Have you ever wondered why photographers cost what they do? I’m going to cover the reasons & explain why photographers often charge upwards of $100.00 an hour.
By investing in our business, we are actually investing in you:
I’ll admit that just like fishermen, photographers can get enamored by the latest shiniest gear… but there is a good reason for that. Every new piece of equipment I buy is for the sole purpose of trying to deliver a better end product for you. It’s not about bragging, showing off or keeping up with anyone else. It’s the same idea as a painter having more brushes and paint or a mechanic with more tools. When we invest into newer & more innovative gear we can do our jobs better to produce even greater & more consistently beautiful results for you.
Photography equipment is expensive:
This is the biggest reason, to be honest. We incur thousands & thousands of dollars in costs to procure our own camera equipment. Professional quality camera bodies like mine are twice what the latest cell phones cost & they don’t even come with a lens! Mine was the body, 1 battery, & the charger.
The next cost that usually winds up more than the camera body itself is the lens. Or, more specifically, the lenses. Going back to the concept of wanting to produce the best images, we often buy what are fixed focal length lenses that are known as prime lenses. These lenses do not zoom in or out like the standard camera lens you may be familiar with. These lenses also produce sharper & more vibrant images, and accordingly cost upwards of $1,000 each. I shoot with a L series zoom at the moment. Canon’s L series is their professional line of lenses. After I pay myself back for some of my equipment, a nice 85 mm L series prime lens is what I want to buy next.
Seemingly simple equipment like batteries & memory cards are usually between $100 to & 175 a piece. To be able to capture a lot of images for a several hour long photo shoot, the cheaper memory cards do not capture info fast enough or hold enough data for the large file sizes of pro cameras. These more expensive accessories ensure the images & video of your important event are not lost or ruined.
External lighting costs will vary by photographer. While I only employ an external flash & diffuser due to my on location style, there is an almost unlimited array of lights, diffusers, v cards, reflectors, umbrellas, grids remote control systems, stands & gels for studio photography.
Editing hardware & software is another rather large cost. As cameras evolve, we are forced to upgrade our computers to be able to keep up with the demand of the large CR3 raw file sizes my Canon produces. I got a new M1 iPad Pro because my old 2009 Mac can’t handle the newest versions of editing software like Lightroom. Older versions of editing software in turn don’t support new file sizes like CR3. So all the devices & software we use has to be updated out of necessity.
Then there’s miscellaneous costs: fuel, food on location, other travel costs, tax prep, business licenses, camera bags & advertising costs. I’m sure there are a few more I’m sure I’m failing to mention off the top of my head. So ultimately photography is an expensive business to get into if one is serious about it.
We’re working for you, a lot, outside of our time behind the camera:
We don’t just show up to take the pics & call it a day, working 3 hours a day just to go jump on our big money piles Scrooge Mc Duck style! When we make our first contact with a client, we’re on the clock. Here’s a general timeline of the behind the scenes things we do, that the people who just show up & snap cell phone selfies don’t do.
Advertising: I’m always trying to think of new ways to promote my services & advertise ( yeah this blog is a form of advertisement, I’m not even gonna lie ) I’ll spend 2 hours typing this out, and make $0. And I’m fine with that. So while there’s no real way to quantify that the time I spent typing & will be rolled into a numerical amount I pass on to a client, I know I keep the time I spend writing blogs & creating ads in mind when determining my rates.
Consultations: I’m chatting back & forth with potential clients a lot. Sometimes it goes nowhere & thats’s fine, that’s part of how it goes. I try to really engage with potential clients to find out what they hope to get from a photo shoot, the vibe they want, and other details so I can give them my best.
Location Scouting: Any time I do a shoot for a client in an area I’m unfamiliar with I go about a half hour earlier than the scheduled time so I can look around to examine the light, scenery & location to try & come up with good ideas for the photos.
Editing: This is the number one aspect of where the money you spend really goes, in terms of time. It can easily be 15 minutes to half hour just to edit one photo. Now multiply that by the amount of photos you pay for, it’s a substantial amount of time.
Continuing Education: While for me this isn’t really a cost as far as money, when I’m at home in front of my TV I’m always watching different photography tutorials, gear reviews & educational programs. There are also in person workshops & paid courses quite a few of us invest in, all to bring you the best photos we can deliver.
Photography is a luxury item
The best way I can explain what I mean is this: Think of having professional photos done as the equivalent of some expensive but expertly crafted bespoke shoes & then think of handing someone your cell phone & asking them to take your pictures as some wal mart flip flops. If you’re considering hiring a photographer in the first place, it’s probably for a relatively important reason like corporate head shots, birthday, engagement, baby photos or a wedding. Don’t you want to invest in images that will best capture such important times in your life? Should what’s priceless in the future be cheap now?
We are elite & we are artists.
Yes, this might be a bold statement. And I’m not trying to pose as some world renowned photographer. But I’ll put my skills up against anyone who doesn’t value the skill photographers bring to the table. Yes, anyone can shoot a phone or even a camera. But anyone can also shoot a basketball. So we’re the NCAA, WNBA & NBA of taking pictures. Our skill levels vary amongst ourselves, but overall professional photographers recognize this is an art with fundamental aspects that apply to what makes a photos bad, good or even great. We study this photography stuff a lot. We share tips & advice with each other a lot. Many of us are obsessive about improving. We see things differently than people who are less visually literate. For many of us, this isn’t a mere job it really is an all encompassing lifestyle.
Professional photographers are worth it.
I really hope I was able to shed light on this question I know quite a few people have about why photographers cost what they do. Thank you so much for reading & if you have any questions or comments I’d love to hear from you! You can reach me through the social media links below or info@flashqbe.com