How much should I charge for this wedding?

9 years 1 month ago - 9 years 1 month ago #434911 by brokenwings3794
I have previously photographed 3 weddings, a few engagements and many random photo shoots with family and friends. I've never really charged anything huge (200$ for one small courthouse wedding [because I didn't have a ton of experience]), but I have a couple interested in having me photograph their wedding and I'm trying to decide on a price point. One of the weddings I did, I was second to another photographer. I tried to shadow him again, but he wasn't the most reliable unfortunately. 
I also had 2 years of some training in sports photography in high school. 

It's difficult because I feel like I'm not quite an amateur but I'm not quite yet a professional. I have some awesome equipment (24-70 lens, 50mm prime, d700, sb900 flash) and will likely rent what I don't have yet (telephoto), and I am pretty familiar with my equipment and know what I'm doing. 

I want an idea of how much to charge to photograph the entire wedding by myself. I know it depends on how long the wedding, so I'm just asking for a general price. I'm currently thinking between the 800-1500$ range, but I would like some more opinions on this.

Can anyone help me with this issue? Thanks in advance!


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9 years 1 month ago #434967 by icepics
It seems like you will be getting into photography on a professional level and running a small business. It depends on where you live but you might get into making enough to have to pay taxes, etc. You might also need to be thinking about insurance, and definitely contracts and licensing and releases, etc.

Try http://asmp.org or PPA for resources for pro photographers including pricing. You probably need to be priced at a competitive level, not too under or overpriced for your area.

Sharon
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9 years 1 month ago #435001 by garyrhook
:agree:

The venue may require you to have liability insurance, which may run a few hundred dollars. You will also need to think about how much your time is worth, what you'll be doing in post to deliver the final images, and whether you are going to try to sell the couple a canvas or album or some such. Then there's travel. And the stuff before (getting dressed), formal poses, the reception, etc. It's a lot of work.

I can't imagine shooting a wedding for anything less than $1500, but at $200/hour I am extremely inexpensive.


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9 years 1 month ago #435008 by Gabriel Photos
Icepics nailed this one


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9 years 1 month ago #435568 by PT Talker
Moved this to a more appropriate category for you. Hopefully you'll see a few more responses. 


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