How to price yourself as a photographer

As a photographer shooting an image, if the frame is slightly blurry when it needs to be ultra crisp, some of the parameters you might instinctively adjust are the shutter speed or even the lens you are using. Such technical or even creative challenges placed on your ability don’t phase you on shoots - they inspire you to think on your feet so that you can nail that brief. 

“Charging usage gives you authority over your imagery. From a client’s perspective, if the image is being used to sell their brand and ultimately make them more money, that quantifies, and it gives your image a lot of monetary value, so remember that when pricing your imagery.” - Tom Burns

But when it comes to achieving a comparable sense of clarity, not to mention confidence within your business model - this isn’t always so easy to navigate. Specifically, the uncomfortable yet essential issue of how much to charge for your services as a photographer.

While how much you charge may seem like an afterthought, getting it wrong can seriously limit your earning potential and ultimately result in you undercutting yourself. So, what can you do about it, and more to the point, how much should you be charging as a photographer?

Knowing Your Worth As A Creative Professional

Everyone wants to start by throwing some numbers around. However, this discussion is only going to be purposeful if you have a solid framework to go off. 

The conversation you need to have to reach that point is probably the most difficult one you’ll ever have with yourself or your agency, and that is ascertaining your value as a creative professional. 

Experience such as previous clients, shoots or agencies definitely plays a part. But so too does knowing your worth in terms of where you’re at now in your career and all of the individual facets that you bring to the table. If there are key aspects that differentiate yourself from your peers, or even if there’s a flexible, highly commercial style to your work that works for everyone - know where you stand so that you can distinguish the correct price bracket. 

“With emerging talent, sometimes they don’t have the confidence to know the value of their work, nor the expertise they can bring to that campaign.” - Tom Burns

In such instances, the individual may be vastly undercharging for their work, and so the process of mentoring involves helping that individual to realise the value they bring to their clients, so that they can price themselves confidently. This includes if a client wants justification for the rate, as when there is clear reasoning and demonstrative examples of what the service includes, an agreeable rate is far more likely to be reached. 

Ultimately, the goal of understanding your worth is to avoid that race to the bottom while also ensuring your rate is a fair reflection of what you can offer your clients. 

Have the confidence to charge more and techniques.

Understanding your positioning within the current market

An integral part of establishing your value and therefore your rates also includes factoring in the current market rate. However, the term ‘current market’ is going to mean different things to different photographers. 

There are photographers who are just starting out and are still figuring out their niche and overall aesthetic. Some photographers have perhaps been building their name on the scene for some time and may feel their rate is no longer reflective of where they are at now. Then, there’s also going to be those who are re-entering the industry after a long hiatus and maybe don’t know how to refresh their pricing, or even how other associated costs have shifted since they last did a shoot, so they too risk pricing errors on both sides of the equation. 

While the answers will always depend on your unique positioning, some of the same principles still apply - in terms of what you offer specifically as a photographer and the type of work you do compared with current demand. 

If in doubt, something Tom recommends is to ask your peers and seek out mentors within your industry. He jests that sliding into DMs isn’t just for dating purposes - it’s also a way you can build your network and gain some invaluable perspective about where you’re at as a professional photographer in business. 

Sometimes, it’s just not possible to make the leap without such insight. 

A positioning graphic would help? Or example of position?

The different ways of pricing a job

Another aspect to get to grips with is that the way you price a job isn’t always going to be the same for every client or job, and for a number of reasons. 

This is an area that can seriously trip you up because it’s so easy to get wrong. 

But by having clear pricing structures in place depending on the client requirements, it’s far easier to keep everyone on the same page and avoid any nasty surprises such as realising the rate doesn’t even cover your overheads as just one common example. 

Day Rate, project fee, retainer?

Having a day rate means you’ll have a number that you can initially fire off to clients, albeit with some flexibility depending on the specifics of the job. So although a day rate is never fixed in stone, it is something that’s going to guarantee you’re paid a fair rate for your work.  Get the brief, offer the ballpark.

