I need help with some pricing?

Question

I have been doing photography for years but mainly events for family or friends but i hve been getting other "customers" people have just been calling me up and asking me to shoot for their senior pictures or for their weddings. My problem is that for friends and family I have done it for free like as a gift to the person so what shoudl I charge other people? I need like an approx. pricing list since I dont really have a studio or anything I just kinda do it in my living room or on location. I dont have like a protfolio or a years and years of professional experience what can i charge?

Answer 1

Your price will depend on your skill level and whether you plan to make a living from your photography or if this is just weekend and/or casual work.

I agree with Mrs Smarty Pants. You should not accept money for shooting weddings until you are certain you can produce professional quality for every shot. If you want to get into wedding photography, it would be better to assist an established professional for at least a few weddings. Get a portfolio together so prospective clients will have a sample of your work.

Shooting senior and family environmental portraits is nowhere near as demanding as weddings, as you can take your time, and there is always the option of scheduling a re-shoot later. Just jump in, name a price and start. You need to price in the vicinity of what other weekend warrior photographers are charging in your area. If you're in NYC, you don't need to model your pricing based on what rural NC photogs are charging. You may want to get a couple of family members or particularly photogenic seniors to build a portfolio, perhaps charging just for your cost. If your product is good, word of mouth is a great business builder. I have no website and do no advertising. But I do dozens of weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, and family portraits a year, plus volunteering for local charities from time to time. (BTW, doing gratis work for charity events is another good business strategy. You can't write it off on taxes except for materials, but it gets you noticed and you make contacts.

In my area, you might expect to get $100-$200 for senior and family portraits, CD only with maybe a couple of 8x10's, and maybe $400-$1000 for weddings, depending on coverage and what kind of package you offer. We have an established pro in the area who charges $650 for unlimited (!) wedding coverage and 20 8x10's with on-line proofing. He does not offer CD or the negatives. Guess where he makes his money? You have to decide what you can comfortably, realistically, and reliably offer then price accordingly.

Answer 2

Photography is a business, treat it that way. The prices quoted by previous responders are not going to pay the bills in a "real" business.

Professional photographers charge money as they need to account for expenses, taxes, advertising and all other costs of doing business.

If you are serious about doing it for a living, use the formulas provided for all other businesses. Pay yourself like you would expect to be paid in any job where your livelihood depends upon your salary. If you settle for less, you are not only cheating yourself, but others who do want to make it a business.

$100 per hour may seem high, but when you consider all the additional time and expenses necessary to get and keep the business, it's probably going to result in about $15-$20 per hour net salary (before tax).

Answer 3

You should only start charging once you have reached a point where you can provide consistent results and shoot under any circumstance .. ESPECIALLY when it comes to "once in a lifetime events" like weddings.

You will need a pretty good arsenal of equipment to ensure that you can provide those results (ie. different lenses for church ceremonies where flash photography is not allowed; flash for reception or outdoor weddings, etc)

Once you can provide those kinds of results constistently, I think you need to evaluate how much your time is worth. Remembering that you have planning, exectution and post production work - in addition to your time and talent and the product you will be supplying.

In Newark NJ / NYC area I charge $150/hr + cost of prints (I charge $35 per print) .

Answer 4

you feel that you dont want to over charge for your work.
Have a look at this site it is the NUJ http://www.nuj.org.uk/inner.php?docid=55
when you see the freelance rates for stuff you will feel better
on starting out i would give a price that will cover the job and give you a fee you are happy with for the shoot inclooding any editing and running around.
If you undercut your self you will be upset later and maybe wasted your time and skills

Answer 5

It really depends on if you do the developing or not, if you are willing to go on location, or if you provide backdrops. If people are asking you to do it, it is probably because you have done it for free for someone else and they think they will get the same deal.