Mother's Day 2010

May 11, 2010

Why Do Professional Photographers Charge So Much???

Apr 26, 2010

Why are Professional Photographers so expensive?
In this digital age where everyone has digital cameras, scanners and home "photo printers", when people upload their photos to a local drug store website and pick them up a few hours later, we hear this all the time - How in the world do Professional Photographers charge $55 for an 8x10 when they cost just $1.50 at the drug store?

Here's why.

Simply put, you're not just paying for the actual photograph; you're paying for time and expertise. First, let's look at the actual time involved. If you don't read this entire page,
at least read this first part.

For a one hour portrait session:

- one hour of travel to and from the session
- one hour of shooting
- 30 minutes of setup, preparation, talking to the client etc.
- 30 minutes to load the photos onto a computer (2 - 4 Gb of data)
- 30 minutes to back up the files on an external drive
- 3 - 4 hours of Photoshop time including cropping, contrast, color, sharpening, saving a copy for print and a copy for the internet and backing up the edited photographs
- 2 - 3 hours to talk to the client, answer questions, receive their order and payment,
order their prints, receive and verify prints, package prints,
schedule pickup or drop package off (which adds additional travel time).

You can see how one one hour session easily turns into more than ten hours of work from start to finish. So when you see a Photographer charging a $200 session fee for a two hour photo shoot, you are not paying them $100 / hour.

For an eight hour wedding:

- I won't bore you with the details, but an eight hour wedding typically amounts to at least two to three full 40 hour work weeks worth of time. Again, if they are charging you $4,000 for an eight hour wedding, you are not paying them $500 / hour.

Now for the expertise.

Shooting professional photography is a skill, acquired through years of experience. Even though a quality camera now costs under $2,000 taking professional portraits
involves much more than a nice camera.

Most Professional Photographers take years to go from buying their first decent camera to making money with their photography. In addition to learning how to use the camera itself, there is a mountain of other equipment involved, as well as numerous software programs
used to edit and print photographs, run a website etc.

And let's not forget that you actually have to have people skills, be able to communicate, make people comfortable in front of the camera - and posing people to make them look their best in a photograph is a skill all by itself.

Think of it this way - the next time you pay $X to get your hair done, a pair of scissors only costs $1.50. But you gladly pay a lot more to hire a Professional.

What about the cheap studios at the mall?

Please don't compare us to the chain store studios. But if you must, consider all of the time and work that we put into our photographs, compared to what they do. Good luck getting a two hour photo shoot at a chain store. Not to mention they won't come to the beach! And of course, look at our work compared to theirs. You get what you pay for.

The truth is, most of the mall and chain store studios lose money. In fact, in 2007 Wal-Mart closed 500 of their portrait studios because of the financial drain they were putting on the company. What the chain stores bet on is that you'll come in for some quick and cheap photos, and while you're there, you'll also spend $200 on other things. They don't have to make money, they are just there to get you in the door.

Conclusion

We hope that those who have taken the time to read this page will have a better understanding of why professional photographs cost so much more than the ones that you get from your local drug store.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

What time is best for pictures?

The best time of day to take pictures outdoors is after about 3p.m. depending on the time of year. If it’s more convenient for you to do pictures before that time keep in mind that the sun will be higher in the sky. You may want to choose a location that has trees or buildings for shade and lighting conditions. If you have children you may want to consider their eating and napping schedules remember Happy Kids make Happy Pictures!

What Location should I choose?

There are hundreds of locations to do pictures in the salt lake area. Here are a few examples:
Wheeler Farm, Murray Park, Temple grounds, Fun backyards, The Parkway, Thanksgiving point, The Children's Museum, City Parks, Memory grove, Peace gardens, your baby or child's bedroom, Mountains, salt flats.....etc. Anywhere that has something that reminds you of who you are is a perfect place.
I will travel anywhere in the salt lake valley. If you want to do a sitting in a special place outside of the valley there will be an additional fee for cost of travel.

What should I wear?

What should you wear: When selecting your clothing for you pictures think about the "look" you are trying to achieve? Do you want formal or casual pictures? Make sure everyone dresses consistently. Simple hairstyles and natural make-up look best. Try a color theme but keep in mind, lighter colors generally make you look larger. Try to choose solid bright colors. Graphics on t-shirts tend to draw attention away from you or from the other people in your pictures. If you’re going to be in a group setting try picking colors that complement each other. When having your children's pictures taken remembers that their shoes will probably be scene so make sure they are clean and not too flashy. Bring pets or special props that represent or tell a story about you. Long sleeves usually look better on adults. For you ladies out there, Black makes you look thinner in pictures!