Executive Summary
We analyzed 38 photography communities listed on Hive Index to understand where people gather, what these groups offer, and which communities attract the most interest.
The big picture: photography communities are broad and fragmented, with many small groups and a few very large outliers.
Source: Hive Index community database · Updated periodically
- Communities
- 38
- Platforms
- 10
- Avg members
- 4.2M
- Median members
- 31K
Where Photography Communities Are Hosted
- Independent Platforms: 10 communities (26%)
- Discord: 6 communities (16%)
- Reddit: 5 communities (13%)
- Skool: 5 communities (13%)
- LinkedIn: 4 communities (11%)
- WhatsApp: 3 communities (8%)
- Facebook: 2 communities (5%)
- Mighty Networks: 1 communities (3%)
- X / Twitter: 1 communities (3%)
- Discourse: 1 communities (3%)
- 10(26%)
![Independent Platforms]()
Independent Platforms - 6(16%)
Discord - 5(13%)
Reddit - 5(13%)
Skool - 4(11%)
LinkedIn - 3(8%)
WhatsApp - 2(5%)
Facebook - 1(3%)
Mighty Networks
Format mix
- 18(47%)Forum / feed-based
- 9(24%)Chat communities
- 6(16%)Private membership
- 5(13%)Other platforms
Forum / feed-based is most common (47%), but chat communities is also well represented (24%).
Independent Platforms leads, but Discord and Reddit also represent meaningful shares.
Audience Size & Access
Community size
- Tiny: 0 communities (0%)
- Small: 1 communities (3%)
- Medium: 0 communities (0%)
- Large: 11 communities (29%)
- Huge: 11 communities (29%)
- Massive: 6 communities (16%)
- Gigantic: 5 communities (13%)
- 0(0%)Tiny<20 members
- 1(3%)Small20-100 members
- 0(0%)Medium100-1,000 members
- 11(29%)Large1,000-10,000 members
- 11(29%)Huge10,000-100,000 members
- 6(16%)Massive100,000-1M members
- 5(13%)Gigantic1M+ members
4 communities have unknown member counts.
Free vs paid
- Free to join: 31 communities (82%)
- Paid or apply-to-join: 7 communities (18%)
The average is much higher than the median (4.2M vs 31K), which usually means a few large groups are pulling the average up.
How Photography Differs From Other Categories
Photography is more platform-diverse than typical Hive Index topics.
| Metric | Photography | Hive Index average |
|---|---|---|
| Free to join | 82% | 84% |
| Median members | 31K | 25K |
| Average members | 4.2M | 673K |
| Paid or apply-to-join | 18% | 16% |
| Live chat | 42% | 41% |
| Discord share | 16% | 17% |
Feature Mix
Common features appear in at least 15% of listings.
Common Features
- Forum: 26 communities (68%)
- Live Chat: 16 communities (42%)
- Online/Offline Events: 9 communities (24%)
- Newsletter: 7 communities (18%)
- Paid Community: 6 communities (16%)
- 68%Forum
- 42%Live Chat
- 24%Online/Offline Events
- 18%Newsletter
- 16%Paid Community
Niche Features
- Courses: 3 communities (8%)
- Member Perks: 3 communities (8%)
- Job Board: 2 communities (5%)
- Pairing: 1 communities (3%)
- Requires Application: 1 communities (3%)
- 8%Courses
- 8%Member Perks
- 5%Job Board
- 3%Pairing
- 3%Requires Application
Forum appears on 68% of listings.
What Visitors Click
- Outbound clicks / mo
- 105
Platform supply vs. clicks
| Platform | Communities | Share of communities | Outbound clicks | Share of clicks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent Platforms | 10 | 26% | 7 | 7% |
| Discord | 6 | 16% | 77 | 73% |
| 5 | 13% | 1 | 1% | |
| Skool | 5 | 13% | 2 | 2% |
| 3 | 8% | 14 | 13% | |
| 2 | 5% | 3 | 3% | |
| Mighty Networks | 1 | 3% | 1 | 1% |
Share is calculated within this topic.
Discord gets 73% of clicks but only 16% of listings, so visitors click it more than you'd expect from supply alone.
Most-clicked formats
- 91(87%)Chat communities
- 11(10%)Forum / feed-based
- 3(3%)Private membership
Most-clicked features
- 98(93%)Live Chat
- 40(38%)Online/Offline Events
- 26(25%)Forum
- 8(8%)Newsletter
- 7(7%)Courses
- 7(7%)Paid Community
Most-clicked size ranges
- 57(54%)Huge
- 27(26%)Large
- 4(4%)Massive
- 3(3%)Gigantic
Top-clicked listings
- 39(37%)Photography & Filmmaking
- 17(16%)Pure Imagination
- 14(13%)Photography Lounge
Most clicks go to chat communities and forum / feed-based communities.
Trends
Founded year
- 2010: 1 communities (33%)
- 2020: 1 communities (33%)
- 2021: 1 communities (33%)
35 communities have no founding year on file.
Most listed groups were founded around 2010.
Community Quality & Ratings
Only 2 communities have ratings so far, so read this as a small sample.
4.5 average rating across 2 communities.
Methodology & FAQ
Methodology
This report uses communities in the Hive Index database tagged as Photography. We exclude removed or suppressed listings. Member counts, traffic, features, reviews, and ratings may vary by source and are updated periodically.
Updated periodically
FAQ
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