The Cost of Photographing a Wedding
Hello! I am thankful for all inquiries I receive regarding wedding photography. From the moment I get an inquiry, I check my calendar, ensure I have the date free, respond as soon as I possibly can (often immediately), and excitedly look forward to hearing more about the potential client's big day. Often this is the beginning of a beautiful client-photographer relationship, but sometimes I'm met with "you're outside of our budget," or "I found someone cheaper."
I understand. I know that weddings are very expensive, and it seems like each service (catering, flowers, cake, venue, dress, etc) are so. much. money. However, I hope that you will consider these two very important points:
1) The only thing you have left over after your wedding is all over (dress packed away, cake eaten, flowers gone, food eaten, guests gone), is your husband/wife and YOUR PHOTOS! As you grow old together, your memory will fade. Your photos will help you relive the most important day of your life. I've spoken with numerous women and men who have been very disappointed and regretful at not investing in their wedding photography.
2) If you have found someone else who will do the work for much cheaper, or for free, one of two things are happening. Either that person is not a professional (eg, is not running a proper business and will not provide you with a good service), OR they're making next to no money, which isn't very fair to someone who has such an important job in preserving your memories.
At first glimpse, someone making $3000 in 8 hours seems scandalous. However, there is more than meets the eye when it comes to how much wedding photographers charge. Let me break it down.
I spend far more time on a wedding than just the 8 (give or take) hours I'm hired for. See below:
First meeting/phone conversation with client: 1 - 2 hours
Engagement Session (included in all packages): 1-2 hours
Post-processing for engagement session: 2-3 hours
Meeting with client pre-wedding to discuss schedule, shot lists, and photo locations: 1-2 hours
Walkthrough of venue area to plan shooting locations: 1– 2 hours
Preparation the day before (preparing memory cards, writing shot lists, preparing equipment, picking up rental equipment, packing the car, consulting with second shooter): 3 – 4 hours
Travel to and from the venue: 1 - 2 hours
Time spent actually shooting at wedding: 5-10 hours
Backing up your photos after the wedding: 1 hour
Taking back rental equipment: 1 – 2 hours
Post-processing: 8 – 10 hours
Hand delivering your memories: 1 – 2 hours
Total: 26 - 42 hours per wedding
In addition to the time spent shooting a wedding, I pay out for certain thing to ensure that my clients have the best service and coverage possible:
Rental equipment (special lenses, lighting, etc)
Hiring a second shooter/assistant
Travel to venue
Packaging
Also, let's not forget the cost of running my business, which my revenue from wedding and other photo sessions has to cover:
Insurance
Taxes (income and HST)
Marketing costs (websites, business cards, advertising, etc)
Computer/software
Continuing education
Legal/accounting
Equipment
Gifts/entertaining clients
And of course, on top of that there's the usual bills we all have to pay, like mortgage, car insurance, cell/internet bills, utilities, etc, etc, etc. As a full-time photographer, with a full-time focus on my clients and my photography, the money I make from weddings and from other photo sessions is my entire income.
I hope this post has helped to shed some light on the pricing of wedding photography. I can assure you that investing in your wedding photography is not something you will regret. If you want to hire me as your wedding photographer but don't have the money upfront, I have flexible payment options and offer the option of "registering" for wedding photography, so you can have your guests help you pay for your wedding photos (instead of yet another punch bowl).
Please contact hello@amytakespictures.com for more information on your wedding photography.
0 comments: