What is the average price for wedding shoots?

[mwkh]

Hi guys,

I would like to do some survey of the price of charges for being wedding photographer? I'm asking on behalf of a friend whom interested to do some wedding shoots in Aussie if possible.

Maybe the price quote can be listed as
1. pre-wedding shoots?
2. on-wedding day itself?
3. etc?

Feel free to voice out your opinions, as it would be helpful to us.

thanks in advance.

[ricktas]

$400.00 - $25,000

[Longshots]

Let me get this straight, you're asking for a friend who isnt in Australia ? And one of the options you want people to consider is "etc" ?


Hardly useful I'm afraid.

How long is the piece of string ?

I'd like a house, I have friend who's a builder and might like to come here and build in Australia.

1) Quote on a roof
2) Quote on building it with walls
3) Etc

[para]

$400.00 - $25,000
nice answer rick

[Longshots]

Well in all honesty - I would extend Rick's range from $0 to $100,000 (yep - heard of them).

[Dan Cripps]

At a guess:

<$2000 95%
>$2000 05%

[virgal_tracy]

I would love to help out but the question is too open ended. answers to the following would help -

Where is the photography to take place? eg major city, country town
How many hours of coverage is to be offered? 2 hrs, 4hrs, all day?
What does the client get? coverage, proofs, album, prints, Hi res jpgs?
1 photographer or 2?
Experience of the photographer?

All of these questions will determine what the charge wil be. A jerry Ghionis, Yervant, David Oliver or Marcus Bell can charge much more than Bill Smith or Jane Public in South Countryville for example.

Answers to these questions will allow us to answer your questions more fully.

[Analog6]

Why not have a look in some bridal magazines for ideas - at the least you'll get some websites to follow up to get an idea

[kiwi]

95% of the last amount quoted :)

[jasevk]

Well in all honesty - I would extend Rick's range from $0 to $100,000 (yep - heard of them).

agreed - I priced one a few weeks ago for a lady who called me from melbourne, she got back to me saying that she had a friend of a friend who will do it for $0 for the experience, and asked if I could also do it for free as she liked my work more than the other guys work. I said that my price was a reflection of my costs plus a reasonable and fair margin for my efforts, she hung up on me. She calls me back the next day saying that they can cover my flights and accommodation if I'd otherwise do it for free... I told her that my price already included travel costs, she hung up on me again.....

So my point is, there does seem to be people out there who demand free wedding photography!

[kiwi]

There are PLENTY who will do anything for free

[jasevk]

There are PLENTY who will do anything for free

Correct, if I'm honest I'd have to say I've been guilty of this myself 3 to 4 yrs ago... but it wasn't until I turned the tables and are now competing against this beast that I realised the problem...

[campo]

I think we're all guilty of undercharging especially when we start out because it's difficult to ask 5k, 10k, 15k when you can't produce workmanship like the greats. I know I struggled with the confidence to ask higher rates initially. It's when you start to factor in your real expenses do you realise that $500/wedding is unsustainable and your business will never work.

I attended a Marcus Bell workshop recently, and he did an exercise to work out an effective hourly rate and how much you're actually earning. Most of the people in the class put their hands up to say that they'd be paid better as a junior at Maccas!

It's those who continue to charge low and unsustainable rates that give the public an expectation that they can get cheap/free photography. Unfortunately, in this day and age, anyone can have a dSLR and go around saying "I'm a photographer".

I'm not scared to say no to a client if they don't want to pay proper rates, because i don't want to go broke!

[Jules]

There are PLENTY who will do anything for free

And in a lot of cases (not all) the clients will get exactly what they paid for.

[jasevk]

I'm not scared to say no to a client if they don't want to pay proper rates, because i don't want to go broke!

Yeah I've buckled to clients before for portrait queries just for the sake of getting the job... but to stand behind my price and watch the job slip from my hands was surprisingly not difficult!

