As a 15+ year pro, I would add that people will refer you to friends that expect the same price you charged the first person. That means you are very unlikely to get a $300 session fee referral if you only charged $40 to someone “because they have a lot of friends”. Earn your way into the market you want to work in. I also second the importance of perceived value. I know a studio that wanted out of the wedding business because their wedding clients basically were all bridezillas that wanted to choreograph every shot and were never satisfied . Rather than just stop shooting weddings, they literally doubled their prices thinking that would price themselves out of weddings. As you probably guessed, most of what they shoot are very profitable weddings, and the clients respect them as artists.
What happens is this: A new, inexperienced photographer cannot with any decency charge a professional rate. So they charge a newbie rate. As they do so, they build up a bit of a client network. The photog then gains experience and expenses increase on gear upgrades, lighting, etc. They know their value by experience and quality has gone up. However, the initial network of clients has no intentions of paying much more out of the range of what they had paid before. They lose those clients. Even though the photog doesn’t depend on photography for a living (thank goodness), their former clientele tends to represent people in their area AND the kind of people they’d like to photography. So, they (myself included) get caught up in the endless trial and error of pricing strategies that are hit and miss. Every time they attempt to price high, there are no takers. Every time they price lower to get a gig and stay active, it winds up turning out the client was wealthy enough to have paid the high price. It’s Murphy’s law, literally. I’ve been doing this for a very long time and retired from it twice because of the lack of respect people have toward the labor of photography. So I recently decided I just won’t take anything short of top dollar unless the client has stuck with me from day one. And if that means no takers for a year, it’s better than selling myself short. It’s definitely better to NOT have to do photography to pay the mortgage!
LOL it looked fine from where I was sitting but when I made a thumbnail for this video I wrote to Justin & Chelsea, "Shit remind me never to use the laptop like that again"
I was impressed with how much you managed to cover at a nice smooth pace. Not too rushed, but also did not drag. Good and casual interplay between the 2 of you. Well done.
As someone who works with both private and business clients. We have done stuff from shoot weddings, instructional video's to content for live events playing on a screen. It really can be different to how I try to price. In our case, if it's a brand new client.. I talk to them, find out what they want and what they really need. Often by talking to the client you can tell how much they can or are willing to spend. If I know we can deliver the service the client wants, by then I have tried to do a quick 'time spend + how much work ( difficulty ) ' calculation for myself. For a business I don't mind charging a fair but professional price, knowing that if I spend like a full day shooting + a week of post production. I need to keep in mind that I can't do any other work and need to make enough to cover a 3rd of a months cost. I also want to make sure that I get returning clients, so I don't want to overprice it, so I often try to probe them to see if they have more potential work for us. And I don't mind to go down a little bit in price knowing I could secure future work if I do the current project to their liking. For private clients, I pretty much assume a 1 time job. depending on how they reach out I can tell if they know our work, or if they came over someone else that we have worked with. Those clients are easier in my experience, because they already have an idea of what to expect. I usually suggest a price based on that same 'time + what kind of work'. And by talking with them I can usually tell what peoples financial income is and their is nothing wrong with asking what they are looking to spend if you aren't sure. If they ask an hourly or daily rate, I give a range ( depending on the work ), but I usually mention that we prefer a "per project" pricing that includes most of everything. So that they know what they get, and we know they can afford it. No one likes hidden costs. Of course we try to maximize the price, but we never go too far over what we would be willing to pay if we needed to have the same thing done by a colleague. Unfortunately we're not big enough to reject work, since every bit of work is always welcome. Even if you might not like the client for what ever reason or the pay isn't as good as you expect. But there are two ways to handle people low balling / not being able to afford your services.. 1. Explain that you need to be able to pay for your tools and costs of operation, and that you know your work is worth that price because of your portfolio of previous work. That people pay for your experience, skill, and time you spend perfecting your craft VS 'some guy' with a camera that does it for a 3rd of your price. As a "pro" you offer a consistent level of quality and professionalism, this is a selling point for your pricing. The amount of times we have heard and seen on jobs that the 'some guy' didn't have anything that was near acceptable, is too often. Maybe offer a payment plan, to ease the financial costs of shooting something like a $3000 wedding. You would be surprised how people will be more willing to accept a higher price then they expected. 2. Simply stand you ground, thank them for reaching out to you. Tell them that you understand the situation and would still want to work with them in the future. But that you need to decline their request due to the fact that their budget or exceptions currently don't allow you to provide the services you offer. And sometimes we accept smaller projects or lesser payed work, because we need to fill in space between bigger / better projects. Just so we have some extra cash to upgrade some gear or cover some costs that we had to make. As long as the client feels like they got a good deal for their money and i know i am not heavily underpaying myself for the work you do.. I don't mind being "generous" from time to time.
I found this quite helpful, particularly about standing your ground. I've just been told my pricing was too high for a set job but for the amount of work involved I thought it was quite fair but of course this came with some doubt. This is reassuring thank you
Tearing up the print "sales strategy" is priceless! Interesting how most customers see so much additional value in a finished print (that may only actually cost a few dollars to print), yet they see so little value in most photographer's "time"!
Takes me at least 1.5hours to do basic (but pro) retouching for only 1 photo. I charge $25/hr. Some people and high-end charge $50-100/hr (magazine “tears”, flagship marketing photos, etc.); and these retouchers take several hours or even days for 1 photo. Don’t sell yourself short people; it keeps our pay higher and helps us all.
People who make websites did that people ended up working for less than minimum wage so how the hell can people compete with that? Thats why I didnt get into computer programming for a career I learned it so I can make my own websites. Sometimes I wish web developers would refuse to work for under minimum wage but theres so many that do. You get what you pay for too, usually amateur photographers or programmers may be able to get the work done for cheaper but they obviously don't put as much care as someone who makes more. People who need wedding photos generally understand that and pay good prices to photographers.
@jimmyfly what are you smoking? Professional retouching can easily take hours and hours for a single photo. You may not know this but retouching can involve more than just wacking around the spot healing brush...
Good stuff (as always). Here in northern Virginia I haven’t had many requests for prints - whether doing a portfolio builder for a model; head shots for clients; or family photos - it’s always a digital delivery. After post I export just the number of jpegs needed, and have an optional add-on fee for extras. I shoot with a Sony Alpha-99 SLT, M2, so even my full size jpegs are ~20-24 meg, so should a client want to print, the image will be great (even at poster size). Most of my work comes in as flat rate (folks find it easier) but I also offer an hourly rate - with a 2 hour minimum for shooting and a 4 hour minimum for post & delivery. Lastly, I have an annual membership at a local studio. If using the studio ($200/year membership fee and $45/hour, min 2 hour fee - my costs), I’ll add a $150 studio fee (per 2 hours). I don’t charge that add-on if shooting at a customer site or in my home studio. Keep up the outstanding work - great Podcast and YT show!
I got lucky getting photos taken professionally in Korea. This was a large photo shoot in a studio with a bunch of different themes, for wedding photos. We asked for the originals because we wanted to post some to Facebook, and they gave us ALL of them (500+) on a CD. At the time we thought it was really nice of them, but now doing some videography I feel shocked they'd give us those. It was really a huge favor.
