Wedding Photography: What's a fair price to charge?

[zutera91]

Hi all,

I'm not planning on offering any services for a while, as I'm very new to photography in general, but have had an interest since I was young. But I just wanted to ask the seasoned Vets out there what's a reasonable price range to charge for wedding photography services. Or if that's a bad question what should I be considering before offering a price.

Thanks for any insight!

 

[Big Mike]

This is one of the most often asked questions on the topics of wedding photography....and the answer is....It Depends. :er:

There are many, many factors that can play a part in determining your prices. I'm sure that if you do some searching, you will be able to pull up plenty of good tips.
The quick & dirty answer way, is to check what other photographers in your area are charging, and put yourself in the same bracket.

And probably the most important, but certainly not the easiest advice, is that you should avoid pricing yourself too low. Just because you are inexperienced, does not mean that you have to charge a very low price. But the hitch to that, is that you do need to be good enough and capable of shooting a 'once-in-a-life-time' event like a wedding.

 

[Petraio Prime]

Hi all,

I'm not planning on offering any services for a while, as I'm very new to photography in general, but have had an interest since I was young. But I just wanted to ask the seasoned Vets out there what's a reasonable price range to charge for wedding photography services. Or if that's a bad question what should I be considering before offering a price.

Thanks for any insight!

If you're "very new to photography in general" why are you even considering this?

 

[KmH]

Charge somewhere between $5 and $500,000.

Your profile doesn't show where on Planet Earth you are.

The Internet has been global for some time now and many of TPF's forum members are half the planet away from where ever you are.

Pricing varies geographically and successful businesses understand that their pricing is necessarily, a function of their costs: Steps To Determining Your Prices

 

[Flash Harry]

"And probably the most important, but certainly not the easiest advice, is that you should avoid pricing yourself too low. Just because you are inexperienced, does not mean that you have to charge a very low price. But the hitch to that, is that you do need to be good enough and capable of shooting a 'once-in-a-life-time' event like a wedding."

Add to that once you have taken their money YOU HAVE GOT TO PRODUCE THE GOODS. Its no good saying your inexperienced after making $hit of someones wedding photography, its not too long ago another poster wanted help as he'd offered a service which he could not complete, hard lines, he shouldn't have deceived those people and would get no help from me. There's a lot more work/time/expense/experience involved to being a good wedding photographer providing professional services than simply pressing the shutter button and handing over a CD of jpegs. H

 

[Big Mike]

If you're "very new to photography in general" why are you even considering this?

Hi all,
I'm not planning on offering any services for a while

Nothing wrong with planning ahead.

 

[Petraio Prime]

If you're "very new to photography in general" why are you even considering this?

Hi all,
I'm not planning on offering any services for a while

Nothing wrong with planning ahead.

If I were hiring a wedding photographer, I would demand at least 15 years of experience....

 

[zutera91]

If you're "very new to photography in general" why are you even considering this?

Hi all,
I'm not planning on offering any services for a while

Nothing wrong with planning ahead.

If I were hiring a wedding photographer, I would demand at least 15 years of experience....

^Wow, that's a loooong time. I hope it doesn't necessary take that long to produce good results!

 

[squee]

If you are new to photography I would serious put the emphasis on "for awhile" at least when it comes to weddings.

I have over six years under my belt and I still don't feel ready for weddings. I planned out packages and offered the service but when a customer came and wanted me for one, I had to turn them away after really thinking about it. I couldn't live with myself knowing I fudged up someone's once-in-a-lifetime (theoretically) moment.

But if you MUST: scope out your area and see what your competitors are doing, decide how much your time is worth and remember to include the time to edit in it, and figure out how many customers you would need to pay yourself back for all of your photography expenses + have something after that.

 

[JIP]

When you get a few seasons under your belt working for local photographers you should base your fees on what your employers charged.

 

[DennyCrane]

That's pretty much it... work as a wedding photographer's assistant and you'll get invaluable experience, plus learn pricing, protocols, etc. The pay's usually low, but hey! You're being paid at least SOMETHING to learn and that's better than paying someone to teach you.

 

[Irrok]

I suggest that you browse online. Look for other photographers that offer images and merchandise similar to what you can or will offer. Make sure you are honest with yourself! Then come in somewhere in the middle. Problem Solved!

 

[Petraio Prime]

Nothing wrong with planning ahead.

If I were hiring a wedding photographer, I would demand at least 15 years of experience....

^Wow, that's a loooong time. I hope it doesn't necessary take that long to produce good results!

Not the point. It show a record of success and dedication to one's craft.

 

[Petraio Prime]

^Wow, that's a loooong time. I hope it doesn't necessary take that long to produce good results!

Not the point. It show a record of success and dedication to one's craft.

Welp. Guess this is the end of Wedding Photography as we know it... since no one is allowed to start somewhere. :er:

:thumbdown:

It's a high-pressure situation that calls for a great deal of self-confidence, calmness, and experience. I would not start doing weddings until I had mastered other realms of photography first. If you screw up...they'll never let you live it down. You can practice at school friends,' cousins', or other relatives' weddings if they ask you and don't expect or demand perfection. I did a few of my cousins' weddings and it was not that hard. Then I started getting referrals from them and I stopped after two. Didn't want to do that.

But basically, you don't start with weddings unless you are that very rare individual. What would you like at your wedding? A rank beginner? I doubt it.

 

[Mike_E]

^Wow, that's a loooong time. I hope it doesn't necessary take that long to produce good results!

Not the point. It show a record of success and dedication to one's craft.

Welp. Guess this is the end of Wedding Photography as we know it... since no one is allowed to start somewhere. :er:

:thumbdown:

Don't worry, bachelors as cantankerous as he is aren't likely to be needing the services of a Wedding Tog. :lmao::lmao::lmao: