wedding package

I can see both of your points and agree with both, I could charge pro prices easily but choose not to do so, I say easily as I have shall we say the "credentials" from a job I did for a long time and finally left after 24 years.

It's the quality of the delivered product that pleases the customer, mine had a flash drive the next day and the processed images by the following weekend, I just did'nt supply an album as that was not requested, I gave them all 462 photo's I took on the day and evening, which for me was my part of the deal as I gave them my word no-one else would have them, I have them backed up and thats it.

It's difficult to explain on a forum quite how I feel and I guess it's the same with others, I am just happy with what I do which I guess is what counts:thumbs:


icecavern said:
IMHO ( and it's just me ) if you are good enough to be competing against someone doing this full time you should be charging full time prices. It is people that don't charge enough that do the damage. If someone is prepared to shoot a wedding as a hobby, and charge nothing or very little, but is of the same standard as a good pro, then are they not doing the pro a disservice?

Pete
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Agger said:
I did :thumbs:
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To me that almost seems worse in a way. You were a full time photographer making a living out of it, and now you're happy to do the industry that used to pay you out of money.

Ah well, I doubt this thread will ever come to an agreement.
 
icecavern said:
To me that almost seems worse in a way. You were a full time photographer making a living out of it, and now you're happy to do the industry that used to pay you out of money.

Ah well, I doubt this thread will ever come to an agreement.
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I see this view all the time and I can't understand it - 'you should be charging x if you provide y, it hurts the industry if you don't'.

The only person getting 'hurt' is the photographer not charging what they're worth.
 
icecavern said:
To me that almost seems worse in a way. You were a full time photographer making a living out of it, and now you're happy to do the industry that used to pay you out of money.

Ah well, I doubt this thread will ever come to an agreement.
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as i have said there is a market for all kinds . what ever the profession people will charge different amounts . if the customer is happy with the results and money paid then both parties should be happy .

my wife works to pay the bills . i pay for the holidays . the decision i have is do i want to work more . if i do i`ll need to advertise . if that brings in more work then i will earn more .
given a couple have told me i don`t charge enough then maybe i should put up the price a little .
doing a wedding is not easy . the night before my backside is twitching .
once there and first shot out of the way i calm down . and it`s a real buzz .

Rog :thumbs:
 
WeddingHack said:
I see this view all the time and I can't understand it - 'you should be charging x if you provide y, it hurts the industry if you don't'.

The only person getting 'hurt' is the photographer not charging what they're worth.
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What about the guy that does charge what they're worth that doesn't get the business purely due to the guy not charging getting that booking?
 
icecavern said:
What about the guy that does charge what they're worth that doesn't get the business purely due to the guy not charging getting that booking?
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Tough - if you can't convince someone to book you over the other guy, then that's your problem, not the other guy's. That's business.


(using 'you' just to make the point, not talking about you Ice)
 
There is that point of view but as I have said this particular one was for a very good friend and his daughter which I'm sure is what friends are for :thumbs:

icecavern said:
What about the guy that does charge what they're worth that doesn't get the business purely due to the guy not charging getting that booking?
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WeddingHack said:
Tough - if you can't convince someone to book you over the other guy, then that's your problem, not the other guy's. That's business.


(using 'you' just to make the point, not talking about you Ice)
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I understand what you mean. But then it'd take more than a miracle to convince someone to pay for something if they can get it for free theses days :lol:

Personally people book me, not my photography, so assuming they're not price shopping I'm not worried, but I still think it's a valid point.
 
Here's me sitting here today wondering if I should take the step into doing weddings. Scary prospect but I am confident in my abilities. What I am more 'green' about is what services wedding togs offer these days in terms of viewings, albums etc.

However even though I would be starting as an unknown wedding photographer I am looking at other pro tog prices and I intend quoting similar package costs when the time comes. Sure I could cut prices to get the business but if I want it to contribute to a full time business what's the point doing it cheep? Word of mouth spreads and everyone wants it cut price.

I guess my first funtions might be a way to prove myself and produce some folio images so I can then go out as a pro but I would make it clear that was the reason it was chgeap
 
I can never understand what difference the status of the photographer makes. It's about the product isn't it? If someone who does weddings as a sideline produces professional quality service and photographs, why should he/she charge less that a full time professional photographer who produces the same? :shrug:
 
I agree fabs. The end product is the same so it should be charged at the same rate.
 
AndyB said:
I agree fabs. The end product is the same so it should be charged at the same rate.
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I disagree, hard product is only one part of the equation - the majority of the cost is time, and the value of that time is related to the experience and skills of the photographer.

Wedding photography is a learned skill. 200+ weddings in and I'm still learning.

Going back to the points raised at the start of this thread, there's no way that someone with only 5 weddings (say) under their belt will be providing the same 'value' as someone of similar skill who has been shooting weddings for a couple of years.
 
We need Papa back.............:thumbs:
 
Maybe he could be persuaded / allowed to make a guest appearance :D
 
To me one of the biggest differences in price, can & should be down to the way the couple want thier wedding images presented, if they have the money & want a hand made album in its own brief case, that costs £2000, then thats fine, but I cannot understand how any one in the current economic climate can turn away the couple that want lovely images, but only want to pay a few hundred for the album to display them in, they are not asking anyone to charge less for the skilled time & experience that goes into producing the finished product, just trying to make sure that they can also pay thier bills at the end of the month !!!
 