A friend of a friend called me so I can shoot her wedding. We talked about location, time, etc., we got together to show her my portfolio, she did not have a computer. We talk about my price and she said that it was too much, and counter offered me half of what I asked. She proceded to tell me of her daughters sweet sixteen photos she had a month before, she went to Miami and paid $1500 for them. She traveled 6 hrs, hotel, food, etc., and she wanted to pay me half of my fee. At that moment, I said thank you for your interest, and walked away. I did recommend a person that does weddings for less than $500. I do give discounts, but this was ridiculous. Lots of my photographer friends are no longer doing weddings because of this reason.
I suggest two excellent books. _Accounting for Dummies_ and _Cost Accounting for Dummies_ . "For Dummies" is a publishing company. These books will help a person figure out what it costs to provide services. The books won't replace an accountant, but they will provide a good starting point for figuring out expenses, including hidden costs.
Thanks for the great video guys! I just booked my 1st pro photography shoot on location today with a deposit and the price I asked. I'm diving in deep to be current and as skilled as possible, considering. Lol I've been an amateur since forever so taking it to the next level is both exciting and a lil daunting. I appreciate your down-to-earth approach and reasonable pricing suggestions for equipment. -Wish me luck.
Such a tricky thing, shooting sports is probably the hardest thing. I have shot a motorsport event (for porsche owners...) in 38 degree+ heat, 8 hours + processing time When i posted up the gallery, I had one owner say "oh we have to pay? I thought we were giving you a good subject to shoot so they would be free".... Dont get me started on the whole argument of should images be put on facebook for publicity to hope drive sales. Putting a huge watermark over them to stop theft, or low resolution isnt a great ad Put up decent res and small watermark, good luck selling one!
@Scott Murphy This is a while back, but I think you misinterpreted the OP. It is a compliment - he said he "cannot refuse" to watch them. That's good. :)
Tony it’s funny that you mentioned Oklahoma, which is where I live right now. People here are mostly penny pinching and I am struggling to find the right pricing. I am starting as a pro right now and trying to create a business for my retirement with portraits and real estate. Hopefully by the end of this video I will be less confused. Thank you for your great job!
Well, here in Brazil all things are to dificult, and my first attempt to set a Photo business ruin, but people like you keep me up to date and with high moral to try again. The simplicity as you do the things are awsome! And you're are like a perfecto couple. Thanks a lot, for everything!
I live in a large city and shoot editorial and advertising. Editorial usually pays a flat rate for the assignment and advertising I look at usage, time to shoot and post process and company size before I price my fee out.
When someone wants to schedule a wedding and we agree on price and I'll do the photos and everything else. Then a day later they start asking about "photo booths", prints, "are those included". Those people will not be good clients and I usually just avoid at that point.
Hey!! Oklahoma guy here!! FYI: It's 3 goats and 2 chickens unless if the bride and groom are NOT related then it's an extra goat but I'll take a Walmart gift card too. 😁
When our babies were little, we were POOR. My wife went to department store, "penny-a-pound," studios and just got the one free 8x10. Those pics are treasures today.
MWD games im in the metro atl area so I found 10 photographers and adjust to your worth. So much business here you can't lose. Here the min. Is around 1500
Work with a print maker is smart advice. Prints rarely look like your monitor (even your calibrated monitor will look different to a professional print, imagine someone's £200 laptop screen....). I used to work in a camera shop, where we also made c-type prints. I was shocked by how many good photographers were surprised (even offended....) that their prints weren't identical to their monitors on the first run.
Oh, and if you do digital delivery with print-licence, be sure the client gets a print release with both their and your name on it (plus your phone number). They can show that to the print maker to absolve any concerns about breaching copyright and creating unauthorised files.
this past Saturday , i done prom photo session (around 130 fully retouched photos) for $100 , it only took me about 2 hours shooting time plus around 15 hours post edit time !
15:00 Photographer way back in my kindergarden actually did this. He took the pictures of every child there and actually give everyone finished prints to take home where the parents could decide if they want them or not and most of them did.
Nice video, guys! The only 'complain' I have is related to overestimation of prints value. Current society is in the state of transformation how the information is shared and perceived as well as level of culture is definitely going down (in average people are less likely to go to see some play in theater then blockbuster movie). Not talking about 'Instagram'-generation. People care about nice social media photos, not 20x30 prints. As well as people are not ready to pay hundreds of dollars for metal printed portraits, that they will definitely want to replace with newer ones in a year (and might need to pile up metal sheets in backyard). I would even say that I can foresee future where digital picture frames will take their place and changing a wall-size picture screens will be the norm. Times when photography (and prints) will become a sign of good tastes and prosperity are not here yet, and might never come. Having said that I think that more agile and flexible photographers will rule the industry and properly prepared digitals are the way to move. Just my 2 cents.
The Stunning Digital Photography book is great. I bought it a few month ago, and I have been learning a lot, and I genuinely recommend it. The thing is Tony mentions the 14 hours of video, and asserts that others would charge $500 for them. Maybe so, but they probably wouldn't give the same videos away free of charge at the same time. I'm not sure which 14 hours of video are ONLY for buyers of the book because the links in the book I've used go to UA-cam videos that are publicly available without buying the book, on this very channel, but with different titles to those linked in the book that go to Tony's channel. So they are not really added value, or exclusive to the book, and shouldn't be used as a marketing argument against what others would charge for them. For example, 'Architecture and Travel' (unlisted on Tony's channel) has exactly the same TUTORIAL content as 'Photographing Buildings and Architecture in Cities-Photography Tutorial' on this channel; and the 'Showing Depth' video linked from the book is the same tutorial as 'Composition-A Digital Photography Tutorial' on this channel. There are other examples of videos that I watched before buying the book that have the same tutorial content. When things are given away to almost a million subscribers with no perceived/market value attached, they cannot suddenly be worth $500 with a book for the same free tutorials. With all of that said, I still do recommend the book because you will learn so much about your camera and compositions; and all of the photo examples in the book were taken by Tony & Chelsea, so you know the result matches the advice.
When I first started out the first year I only made 12,000 total. Definitely not livable, but for my skill level and location I couldn’t imagine charging more than $150 for an hour portrait session. Thanks to my sister, who was way more business savvy by the third year I was making way more and charging a better amount
Terrific video - sound advice that would be applicable to any business. But it was also fun watching you guys interact with each other. I was experiencing a lot of stress when I sat down to watch this and afterwards I just felt GREAT! Thanks.
I love your podcasts. Your insights have been extremely helpful for me, and when I repeat some of the stuff you tell me to my friends they think I'm some kind of genius. I just want to say, Tony has got a great sense of humor, but somehow Chelsea makes me literally laugh out loud on every episode. I don't know, she just has a direct line to my funny bone. Thank you guys.
I know this is late in the game - but don't forget Olan Mills. I think most of our family pictures growing up had an Olan Mills logo stamped in the corner. And apparently they are still in business.
You guys should go to JCP for a portrait, then take your own shots and compare - pose and backdrop/props stay the same, but lighting and composition can change. Also would be taking JCP shots and retouching them yourselves to show the value of the retouching.
