How much do you charge for digital copies?

[sactown024]

I am building my website pricing page and most packages consist of 25 high-res digital copies. I was going to give te option to buy additional prints but not sure how much I should be charging.

anyone sell digital copies and what do you charge?

 

[tirediron]

Pricing is NOT something for which you just pick a number out of the air because it "seems" right. Even if you're doing this as a weekend business, you need to do it correctly. First, determine your cost of going business for one hour. That is: Add up all of the factors, including fuel, maintenance & insurance on your car, wear & tear on equipment, etc, etc, etc and come up with a minimum per-hour figure, and base all of your pricing on that.

Also, be careful of promising too many images. 25 good images from a one-hour portrait session is a LOT. On my biggest portrait package (An eight-hour, $1200 package which I never expect to sell) I only offer UP TO 40 images, and on my one hour, I offer UP TO six. Note the "UP TO". That's important. If you tell me up front that I'm going to get 25 images, and I only like 20, we're going to have a problem. (My new retail pricing pages are under construction here )

All of that relates to retail photography. Commercial is a whole different animal. For commercial work, I normally bill by the hour ($100) and license costs for images vary widely depending on size, type, and duration of use, as well as exclusivity.

 

[Big Mike]

Digital files are practically free...but the limited copyright allowing them to make/order prints is what will cost them.

 

[KmH]

I charged $1200 for 25 high resolution digital files ($48 per file), and the use license set a maximum print size of 8x10 for any of the images.
They could only get wall sized prints through me.

Individual 8x10 prints on Kodak Endura archival paper were $80 each. Metallic paper and other substrates cost more.

 

[MLeeK]

OK... lets just assume that you are doing research instead of posting a pricing question... You know how pricing questions go around here! I am sure this one will go south anyway, but we can hope! LOL!

I only sell digital files AFTER they've ordered prints. I have set my pricing up so that I know they are getting prints no matter what-the minimum session fee is a print credit. My print pricing is set up so that I get my minimum in profit no matter what.
Depending on the amount of the order I will throw in the digi of the images they ordered. I always throw in a low-res, discreetly watermarked disk of images and a slide show for internet use. They get the full res slide show from their proofing session as well.
If the order is over $500 the digis will cost you $25 each, sized 8x10 with unlimited print release that states MPix on it. I am sure other places print it, but I TRY to control quality as much as I can.
If the order is over 1000 digi's are $10 each and if the order is over $1500 I throw in the disk of digi's with the release free.
Being the big sucker that I am and that I follow the "give it away" philosophy I OFTEN throw the digi's in once i hit the $500 mark "as a favor" because I just "loved" the client. Great for PR, marketing and repeat business!

 

[KmH]

MLeek mentions a point I left out regarding my charge for digital files.

Customers had to meet a minimum purchase amount before they earned the right to buy digital files.

You will not be able to develop a money making business if you treat/price photos as a commodity. Portrait/retail photographs are a luxury item and should be marked and sold as such if your business is run based on a profit motive.

One of the most difficult, least successful marketing tasks a business can undertake is raising prices. When a business raises it's prices, the business has to develop a new customer base.
Making new customers is about 10x more expensive than retaining existing customers.

 

[sactown024]

How do you license the photos? is that something that needs to be taken care of by a lawyer? Just cause you say you can only print up to a 8x10 and everything else must go through me how is that going to to stop someone? do you just limit the file size so it will look like **** after you go above 8x10?

 

[MLeeK]

How do you license the photos? is that something that needs to be taken care of by a lawyer? Just cause you say you can only print up to a 8x10 and everything else must go through me how is that going to to stop someone? do you just limit the file size so it will look like **** after you go above 8x10?

Wal Mart is very careful about asking you for your release from any image that looks like it's professional. EVERY lab should be and they're getting better but, there are those that won't and will just print it.
A release is a written, signed document that states what the client can do and not do with their images. It will include the photographer's infomation, the file names/numbers and the date they were created, the release information detailing what can and can't be done with the images and the photographer's signature.
I give it to the client in both print form and on their disk. The disk contains a PDF of the release as well as an image file so if they go to have prints made and are asked for their release the lab or store can pull it up either way.

I also include the release information in the exif data of my images.

My images are cropped to 8x10 at 300PPI. Will it look like crap at a larger size-depends on HOW larger and how the image is viewed. If the lab is doing it's job, they will not print larger.

I have a lawyer who has checked all of my legal documents from contracts to releases, but releases are something that don't really need to be reviewed. Contracts are something you should be asking about!! As well as Model Releases. You should have one of both of those for every session you are shooting. They can be combined into one document, but you NEED to have them.

 

[sactown024]

I charged $1200 for 25 high resolution digital files ($48 per file), and the use license set a maximum print size of 8x10 for any of the images.
They could only get wall sized prints through me.

