Pricing Photography: How To Keep Your Customers & Stay Open For Business

In this day and time, we photographers can't just go out there and start shooting.  Gone are the

days where we could pursue our passions and dreams without giving serious thought as to how

we will survive! Now, it's all about branding, strategies, social media, the economy and learning

how to run a business...not just about learning the features on your camera.  One of those 

"must learn" items is how to price our photography.

What I'm writing about today is what I've learned (the hard way) since starting my small 

photography business a few years ago and has been one of my most difficult tasks to date.  

The fact of not beginning this little venture with large funds, has been the catalyst for me to

continually fine-tune EVERYTHING I can to ensure that I remain in business.  It can seem 

daunting and complicated, but I promise, you CAN do it without going insane!

I am not an expert, but this is my finely-tuned list that has worked for me.

1. Have a solid base of customers:

If your customer base (realistically) consist of a few repeat clients - then put off increasing
prices for now.  Otherwise, you'll probably lose the few customers you have, rather than gain
more.  Work on getting that solid base so you'll have enough customers to support the
increase in fees.

2. Price according to cost:

This was one of the hardest things for me to do, and sometimes it still is.  If you have a large,
agreed upon contract price for a project...well, it feels great, right? So - what did it COST YOU?
What is your time worth?  software? expenses? i.e. gas, food, travel, etc.? How much per hour
are you making if you shoot for 2 days, then edit for 1 1/2 weeks?  Lets not forget the level of
skill and knowledge it takes to edit properly and with care. (subject for another time)

3. Price the competition around you.

Check out not only other photographers, but include the 'box photography studios' like
PictureMe Portraits, (CPI Corp)
Olin Mills (LifeTouch)
JC Penney Studios (LifeTouch)
Sears Portraits (CPI Corp)
Portrait Innovations
They run specials all the time, but hopefully, a.) You're staying in contact with your customer
base and b.) your photos are unique, beautiful, and set you apart from box store
photographers.
You can run specials too, you know.  Do it.  Your customers will love you for it and it'll make
them even MORE loyal to you.

4. It doesn't hurt to ASK.

By that I mean, survey your customer base, asking if a % increase seems reasonable to them.
You don't have to go into every detail as to why - but you could say due to software upgrades,
new technology/equipment cost, etc.  if you feel you have to say something.  Most customers
will appreciate the personal notification, and will feel like you've included them in your personal
circle....which in one way - you have. I have found that having a personal chat with my
customer(s) has proven over and over to be a key ingredient in my success.

5. What type of photography you are producing affects pricing:

1/3 of how to determine pricing is the TYPE of photography you produce. Obviously, cost are
different for a studio-only photographer, a nature photographer, action/sports photographer,
photojournalist, or wedding photographer.  You can't just add a % multiplier to your cost and
expect to come out on top of the pricing game!

6. Your Business Model:

What are your profit goals for the year?  How would your prices change with a change in the
number of sessions you do per year? Would prices increase or decrease? Are you prepared
with a Game Changing Plan B? Do you have additional income or savings set aside to help you
start your business and keep it running until you are ABLE to increase your prices? These
numbers should be included in your initial pricing model.

7. Accurate package pricing:

You must know what your costs are, which includes personal branding printing cost, shipping,
materials to ship your photos in, etc. You need to know these costs before you can accurately
price your packages.  One way to reduce cost is online proofs, which has become pretty much
the standard; however, I deal with a lot of older customers who prefer looking at printed proofs,
so keep that in mind.  Online package pricing should also account for any additional credit card
or PayPal fees you incur with each transaction.

8. Video:

So often now, with snazzy software and cameras that offer 1080/HD video, everybody wants a
video - of everything.  Be sure to include in your price quote the cost of that task i.e. buying
DVD's, labels (that cost extra if you have them printed) or for ink to print them yourself.  All of
these costs add up!  Again - what is your time worth?
My first video was a nightmare.  Me and my business partner shot video for 3 days at an event.
  I bought the software to put the video together, but also had to buy an additional, advanced
software for splitting sound and video 'bites' that I didn't think of previously.  Plus - the kicker - it
took me 1.5 weeks to put it together.  Needless to say, we lost our butts on that deal!!!!