Very well articulated and informative. I think many people will benefit from this. Setting pricing is actually more difficult than many realize. Research is key and knowing what your time/expenses/expertise are worth is extremely important. So is presentation... Yup, more difficult than many think...
Photographers who only give out analog prints are a nightmare to me. What am I supposed to do with them? Scan them right back into a digital file of course. The number of memorable moments I now only have as scans with dust and specks on them is depressing, simply because those photographers would not give out digital files. Offer me a good deal on prints, an I'll order some additionally.
An employee gets roughly one week off for legal holidays and two weeks paid vacation, so also remember your hourly rates need to cover at least 120 "vacation hours" in every year. Lots of things like that really impact your overhead.
Hey guys great stuff! Wondering if you guys can make an updated pricing video with todays trends and changing genres such brand shoots for small and big companies, or even editorials with some insight as to how to approach it coming out covid lockdown.
I have a great management job and make good money. I got into photography. 9 months ago. After working 8 hours a day I'll study photography for at least six hours everyday. For the last 9 months whether it's watching tutorials on UA-cam. Reading books or practice practice practice. I've done a few events and did a great job. I've also got pretty good referrals but my photography has grown so much so fast that I even shocked myself. I'm now working with a three light Studio and the second living room in my house. The expenses are astronomical. From the computer software to the lenses to the backdrops just strobes then you got to get your soft boxes in your Beauty dishes. Just my computer was on a $2,000. I'm acting using the same computer as Tony. I have the HP Spectre 360 gym cut with 16 gigs of RAM and two terabytes of storage. Then I had to buy an additional external hard drives. So the list goes on and on and on I know what you mean
For the context in Bangladesh, a country right beside india The top of the top Photographers charge just 2000 dollars for a 3 day wedding. With a lot of assistants and editing panels. And fyi gears costs double with no official warranty . And the official ones cost 6 times the us price. Like a sony a7 iii runs for 3000 us dollars here from unofficial retailers.
Hi tony and Chelsea The price factor is difficult to achieve..... potential clients are asking why pay where their iphone / Huawei and Samsung photo can do the job .... And in Asia where I am ppl are not willing to pay for photography they expect free ....
Aside from the time and energy put into it. My problem is that. I don't know if my work is that higher quality level to charge the premium prices. Like if it's a stand out uqiue thing. I tend to underestimate my value. How do you go about that pricing?
How much should I charge for prints if im a teen starting out? Im pretty good for my age and have shot the us army courage rock band as well as an exotic car dealership
I do IPS and offer a low res digital versions of purchased prints with my logo in the corner for them to share on social media with instructions and in the contract not to edit or print them
Glad it has been a successful strategy for you so far. My cynicism on it, fwiw, only comes from being on the other side. I used to work in a place where we provided (moderately) HQ prints. The crap some customers spewed when we noticed they were asking to print copyrighted material hahaha. My personal favourite is the customers who claimed to have a print release. Right there, on their phone. 'Looking at it right now' and all. Odd how they refused to show it to me though (I am not even kidding - I think the answer was something like 'I don't have to do that'). I was absolutely creasing after they left the shop and I had wished them 'good luck' (admitedly a bit passive agressive - wasn't intentional I promise) as they were telling me they are taking their business elsewhere. My name got taken and I was promised a big complaint would come my way - never happened obviously!
Woah, 2-4 retouched photos only? I retouch all of the best pictures (that shows their face) and send it, then again, I'm still improving and expanding my brand but I did notice that everyone else I see posting senior portraits would post like 1-3 pictures while those who would share the ones I took post 5-8 pictures. On average I send around 20-30, depending on how well the shoot went. Right now I'm charging $80-$100 but I am primarily doing senior portraits and for the most part, it's students I know so I do love working with them and making them look amazing in pictures.
@@michaelclark9762 I believe so, I live in Hawaii so most locations are pretty close by and it doesn't really take me long to edit unless there's like a few pictures that are really amazing that I want to make look even better but this is completely a freelance thing since I have 2 jobs right now so I'm fine right now with not charging that much.
This video came out at the perfect time for me. I'm just starting out and just booked my first paid session 2 days ago. I'll definitely follow your suggestions regarding the pricing. I always enjoy your videos, Thanks for making them.
Absolutely useful video. When it comes to taxes and deductables, it varies from country to country. In the Netherlands for example, you can NOT deduct a percentage of your housing costs for running your business from home - unless a part of your home is exclusively for your business, with its own front door, it's own bathroom, kitchen etc.
Just last weekend at the Stanford Shopping Center, people were lined up to have their kids' photo taken with the Easter Bunny. This in the heart of Silicon Valley, where everyone loves tech and their phones. But still, there's apparently a demand for a "mall photographer," and not just at JCP.
I think it's worth mentioning that others can be a good indicator of the value of the product you are producing. If you are completely buried with work at your current rates, people are obviously valuing your work above what you're charging. At this point it's probably wise to incrementally keep raising your rates till they match the value that clients are recognizing.
Where I live there's an association of professional photographers and they stipulate the rates, so photographers can't charge below but I'm sure there are many who do.
Any Tips on what to charge for Drone Services? Rural area, not alot of competitors, large farm community. Real Estate (1-2 Min of video with 5 to 10 digi) Weddings Crop Survey (Hourly Rate) Prints Etc... Any advice is greatly appreciated Shooting on Mavic Air
I'm just starting out, would it be to much to ask to get a bit of feed back on my website portfolio. I'm at the moment doing free sessions to build up portfolio ready for November change over from square space to yell management
I can't imagine leaving home for less than $350. Packing, unpacking gear, setup, and travel can take 3-4 hours alone. Plus another 3-4 hours for all the other stuff. Pretty much a full day's work.
I am a student and i was saving for a new camera but i loved you guys so buying your book will come before the sony a7riv😊❤️ Still have a lot to learn✊🏻
You guys absolutely rock. Your opening "Picture This" aliased low res graphic does not. 🤣😩😢 Shall I redo it for you? Send me the fonts and I'll give it a whirl. Or maybe it just needs output at a higher resolution. Surely, all it needs to be output at is 1920 x 1080 for UA-cam, unless you are editing in 4K? Please advise, this is going to wear on me all night. 😱😌
A friend of mine, in the same freelance business, asked me to give them a quote to subcontract a job. I quoted them 2/3 of what their estimate had been, even though my hourly rate was 25% higher. And delivered, at the price. I just knew some workflow tricks they didn't, and clock my time much more tightly. Customers need to know, hourly prices mean nothing.
Do you have a video on the downside of selling digital files? Doesn't this drive down the overall value of the business? I understand the trade-offs. but would like to hear your thoughts and experience with this issue. thanks.
Photography/Videography is a pretty cheap way to become a small business owner with the potential to make well above the 6-figure threshold! If you don’t have the cash you can finance $10k to $60k and have every single thing you need from a multi cam setup with a vehicle and at least one powerhouse computer to process your images and a nice printer for beautiful prints. If you create a well thought out business plan and don’t mind putting the time and patience in you really can be your own boss and have more fun in life.
Another highly beneficial video! Thank you Tony and Chelsea! The quality of your relationship shows through this video and it is invaluable. Thanks again for your hustle!
