Ep 18: Kerching – Everything you need to know about pricing

Money, money, money. Every photographer is different and every job is different. So what are you supposed to charge for your work? In this episode, we cover what you need to know to determine how much you should charge and give you ideas on how to be confident with your pricing. Gina and Valerie chat about different types of pricing for different types of photography, and discuss the most common fears photographers have when quoting – and how to get over them. Listener questions answer and this week’s theme for #ginachallenge is “luxury”.

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Show notes

This week’s #ginachallenge is “luxury”

Listener questions from: Confounded in Cupertino and Ashley from Boston.

• How to focus and get the right exposure when you’re shooting in the dark?
• How to charge for services and be confident in pricing.

Quote from Steven Pressfield, The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks & Win Your Inner Creative Battles.

“Are you a born writer? Were you put on earth to be a painter, a scientist, an apostle of peace? In the end the question can only be answered by action.

Do it or don’t do it.

It may help to think of it this way. If you were meant to cure cancer or write a symphony or crack cold fusion and you don’t do it, you not only hurt yourself, even destroy yourself,. You hurt your children. You hurt me. You hurt the planet. 

Creative work is not a selfish act or a bid for attention on the part of the actor. It’s a gift to the world and every being in it. Don’t cheat us of your contribution. Give us what you’ve got.”

Many different levels of photography amongst listeners:

• Professional commercial
• Portrait/wedding
• Part time
• Enthusiast

Consider:

• How to set your prices to return a profit
• Different styles of pricing
• Factors that influence how much you can charge
• Psychology of pricing

Part time photographers and enthusiasts have an opportunity to charge premium prices because they are not relying on photography to live on.

What are the different ways you can price yourself?

• Portrait photographers tend to charge a low sitting fee and then charge for prints on top of that or a session fee that includes files ( gaining more popularity and no pressure to sell prints)
• Wedding photographers might charge base rate 5 hours + prints + album. That’s now changing to session fee + files
• Commercial Photographers charge fee that includes service fee for doing the job + files  + travel + studio hire + assistant + hair and MU + usage
• Editorial by assignment: Charge hourly or per job
• Product photographers tend to charge per item
• Art photographers who sell per print
• Stock photographers sell per file per use.

Getting over fear of charging

5 key areas we need to consider

1. What is the total cost of doing business?

As a basic rule of thumb your gross income should gross approx. 2.5 times what you want to take home.

Charging calculator

2. Be confident

If You Can Afford Yourself, You’re Too Cheap! Advice from Bambi Cantrell

3. Your perceived value
4. What the market will bear – don’t be unrealistic
5. Quality of work

Use the right language