WeddingHack said:
I disagree, hard product is only one part of the equation - the majority of the cost is time, and the value of that time is related to the experience and skills of the photographer.

Wedding photography is a learned skill. 200+ weddings in and I'm still learning.

Going back to the points raised at the start of this thread, there's no way that someone with only 5 weddings (say) under their belt will be providing the same 'value' as someone of similar skill who has been shooting weddings for a couple of years.
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My analogy was based on the customer perception of value for the same outcome, not comparing an experience and inexperienced photographer. If two photographers produce the same effort, professionalism and quality, then why should one cost more than the other.
 
Can we agree that some photographers charge £1000+ some charge £2000+ and some do it for £200+ at the end of the day as long as your clients know what they are getting albums/prints/cd etc. before they book you then they are happy to pay what they want and assuming they have seen your work they know roughly what to expect.

We all do things differently for different prices and i dont think its right we should say who's right and who's wrong nor do i agree with weddinghack "there's no way that someone with only 5 weddings (say) under their belt will be providing the same 'value' as someone of similar skill who has been shooting weddings for a couple of years."

The customer decides what they want to pay and therfore they have already decided what value they will be getting for their buck
 
WeddingHack said:
Maybe he could be persuaded / allowed to make a guest appearance :D
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Your trying to turn the tide in this thread bud. People won`t accept your point of view,I mean, anyone can do good quality wedding photography..............:cuckoo:
 
fabs said:
My analogy was based on the customer perception of value for the same outcome, not comparing an experience and inexperienced photographer. If two photographers produce the same effort, professionalism and quality, then why should one cost more than the other.
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Because they decide to charge more ?

Why does an Audi A3 cost more than a Golf, why does a Golf cost more than a Seat Leon ? 95% same car.
 
Because he got pee`d off with threads like this.
 
WeddingHack said:
Because they decide to charge more ?

Why does an Audi A3 cost more than a Golf, why does a Golf cost more than a Seat Leon ? 95% same car.
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You're missing my point completely. I'm talking about 2 A3s, not a Golf and A3. I don't give a monkeys what anyone charges, I was refuting the statement that someone could not charge the same as a pro, even if they produce the same standard of work.
 
Oh ok, yes I agree if they are turning out the same level of work then there's no reason they wouldn't expect the same level of compensation.

What I was trying put across in my previous post was that someone's photography skills are only a part of wedding photography. Even thought I know my way around a camera, I wouldn't expect to turn up at (for example) a motorsport or horseriding event and think I could a) get the shots or b) earn as much as someone that had been shooting those for a long time. I have no experience of those.

Putting aside all of this, there are no rules, charge what you like - the market will be your judge, not other photographers.
 
andrewc said:
More because people got pee'd off with his responses on threads like this. I must admit I miss his 'call a spade a spade' style.
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A lot of people don`t like straight forward and truthful replies that dismiss thier delusions of granduer in the wedding photography sphere.
 
fabs said:
I can never understand what difference the status of the photographer makes. It's about the product isn't it? If someone who does weddings as a sideline produces professional quality service and photographs, why should he/she charge less that a full time professional photographer who produces the same? :shrug:
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Spot on.

Value your own time - working for free is a mug's game.
 
fracster said:
We need Papa back.............:thumbs:
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i started this thread .. and to be honest . i always found this guy rude . and what i ever saw of his work .............. not too blown away .... the thread was about what to charge ... after 3 years in ...

A Pro Does not and should not put down anyone .... but only offer advice !!

Rog :thumbs:
 
This thread is classic, and all because of one post/poster. Right I'm off to find a factory job :nuts:
 
Ive just recently done my first proper wedding and ive been a photographer for 7 years but only recently thought of myself as professional. I charged my clients £900, this included sample book visits to premote myself to aquire the wedding booking, my petrol, food and my hours there (13 hours shooting from start to finnish at night) and pp work on the photos. I charged seperate for the album as i thought this was resonable for the album i am creating. I currently use Sim 2000 and i think there quality of the albums and finnish are second to noe.
Everyone has to start somewhere and if the clients like your portfolio and you have a professional head to take on all of the aspects and responsibility of a wedding i think it is feasable to charge the right amout for the day.
I have seen some other weddings and the photos looked like there have been taken on p&s compact camera, but the B&G saw the portfolio of the photographer, knew the price and asked the photographer to take the weeding photographs.

Ive have shadowed a professional and taken notes of lighting, positioning and how to take control of the bride and groom during wedding day.

I have increased my charges now to £1200 as £900 was a starter premotion price but it really depends if photogrpahers here are going to do this as a side line of for there main career where an income is required constantly to live on.

I am working for a tech company now but want to set up a business in wedding photogrpahy and the advertising, web site design takes a % of your income.
If the client likes your work and take you on i think that a resonable price like £1000-£1200 is good. All depends on your outlays.
 
santana007 said:
i started this thread .. and to be honest . i always found this guy rude . and what i ever saw of his work .............. not too blown away .... the thread was about what to charge ... after 3 years in ...

A Pro Does not and should not put down anyone .... but only offer advice !!

Rog :thumbs:
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You find me rude or Papa?

Either way, noffies..............:thumbs:
 
fracster said:
You find me rude or Papa?

Either way, noffies..............:thumbs:
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Papa m8 , not saying he wasn`t right about some photo`s

but there are ways to comment on people work/photo`s .. if someone is such a good pro then offer help .

rog :thumbs:
 
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