15:00 mark, tearing the photo in half, reminds me of something i was told, that you should wrap empty gift boxes for kids around christmas and when they misbehave grab them from under the tree and throw them in the fire to teach them a lesson LOL
Though I’m retired I’ve always had two passions. Playing the guitar and photography. I have played in a band off and on through the years. During the pandemic the band has not been able to play with all gatherings being postponed / cancelled. I’m now saving money because we’re not Playing gigs. I see now I should have chosen my other passion to make a little extra money.
Not sure if you guys have updated this BUT most photographers don't sell prints because of taxes. If you charge $300 for the photo session and then sell a print from that session for say $50 then you MUST pay sales tax on the entire total of $350. That's how it works in my state and why most people I know don't do prints they'll refer the client to a site online that does prints. It just doesn't make financial sense for photographers to sell prints thanks to the wonderful tax laws.
Time is so tricky... Some days it will actually go faster than others. It might seem set to a certain speed, but it's not. XD - But yea, you never know how long something will take and it usually takes longer. - The way I calculate something is very generously, like when you'd expect something to take an hour, perhaps add half an hour or fluff, and then... add a day.
I disagree with the book pricing and how you thought it was maybe bad business. I know you guys were just joking around, and I am SURE that you guys could sell it for $200. But my logic is sort of the Walmart logic. I think part of the REASON you guys probably sell the volume you do is because of the pricing. Like, with Walmart. Maybe you can get the same product elsewhere, but the other store charges 3 times as much. BUT because Walmart is so cheap is sells FIVE times the quantity. Anyway, thanks for the video guys....it puts things into perspective.
I’m currently 15 and getting into photography. Do you have any tips for me and what I should expect? I went to take a friends homecoming photos for her and I never got to take the photos and I felt really bad.
Hey T&C, Really enjoy this format great to have something I can play at work without having to constantly look up. After an intense week at work I've listened to the full Picture this play list! all 43 including the one in the middle 'B&W' that's actually a a T&C live! | don't really know if you take viewer suggestions for show but something you discussed in one of the video's has me thinking/inspired! And there isn't a lot of info out there to help me take it further BUT I think you guys probably already know it. Stock Photography! - I know there is no real money in it anymore - but I have a decent career like many photography is a sideline and it doesn't really matter to me how much I make from it enjoying it is more important and thus your comments on Stock got me thinking. Virtually every personal project I have ever done regardless of genre could be turned to stock photography and this might really help me improve the technical side of my work and maybe build up a little long term passive income. But I have some questions and the answers don't seem to be easy to find - it would be amazing if you could cover them sometime. - Which are the best agencies to submit to and why? what should we be looking for. - Do submitted images have to be submitted exclusively to the agency? - or can back catalogue stuff be used that I might have sold before? - and can i still sell privately things I have submitted? - Can i withdraw my images from the agency later? If i did would I get a list of who has got them etc. so I can know when they are being used with and without a licence? - Is there any sort of specific clause I need in model releases when submitting to stock sites? And anything else you think we need to know. Keep up the goodwork! And sorry for the length of this comment.
Project rate is the best way to charge in my experience. Get all the info, then build out a quote. This allows you to book both $400 jobs and $25K jobs. Doing an hourly rate severely limits your earning potential. How do you justify a $25K bill when you are charging hourly?
I also have a bit of a problem coming up with asking-prices, and I mean for anything. Even when I sell an item almost anonymously online or something. - But I just started using common sense and some reasoning to figure that out, what's fair, and also since I'm a generous person I know that I wouldn't try to "rip anyone off" or anything. - On the flipside, however, I find it funny when people contact me and show their annoyance or frustration by going like "Are you for real with your price? It's *this price* there and there.". - I wouldn't know what to respond with other than "OK... So buy it there.". - They could've been nice about it and made an offer, but I think people would rather be outraged than be friendly or helpful (even for themselves). - People don't understand how to create a dialogue anymore... That included myself for the longest time, but I get it now. You just have to show some discipline and be reasonably direct about it. You have to have some form of business-mode, otherwise it will become too personal and emotional, which isn't how you deal with trades of goods and currency.
What a wonderful couple of professionals sharing always something valuable. Whit you is always easy to understand where to go and where I am stand up. Thank you very much for share. 😘🙏🤗
Is it okay to give photos to paid clients with a logo/watermark in the corner? I kinda scared about giving photos away without a logo/watermark because of people might be taking my photos and making it theirs.
As a 15+ year pro, I would add that people will refer you to friends that expect the same price you charged the first person. That means you are very unlikely to get a $300 session fee referral if you only charged $40 to someone “because they have a lot of friends”. Earn your way into the market you want to work in.
I also second the importance of perceived value. I know a studio that wanted out of the wedding business because their wedding clients basically were all bridezillas that wanted to choreograph every shot and were never satisfied . Rather than just stop shooting weddings, they literally doubled their prices thinking that would price themselves out of weddings. As you probably guessed, most of what they shoot are very profitable weddings, and the clients respect them as artists.
What happens is this:
A new, inexperienced photographer cannot with any decency charge a professional rate. So they charge a newbie rate. As they do so, they build up a bit of a client network. The photog then gains experience and expenses increase on gear upgrades, lighting, etc. They know their value by experience and quality has gone up. However, the initial network of clients has no intentions of paying much more out of the range of what they had paid before. They lose those clients. Even though the photog doesn’t depend on photography for a living (thank goodness), their former clientele tends to represent people in their area AND the kind of people they’d like to photography.
So, they (myself included) get caught up in the endless trial and error of pricing strategies that are hit and miss. Every time they attempt to price high, there are no takers. Every time they price lower to get a gig and stay active, it winds up turning out the client was wealthy enough to have paid the high price. It’s Murphy’s law, literally. I’ve been doing this for a very long time and retired from it twice because of the lack of respect people have toward the labor of photography.
So I recently decided I just won’t take anything short of top dollar unless the client has stuck with me from day one. And if that means no takers for a year, it’s better than selling myself short. It’s definitely better to NOT have to do photography to pay the mortgage!
@@PeteTaylorPTI last sentence is what allows you to do that. For some it’s make $300 that day.. or $0.. even though they may want $600
Your laptop placement is giving me anxiety.
LOL it looked fine from where I was sitting but when I made a thumbnail for this video I wrote to Justin & Chelsea, "Shit remind me never to use the laptop like that again"
Now that I look it, it does look odd lol.
Lol
Distracted me for the entire video lol
haha
I was impressed with how much you managed to cover at a nice smooth pace. Not too rushed, but also did not drag. Good and casual interplay between the 2 of you. Well done.
As someone who works with both private and business clients. We have done stuff from shoot weddings, instructional video's to content for live events playing on a screen.
It really can be different to how I try to price. In our case, if it's a brand new client.. I talk to them, find out what they want and what they really need.
Often by talking to the client you can tell how much they can or are willing to spend.
If I know we can deliver the service the client wants, by then I have tried to do a quick 'time spend + how much work ( difficulty ) ' calculation for myself.
For a business I don't mind charging a fair but professional price, knowing that if I spend like a full day shooting + a week of post production. I need to keep in mind that I can't do any other work and need to make enough to cover a 3rd of a months cost.
