A Question for Wedding Photographers

Nikon MF 180mm f/2.8 ED AIS

10/31/2005 01:31:29 AM · #1

Although Iâ��m only a hobby photographer, Iâ��ve been getting several paying gigs lately. The most recent was last weekend when I did a portrait shoot of a 7-year old boy for a coworker friend of my wife. She saw some of the photos on my web site and asked my wife if I would photograph her son. She was very happy with the results, and even paid me $50 more than I had asked for. I also shot the high school senior photos for a friendâ��s daughter, and Iâ��ve been the second photographer at two weddings.

Now, my sonâ��s girlfriend wants me to shoot some group portraits of her and her family, and some other people have asked me if I would photograph their wedding. Iâ��ll do the group portraits for free, because I love my sonâ��s girlfriend (even though she refuses to pose nude for me) and sheâ��s so cute, but the wedding is a different story. I donâ��t know the people, and Iâ��ll have to drive to Seattle (2.5-3 hours 1 way) for the wedding. The problem is I donâ��t know how much to charge them. Theyâ��ve been getting prices in the neighborhood of $5,000, so Iâ��m sure they know that it can be expensive to have a professional photographer.

What do you guys think would be a fair price to have a semi-talented amateur photographer shoot their wedding?

(I realize that â��semi-talentedâ�� may be stretching things a bit, but I do get lucky once in a while.)

In case youâ��re interested, here are the shots from the last wedding I did, where I was the second photographer: Justin & Perly Wedding

And, here are some of the shots from the portrait shoot I did last weekend: Portraits of Nicholas

mcmurma

Canon EOS-300D Rebel

10/31/2005 01:40:58 AM · #2

Get yourself a second photographer and charge what you feel you must to make a decent check. If you don't have the equipment to cover catastrophic failure on your own, and if you plan to charge 1K and up to shoot a wedding, you have to be prepared for the worst. This includes having your camera and flash system morph into blobs of jello because they were struck by stray cosmic jelly rays... the point is you just never know.

Bringing in a second photog adds not only a fresh view, but should also double your equipment set. Of course, you have split the earnings, but the insurance is a must when failure is not an option.

Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II

10/31/2005 01:48:12 AM · #3

Originally posted by mcmurma:

Well, my wife has a new 350XT, and she'll be coming along, so I should have at least part of that covered. Best of all, I won't have to split the money with her (if she wants a ride home anyway) :)

Thanks for the tip Michael!

Chiqui

Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8 Pro

10/31/2005 02:34:36 AM · #4

Make sure you have contract that states that you are not at fault for equipemen failure etc. Keep in mind though that is is your responsability to make sure you have back up equipment. As a bride I can tell you that if my photographer's gear broke and he had no back up and thus not be able to shoot the wedding.....I'd be pissed. As a photographer (who is thinking of going into the wedding photo business) I tell you cover your butt. Once again, make sure you have a clear and thorough contract because even though you are not a pro, they can still file a law suit against you. Best of luck.

June

basssman7

Nikon D500

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II

10/31/2005 02:57:19 AM · #5

Well, since you have done a few weddings as a second, you should already understand this: the photographer is the one person who must stay calm and reasonable when everyone around them is freaking out.

Not every wedding will be serene, beautiful, and a pleasure to be a part of. Have backup plans. Where do you plan to do the formals? Have you scouted this location at the same time of day the shots will be taken? (do this a couple weeks in advance max so the sun is in basically the same place) If it is outdoors, what do you do if it rains? What if it is really windy? Bascially plan for the worst and hope for the best. :)

Also keep in mind that being a "second" means that most of the shots were "set up" and "posed" by the lead. Are you comfortable and ready to do that on your own?

I do not mean to rain on your parade, just trying to make sure that the reality of the situation is also being considered. I have done wonderful weddings where everything was great. I have also done weddings where the bride wanted formals done in her parent's very large backyard. I scouted and it was a good setup. Till the day of the wedding when the darn grass had not been cut for 2 weeks!! I actually had to get a lawnmower and mow a section so that the pictures would look good and you could see people's shoes! Not to mention having to safety pin together part of a dress when it popped a button on a dress and there was not needle and thread around. (good idea to carry them...safety pins that is, the small ones)

Have fun, make money, don't sell yourself short. Just make sure you are prepared for everything, so that nothing gets you out of "the zone".