9. Fixed expenses: 

Although most of your fixed expenses should be included within your Business Model, I
disagree that some of them should be paid for by your customers.  By that I mean, taxes,
business licenses, equipment, studio space, office materials - all are part of small business
items that you'll be able to take off on your taxes. So to me, including those things in your
pricing is like double-dipping and I don't do it.  That's just the accounting auditor in me.

10. Your market:

A photographer in a small town that charges lower prices for family portraits, but has a steady
customer base (repeat customers) can often end up making more per year than the
photographer that travels for shoots and does - say, 1 big shoot per month!  Know your market.
Obviously, customer base and location should be another 1/3 of your pricing model.

11. Hourly vs. Contract:

Admit it, we all do it.  For some customers, we'll charge an hourly or lower rate for a shoot
rather than a contracted / studio price.  When, depends on a few things: a.)difficulty of the shoot
(Animals & some children require longer and sometimes requires these types of fees.) and
b.) What the customer can afford at the time.  I'm not saying give it away for free, but to keep
our base customers, we need to show that we are there for the long haul.
I have a customer (a steady customer) who lost her job.  She needed pictures for Mother's Day
but couldn't afford my regular studio fee. Solution: Hourly fee & in cash.  She paid less for her
pictures and I kept a customer.  She has since found another job, and continues to be one of
my best customers.  She knows I'll work with her to keep her as a customer and to me - that's
everything in business.  Everything.

12. Use some plain common sense:

Build up your prices over time.  DON'T just go from 'barely there' to 'world-renowned
photographer' pricing. Increase your pricing as your skill level, as well as your customer base
increases.

In summary, we photographers have an unbridled passion to share how we see EVERYTHING
with the world, whether it's good, bad, beautiful, ugly, disturbing or comforting.
We are the record keepers and time preservers. We are passionate about our craft and more 
often than not, will fail to find any substitute for it.
However, realistically, we need to be smart about our business as any small business does, so
we must pay attention, make an effort to learn how to do things better and more efficiently and
by doing that, hopefully - we stay in business.  Efficient pricing is just one of the tools we can
use - like a carpenter uses his tape-measure to build a house - so too can we build a great
photography business. 

Some suggestions for pricing software:
1. Start Smart Pricing Software - for the amateur going professional photographer,
                                                       with lots of modules if you are a studio 1 person,
                                                       studio 2 people, wedding, wedding & portraits, etc.
                                                       http://howmuchdoicharge.com/2011/02/start-smart-portraits/

2. fotoQuote Pro &
    fotoQuote Pro 6 -                      This software is the industry standard for stock and
                                                        assignment photography estimating.
                                                        http://www.cradocfotosoftware.com/fotoQuote-Pro/

3. BlinkBid -                                    This is for the Video professional. Includes Estimating
                                                        production & invoicing software.
                                                        http://blinkbid.com/

4. HindSight Photo Price Guide - This software can be adapted to suit your needs, but
                                                       you'll need to be knowledgeable in spreadsheets. One
                                                       great thing is it has currency conversions, it's versatile
                                                       and you can download a trial version.
                                                       http://www.hindsightltd.com/products/PriceGuide.html

5. NPPA Cost Of Doing
   Business CDB Calculator-        This software is custom made for the Photojournalist.               
                                                       http://www.nppa.org/professional_development/business_practices/cdb/cdbcalc.cfm

Wedding Photography: You Get What You Pay For

Often times, well, I think almost EVERY time somebody discovers I'm a photographer, the second question out of their mouth is "So, how much do you charge?" When I tell them, I get that "EEK!" look on their face. It's really frustrating. People don't realize everything it takes to BE a photographer, much less the equipment, scheduling, props, and editing! The software alone costs way more than what I'm charging them; the SKILL to operate the software and really know what you're doing and hell - the time it takes to go through 400+ pictures alone is worth what I charge by the hour!!!

The best response / article I've ever read on Photography was written by Alex Frazier, Yahoo! Contributor Network. A friend of mine had re-posted this article in response to somebody complaining about the price of her photography.