Some of the top aspects to consider when setting your day rate include: 

• Business strategy - what you can offer the client in the form of a package. Needs explaining. Examples?

• Positioning - your place within the current market. How do you know your position? Do people know their position? Examples?

• Value of your current level - junior, mid-level or expert?

• Type of client - commercial, editorial, non-profit etc

Also, remember that your day rate is not your total fee. For example, you may need to add on costs that consider the following: 

• Type of shoot - including what additional equipment may be needed

• Hours required - different pricing for standard or additional hours

• Cost of associated expenses - equipment, travel, talent hire etc

• Contingency fees 

So definitely be getting that calculator out before firing over an email to the client, and never be tempted to give any fixed fees on the spot without really considering all of the deliverables versus the cost of doing so.  Show example? Resources?

What About Half Day Rates?

Sometimes, a client may enquire about hiring a photographer for only a few hours and request their ‘half day’ rates. However, it’s industry standard that photographers will only charge a full a day rate.

Quite simply, you need to consider your outlays including aspects such as travelling to the shoot, the brief preparation, getting the lighting and kit set up etc., before you’ve even taken a single shot. Plus, there’s post-production to factor in too. 

The reality is with so much time and effort spent on that shoot, even if it’s just a few images - it’s highly likely it will require a day’s work anyway, including all of the work you’ll be doing off set. 

In some cases, there are other pricing strategies such as retainers which can work well for photographers or standard project fees. But, we’re keen to reiterate that both your time and talent are valuable commodities. So, it’s really about considering what would be the most appropriate pricing structure based on the specifics of the job. 

See retainers and project fees

What is image usage and why should I be charging it?

You as the photographer will always own the copyright to any images you have taken. 

Therefore, another element of your pricing model involves image usage, which in essence, is akin to the client renting the photo. They will pay a determined amount for the image rights, based on factors such as: 

Territory

What geographical locations will the images be used in? - do they only want to use it in the UK, or across Europe, America etc.

Duration

The length of time the image will be used for - 1 month, 12 months, ten years? 

Media

What types of mediums will the images be used for? - i.e. OOH advertising, press, TV, social media etc. 

What about buy-outs?

Depending on these answers, this is going to determine the value of the images. For example, if an image is only going to be used in a brochure for a small UK company, this is very different from placing it on a billboard in Times Square or running it as a global campaign. 

Be clear and consistent with your terms

All of the above really comes down to clarity and consistency. Although the specifics of what you charge may vary depending on the job and even the point at which you’re at in your career, what you do charge needs to be clearly outlined to your client.

For example, when giving an estimate, outline the costs of the job, such as all of the elements we’ve mentioned above, including those which exceed your standard day rate, fixed project price or retainer - depending on how you’ve decided to price the job. Leave a paper trail and include a contingency that will be returned to the client if it’s not used. 

Use a template to ensure you don’t forget things? Link to example? Resources?

Itemisation gives you a place to negotiate…

If you have a professional document that clearly outlines your terms then all bases will be covered. Such foresight with regards to how you present your prices to clients is also one of the many aspects that can instantly elevate your positioning from the junior ranks to the level of influential industry figures, who you’ve perhaps always admired but are now looking to match. 

“Sometimes we feel scared about putting together massive terms and conditions ?? (where was this mentioned earlier) for our day rate, but I have had people assume that a day rate based on a 9 hour day is going to be the same as a 12 or 15 hour day, which it’s not! So it’s really about ring-fencing those costs and establishing your terms from the outset” - Emma Alexander

Conclusion with summary

It’s all too easy to distance yourself from the business side of things by wanting to remain solely within the boundaries of your craft as a photographer. However, there is a value attached to what you do, and you need to know what this is, along with whether your current rate is reflective of this or not. 

Talk about confidence and your value. connect to your network

Next article: How to change more by building your brand/change your positioning?