As a photographer, a question I hear often is “Why does photography cost so much?” Or “Wow! You’re making *insert session price* per hour?!”
It would be wonderful if it were that simple, however, when broken down, anyone could easily see that I am making far less after expenses.
As a small business, I have a copious amount of expenses to ensure I can deliver clients my absolute best work. These include but are not limited to:
- my camera body
- back up camera body
- a variety of lenses
- cleaning and repair for camera and lenses
- camera bag
- external hard drives
- SD cards
- monitor calibration software
- lens calibration
- desktop computer
- internet
- tolls/gas/mileage
- on location parking fees
- continuing education
- editing software subscriptions
- props
- paint for the studio
- lighting (strobes, umbrellas, light bulbs, soft box, PLM)
- backdrops
- backdrop stands
- wireless transmitters
- lawyer drafted contracts
- business website
- online gallery subscription
- marketing materials
- babysitter for my 3 children
and of course an hourly rate which includes time spent setting up the session, photographing, editing, driving, additional communication via email, and continuing education.
I absolutely LOVE all things photography; giving my clients lifelong memories and creating friendships with my clients are just a couple aspects I find so rewarding. I could (and do) spend hours soaking it all in, furthering my education, and even taking free sessions to gain skills and knowledge. I enjoy it so much that I don’t want to eventually burn out and bankrupt myself! My sessions are priced to keep my business afloat.
In a nutshell, expenses (in the thousands), plus taxes equals a lot of money just to own and operate my business.
I hope this quick post helped clarify some of the pricing confusion that comes with booking a photographer :)
With Love,
Vera K.