So right now I can't contain my excitement. I've been asked to do some head shots for some people on the National Committee for College Republicans, which is a bit of a big deal.
He has asked me for a starting price for my photography, but truth is I don't have one, because I've never done this before. He just wants a few shots with a nice background.
So my questions:
-How should I go about this?
- Do I charge for just the photo?
- Do I charge for the photo and editing?
Any advice would be helpful! Please and Thank you! :D
I charged 20 for my first shoot, but after going through the actually shooting process, editing,...etc... I felt like I deserved more. So I would charge AT LEAST 50.
but seriously, good luck :)
that is really awesome.
I'm with Vik, anything you can personally do to set the Republican party back a bit financially, do it! But seriously I would charge $20-50 a head if it was me, but I have no experiance either.
Work out your costs, including your insurance, depreciation of assets, etc and then work out how much profit you'd feel comfortable making considering your skill, experience, and confidence. It's no simple task, and one even pro photogs struggle with from time to time.
I did a headshot for a real estate agent recently - she chose one shot for me to edit, and then I gave her the files to use as needed (something I don't do for portrait clients or weddings), and I charged $200. But, I knew her very well, and I would probably charge most people more. It's not my usual kind of work, so I don't have a price list for it. I based it on $125/hour of my time, and then took quite a bit off because she's a friend. Time included talking to her about what she needed, setting up my studio for the type of shot she needed, spending time with her to choose her favourite frame, and the editing of that image.
$125/hour seems like a lot, until you work out what it costs you to do this thing called photography.
Remember it takes up a lot of time... maybe not so much the actual shooting, but editing/processing. I charged my friend's dad $50 for headshots for a magazine he was going to be in, took 5 minutes to shoot and about an hour to edit. (Granted, he was a friend's dad, so I obviously gave him a very good deal).
Don't forget to figure any costs for traveling (even across town takes gas!!), any equipment you might have to buy/borrow/rent, time you might be missing from a normal job, etc. It can sound really nitpicky, but you have to cover your bases.
Sometimes it can be really hard to charge when first starting out, but it's something you'll get more comfortable with. I remember at first I was just so excited anybody would want my pics that a lot of stuff was done free, but now I'm to the point that rarely is stuff free unless you're a really good friend or family, and even then it might just get highly discounted.
I am no expert in photography, very far from it, But as far as charging goes, I have never been any good at pricing myself and my time. I did a lot of work for some friends in business, who paid me a pittance then made money on my work. Later on, one of them opened another business, a restaurant, and asked me to do some cleaning. He offered me a meal for two or payment, so I went with payment because I needed the money. When I had finished he said to write him an invoice and he would sort it out. I gave him the bill for a week's hard graft, (about £200); he paid up but never spoke to me again.
So, my advice, for what it's worth, is - Don't underestimate yourself in the beginning and be careful how much you give away to friends.
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but seriously, good luck :)
that is really awesome.
I have nooo idea but go with Lauren's suggestion - $50 really isn't a lot of money for what he's going to be getting. Be sure to let us seeeee :D
I did a headshot for a real estate agent recently - she chose one shot for me to edit, and then I gave her the files to use as needed (something I don't do for portrait clients or weddings), and I charged $200. But, I knew her very well, and I would probably charge most people more. It's not my usual kind of work, so I don't have a price list for it. I based it on $125/hour of my time, and then took quite a bit off because she's a friend. Time included talking to her about what she needed, setting up my studio for the type of shot she needed, spending time with her to choose her favourite frame, and the editing of that image.
$125/hour seems like a lot, until you work out what it costs you to do this thing called photography.
Don't forget to figure any costs for traveling (even across town takes gas!!), any equipment you might have to buy/borrow/rent, time you might be missing from a normal job, etc. It can sound really nitpicky, but you have to cover your bases.
Sometimes it can be really hard to charge when first starting out, but it's something you'll get more comfortable with. I remember at first I was just so excited anybody would want my pics that a lot of stuff was done free, but now I'm to the point that rarely is stuff free unless you're a really good friend or family, and even then it might just get highly discounted.
So, my advice, for what it's worth, is - Don't underestimate yourself in the beginning and be careful how much you give away to friends.
Good luck with the shoot!!