I also want to make sure that I get returning clients, so I don't want to overprice it, so I often try to probe them to see if they have more potential work for us. And I don't mind to go down a little bit in price knowing I could secure future work if I do the current project to their liking.
For private clients, I pretty much assume a 1 time job. depending on how they reach out I can tell if they know our work, or if they came over someone else that we have worked with.
Those clients are easier in my experience, because they already have an idea of what to expect. I usually suggest a price based on that same 'time + what kind of work'. And by talking with them I can usually tell what peoples financial income is and their is nothing wrong with asking what they are looking to spend if you aren't sure.
If they ask an hourly or daily rate, I give a range ( depending on the work ), but I usually mention that we prefer a "per project" pricing that includes most of everything.
So that they know what they get, and we know they can afford it. No one likes hidden costs.
Of course we try to maximize the price, but we never go too far over what we would be willing to pay if we needed to have the same thing done by a colleague.
Unfortunately we're not big enough to reject work, since every bit of work is always welcome. Even if you might not like the client for what ever reason or the pay isn't as good as you expect. But there are two ways to handle people low balling / not being able to afford your services..
1. Explain that you need to be able to pay for your tools and costs of operation, and that you know your work is worth that price because of your portfolio of previous work.
That people pay for your experience, skill, and time you spend perfecting your craft VS 'some guy' with a camera that does it for a 3rd of your price.
As a "pro" you offer a consistent level of quality and professionalism, this is a selling point for your pricing. The amount of times we have heard and seen on jobs that the 'some guy' didn't have anything that was near acceptable, is too often.
Maybe offer a payment plan, to ease the financial costs of shooting something like a $3000 wedding. You would be surprised how people will be more willing to accept a higher price then they expected.
2. Simply stand you ground, thank them for reaching out to you. Tell them that you understand the situation and would still want to work with them in the future. But that you need to decline their request due to the fact that their budget or exceptions currently don't allow you to provide the services you offer.
And sometimes we accept smaller projects or lesser payed work, because we need to fill in space between bigger / better projects.
Just so we have some extra cash to upgrade some gear or cover some costs that we had to make.
As long as the client feels like they got a good deal for their money and i know i am not heavily underpaying myself for the work you do.. I don't mind being "generous" from time to time.
I found this quite helpful, particularly about standing your ground. I've just been told my pricing was too high for a set job but for the amount of work involved I thought it was quite fair but of course this came with some doubt. This is reassuring thank you
"I have a whole lifetime of experience with dudes underestimating things." Fantastic quote there Tony.
Tearing up the print "sales strategy" is priceless! Interesting how most customers see so much additional value in a finished print (that may only actually cost a few dollars to print), yet they see so little value in most photographer's "time"!
Takes me at least 1.5hours to do basic (but pro) retouching for only 1 photo. I charge $25/hr. Some people and high-end charge $50-100/hr (magazine “tears”, flagship marketing photos, etc.); and these retouchers take several hours or even days for 1 photo. Don’t sell yourself short people; it keeps our pay higher and helps us all.
@Less Talk, More Delicious You should be charging a lot more than $25/hr if the market in your area can bear it. $50/hr would be a minimum for pros.
People who make websites did that people ended up working for less than minimum wage so how the hell can people compete with that? Thats why I didnt get into computer programming for a career I learned it so I can make my own websites. Sometimes I wish web developers would refuse to work for under minimum wage but theres so many that do. You get what you pay for too, usually amateur photographers or programmers may be able to get the work done for cheaper but they obviously don't put as much care as someone who makes more. People who need wedding photos generally understand that and pay good prices to photographers.
@jimmyfly what are you smoking? Professional retouching can easily take hours and hours for a single photo. You may not know this but retouching can involve more than just wacking around the spot healing brush...
@jimmyfly he said 1.5 hours not days...
@jimmyfly dude your last post literally says if you're spending days something is wrong. 🤔
Good stuff (as always). Here in northern Virginia I haven’t had many requests for prints - whether doing a portfolio builder for a model; head shots for clients; or family photos - it’s always a digital delivery. After post I export just the number of jpegs needed, and have an optional add-on fee for extras. I shoot with a Sony Alpha-99 SLT, M2, so even my full size jpegs are ~20-24 meg, so should a client want to print, the image will be great (even at poster size). Most of my work comes in as flat rate (folks find it easier) but I also offer an hourly rate - with a 2 hour minimum for shooting and a 4 hour minimum for post & delivery. Lastly, I have an annual membership at a local studio. If using the studio ($200/year membership fee and $45/hour, min 2 hour fee - my costs), I’ll add a $150 studio fee (per 2 hours). I don’t charge that add-on if shooting at a customer site or in my home studio. Keep up the outstanding work - great Podcast and YT show!
Excellent breakdown, thank you
I got lucky getting photos taken professionally in Korea. This was a large photo shoot in a studio with a bunch of different themes, for wedding photos. We asked for the originals because we wanted to post some to Facebook, and they gave us ALL of them (500+) on a CD. At the time we thought it was really nice of them, but now doing some videography I feel shocked they'd give us those. It was really a huge favor.
A friend of a friend called me so I can shoot her wedding. We talked about location, time, etc., we got together to show her my portfolio, she did not have a computer. We talk about my price and she said that it was too much, and counter offered me half of what I asked. She proceded to tell me of her daughters sweet sixteen photos she had a month before, she went to Miami and paid $1500 for them. She traveled 6 hrs, hotel, food, etc., and she wanted to pay me half of my fee. At that moment, I said thank you for your interest, and walked away. I did recommend a person that does weddings for less than $500. I do give discounts, but this was ridiculous. Lots of my photographer friends are no longer doing weddings because of this reason.
I suggest two excellent books. _Accounting for Dummies_ and _Cost Accounting for Dummies_ . "For Dummies" is a publishing company. These books will help a person figure out what it costs to provide services. The books won't replace an accountant, but they will provide a good starting point for figuring out expenses, including hidden costs.
Jacob Roberts Good rule of thumb is 20% net profit/in your pocket in any business.
This is a great suggestion - I read Accounting for Dummies maybe 20 years ago and it seriously changed my life and career.
This is a great suggestion - I read Accounting for Dummies maybe 20 years ago and it seriously changed my life and career.
Yes! looking into those books now. All this starting a business and learn how to set prices is all way too confusing.
Very useful information. I should definitely look into those books.
Thanks for the great video guys! I just booked my 1st pro photography shoot on location today with a deposit and the price I asked. I'm diving in deep to be current and as skilled as possible, considering. Lol
I've been an amateur since forever so taking it to the next level is both exciting and a lil daunting. I appreciate your down-to-earth approach and reasonable pricing suggestions for equipment. -Wish me luck.
Such a tricky thing, shooting sports is probably the hardest thing.
I have shot a motorsport event (for porsche owners...) in 38 degree+ heat, 8 hours + processing time
When i posted up the gallery, I had one owner say "oh we have to pay? I thought we were giving you a good subject to shoot so they would be free"....
Dont get me started on the whole argument of should images be put on facebook for publicity to hope drive sales.