Ernie

Telehubbie

Canon EOS-40D

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

10/31/2005 08:00:56 AM · #6

About pricing, use this guy's prices as a guidline. ;-) Wouldn't that be nice?

Be confident and don't be afraid to (nicely) give orders. It makes people feel more relaxed knowing that you're comfortable in knowing what you're doing. Take plenty of spare batteries, cards, etc. Be prepared for anything. If possible, during the formals have somebody who knows everybody keep tabs on people, especially flower girls and ring bearers. People get bored when they're waiting and wander off sometimes and that hinders workflow and sometimes makes the bride nervous.

If need be, have a cheat sheet ready so that nothing is forgotten. Here's an example. Oh, one more thing... stay hydrated. Sometimes you forget to take care of yourself while doing everything, and drinking water is important when you're running around. Eat a good meal before the wedding too, it might be a while before you get some more nutrients to feed your body, and you'll need your energy.

Have fun with it, and best of luck.

deapee

Kodak V803

Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D

10/31/2005 08:14:54 AM · #7

you have insurance, right?

superdave_909

Canon EOS-60D

Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

10/31/2005 08:54:22 AM · #8

Originally posted by chiqui74:

This is sound advice!!!

Prof_Fate

10/31/2005 09:37:30 AM · #9

Pricing..the unkown part of the photogrphy business.
Here are some ideas... What are you worth? (your time, equipment, artistic value, etc) What is the competition charging? What are the B&G willing to spend/have budgeted for this?

Next is your costs - the time shooting of course, and the 6 hours of travel and likely a hotel room and several meals. Processing time, phone time with them or meetings to go over what they want.

Third is the materials - the proofs (not expensive, realtively speaking, $60-100 for 200-300 proofs in a book), less if on CD alone. The album is the biggie...a traidional album with 80 or 8x10 prints can run $500 or more. The ApolloImgizing, Illuma books, etc are currently the way to go. I would suggest making one as a test, a protfolio of your shots as a sales aid so at least the test book has a purpose.

Since you have seconded at weddings you know, or should have a good idea, of what is involved in that end.

To me, for my area, $5000 is rather high end. Most are $1200 give or take wiht a minimal album, up to about $2500 with more album size/quality and often a second shooter.

Message edited by author 2005-10-31 09:44:48.

Spork99

OM System OM-1

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro

10/31/2005 09:42:21 AM · #10

Originally posted by deapee:

you have insurance, right?

Ditto that. If you have coverage under your Homeowners/Renters insurance policy, chances are that it does NOT include coverage of your equipment for commercial use and it certainly is not going to provide liability coverage should something unfortunate happen.

Fortunately, insurance is not really expensive, check with WPPI or ASMP.

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

10/31/2005 09:44:49 AM · #11

Originally posted by Telehubbie:

About pricing, use this guy's prices as a guidline. ;-) Wouldn't that be nice?

$10,000/hr for a 12 hour coverage - this is a reduction from the regular fee of $12,500/hr

Wow, only $10,000 per hour! How can anyone work so cheaply? If there are people out there that will work for peon wages like this, I guess I better rethink my pricing structure. :)

Thanks for the info Marc.

Prof_Fate

10/31/2005 09:50:15 AM · #12

I assisted a photog this summer - $8,000 for 4 hours of coverage an 100 5x7 prints, no album.
Outdoor wedding, 10D camera with a canon 28-200 lens and diffusion filter, about $8,000 worth of lumedyne flash equipment, and backups for everything.
Oh yeah, and an assistant. $75, a meal, a beer and lots of good information for 5 hours work.

Telehubbie

Canon EOS-40D

10/31/2005 10:03:08 AM · #13

I thought that was pretty amusing. The scary part is he books full. Must be nice...