What are the sources of income and funds for reporting photographers?

As you said, photographers are basically difficult as long as they are not national geographic photographers. The source of income is selling photos or publishing books, and there are very few people who can make money. It is normal for them to pay for themselves during their work, because such photographers often reflect the dark side of society, and the cultural department says that if you can't do this, you will do it for nothing. Whether you can make a living from this depends on your ability. Some people go to Tibet, while others go to slums in Guangdong. I don't think this is a rational choice. In fact, it is better to spend energy on technology and do some commercial photography.