Putting a huge watermark over them to stop theft, or low resolution isnt a great ad
Put up decent res and small watermark, good luck selling one!
I don't care what the subject of the video is. I simply cannot refuse to watch 30 minutes of sassy Chelsea and chill/lit Tony.
Gavin Wade Lol. No joke, a majority of the videos I watch might not even pertain yet I enjoy them just the same. Always first rate and knowledgeable
@Scott Murphy This is a while back, but I think you misinterpreted the OP. It is a compliment - he said he "cannot refuse" to watch them. That's good. :)
Tony it’s funny that you mentioned Oklahoma, which is where I live right now. People here are mostly penny pinching and I am struggling to find the right pricing. I am starting as a pro right now and trying to create a business for my retirement with portraits and real estate. Hopefully by the end of this video I will be less confused. Thank you for your great job!
22:05 - Unretouched? No way. You're not getting any product that *I* don't think is finished. :)
A year and more after, this is adding sooo much value to my current business planning process. Thank You 🙏🏾
Yo how is it going
Well, here in Brazil all things are to dificult, and my first attempt to set a Photo business ruin, but people like you keep me up to date and with high moral to try again. The simplicity as you do the things are awsome! And you're are like a perfecto couple.
Thanks a lot, for everything!
How is it going
why didnt it end at 42 ? tony was clearly right
goodbye and thanks for all the fish
And always carry a towel.
I live in a large city and shoot editorial and advertising. Editorial usually pays a flat rate for the assignment and advertising I look at usage, time to shoot and post process and company size before I price my fee out.
Hahaha... How about a video on "clients to avoid"?
This would be a great topic.
This would be a great topic.
When someone wants to schedule a wedding and we agree on price and I'll do the photos and everything else. Then a day later they start asking about "photo booths", prints, "are those included". Those people will not be good clients and I usually just avoid at that point.
I agree. Their characteristics etc. Let me know if you need OUR help! I have tons of tips to spot them a mile a way
Clients from hell? :D
Hey!! Oklahoma guy here!! FYI: It's 3 goats and 2 chickens unless if the bride and groom are NOT related then it's an extra goat but I'll take a Walmart gift card too. 😁
When our babies were little, we were POOR. My wife went to department store, "penny-a-pound," studios and just got the one free 8x10. Those pics are treasures today.
And I was just creating a pricing list and this popped up lol
haha same I've been trying to figure out rates for a while now lol
MWD games im in the metro atl area so I found 10 photographers and adjust to your worth. So much business here you can't lose. Here the min. Is around 1500
whoa man that's crazyyy I live in birmingham and the rates are no where near that high bro
That much? 😱🤔👨🏾💻🛫
WE KNOW, BRANDON. YOUR WISH IS OUR COMMAND.
Work with a print maker is smart advice. Prints rarely look like your monitor (even your calibrated monitor will look different to a professional print, imagine someone's £200 laptop screen....).
I used to work in a camera shop, where we also made c-type prints. I was shocked by how many good photographers were surprised (even offended....) that their prints weren't identical to their monitors on the first run.
Oh, and if you do digital delivery with print-licence, be sure the client gets a print release with both their and your name on it (plus your phone number).
They can show that to the print maker to absolve any concerns about breaching copyright and creating unauthorised files.
this past Saturday , i done prom photo session (around 130 fully retouched photos) for $100 , it only took me about 2 hours shooting time plus around 15 hours post edit time !
Well, it's a good thing that you have this channel and your audience to back up your book's reputation. We all know it's quality work.
15:00 Photographer way back in my kindergarden actually did this. He took the pictures of every child there and actually give everyone finished prints to take home where the parents could decide if they want them or not and most of them did.
Nice video, guys! The only 'complain' I have is related to overestimation of prints value. Current society is in the state of transformation how the information is shared and perceived as well as level of culture is definitely going down (in average people are less likely to go to see some play in theater then blockbuster movie). Not talking about 'Instagram'-generation. People care about nice social media photos, not 20x30 prints. As well as people are not ready to pay hundreds of dollars for metal printed portraits, that they will definitely want to replace with newer ones in a year (and might need to pile up metal sheets in backyard). I would even say that I can foresee future where digital picture frames will take their place and changing a wall-size picture screens will be the norm. Times when photography (and prints) will become a sign of good tastes and prosperity are not here yet, and might never come. Having said that I think that more agile and flexible photographers will rule the industry and properly prepared digitals are the way to move. Just my 2 cents.
The Stunning Digital Photography book is great. I bought it a few month ago, and I have been learning a lot, and I genuinely recommend it. The thing is Tony mentions the 14 hours of video, and asserts that others would charge $500 for them. Maybe so, but they probably wouldn't give the same videos away free of charge at the same time. I'm not sure which 14 hours of video are ONLY for buyers of the book because the links in the book I've used go to UA-cam videos that are publicly available without buying the book, on this very channel, but with different titles to those linked in the book that go to Tony's channel. So they are not really added value, or exclusive to the book, and shouldn't be used as a marketing argument against what others would charge for them. For example, 'Architecture and Travel' (unlisted on Tony's channel) has exactly the same TUTORIAL content as 'Photographing Buildings and Architecture in Cities-Photography Tutorial' on this channel; and the 'Showing Depth' video linked from the book is the same tutorial as 'Composition-A Digital Photography Tutorial' on this channel. There are other examples of videos that I watched before buying the book that have the same tutorial content. When things are given away to almost a million subscribers with no perceived/market value attached, they cannot suddenly be worth $500 with a book for the same free tutorials.
With all of that said, I still do recommend the book because you will learn so much about your camera and compositions; and all of the photo examples in the book were taken by Tony & Chelsea, so you know the result matches the advice.
Absolutely love you two ! My wife and I started our photography business because of you. Purchased the book a few years ago and love it!
How's your photography business going?
When I first started out the first year I only made 12,000 total. Definitely not livable, but for my skill level and location I couldn’t imagine charging more than $150 for an hour portrait session. Thanks to my sister, who was way more business savvy by the third year I was making way more and charging a better amount
Terrific video - sound advice that would be applicable to any business. But it was also fun watching you guys interact with each other. I was experiencing a lot of stress when I sat down to watch this and afterwards I just felt GREAT! Thanks.
I love your podcasts. Your insights have been extremely helpful for me, and when I repeat some of the stuff you tell me to my friends they think I'm some kind of genius. I just want to say, Tony has got a great sense of humor, but somehow Chelsea makes me literally laugh out loud on every episode. I don't know, she just has a direct line to my funny bone. Thank you guys.
Nice hitchhikers guide to the galaxy reference, Tony.
I know this is late in the game - but don't forget Olan Mills. I think most of our family pictures growing up had an Olan Mills logo stamped in the corner. And apparently they are still in business.
Can you discuss how to determine if you should conduct business as a sole proprietor, doing business as, limited liability corporation, etc.?
You guys should go to JCP for a portrait, then take your own shots and compare - pose and backdrop/props stay the same, but lighting and composition can change.
Also would be taking JCP shots and retouching them yourselves to show the value of the retouching.
As an Oklahoman... Yeah, that sounds about right.
Dylan Perkins I was thinking the Thinking what should I change in Oklahoma and then he said that and was like. Yep sounds good.
