policy you choose. That is an expense that you will pay out of your pocket in the event of an accident. Often you can save enough money by increasing deductibles to raise the coverage limits. This way your insurance covers you in a catastrophe.

Take the time to do your research before you select a motorcycle insurance policy. There is a wide range of options and a wider range of premiums. Doing your homework up front will save you money and more importantly, make sure that you have the coverage you need if anything goes wrong.

Written by Coleen Smith Motorcycle Insurance Comparison Online Motorcycle Insurance Quotes

Freelance photography is a passion for many people, but others stay away from freelance photography because they are not sure how to make money off of this passion. The good news for those people who are unsure of how to make a profit off of their photography is that you can actually make a decent living from the stock photography business by selling stock photos online. And all the while you will still have the freedom to work at your convenience.

Submitting your photographs to stock photography websites is like investing money in a bank because those images can generate income for you throughout your lifetime. Or at least as long as the websites are up and running. This is because once you post your images for sale they will remain available to buyers indefinitely.

This is called “passive income”. You do the work upfront (take the pictures, post them) and then the revenue continues coming in without any further effort. This is a great model to work towards for any freelancer as you continue to get paid even when you are no longer actively working.

The truth is that there are a lot of websites that allow photographers to sell their images. These stock photo sites come in a variety of sizes and have varying levels of quality images. But mainly the sites can be broken down into micro stock agencies and macro stock agencies.

Micro stock agencies such as iStockphoto, Dreamstime, Shutterstock and Fotolia sell your images for a very low cost from one dollar to a couple of hundred dollars while Macro stock agencies such as Alamy, Corbis and Getty will not sell any image for less than about fifty dollars.

While a fifty dollar sale might sound quite enticing, submitting images to Corbis and Getty can be a tough task for newcomers because their approval procedure is very tough. If you are just starting out you would probably do better to cut your teeth on the micro stock photo sites.

Can you make enough money from websites that sell images for just one dollar? Yes you can make money and you may even make a lot more than websites that will not sell images for lower than fifty dollars. But how is this possible?

The secret lies in the number of sales micro stock agencies can generate compared to macro stock agencies. A micro stock photograph could be sold hundreds of times while a macro stock agency will take a lot longer to reach even 50 sales. It’s really just simple economics. Sometimes selling more for less is more profitable.

Working your way into selling stock photos on a macro stock site is still something to strive for, but do not be discouraged that you are starting small as you may still be quite profitable. As you learn the tricks of the trade you will become better and better at producing quality images that sell.

Before you know it, you may even be able to call yourself a successful freelance photographer. But first you need to get start submitting your stock photos!

Click here to learn more about selling your photographs online. By starting your own stock photography business you can make money doing something you love.