Wedding Photographer prices.

[kaylieannphotography]

So I've been in school for two terms now and was asked to photograph a wedding. I have done two weddings before but they were for friends or people I knew and I hadn't had any schooling so I charged very cheap. What is roughly a reasonable price for me to charge, keep in mind I'm still in school, and haven't done any work in school with weddings.

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

$2000

 

[Stradawhovious]

$2000

Give or take a couple thousand.

 

[Davor]

$2000

That's cheap id charge $8000

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

$2000 is reasonable.

 

[kaylieannphotography]

Some friends from school that do weddings are telling me 2,000 too.

 

[raider]

((they're mocking)) the correct answer is free, you should charge nothing. you don't sound like a business - free.

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

I'm not mocking.

 

[Juice]

Over 9000.

 

[Studio7Four]

Well, there are a couple ways to look at it:

1. Milk the couple for as much as you can. If they've seen your work from the other weddings you've done and they agree to pay an exorbitant amount, that's their choice. If they're not happy, well, it's not like you have a business reputation to maintain.
2. Ask for what the local market would support. As a frame of reference, I got married in Boston a few years ago. Our photographer was an established pro - not a full time wedding photographer, but she had shot a fair bit more than two, and we saw and loved plenty of her work. She cost us around $2000. (Granted, she is now a more established wedding photographer and is charging appreciably more.) From what I'm gathering of your experience I'd recommend you charge appreciably less than $2000. (Total guesstimage, not having seen your wedding work.)

Okay, option 1 is admittedly snarky. I'm on board with those who think that if you insist on doing this as the primary you are better off charging less monetarily and considering the experience as valuable compensation. But, assuming your skills are up to snuff and you should be charging fair market prices, there are still questions that need to be answered before anyone on here can give you a realistic answer. How long will you be providing coverage? What deliverables are being promised (or expected)? Are you providing X number of edited files digitally, and/or are you providing prints, or an album? All of these (and I'm sure other questions) need to be taken into account.

Whatever you decide, good luck.

 

[gsgary]

As much as you think you can get away with

 

[Juanka]

Wow... this is an eye opener for me. I thought prices for doing weddings were around the 500's, and maybe 2,000 for a top pro...

 

[gsgary]

Wow... this is an eye opener for me. I thought prices for doing weddings were around the 500's, and maybe 2,000 for a top pro...

A good pro should be way over $2000 over here an average pro you would pay £1500 top pro £5,000+

 

[KmH]

For $2000 - how much coverage would that be for? 4 hours? 12 hours?

Would it include an album? Any prints?

Do you have and know how to use off camera lighting? How about backup equipment?

Do you have a legal wedding photography business, business liability insurance, errors and omissions insurance?

In other words any number someone gives you based on the extermely limited information you provided, is just a WAG - (Wild Assed Guess).

 

[Formatted]

I'm going to use my powers of hindsight and predict that this thread will be locked on page 3.