Am in Oklahoma and need product photography
I lived in claremore for about 8 months coming from Seattle and I hated it
what's the name of the lav you're using? Uni or omni?
Very well articulated and informative. I think many people will benefit from this. Setting pricing is actually more difficult than many realize. Research is key and knowing what your time/expenses/expertise are worth is extremely important. So is presentation... Yup, more difficult than many think...
Photographers who only give out analog prints are a nightmare to me. What am I supposed to do with them? Scan them right back into a digital file of course. The number of memorable moments I now only have as scans with dust and specks on them is depressing, simply because those photographers would not give out digital files. Offer me a good deal on prints, an I'll order some additionally.
An employee gets roughly one week off for legal holidays and two weeks paid vacation, so also remember your hourly rates need to cover at least 120 "vacation hours" in every year. Lots of things like that really impact your overhead.
Hey guys great stuff! Wondering if you guys can make an updated pricing video with todays trends and changing genres such brand shoots for small and big companies, or even editorials with some insight as to how to approach it coming out covid lockdown.
I have a great management job and make good money. I got into photography. 9 months ago. After working 8 hours a day I'll study photography for at least six hours everyday. For the last 9 months whether it's watching tutorials on UA-cam. Reading books or practice practice practice. I've done a few events and did a great job. I've also got pretty good referrals but my photography has grown so much so fast that I even shocked myself. I'm now working with a three light Studio and the second living room in my house. The expenses are astronomical. From the computer software to the lenses to the backdrops just strobes then you got to get your soft boxes in your Beauty dishes. Just my computer was on a $2,000. I'm acting using the same computer as Tony. I have the HP Spectre 360 gym cut with 16 gigs of RAM and two terabytes of storage. Then I had to buy an additional external hard drives. So the list goes on and on and on I know what you mean
For the context in Bangladesh, a country right beside india The top of the top Photographers charge just 2000 dollars for a 3 day wedding. With a lot of assistants and editing panels. And fyi gears costs double with no official warranty . And the official ones cost 6 times the us price. Like a sony a7 iii runs for 3000 us dollars here from unofficial retailers.
Hi tony and Chelsea
The price factor is difficult to achieve..... potential clients are asking why pay where their iphone / Huawei and Samsung photo can do the job ....
And in Asia where I am ppl are not willing to pay for photography they expect free ....
Aside from the time and energy put into it. My problem is that. I don't know if my work is that higher quality level to charge the premium prices. Like if it's a stand out uqiue thing. I tend to underestimate my value. How do you go about that pricing?
How much should I charge for prints if im a teen starting out? Im pretty good for my age and have shot the us army courage rock band as well as an exotic car dealership
I do IPS and offer a low res digital versions of purchased prints with my logo in the corner for them to share on social media with instructions and in the contract not to edit or print them
Christopher O'Grady probably won't stop them trying haha.
Scriptosaurus rex yeah some people are determined, but it’s the compromise I’ve found to work pretty well
Glad it has been a successful strategy for you so far.
My cynicism on it, fwiw, only comes from being on the other side. I used to work in a place where we provided (moderately) HQ prints. The crap some customers spewed when we noticed they were asking to print copyrighted material hahaha.
My personal favourite is the customers who claimed to have a print release. Right there, on their phone. 'Looking at it right now' and all. Odd how they refused to show it to me though (I am not even kidding - I think the answer was something like 'I don't have to do that'). I was absolutely creasing after they left the shop and I had wished them 'good luck' (admitedly a bit passive agressive - wasn't intentional I promise) as they were telling me they are taking their business elsewhere. My name got taken and I was promised a big complaint would come my way - never happened obviously!
did you know it was copyrighted because of the watermarks?
It is copyrighted from the second you've created the image. The watermark is just another safeguard to deter people from stealing.
Woah, 2-4 retouched photos only? I retouch all of the best pictures (that shows their face) and send it, then again, I'm still improving and expanding my brand but I did notice that everyone else I see posting senior portraits would post like 1-3 pictures while those who would share the ones I took post 5-8 pictures. On average I send around 20-30, depending on how well the shoot went. Right now I'm charging $80-$100 but I am primarily doing senior portraits and for the most part, it's students I know so I do love working with them and making them look amazing in pictures.
Are you even making minimum wage for your time at those prices? Not to mention making absolutely nothing to cover the cost of your gear.
@@michaelclark9762 I believe so, I live in Hawaii so most locations are pretty close by and it doesn't really take me long to edit unless there's like a few pictures that are really amazing that I want to make look even better but this is completely a freelance thing since I have 2 jobs right now so I'm fine right now with not charging that much.
This video came out at the perfect time for me. I'm just starting out and just booked my first paid session 2 days ago. I'll definitely follow your suggestions regarding the pricing.
I always enjoy your videos, Thanks for making them.
Lol I now know where you are I grew up getting family photos at that jc penny in the crystal mall. Oh and the clam chowder in the bread bowl.
I think the current going rate in West Texas is Half-a-Goat with a One-Goat minimum (thanks to PITA).
Absolutely useful video. When it comes to taxes and deductables, it varies from country to country. In the Netherlands for example, you can NOT deduct a percentage of your housing costs for running your business from home - unless a part of your home is exclusively for your business, with its own front door, it's own bathroom, kitchen etc.
Klopt! And please tell that to every sales person on the phone that tries to sell you a 'business' energy contract.
Just last weekend at the Stanford Shopping Center, people were lined up to have their kids' photo taken with the Easter Bunny. This in the heart of Silicon Valley, where everyone loves tech and their phones. But still, there's apparently a demand for a "mall photographer," and not just at JCP.
I think it's worth mentioning that others can be a good indicator of the value of the product you are producing. If you are completely buried with work at your current rates, people are obviously valuing your work above what you're charging. At this point it's probably wise to incrementally keep raising your rates till they match the value that clients are recognizing.
Where I live there's an association of professional photographers and they stipulate the rates, so photographers can't charge below but I'm sure there are many who do.
How much should you charge for portrait and weddings as a beginner
How do you know what camera to look at. DO you have a secret videographer there?
42. Perfect! The answer to life, the universe and everything.
Any Tips on what to charge for Drone Services? Rural area, not alot of competitors, large farm community.
Real Estate (1-2 Min of video with 5 to 10 digi)
Weddings
Crop Survey (Hourly Rate)
Prints
Etc... Any advice is greatly appreciated
Shooting on Mavic Air
Love the placement of the Photoshop book, very nice touch. Suggestive selling.
I'm just starting out, would it be to much to ask to get a bit of feed back on my website portfolio. I'm at the moment doing free sessions to build up portfolio ready for November change over from square space to yell management
I can't imagine leaving home for less than $350. Packing, unpacking gear, setup, and travel can take 3-4 hours alone. Plus another 3-4 hours for all the other stuff. Pretty much a full day's work.
Would really like to hear more of your pricing thoughts and strategy
@@damianranko9740 always charge the highest rate possible you need to make $1000 a day considering you will never be fully booked.
