I’ve known numerous photographers who would freeze up the second you started talking about pricing yourself properly. A lot of people have NO idea where to begin, and they’re terribly afraid of pricing themselves out of the market. It’s also very well known that people feel that this line of business is saturated with people who are just starting out and are “giving everything away” for an extremely low price. Because of this, clients have come to expect photographers to provide them with all of the digital images from a portrait session on a disc or USB drive, with no products.
These photographers are considered to be “shoot and burn” photographers (if a client receives images on a USB or disc) – or “shoot and share” photographers (if a client receives images via an online gallery). I was once a “shoot and burn” photographer, and I find no shame in that! But I was also killing myself by providing color and black-and-white digital files upwards of 200+ images per session for one flat rate. And when I say I was killing myself…I mean it.
The work was extensive. It took a TON of time to cull through 500+ images from a 1-2 hour portrait session (if you’ve ever worked with me, you know how much I shoot), and then edit each of those images in color AND black-and-white. I was proud of the work I was producing, but many of my clients told me that I made it very hard for them to choose their own favorites for the sole reason of me providing too much. I also wasn’t making a profit. A few years ago, during the busiest time of year for me (the fall shooting season) I reached burn-out. I was paranoid, stressed, running behind on delivery deadlines, ignoring my kids and family…and I knew that something needed to change.
Changing my business practices was THE only way I could get a hold on my business. I needed to be in control, instead of my business controlling me.
Cost of Doing Business
The only possible way for a business owner to turn a profit is if they’re bringing in more income than what’s going out. This should be common sense, but for some reason it takes some people a very long time to figure this out.
In order to run a business properly you have regular expenses. These expenses are called the “cost of doing business” (CDB). Any expense you pay in order to run your business should be counted towards your CDB. This can include:
office supplies
auto expenses (wear-and-tear, maintenance, fuel, etc)
cell phone expenses
internet
business insurance
website domains/email
packaging products
studio sample products
web/branding design costs
marketing materials/templates
actions/presets (if you use them to edit)
editing software
professional memberships/organizations
taxes
subscriptions
equipment and upgrades
cleaning & maintenance on said equipment
shipping costs
training/workshops/conferences/education
percentage of your mortgage/rent/utilities (if you work from home)
cleaning services (if you pay for housekeeping)
daycare costs (if you have children)
It’s a bit of a shock when you total these costs together and you figure out how much you’re actually paying in order to stay in business. However, ALL businesses have these expenses and price their products/services in order to cover these costs + pay employees + earn a profit.
Consider the Income You’d Like to Make
After you have all of your expenses written out somewhere, start to think about the income you’d like to make – AFTER TAXES. (The IRS will take approximately 30% of any income you make. This is starting to come into perspective, isn’t it?) The income you bring home as take-home pay will need to be enough to sustain you if you plan on running as “full time”. This will look different for different families, and it all depends on the income you need in order to live comfortably.
To figure this total out, grab your bills. Total up your monthly expenses and then add in any additional monies you would want to set aside for savings, rainy day spending, retirement, etc.
Do the Math
Try not to feel overwhelmed at this. I know how easy it is to look at these totals and freak out. Right now you may be thinking there’s NO way you can make enough money in this business and provide for your family. But before you completely give up, use this simple calculator from NPPA to plug in your totals. The calculator already has example values plugged in, just ignore those and type in your true totals.
At the bottom of the calculator it asks you for the “number of days you can bill”. Use this section for the total number of sessions/weddings you want to work in one year. For instance, my max is 25 weddings per year with several additional slots open for family portrait sessions/mentoring sessions. Each photographer’s “days you can bill” will be different. So try not to compare your results with Photographer Pete down the road.
Once you run the numbers using this calculator you’ll see how much you SHOULD be charging per session in order to maintain your business and your chosen income level.
Check Other Resources
Plenty has been shared and written in regards to pricing yourself in order to gain a profit! Don’t take my word for it. I encourage you to do your own research, total your own numbers, make your own notes. Look at your bank account information and expenses. And try not to be discouraged if this part of starting your business takes you a while to figure out. It took me a lot of digging and organizing in order to figure things out as well. And once I ran my numbers, I quickly realized that I was basically working for free. I was providing my clients with beautiful images and memories, but my family missed out on a lot of time with me and our financial gain was Z-E-R-O.
In addition to your own research, I would recommend checking out the Photographer’s Pricing Guide post by Stacy Reeves. The resources there are invaluable and you’ll be able to grab up a couple downloadable worksheets.
I know how flustered one can get when they start to think about the costs associated with being a small business owner. I hope you’re able to find peace in knowing that you’re not in this alone! I hope today’s post has helped get you moving in the right direction when it comes to figuring out what you SHOULD be charging your clients per session in order to provide for your family.
Little reminder: I have several more helpful pointers when it comes to designing your portrait & wedding packages, how to price your products, and when outsourcing would be beneficial to you. If you’re in the process of starting your own business or beginning to toy with the idea of moving in that direction but you’re overwhelmed and don’t know where to start – I’m here to help!! Amanda Adams Photography is now offering one-on-one mentoring sessions for other photographers. I currently have a few limited spots open on my calendar this year and I would love to have the chance to help you get started. For more information about my mentoring services, click here. And of course, I’m an open book. If you have any questions please comment below or shoot me an email!