I find it appropriate to repost here also. ....Just as a reminder.

Wedding Photography: You Get What You Pay For
Alex Frazier
Alex Frazier, Yahoo! Contributor Network

Why is wedding photography so expensive? More than a few people have asked that question over the years. To the average consumer, it seems a common sense thing to ask. All they're doing is taking pictures. What about that is worth $2000 or more?
Let me begin this article with a reality check. People spend hundreds of dollars for a limo that they'll have for four hours. They spend $5000 on a reception hall with $30 a piece plated dinners. A bride will spend $1000 or more on a dress she's only going to wear once. The couple will spend $500 on a single bouquet of flowers, and in some cases over $1000 on the decorative flowers for the wedding, all of which will be gone by the next morning. The groom will rent a tuxedo that costs $200-$300, and it has to be returned promptly the following day. But when it comes to the photographer, who is going to produce and prepare the only lasting memento of their event, he or she is out of their mind to ask more than $500.

I've read many articles discussing ways to cut costs with your wedding photography, and most of them, unfortunately, are very bad advice.
1) Price Shop - While it can be generally agreed that shopping around for the best price is a good idea, be sure you are shopping within comparable areas of the market. A photographer who costs $3000 versus a photographer who costs $500 is comparing apples to lemons. If you want to compare $500 versus $600 or $450, then you are shopping comparable services. Likewise, you are shopping comparable services if you are comparing $3000 versus $2800 or $3200. If you think you are getting a deal by going with the $500 photographer to save yourself money over the $3000 photographer, you aren't.

2) Put Cameras on the Tables - This is by far the worst idea I've ever seen, and I speak from many weddings worth of experience. In the first place, you aren't saving as much money as you think.
Disposable cameras cost roughly $6 each, and it runs you, per roll, about $7 to develope the film and get prints. If you put out twenty cameras, you are talking about an approximate expense of $260. And you know what you are going to get for your $260? You are going to get pictures of walls and floors. You are going to get pictures of people taking pictures of people who are taking pictures. You are going to get pictures of Aunt Pat's behind. And that's provided you get pictures at all. Sometimes the cameras just sit there unused, and I've personally witnessed a wedding where someone was banging the camera on the table, saying, "look, you can make the flash go off." Other guests immediately began doing the same thing so they could all get a giggle. In the end, you'll walk away with about twenty pictures that are worthwhile, which amounts to about $13 an image. Not a good investment at all.

3) Find Someone Cheap - I know that you're trying to save money, but hiring someone cheap is a very bad idea. It is my experience that photographers who work cheap aren't typically photographers at all. The fact is, anyone can take a picture, but not everyone who can take a picture is a photographer. With the explosion of digital technology, it seems that anyone who buys a nice camera and snaps a few lucky shots suddenly considers themselves a photographer. And since they're so good three months out of the gate, maybe they should do some weddings.
If you go this route, you can expect them to show up with a consumer level camera and a kit lens. While there are exceptions to every rule, this generally tends to be the case. And my condolences to you if you're having a wedding in a low light environment with an amateur using a kit lens. There will be ghosting and motion blur in every last one of your orange pictures.

4) Have a Friend or Relative Do It - Refer to item 3. Whether you are hiring someone or getting a favor from a friend or relative, the fact is, either they are a photographer or they are not a photographer. If they don't have the equipment and know how to use it to accomplish the best possible results in any given environment, your pictures, if you're lucky, will be mediocre at best. Do you know what aperture to use if you are photographing a couple with the sun behind them? If you don't know, chances are good that the friend, relative, or amateur isn't going to know either. A professional will.
5) Get the Negatives/Raw Files to Make Your Own Album - First of all, no professional photographer worth his salt is going to give you the negative or Raw files. You might get processed jpegs, maybe even in high resolution, but you aren't going to get the Raw files. Secondly, professional photographers aren't providing you with scrapbook junk albums with the peel-back, static-plastic pages. The albums are generally matted or flush mount. You have to have a retail license to get those at anywhere close to a reasonable cost. So this is another instance of comparing apples to oranges. If you can get the files, and if you make your own album, it will pale beside what the photographer would have given you, both in quality and artistry. And that's assuming you can even open the Raw files, which requires particular software, in some cases proprietary.

