Pricing question

Question about pricing, I was asked to do a photoshoot for a clothing brand. It's a new online clothing store. There 6 models and each of them have different clothing. Im trying to figure out what to charge. It'll probably be 4-5 hours of work, with different lighting setups.

Thanks for your guys help.

For something like this, I would charge an hourly rate that covers a) the actual time of the shoot and b) the post processing and delivery. Basically take what you think is a reasonable per hour charge for this type of labor and maybe double that since for each hour shooting, you will probably have another hour in processing. This covers you in case things take much longer that are due to things out of your control, the models are slow in changing clothing, etc.

Just my opinion though...

One more thought to the actual shoot itself. Just don't do single multiple posed shots with each model/each outfit, perhaps also do some group shots which then can be used for page banners, and other art for the store web presence and facebook/social media. Also consider colored gels and various light positions for some provocative shots... This may lead to a future deal with the models themselves should they want to contract you to do a portfolio shoot later.

Most importantly HAVE FUN!

Sounds like more than 4-5 hours of work. Subtract set up and tear down and you're left with 3-4 hours ... 30 minutes per model.

I would charge my day rate.

What would your rate be or a good rough estimate price? I've seen prices from 500-2k kinda all over the place. Also as they get more clothes in there going to want more pictures.

unlimited6986 wrote in post #18610214
What would your rate be or a good rough estimate price? I've seen prices from 500-2k kinda all over the place. Also as they get more clothes in there going to want more pictures.

That's really going to be specific to the market and to the size of the company requesting the images. A shoot in NYC for a major online retailer using 6 well established models is going to be different from a shoot in Peoria for someone just trying to get a business off the ground working out of their garage with 6 of their friends as models. That's why you see such a huge difference in pricing. Set the price accordingly but not less than what your willing to do the work for.

That's a good range.

Market prices vary due to location, supply and demand, etc. A small town guy with super low overhead vs a photog in NYC or LA? Do you plan to spend hours editing, or just giving SOOC JPG? Do they get perpetual exclusive rights? Local, national or international distribution? Trade or consumer audience?

These kinds of pricing discussions come up from time to time and the above is, in my opinion, the only correct answer. If one can make a good living with a 500 dollar day rate by staying busy without much effort or overhead, I don't begrudge them charging what is a pittance in other markets. Likewise if one can change 2000 a day and work 5 days a month to cover expenses, good for them.

I am less interested in how many different sets they shoot than I am the time it takes to do it. I've stood around on location for an hour while a client gets their s*it together doing things they should have done in advance. I have also kept moving fast from set to set because things were organized. In the end it doesn't make that much difference, to me.

I'll be editing each picture. It's the start of the company so I'm assuming no huge budget or anything. I don't wanna sell myself short or scare them away from doing another shoot either, that's why just trying to figure out a good starting price. I'm thinking around 500$-750$

Did you ask them what their budget is? That's always a good place to start. You might not get an exact answer but, you might get a "we don't have a lot so we were hoping to be in the 2k area" or "gee we dont have a lot, we were thinking like a couple hundred".

Personally I don't care what a client's budget is, companies always downplay their budget when asked by a vendor for services. I just price my services where I think they need to be, no games, no guessing. Either the company will pay it, or they won't. I adjust my price annually depending somewhat on how much more experience I have in that area as well as equipment and local competition.

Day rate: it's a full day job.

Unless you are very fast, have a good studio and skilled assistance this sounds like a minimum two day job with post to follow.

Whatever you end up charging, make sure the person in charge of the project sees processed samples early in the shoot. Even if they don't yet know how they want their clothing to look they will know it as soon as they see it.

Also, make sure you have skilled assistance in keeping the clothing looking good as you shoot.