2-year vet but urgent new question on pricing

CameraChick · Jan 31, 2012

Need to find a solution today. I've been on my own for about 2.5 years. Before that I worked for a corporation doing corporate photography and just took portraits for friends and on my own and was really good at it. Most of my business now is children's portraits. I've been asked to shoot my first party (a huge princess party for a 5-year-old). I will have a second photographer with me because this will be a big group with some things going on inside and some outside. I normally charge $250 for a two-hour shoot and include the rights to 25 images. I charge $350 for a shoot with 50 images. A retired photographer said I should charge $400 for the party and charge $50 for CD's. I feel that is too much, but don't want to under price either. I asked a friend who's a photographer in the area. He charges $350 for a two-hour party and gives them a CD of the best images and print rights. I am thinking $350 for the shoot, giving the hostess a CD of her child, and then posting the photos in my online gallery and letting the guests order pics from me, but my friend said that almost no one buys prints from parties. Need some advice--need to get a quote to the client today.

tirediron · Jan 31, 2012

How much does your CDB analysis say you need to charge for a two hour event + second shooter + processing time? Why does the number of guests or size of the party effect the price? Pricing in my area likely bears no relation to pricing in yours, but if I were to do this (and I wouldn't - not my thing), I would charge $300 for the event and probably $25 for a CD with 1-2 event shots and 1-2 shots of each child print and posting rights included.

Where I see this getting very tricky is in ensuring that you capture each child at the event. If you don't, I can already hear the calls from annoyed mothers, "Where the pictures of my little Sally? You took three pictures of Johnny, but none of my Sally? What kind of horrible photographer are you?"

I agree that prints aren't likely to be a big seller, especially among the demographic that we're (I assume) talking about. If they can't display it on Facebook, they don't want it. Have you suggested setting up a photobooth?

CCericola · Jan 31, 2012

How about charging the mother 1 price for the shoot and CD. $300, $400 that is up to you and your cost of doing business and then offer mini albums to the guests? The guests are not going to complain tehir child is not in enough pictures, it was not their party. Kiss albums has mini albums (4x4 I think) and they have an online designer SWAT. Takes me less than an hour to design a wedding album on there. I send my brides mini albums as a gift after the big album has been delivered.

Joey_Ricard · Jan 31, 2012

Good advice above -

Charging a price like Christina mentioned and putting them on a CD is a good idea -
I do that and......I find that maybe the owner (mother for example) will take the CD to walmart and get some prints made and then that's the end other than sharing on facebook. I have seen this over and over so:

Knowing this, I have since started uploading all shots to my site and giving owner a link (so that anyone that wants them), can order prints right off of my website.
I was surprised at how many people from an event purchase these prints and in many cases, the owner bypasses taking the CD to walmart and orders prints off the site too. It takes very little time to upload and email or facebook a link. I will say that I charge minimal pricing for the prints so it ends up like getting a tip, something extra, you know?

This way they have all the pics on CD and the owners friends can get prints made. I got paid, they got a good deal, everyone is happy

Oh, and it has been a great selling point that I mention, all you have to do is order online and they come right to your door. Big advantage etc etc.....you can order frames, goofy prooducts, etc etc.... Of course, this for family, kids etc and not for some other kind of shoot in my cases.

MLeeK · Jan 31, 2012

2 hour event for the event and NO processing time is easily $100. One Photographer only shooting-NOTHING else Drive time to and from the event $25 Second photographer, 2 hours $50 Drive time for second photographer $25. Processing time 6 to 8 hours each photographer $25 per hour $300 Total $500 Minus CODB for main Photog $300 Minus CODB for second $150 Net to photographers $50

MLeeK · Jan 31, 2012

MLeeK said:
2 hour event for the event and NO processing time is easily $100. One Photographer only shooting-NOTHING else
 Drive time to and from the event $25
 Second photographer, 2 hours $50
 Drive time for second photographer $25.
 Processing time 6 to 8 hours each photographer $25 per hour $300
 Total $500
 Minus CODB for main Photog $300 Minus CODB for second $150 Net to photographers $50

WTH? Why did my returns come out like THAT?

Joey_Ricard · Jan 31, 2012

MLeeK said:
MLeeK said:

2 hour event for the event and NO processing time is easily $100. One Photographer only shooting-NOTHING else
 Drive time to and from the event $25
 Second photographer, 2 hours $50
 Drive time for second photographer $25.
 Processing time 6 to 8 hours each photographer $25 per hour $300
 Total $500
 Minus CODB for main Photog $300 Minus CODB for second $150 Net to photographers $50

Click to expand...

WTH? Why did my returns come out like THAT?

I just thought you may have typed it in an html editor (souce) and just pasted it. Like you were working on that while browsing or something.

CameraChick · Jan 31, 2012

Thanks for all the great feedback. I think I'm going to go with $350 to shoot (two photographers) and a CD to the mom with pics of her kid. Then $30 (prepaid) per CD of 5 images chosen from a private gallery with big watermarks. We'll have to make sure we get lots of pics of each kid and lots of fun pics from the party so the moms/dads have event pics and at least one good one of their kids to choose from. My friends in the area say parties are better marketing opportunities than money-makers themselves. Hopefully the price will be acceptable and I'll get a few more bookings for portraits. (I just joined the forum so I don't have pics in my gallery yet, but will do soon.)