I almost got the sense in my earlier days that SOME potential clients could clearly sense that you weren't a seasoned pro and tried very hard to take advantage of it!

[campo]

Yeah I've buckled to clients before for portrait queries just for the sake of getting the job... but to stand behind my price and watch the job slip from my hands was surprisingly not difficult!

I almost got the sense in my earlier days that SOME potential clients could clearly sense that you weren't a seasoned pro and tried very hard to take advantage of it!

Its a balancing act, without jobs you go broke too, without jobs you can't build up a portfolio, without jobs you can't get experience and then there's the almost certain fact that clients only willing to pay cheap rates are also the ones who'll try and take advantage of you.

[I @ M]

What is wrong with shopping around for the cheapest wedding photographer, after all you do it when buying a car, new or used? :confused013

[jasevk]

What is wrong with shopping around for the cheapest wedding photographer, after all you do it when buying a car, new or used? :confused013

Absolutely nothing wrong with it... but there's a difference between shopping around and targeting decent 'up & coming' photographers and screwing them down knowing they'll buckle! :)

[Kym]

What is wrong with shopping around for the cheapest wedding photographer, after all you do it when buying a car, new or used? :confused013

If I pay $500 for an old Merc - I know it will be c**p. If I pay $100,000 for a new one - I can expect some nice motoring.
So buying a wedding 'tog service should be the same.
I need to evaluate the product/service and be prepared to pay for value.

[I @ M]

Absolutely nothing wrong with it... but there's a difference between shopping around and targeting decent 'up & coming' photographers and screwing them down knowing they'll buckle! :)

Working on that theory then you wouldn't go to a car dealership that you know might be struggling in order to see if you could get a car a bit cheaper because they need the sales to keep the doors open?

[Longshots]

What is wrong with shopping around for the cheapest wedding photographer, after all you do it when buying a car, new or used? :confused013


Where do you interpret that out of the original question ? And where does the OP state that they're seeking the "cheapest wedding photographer" ?


Hi guys,

I would like to do some survey of the price of charges for being wedding photographer? I'm asking on behalf of a friend whom interested to do some wedding shoots in Aussie if possible.

Maybe the price quote can be listed as
1. pre-wedding shoots?
2. on-wedding day itself?
3. etc?

Feel free to voice out your opinions, as it would be helpful to us.

thanks in advance.

:umm:


The question is quite clear to me, and that is that this person is doing a "survey" of what people charge to shoot a wedding.



I see nothing wrong with shopping around - but thats not the question.

And if I were the OP - original person who asked this, I would get up and do your own survey, based on what you like, when you like, and how much you like. Because in all honesty all you're going to get here, and any forum is subjective views - which is unlikely to match you the OP's subjective viewpoint.

[jasevk]

Working on that theory then you wouldn't go to a car dealership that you know might be struggling in order to see if you could get a car a bit cheaper because they need the sales to keep the doors open?

I don't think thats a very good comparison.... we're talking about car salesman who are notoriously known (not ALL), for ripping people off... and who can wrap up a sale in as little as 20mins in some cases.

A photographers job is quite different, it calls for an incredible amount of creativity and time to complete one wedding job... far far more than the average car sale i'd suggest. To screw a photographer down to $500 for a job which can take anything from 2 days to 3 months to complete from start to finish is just wrong IMO.

But then there are the photographers who are happy to do the big jobs for $500.... well good luck to them I say!

[I @ M]

Where do you interpret that out of the original question ? And where does the OP state that they're seeking the "cheapest wedding photographer" ?





Why ask me?
I was responding to those that were offering differing and valued opinions on price cutting in the wedding photography industry and going along with the Op's request,



Feel free to voice out your opinions, as it would be helpful to us.



I thought I would introduce a thought or two into the discussion, that is generally what forums are used for.

[I @ M]

I don't think thats a very good comparison.... we're talking about car salesman who are notoriously known (not ALL), for ripping people off... and who can wrap up a sale in as little as 20mins in some cases.

