What should I charge for my photography?

We've talked about whether or not you should charge and that as soon as you charge, you are a professional here but let's talk about HOW MUCH to charge. I see the question asked by new photographers all the time but the answer isn't going to be the same for everyone. Let's start with 4 ways not to determine your prices:

DON'T email your competition pretending to want a session to find out what they charge. Just don't. It's rude. And we can tell when you're doing it... we can also tell when you email me telling me you are moving to my town in a few months and want hire me for a newborn session after you move and want to see my newborn prep guide (which is on my website on a password protected page that I share with booked clients only) before you book would really help. You know who you are....

DON'T just post in a photography group asking someone to make up prices for you. So many well meaning photographers will be happy to chime in to tell you what they would pay or what they charge but this can end up being terrible advice that will derail your career. Sadly, a large portion of our industry is charging less than a tiny fraction of what it costs to cover their expenses let alone pay themselves a fair salary. Jut because someone owns a fancy camera or looks successful doesn't mean they are qualified to give pricing advice.

DON'T just make up round numbers that sound ok...without knowing exactly what you need to make to be profitable.

DON'T base your price on what another person in your area charges. You have no idea it that person knows what they're doing. Or what their cost are. Of if they are drowning in dept and making no profit each month.... (If I did that when I started, I'd be bankrupt) Why not? Read this blog.

OK, now that we got that out of the way lets get down to business.... YES that's right, BUSINESS because YOU ARE A BUSINESS, NOT A CHARITY. Repeat that to yourself over and over and over again and then screen print it on a tank top.

Determining your prices isn't hard.... but for some reason, so many new photographers get scared to do this and skip this step just to base their prices based on some crazy things including, how cheap their friends are, what their family thinks they should charge, or how much confidence they have in their work... and I can tell you basing your prices on these things will guarantee that you are under pricing yourself...

So how do you do it?

4 WORDS: (and don't stop reading after I say this because it scares you because it's easier than you think)

COST OF DOING BUSINESS (Don't stop reading! I promise this is easy) And let's face it, you are probably more afraid of really charging your worth than you are of a little math... am I right?

And you don't actually have to do any math! Download my FREE CODB Calculator Spreadsheet and follow along and then use it to determine yours!

Start with your desired salary. A real one.... one that you deserve. A good place to start is with your current salary if you currently work full time in a skilled industry. Or even google the average full time salary in your state for skilled workers. Or even what ever you need to pay your bills and make what you want to make! This is YOUR BUSINESS and that's what running your own business is all about! When I decided to quit my job and go full time, I did my CODB using my current salary plus the value of my benefits. When you define this number remember that the Wage Gap is REAL and it's often self imposed. Don't be a crappy sexist boss. Pay yourself what you deserve. Here are a few numbers to put things in perspective: The average minimum wage salary is $15,000. You aren't working at Mcdonald's so for the love of nuggets make sure your number is higher than that. The average teachers salary is $43,000. And we all know teachers don't make enough either..... You would better off setting a goal similar to the salary of a success carpenter or plumber. datausa.io is a great source for some numbers to get you started.

In order to figure out what you need to charge, you first need to know how much you need to MAKE. Not just make as in how much money you get to take home, but what you need to make total to run your business AND pay your self. Because that's what jobs do. They PAY YOU.

Just for easy math, lets say your desired salary is $40,000. FYI this is still pretty low.... (Less than the average underpaid teacher) But it's a nice number to start with. These numbers are just lower numbers for sample's sake but may apply to a photographer who is new to the industry.

Now ADD your expenses for the year. Include gear upgrades and maintenance, props, licenses, gas, equipment, training, credit card processing fees, website, gallery software, photoshop, and everything else. I just polled hundreds of photographers and their average yearly expenses ranged from $5000-$50,000 with most photographers spending $15,000 if they don't have a studio. For easy math, let's just say your projected expenses are $10,000.

Now add (YES ADD) the amount you will be paying in taxes. I'll do the math for you...and so will my FREE CODB Calculator Spreadsheet An average estimate of total taxes on that salary would be about $20,000. (This is just a general estimate based on state averages and will vary by state, income level, and tax status. Talk to your accountant for a more accurate number.) ...Not planning on paying taxes? Sorry, but if you are taking payments at all, you have to. There's no way around it unless you want to face some super scary and expensive consequences. Read my Are you a Professional Blog here.

So we have added up a salary, expenses, and taxes now our number is $70,000.

Still with me? Ok good! I find its easier to work with a weekly goal so lets do that.

There are 52 weeks in a year and you deserve AT LEAST two weeks off like everyone else so lets divide our number by 50.

$70,000/50 = $1,400. That's what you need to make per week. BUT we also need to plan for bad weather, sick days, reschedules, and even just the slow season. So plan for closer to 45 weeks and plan to be busy catching up on computer tasks during your non-shooting weeks. So $70,000/45 weeks = $1,556 per week.

Now we need to figure out how many sessions you can REASONABLY (I hate that word but that's another blog- Stay tuned) do per week. Be realistic. How many can you physically manage, shoot, edit, and process per week and how many can you book realistically and consistently per week? WITHOUT burning yourself out. Remember you still deserve free time and family time just like everyone else.

For our example, lets say that number is 3. (Most FULL TIME professional photographers do 2-3 sessions per week.)

Just divide your weekly goal by 3 and that's it!

So $519 is the MINIMUM AMOUNT you need to make per session. I'm yelling this part at you: MINIMUM. You still need to count for contingencies like, equipment replacements and upgrades, emergencies, reschedules, etc. You will need to add credit card processing fees and Cost of Goods if you are including products in your session fee. If you are new to photography, you might think this number is scary. If not, you know this number is LOW! There are photographers who charge thousands of dollars for ONE DIGITAL. Just because you are just starting out doesn't mean that you don't deserve to make at least minimum wage. If you were flipping burgers at McDonald's they wouldn't start you at $1 per hour just because you were in training. Remember that just because you love what you do, does not mean you don's deserve to get paid for it.

Play with my CODB Calculator by changing your desired salary, number of sessions per week, and expenses and start charging WHAT YOU ARE WORTH!

Wait, some of you might be thinking but I am only part time so I don't need to charge that much....

WRONG!!!! Let's plug some new numbers into my CODB Calculator and see....

FIRST make sure you are only working on photography part time. Less than 20 hours a week total.

So let's use half of our sample desired salary: $20,000

Most part time photographers book 1 session a week (on weekends) and don't book every single weekend.

Chances are your expenses are the same. Photoshop, insurance, websites, workshops etc, all charge the same if you are part time or full time. So if you are working less, but your expenses are the same..... yep that's right, your session fee needs to be HIGHER! So stop telling yourself that you need to charge less because you are part time. It's supply and demand. If I sell Tacos and I can only make 1 Taco per week but lots of people want my tacos I can charge more for said tacos. Especially if my taco truck costs me the same amount per week to opperate regardless of how many Tacos I sell.

These are just sample numbers and you can (AND SHOULD) charge more. This is just a starting point! The better you become and the more people who want your services the more you can charge. Bottom line, charge what you are worth and you are WORTH AT LEAST a reasonable salary after taxes and expenses!

I know that some of you are thinking, "But what if I raise my prices and I don't book enough clients? I'm scared to fail." If you charge less that your CODB, you are SETTING YOURSELF UP TO FAIL. PERIOD. If you charge enough to cover your CODB, you are at least giving yourself a chance to succeed. Don't let the fear of failure guarantee it.

Did this post open your eyes? If so, tell us in the comments! Please feel free to share this blog with someone who needs help with pricing!

Love,

The Professional Baby Holder