Individual 8x10 prints on Kodak Endura archival paper were $80 each. Metallic paper and other substrates cost more.

8x10 $80 each? what? WHCC sells them for $6 on that paper, are you saying thats your price?

 

[sactown024]

How do you license the photos? is that something that needs to be taken care of by a lawyer? Just cause you say you can only print up to a 8x10 and everything else must go through me how is that going to to stop someone? do you just limit the file size so it will look like **** after you go above 8x10?

Wal Mart is very careful about asking you for your release from any image that looks like it's professional. EVERY lab should be and they're getting better but, there are those that won't and will just print it.
A release is a written, signed document that states what the client can do and not do with their images. It will include the photographer's infomation, the file names/numbers and the date they were created, the release information detailing what can and can't be done with the images and the photographer's signature.
I give it to the client in both print form and on their disk. The disk contains a PDF of the release as well as an image file so if they go to have prints made and are asked for their release the lab or store can pull it up either way.

I also include the release information in the exif data of my images.

My images are cropped to 8x10 at 300PPI. Will it look like crap at a larger size-depends on HOW larger and how the image is viewed. If the lab is doing it's job, they will not print larger.

or couldnt they just drag and drop the images onto a flash drive or another dvd and dont put the pdf on there>?

 

[MLeeK]

How do you license the photos? is that something that needs to be taken care of by a lawyer? Just cause you say you can only print up to a 8x10 and everything else must go through me how is that going to to stop someone? do you just limit the file size so it will look like **** after you go above 8x10?

Wal Mart is very careful about asking you for your release from any image that looks like it's professional. EVERY lab should be and they're getting better but, there are those that won't and will just print it.
A release is a written, signed document that states what the client can do and not do with their images. It will include the photographer's infomation, the file names/numbers and the date they were created, the release information detailing what can and can't be done with the images and the photographer's signature.
I give it to the client in both print form and on their disk. The disk contains a PDF of the release as well as an image file so if they go to have prints made and are asked for their release the lab or store can pull it up either way.

I also include the release information in the exif data of my images.

My images are cropped to 8x10 at 300PPI. Will it look like crap at a larger size-depends on HOW larger and how the image is viewed. If the lab is doing it's job, they will not print larger.

or couldnt they just drag and drop the images onto a flash drive or another dvd and dont put the pdf on there>?

Sure. If they do that any lab SHOULD ask for the release and then they'd have to go get it to be printed.
Prints are going to happen from any digi file you give out and they're going to happen outside of the relase you provide. You are going to have people who print your facebook images to a 16x20 and if/when you see it you are going to gasp in shock. Especially in the cheap market.

 

[sactown024]

the way I have my pricing set up is packages as in

10 digi copies and a 16x24 canvas print for $XXX

is that a bad way to do it? should I just charge a flat hourly rate and then try to make all the money with the photos?

 

[MLeeK]

I charged $1200 for 25 high resolution digital files ($48 per file), and the use license set a maximum print size of 8x10 for any of the images.
They could only get wall sized prints through me.

Individual 8x10 prints on Kodak Endura archival paper were $80 each. Metallic paper and other substrates cost more.

8x10 $80 each? what? WHCC sells them for $6 on that paper, are you saying thats your price?

You are missing the artistic talent part of it. WHCC sells the PAPER it's printed on. YOU Have to provide the image. $6 is the printing and paper fee. NOT the cost or price of THE IMAGE. Go ahead and buy the printing and paper without the image... What do you have?

On top of that-I don't want to sell 8x10's. They are crap prints in the big scheme of things. I want to sell WALL sized prints. 8x10's are just add on's. Like wallets. You are still in the wal mart mentality here. Stop thinking with YOUR wallet and start thinking with a potential client's wallet. Several times people have said to you that photography is a LUXURY ITEM. It is purchased by those who value that luxury item. Think with THEIR wallet.

 

[tirediron]

8x10 $80 each? what? WHCC sells them for $6 on that paper, are you saying thats your price?

There are other factors that come into play, one being the photographer's cost to have the print made. That varies by region; for instance: My cost on an 8x10 from my lab is a little under $12. I add 40% and round out to an even $18. There's also the time, effort and quality that go into making the image. The most important one however is, what cost the market will bear. In my area, retail photography will not support $80 8x10s, at least not in general. There are one or two who have the reputation which allows them to charge like that, but for the most part, prices are considerably lower.

 

[KmH]

8x10 $80 each? what? WHCC sells them for $6 on that paper, are you saying thats your price?

WHCC only sells a sheet of paper that has a bit of ink or light sensitive emulsion on it. WHCC does not provide the image they print.

That is the difference between the $6, and the $80 I charged - what I charge for the image I made printed 8x10.
The same image printed 16x20 was $300.