I am a student and i was saving for a new camera but i loved you guys so buying your book will come before the sony a7riv😊❤️
Still have a lot to learn✊🏻
You guys absolutely rock. Your opening "Picture This" aliased low res graphic does not. 🤣😩😢 Shall I redo it for you? Send me the fonts and I'll give it a whirl. Or maybe it just needs output at a higher resolution. Surely, all it needs to be output at is 1920 x 1080 for UA-cam, unless you are editing in 4K? Please advise, this is going to wear on me all night. 😱😌
A friend of mine, in the same freelance business, asked me to give them a quote to subcontract a job. I quoted them 2/3 of what their estimate had been, even though my hourly rate was 25% higher. And delivered, at the price. I just knew some workflow tricks they didn't, and clock my time much more tightly. Customers need to know, hourly prices mean nothing.
Do you have a video on the downside of selling digital files? Doesn't this drive down the overall value of the business? I understand the trade-offs. but would like to hear your thoughts and experience with this issue. thanks.
In other words, it’s cheaper to buy your own equipment and take the pictures.?
how do you calculate tax on sessions? not sure what the tax rate should be etc for Los Angeles, CA
I've called around and just asked what camera and lens setup. I get a lot of entry level camera with kit lens
Photography/Videography is a pretty cheap way to become a small business owner with the potential to make well above the 6-figure threshold! If you don’t have the cash you can finance $10k to $60k and have every single thing you need from a multi cam setup with a vehicle and at least one powerhouse computer to process your images and a nice printer for beautiful prints. If you create a well thought out business plan and don’t mind putting the time and patience in you really can be your own boss and have more fun in life.
Another highly beneficial video! Thank you Tony and Chelsea! The quality of your relationship shows through this video and it is invaluable. Thanks again for your hustle!
15:00 mark, tearing the photo in half, reminds me of something i was told, that you should wrap empty gift boxes for kids around christmas and when they misbehave grab them from under the tree and throw them in the fire to teach them a lesson LOL
What if i run out of kids?
James from Sweden here, Thank you soooooooooo much!!! This was really helpfull!!!!! ❤️😘❤️
Though I’m retired I’ve always had two passions. Playing the guitar and photography. I have played in a band off and on through the years. During the pandemic the band has not been able to play with all gatherings being postponed / cancelled. I’m now saving money because we’re not Playing gigs. I see now I should have chosen my other passion to make a little extra money.
Chelsea, what is the software name of the print simulator you mention that you use at 27:40?
what's wrong with learning html and css ? I did that, lol. Love your videos !
Chelsea looks more and more like actress Katey Sagal (Peg Bundy) from "Married with Children" as I watch more of their videos.
Love you guys :)!! Love how you're both so full of information and support and the way you're both so loving and gentle with each other :)
Hi guys should get a website first, before you get started with client?
Noticing a pretty dramatic difference in color (and noise performance?) between cameras.
Not sure if you guys have updated this BUT most photographers don't sell prints because of taxes. If you charge $300 for the photo session and then sell a print from that session for say $50 then you MUST pay sales tax on the entire total of $350. That's how it works in my state and why most people I know don't do prints they'll refer the client to a site online that does prints. It just doesn't make financial sense for photographers to sell prints thanks to the wonderful tax laws.
Time is so tricky... Some days it will actually go faster than others. It might seem set to a certain speed, but it's not. XD - But yea, you never know how long something will take and it usually takes longer. - The way I calculate something is very generously, like when you'd expect something to take an hour, perhaps add half an hour or fluff, and then... add a day.
I disagree with the book pricing and how you thought it was maybe bad business. I know you guys were just joking around, and I am SURE that you guys could sell it for $200. But my logic is sort of the Walmart logic. I think part of the REASON you guys probably sell the volume you do is because of the pricing. Like, with Walmart. Maybe you can get the same product elsewhere, but the other store charges 3 times as much. BUT because Walmart is so cheap is sells FIVE times the quantity. Anyway, thanks for the video guys....it puts things into perspective.
That was funny "did you go hell for a very small amount of time" - Chelsea lmao I am stealing that
I’m currently 15 and getting into photography. Do you have any tips for me and what I should expect? I went to take a friends homecoming photos for her and I never got to take the photos and I felt really bad.
How come the grading changes from week to week?...this one's nice by the way...
Tony the menu on your new site is really hard to use because its black text over the dark portions of the eagle in the background.
Hey T&C,
Really enjoy this format great to have something I can play at work without having to constantly look up. After an intense week at work I've listened to the full Picture this play list! all 43 including the one in the middle 'B&W' that's actually a a T&C live!
| don't really know if you take viewer suggestions for show but something you discussed in one of the video's has me thinking/inspired! And there isn't a lot of info out there to help me take it further BUT I think you guys probably already know it.
Stock Photography! - I know there is no real money in it anymore - but I have a decent career like many photography is a sideline and it doesn't really matter to me how much I make from it enjoying it is more important and thus your comments on Stock got me thinking. Virtually every personal project I have ever done regardless of genre could be turned to stock photography and this might really help me improve the technical side of my work and maybe build up a little long term passive income.
But I have some questions and the answers don't seem to be easy to find - it would be amazing if you could cover them sometime.
- Which are the best agencies to submit to and why? what should we be looking for.
- Do submitted images have to be submitted exclusively to the agency? - or can back catalogue stuff be used that I might have sold before? - and can i still sell privately things I have submitted?
- Can i withdraw my images from the agency later? If i did would I get a list of who has got them etc. so I can know when they are being used with and without a licence?
- Is there any sort of specific clause I need in model releases when submitting to stock sites?
And anything else you think we need to know.
Keep up the goodwork! And sorry for the length of this comment.
What do you guys recommend for weddings?
Project rate is the best way to charge in my experience. Get all the info, then build out a quote. This allows you to book both $400 jobs and $25K jobs. Doing an hourly rate severely limits your earning potential. How do you justify a $25K bill when you are charging hourly?
I also have a bit of a problem coming up with asking-prices, and I mean for anything. Even when I sell an item almost anonymously online or something. - But I just started using common sense and some reasoning to figure that out, what's fair, and also since I'm a generous person I know that I wouldn't try to "rip anyone off" or anything. - On the flipside, however, I find it funny when people contact me and show their annoyance or frustration by going like "Are you for real with your price? It's *this price* there and there.". - I wouldn't know what to respond with other than "OK... So buy it there.". - They could've been nice about it and made an offer, but I think people would rather be outraged than be friendly or helpful (even for themselves). - People don't understand how to create a dialogue anymore... That included myself for the longest time, but I get it now. You just have to show some discipline and be reasonably direct about it. You have to have some form of business-mode, otherwise it will become too personal and emotional, which isn't how you deal with trades of goods and currency.
"Did you go to hell for a very short amount of time without me knowing?" HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
What a wonderful couple of professionals sharing always something valuable. Whit you is always easy to understand where to go and where I am stand up. Thank you very much for share. 😘🙏🤗
You guys are so freaking entertaining. What do you charge for stand-up? No, really...how much?
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Is it okay to give photos to paid clients with a logo/watermark in the corner? I kinda scared about giving photos away without a logo/watermark because of people might be taking my photos and making it theirs.
great video .. realy liked the tv studio style camera angles.. must be hard to get used to
You guys are simply the best, this is why Pros watch your videos.