Engagement vs Family Portrait pricing

Christopher Steven b wrote in post #16701715
I think if I contacted a photographer for a service and then found some obvious loophole in their pricing and they quickly ceded, I'd really be wondering how long that photographer has been working professionally. I say this not simply to chide you for not having answers to these obvious questions (e.g. why an engagement session might cost more than a family session; why you schedule the amount of time you schedule for engagements vs. family shoots), but just to give you a heads-up that appearing wishy-washy and uncertain about the products and services you offer is generally not a good thing.

Assuming this is directed at me, I did have an answer. More money due to more time due to locations and the overall nature of the shoot. She only saw what was written on my site and thought it should apply to all sessions. She didn't read the next line that states for all other requests, please contact me. I did the 1 hour session as I felt my wording was misleading. This been rectified.

cdifoto wrote in post #16700460
My family shoots are usually at one spot with one outfit...and my most recent one only took 6 minutes from first shot to last.

My engagement shoots are the ones where we go more places and do more cutesy things and I have to set up and tear down frequently (same for high school seniors).

Having said that, I charge based on what will be happening and how long we'll need to get it done. That means 2 hours costs more than one hour no matter what it is. And then there's products...

So you quote by the effort and time and not what the subject might be...

Check that out, a business decision made based on business reasons and not an arbitrary title.

I'm in 100% agreement.

Fernando wrote in post #16702264
So you quote by the effort and time and not what the subject might be...

Check that out, a business decision made based on business reasons and not an arbitrary title.

I'm in 100% agreement.

Yeah there's no White Dress tax.

Fernando wrote in post #16702264
So you quote by the effort and time and not what the subject might be...

Check that out, a business decision made based on business reasons and not an arbitrary title.

I'm in 100% agreement.

Me too. I have a 3 hour e-shoot and a 3 hour wedding option (it is very rare I do them). They are priced differently as the work involved is different. Meetings, communication, planning, volume of shots taken and so on. The prices though are based on the work I undertake for each.

It is also why I don't charge a huge markup on additional copies of albums. All I am doing in processing a payment and saying to the printer to print another copy.

cdifoto wrote in post #16702336
Yeah there's no White Dress tax.

Although there is a "me tax" if you'd call it that. An element of the pricing attached to all my packages (irrespective of genre) which is for my style as such. This can also be viewed as the minimum hourly rate I'm prepared to work for.

memoriesoftomorrow wrote in post #16702415
Although there is a "me tax" if you'd call it that. An element of the pricing attached to all my packages (irrespective of genre) which is for my style as such. This can also be viewed as the minimum hourly rate I'm prepared to work for.

Yeah I'm not as cheap as the kid who has no experience if that's what you're saying. I'm pretty sure all business works that way. There's an upholsterer near me who gets what I perceive as a lot of money to so what I perceive as very little work but he's very good at what he does. It's kind of how we try to be as photographers. The better you get, the more you can charge.

You don't get the money you get just because you're you but you do get the money you get because of your skill level.

HiepBuiPhotography wrote in post #16699315
Those who laugh are the ones who are looking for a photographer, but a cheap deal. If you're good enough, you set the bar high and it automatically weeds out those who can't tell the difference between a good photographer and a cheap one.

You have to adjust for the area where you work. There may not be any (or nearly enough anyway) people who would pay significantly more than that in the area where he works.

If they book me to do their wedding I throw in the engagement session for free and give them an 8x10 and 4 5x7's and 6 wallets to go with it. Anything else they have to purchase. Most of them though have already done their engagement pics before hiring their wedding photographer.

Shooting wrote in post #16711867
Most of them though have already done their engagement pics before hiring their wedding photographer.

It tends to be quite the opposite here.

memoriesoftomorrow wrote in post #16712703
It tends to be quite the opposite here.

I agree. Every single wedding I have 2nd shot had the B&G get their e-shoot from the same photographer as the wedding.

the flying moose wrote in post #16712712
I agree. Every single wedding I have 2nd shot had the B&G get their e-shoot from the same photographer as the wedding.

If you do someone's engagement photos and you don't then shoot the wedding there ought to be a good reason why not.

The only time I see people that have already done engagements before they hire a wedding photographer is when their friend did them for free. 90% of the time those couples hire me to do engagements anyway because they are so terrible.