Forums
New posts
Search forums
What's new
New posts
New media
New media comments
New profile posts
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Members
Current visitors
New profile posts
Search profile posts
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Search forums
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Forums
Learning
Photography Business
Please Advise on pricing photos - buyer contacted me for photos I took of him
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="csgaraglino" data-source="post: 577582" data-attributes="member: 42498"><p>Hello SHAkers718,</p><p></p><p>First you find yourself in the position that EVERY photographer winds up at at some point in their career, so rest assured there is a solution.</p><p></p><p>While I and most anyone on the internet can not speak to actual pricing for you directly, because we don't know your experience level, your goals as a photographer or your local market. What I can do is tell you what I have done.</p><p></p><p>Any and all business face the same question - <strong>"What do I charge?"</strong></p><p></p><p>You have two parts to your question. Personal Use & Commercial Use. I'll address commercial first.</p><p></p><p>For me I looked at my core services: Products, Action Sports & Real Estate - these are my bread & butter and each discipline pays differently.</p><p></p><p>Then I looked at my local market and found out that my competitors were charging. And when I say "competitors" I mean the professionals or semi-professionals running some kind of business - not the hobbyist looking to make a buck. I clipped the top 10% and the bottom 10% and I soon saw an actual average range that folks were charging in each discipline in my area.</p><p></p><p>I then looked at my time involved (travel, shooting, editing) and my equipment use and any additional overhead you I have. (if you have an office - rent & electric any training, etc).</p><p></p><p>Now that I have my "cost" of doing business and what the local market is willing to pay, the next question is "HOW will the image be used"?</p><p>In most cases, my work is used commercially and I don't generally shoot people for personal use, but it's really the same either way.</p><p></p><p>I have two price points: Non-Exclusive and Exclusive, and this really comes down to who is going to OWN the Copyright when the job is over. Most of my work is Non-Exclusive, but I have several clients that want exclusive control and ownership of the images and they pay for it.</p><p></p><p>I now have everything I need to set my business pricing for all my core services. It sounds complicated - but once you get into it - it's really not.</p><p></p><p></p><p><strong>On to your question:</strong> There is those times when (like you) I am out at a local event, say the Hot Air Balloon Glow we have it every year and on my own time shooting when someone comes up and says "Wow, that's cool, how much?"</p><p></p><p>I know my worth and my core costs (see above) and this is always in the back of my head. The very next thing out of my mouth is "That depends, how are you going to use my photo?" Almost always the answer will fit into to categories, regardless if their a business or the Dad of the kid you just shot.</p><p></p><p>1) Personal use: Online socially or to print and hang on the wall somewhere.</p><p>Here I will generally give them a low-res copy (1280 longest side at 72dpi) for free with a discrete watermark (c) WidowCreekPhotography.com at the bottom. I look at this as advertising and getting my name in front of people that I may not have been able to reach normally. I have booked many jobs form these kinds of images on Facebook alone.</p><p></p><p>2) Commercially: To promote themselves (person or business) products or services. Use on brochures, website, tv commercials, magazines, etc... </p><p>This also includes the "personal use person" that does NOT want my watermark on the image. </p><p>So for commercial, I look at my core costs as outlined above and start there. I then (sometimes, a lot of times) will discount for some of the following reasons.</p><p>1. Can I turn them into a paying client in the future?</p><p>2. My time was minimal (I was already here)</p><p>3. Typically it's only one or two images.</p><p></p><p>I know this sounds like a lot - and well it kind of is, but once you put it into practice, it becomes second nature and answering the question on the fly becomes much easier!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="csgaraglino, post: 577582, member: 42498"] Hello SHAkers718, First you find yourself in the position that EVERY photographer winds up at at some point in their career, so rest assured there is a solution. While I and most anyone on the internet can not speak to actual pricing for you directly, because we don't know your experience level, your goals as a photographer or your local market. What I can do is tell you what I have done. Any and all business face the same question - [B]"What do I charge?"[/B] You have two parts to your question. Personal Use & Commercial Use. I'll address commercial first. For me I looked at my core services: Products, Action Sports & Real Estate - these are my bread & butter and each discipline pays differently. Then I looked at my local market and found out that my competitors were charging. And when I say "competitors" I mean the professionals or semi-professionals running some kind of business - not the hobbyist looking to make a buck. I clipped the top 10% and the bottom 10% and I soon saw an actual average range that folks were charging in each discipline in my area. I then looked at my time involved (travel, shooting, editing) and my equipment use and any additional overhead you I have. (if you have an office - rent & electric any training, etc). Now that I have my "cost" of doing business and what the local market is willing to pay, the next question is "HOW will the image be used"? In most cases, my work is used commercially and I don't generally shoot people for personal use, but it's really the same either way. I have two price points: Non-Exclusive and Exclusive, and this really comes down to who is going to OWN the Copyright when the job is over. Most of my work is Non-Exclusive, but I have several clients that want exclusive control and ownership of the images and they pay for it. I now have everything I need to set my business pricing for all my core services. It sounds complicated - but once you get into it - it's really not. [B]On to your question:[/B] There is those times when (like you) I am out at a local event, say the Hot Air Balloon Glow we have it every year and on my own time shooting when someone comes up and says "Wow, that's cool, how much?" I know my worth and my core costs (see above) and this is always in the back of my head. The very next thing out of my mouth is "That depends, how are you going to use my photo?" Almost always the answer will fit into to categories, regardless if their a business or the Dad of the kid you just shot. 1) Personal use: Online socially or to print and hang on the wall somewhere. Here I will generally give them a low-res copy (1280 longest side at 72dpi) for free with a discrete watermark (c) WidowCreekPhotography.com at the bottom. I look at this as advertising and getting my name in front of people that I may not have been able to reach normally. I have booked many jobs form these kinds of images on Facebook alone. 2) Commercially: To promote themselves (person or business) products or services. Use on brochures, website, tv commercials, magazines, etc... This also includes the "personal use person" that does NOT want my watermark on the image. So for commercial, I look at my core costs as outlined above and start there. I then (sometimes, a lot of times) will discount for some of the following reasons. 1. Can I turn them into a paying client in the future? 2. My time was minimal (I was already here) 3. Typically it's only one or two images. I know this sounds like a lot - and well it kind of is, but once you put it into practice, it becomes second nature and answering the question on the fly becomes much easier! [/QUOTE]
Verification
Post reply
Forums
Learning
Photography Business
Please Advise on pricing photos - buyer contacted me for photos I took of him
Top