What the people who try to help you save a buck neglect to realize is that there is a reason professional photography is so expensive. They'll tell you to ask, for example, if you can have the Raw files, when what you should be asking is, "do you have liability insurance?". They tell you to ask to see additional samples, when what you really need to see is a finished album that demonstrates their competence in photographing a wedding from start to finish. Any Joe can nail a good shot, but can he nail two or three hundred of them to make a nice album?
Some other questions that are truly worth asking:

1) Are you shooting medium format, full frame 35mm, or APS? - Medium format will give you images from 28-64 megapixels. Full frame 35mm will give you images from 21-25 megapixels. APS is a consumer level camera in the 10-12 megapixel range, and you shouldn't pay a premium price if that's what they're using.

2) Are you accredited with the Better Business Bureau? - If they're not, what recourse do you have if your photographer gives you terrible service or products? If they are, you can at least check their profile at the BBB website.

3) Do you have a business license? - Why in the world would you pay anyone for a service who isn't legitimate? That's very risky.

4) Are you insured? - What happens if they drop dead of a heart attack in the middle of your wedding? What happens if they fall in a fountain and ruin not only their camera gear, but all the pictures they took up to that point, as in this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3cvsImyIZA? Liability insurance is a must.

5) Do you have backup equipment? - If they drop the only lens they have and damage it, what then? I guess they won't be taking any more pictures. Insurance is a non-issue. It can take care of their equipment after the fact, but it does nothing for them at the time of when they still have the rest of the wedding to shoot.

6) Are you going to use fresh flash cards? - While flash cards are generally reliable and have a very long, usable life, they will eventually go bad.
To illustrate the point, I shot a wedding on August 28th. Everything went smoothly. They were very happy with their pictures. You can see a review at this link


The previous weekend, her cousin got married at the same place. The amateur photographer photographed the entire wedding on a single, used flash card. The card went bad. The entire wedding was lost. She (the photographer) was not legitimate. She was not insured. The cousin lost everything with no recourse.
Was it worth the alleged savings?

But moving on to more important things, clearly a professional is a wiser choice. But the question that remains is, why does it cost so much?

1) A professional will show up at your wedding with $16000-$20000 worth of professional equipment, with back-ups of everything. That equipment costs a lot of money, and it needs to be maintained, repaired, and occassionally replaced.

2) A professional will have insurance that can cost as much as $800 a year.

3) A professional deserves a professional wage.

4) Prints, paper, ink, and other supplies and cost of goods cost money.

5) A professional is educated in his or her trade.

6) A professional can show you samples that will give you peace of mind and confidence.

7) A professional is experienced and knows what to do in a given situation to get the shot.

Ultimately, you can hire a $500 amateur and take your chances. They will show up with a 12 megapixel camera, a used flash card, a kit lens with a maximum aperture of F/4, and if you're lucky, they'll have a shoe-mount flash unit. If something goes wrong, I hate it for ya. If they mess up and miss all your important shots, I hate it for ya. When your inside pictures are all underexposed, or have motion blur because their lens is inadequate, I hate it for ya. When you and your intended are silouettes against a white sky because they didn't know how to light and expose for a backlit situation . . . I hate it for ya!

If you hire a professional, it will cost you a good bit more. But they'll show up with a professional camera that will give you high resolution images. They'll have new flash cards, professional series lenses
with F/2.8 apertures that can handle low light situations, and a shoe-mount flash. They'll also have backups of everything in case something happens. They'll have liability insurance in case something drastic happens. They'll get all the important shots. Your pictures, inside or outside, will be properly exposed, sharp, crisp, and without motion blur. When you're back lit against the sun, they'll have lights to compensate, and know how to meter the ambient light to get a clean exposure between the foreground and the background.

The choice is yours. The internet is loaded with woe-is-me tales from disappointed brides who got messed up pictures, haven't gotten their pictures at all, etc. In the end, you will get what you pay for.