How much for a print?

[jpthomas27]

I think I read somewhere on this forum that a good price to charge for a large print is about three times the cost. Is that about right? I have some interest is some pictures I've taken recently but have very little experience selling. Any help on a price list would be very helpful.

Also, I have done some printing from Shutterfly and Ritz in the past and even Costco at one point, but always just for myself. If I'm getting money for the prints I want to ensure that I get the best quality. I would really appreciate any advise on the best places to have them printed.

Thanks for all your help, I've gotten great advice off this forum in the past and look forward to hearing what everyone has to say.

[TeeJay]

With your mention of Shutterfly, Ritz and Costco are we to assume you reside in the US?

Not sure how you can qualify "three times the cost". Do you mean "print cost" - or cost of your time, travel, proportioned equipment cost... etc. If you are only spending .50c on a print, does that mean your only going to charge $1.50?

I'm confused :confused:

TJ

[Mike R]

Mpix does a great gob. I also use Exposure Manager. At EM I pay .75 for an 5x7. I charge $10.00. I don't incur shipping chrges at EM (The customer pays it to them) but I do from Mpix. Remember to also factor that into your cost. EM is a great way to sell prints.

[staereo]

Are you talking print, as in stock used as art prints? Or are you talking assignment/event/portrait work, and prints made from that?

My art prints are priced significantly higher, as I make no money from their capture, they are unique, and i limit editions.

Assignment/event/portrait type work would be priced less, and near your figure, when you factor in labor. (3x YOUR cost, meaning, print cost+prepress+shipping supplies+other considerations)

That's certainly not how mine are priced. There is a baseline effort for you to go through to print something out, and there is a premium on enlargements. So it's kind of a curve, I guess. The endpoints are really dictated by your local market, and your personal niche within that market. (You're not x-mart, but youre not Leibovitz either...)

For the record, your sales do not increase by virtue of lower prices, at a rate equal to your price cut. That is to say that if you charge half the price, you WONT sell twice as many. At least not from my experience. So make sure you cover your time, or you will start to detest what you're doing.

Bruce

(PS, mpix IS honestly impressive, especially for the cost. I've had multiple award winning prints from their service, and no client has ever complained.)

[jpthomas27]

Thanks for the input guys. I guess I should have given a little more info. I wasn't on assgnment of any kind. Most of what I take is a hobby (for now), and I got a request for some prints, most likely 11x14. The prints are not from an event, they are landscape pictures, and as staero put it above, I make no money from thier capture.

Ultimately what I'm looking for is a fair price for an amateur photographer wanting to make some money at his hobby and at the same time I don't want to underprice the market. So I'm looking to see what other's are charging so that I can be fair but not "give it away" so to speak.

So, understanding that a blanket charge of 3X the cost doesn't really make sense, what are we talking for an 11x14, somewhere in the $50 range? Again, I want be fair to the customer, myself and other photographers that are selling unique prints but I just don't have the experience in this area yet, so I'm reaching out to all you guys for some guidelines.

[sonshine_rae]

That's a difficult question that only you can truly answer. You might try looking for similar items from other local photographers to get a local pricing idea.

I've usually heard at least 3x's your cost but usually it's said 3-5 times your costs (and you must include shipping if that's involved). Being that it's a landscape and not people shot .. I'd be tempted to ignore the x cost thing and think of a reasonable cost for your time/equipment/experience. A lot of people have hourly wages etc that they figure into things.

As for printing services, I've found Mpix to be the best for my needs at this time, and Adoramapix wasn't bad either. I like that they use professional quality paper, and have a reasonable price per print as well.

hth's ~Rae~