Why Are Photoshoots "So Expensive"?
Being in the mix of the social media world as a service provider, there will always be those individuals that will say something along the lines of “it’s just a couple of pictures, why is it so much?”. So, since I am sick of hearing this and photos make the social world go around, I reached out to a friend of mine, Jasmin La’Shon, who is a photographer who feels like she just can’t satisfy anyone with her pricing. She is constantly altering and making custom packages because not many individuals value the craft of photography. I mean without photos, what content do you have to share? Probably none, because I’m willing to guarantee if you have an issue with photography prices, there is no way you’re paying videography prices for content. Just to keep it all the way real lol.
Jasmin and I are here today to break down the cost of photography. You can’t look at photography as just the end result. A package of let’s say 8 edited photos took way more time than just 8 photos to accomplish. First things first, you want us to bring my full frame DSLR cameras which literally cost more than rent in LA… That is one of the main facts of why “just a couple of pictures cost so much”.
Now let’s get into the details. Jasmin put it this way. “Not only am I spending time preparing for the shoot prior to the date, I am also spending hours setting up, shooting/directing and then going home to edit. That doesn’t even include the time it takes to create a “proof gallery” for viewing”. Photographers have to scout a location, gather props if needed and have some sort of vision prior to even showing up the day of the shoot. You go on your merry way after the pictures are taken and the photographer is the one left packing up everything. To be modest let’s say 2 hours total for this process. Now once they’re home, they have to go through all of the photos then edit, that’s another 1-1.5 hours. That’s already nearly 4 hours, half of a work day. The actual shoot for social media is about 2-3 hours if you have outfit changes and location changes. We’re at about 6 hours now. Plus we have to deal with the back and forth via text and phone calls to get all of the images right. About 30 mins for that, being generous. Now we’re at 7 hours. Your little “it’s just a couple of photos for social media” shoot is nearly an entire work day. You don’t see all of the behind the scenes work that goes into your photos, you’re there on location for 2 hours, so you think $100 is equals to 2 hours of work, but there is so much more that goes into it.
Basically when you’re asking someone to do a shoot for you, for $50-$100, you’re asking them to work for minimum wage. No creative signs up to work for minimum wage. Especially not one that has been doing this for some years now. Being a photographer is a risk within itself, you are constantly looking for bookings to sustain yourself financially and then when you book someone, they want you to work for minimum wage, I think not. At least at a minimum wage job, you know a check is coming every two weeks regardless of the quality of effort you put into your job.
“I’ve actually had multiple people ask me “well, how much would it cost to just get 1-2 pictures” after giving them my price 😐.” -Jasmin. This right here goes to show that the individual likes Jasmin’s work too much to just say you know what maybe I’ll find someone else this time and we can work another time instead. You’re feening for specific photographers because they are talented, value their talent.
There you have it, this is why photography costs “so much”. If you ever render any other creative services that you think are “too expensive”, think about this article because it’s about the same type of process that goes into other creative services, if not more.
