5 Reasons Why Photographers Charge Big Bucks

I recently spoke with a bride who had a very slim photography budget, and I encouraged her to consider what she values most about executing her wedding day and make a list from greatest to least. If photography is something she ultimately truly values, she may want to figure a way to adjust what she's allotted for the other components. If she shaves off 10% here, 20% there, she may find that she does have the budget for a her photographer of choice and she can still have a stunning wedding. 

Here are five reasons why photographers charge big bucks in order to provide our clients with beautiful portraits. It's not as simple as point and shoot… (but I bet you knew that already, didn't you?)

1. Keeping up with the Jones's. That doesn't mean photographers are trying to be something we're not or doing what others are doing just because - it means that we must research, invest and reinvest in ourselves creatively, mentally, and physically if we want to stay current and remain in the competitive game of professional photography. We must keep the creative juices flowing and that takes time, determination, ambition and discipline. The creative aspect of what we do can not be measured, but it must be nurtured and is therefore priceless and necessary if we want to continue to grow as an artist and in our craft.

2. Preparation. Time equals money. Before a shoot, there is front end work that is required: communicating with our clients and the wedding coordinator, scouting locations, emails, phone calls, weather checking, facts checking, rental equipment pick up, etc. We put time and effort into preparing for the shoot to enhance the experience. Being well organized allows us to feel confident and mentally prepared for the portrait session or the wedding day. It's just like an athlete. In between games or seasons, a football player is not likely sitting around on his rear eating bon bons. On the contrary, he's training, practicing strategies, conducting interviews, traveling, etc. (thanks dad for always comparing life to football…. look what I've gone and done - I worked a "Sal-ism" into my blog post.)

3. Investing. No, we're not keeping tabs on the Nasdaq, or maybe some of us are… but we're definitely spending thousands of dollars on equipment, software, computers, hard drives, memory cards, packaging materials, office supplies, essentially everything it takes to run the business. Photography is an expensive hobby, so imagine what it would mean if it were your vocation. When building our price lists, we have to factor in all of the non-variables: our website, cost of prints, cell phone bill, etc. The list is long, but I think you're catching on. 

4. Cost of Production. This is what a typical A to Z wedding assignment looks like and as you can see, we can easily work up to 100 hours on one wedding alone not to mention all we have to do to juggle the upkeep of the office and business in general: 

• client inquires - 15  to 30 minutes
• client books, and client and photog communicate logistics - 30 minutes to 2 hours pending event
• photo prep - 1 to 2  hours
• travel time to and from location - 15 minutes to 6 hours or more. 
• photo session takes place - 6 hours to 10 hours pending which package client chooses
• post processing - one day to three days
• album design - 4 hours
• print orders - 1 to 2 hours
• packaging - 1 to 2 hours
• post office  - 30 minutes if there's no line!
• follow up communication - 15 to 30 minutes
• To make all of the above happen, we need 2nd shooters, assistants, computers, vehicles, gadgets, hard drives, discs, CD cases, etc, etc.

5. Talent. Yes, we need to consider that we must be compensated for our God given talent. It's that little something about us that makes you trust us, want to put your most precious memories and moments in our hands to document and cherish for generations to come.

I'll put it this way: my husband and I are in the process of redecorating our house. We're only half way there, because we have a budget for this project and we want to stretch it out as best we can. Throughout the process we specifically choose each item based on its value to us. Do we want to spend $800 on the Ikea couch or $2500 on the Joe Ruggiero sofa that's half off at the Sofa Outlet store? Do we want to spend $1,000 on the World Market Provence dining table set that's currently on sale or $2000 on the designer dining table alone and $200 each on four or six chairs? 

The point is there is no wrong answer. The ultimate decision relies on what you value and where you want to spend your money. 

I hope this was a little helpful to at least understand why photographers charge what they do and what we go through as we strive to deliver beautiful, meaningful work to our clients. ; )