ONE Direction is back in Australia and the only people happier than the screaming underage girls are the paparazzi.

International stars such as the five lovable lads from London give the paps a chance to make some big money. For example, one exclusive photo of Liam Payne doing something interesting could fetch as much as $3000 in Australia according to paparazzo Ben McDonald, but the bucks don't stop there. "The other aspect is because he's an international star, he would sell in all the other territories around the world, so there's not just a local sale potential on that photo but also an international sale potential in areas like the US and the UK," says McDonald. "It can be quite profitable." McDonald is currently working with his team at Matrix Media Group to ensure they get the best shots of the singing superstars while they're in Australia. They use a variety of methods to keep track of the bands whereabouts, including paid informants from hotels and restaurants. "Every pap has a network of contacts. Some people would be looking for some sort of remuneration or commission but some people just liked to be involved," says McDonald. "Fans or people passing by might see a celebrity at a restaurant or driving around and they might tweet that so we have to pay attention to social media as well." One Direction may be the main priority for Matrix Media Group at the moment, but it can change very quickly. "There's a weekly meeting where we all sit down, we'll work on our target lists and what we think is going to be of most interest to our sales market," says McDonald. Once they've picked their victims, they're relentless. "There have been times when we've sat in bushes for six or seven days before we've got the pictures we're after," says McDonald. "There was a situation several years ago with Russell Crowe and the first pictures of his first child Charlie. It took a year before anyone jagged some photos of the child so it can go on for a very long time." Once they get the picture they're after, it can be just a matter of minutes before the photos are shared with the world. "Speedy delivery is absolutely fundamental to getting results and seeing a good return on the investment of your time in getting those pictures," says McDonald. "So it's necessary to be able to edit in the field, upload those pictures to your clients or publishers and deals are done out there on the job, literally." So what's the best deal that McDonald has ever done? Back in 2007 he sold some photos to a magazine of Shane Warne holidaying in Fiji with his ex-wife Simone Callahan. "I'll give you a ballpark, the value was over $250,000."