A photographers job is quite different, it calls for an incredible amount of creativity and time to complete one wedding job... far far more than the average car sale i'd suggest. To screw a photographer down to $500 for a job which can take anything from 2 days to 3 months to complete from start to finish is just wrong IMO.

But then there are the photographers who are happy to do the big jobs for $500.... well good luck to them I say!

A car salesman has to be "creative" to make sales. :D

I wholly agree that a photographer (wedding or otherwise) must be dedicated, creative and patient in order to produce a quality product and stay in business and that is the key word because just like car sales or to bring it closer to home on this forum, you, I and many many other members here are very often happy to spend money overseas on camera gear rather than supporting local business in order to save a dollar or two.

Don't get me wrong Jason, I have no time for people that deliberately go out of their way to take advantage of people's circumstances (screwing the price down on an up and coming wedding photographer) but it seems to becoming the way of the business world in general, not specifically the business of photogray.

[jasevk]

A car salesman has to be "creative" to make sales. :D



... Now THAT's creative - lol :p



Don't get me wrong Jason, I have no time for people that deliberately go out of their way to take advantage of people's circumstances (screwing the price down on an up and coming wedding photographer) but it seems to becoming the way of the business world in general, not specifically the business of photogray.

Well it seems we share the same opinion after all that... hehehe :D

[Longshots]

OK well the reason I asked, was that its clear that the OP's question is simply going to be ignored and others want to discuss something that I personally feel is related only in the sense of it being about wedding photography.

The car salesperson analogy is difficult to take seriously as I've yet found a car sales person, who takes a brief, designs the car, builds it from scratch, and then eventually can sell it with the addition of extras.

And the important thing is that this mythical car sales person, however creative, is also going to have to sell the "idea" of the car, by displaying past cars built for others, and not the actual car that the client wants, as in the same sense that a wedding photographer can only show examples of past weddings and would not have too much physical product that to specifically relates to the client enquiring.

[jasevk]

OK well the reason I asked, was that its clear that the OP's question is simply going to be ignored and others want to discuss something that I personally feel is related only in the sense of it being about wedding photography.

You seem to have an issue with the way the discussion has progressed, but the OP hasn't been ignored... in fact, unless we get more information the question has already been answered, ($0-$100,000)

So what's the issue??

[Longshots]

You seem to have an issue with the way the discussion has progressed, but the OP hasn't been ignored... in fact, unless we get more information the question has already been answered, ($0-$100,000)

So what's the issue??

Fair question. I'd agree with you that the question has been answered. The issue I have is that the debate about car sales people being compared to budget photography is to me so far off topic of the OP's question, I simply couldnt understand how or why you didnt start another topic.

[jasevk]

Fair question. I'd agree with you that the question has been answered. The issue I have is that the debate about car sales people being compared to budget photography is to me so far off topic of the OP's question, I simply couldnt understand how or why you didnt start another topic.

I see your point... but I really don't think it's so far off topic, before the car salesman analogy it was a discussion as to why there are so many cheap or free wedding photographers around... you made the correct observation of prices starting at zero... we started discussing why! I'm not seeing the issue! :p

[Wayne]

Regardless of what we are buying, it would be fair to ay none of us pay any more than we feel we have to for things, particularly for service as opposed to goods, because we know that services can be widely negotiated.

We all do it, but it seems many get precious about it when we are talking about photography. Commercial photographers are in business, just like plumbers etc, but it is just a fact of life that there are no formal education or training requirements, and the tools of trade can be bought for not a whole lot of initial outlay. If you want to be a paid photographer, then get used to stiff competition and realise that this is what the industry you have chosen is like. It must also be remembered that these cheap as chips suppliers exist simply because there is a market for them. Society clearly feels that the days gone by where you once paid a kings ransom for photography are over for the most part, and the fact that photography is not as much the black art it once was in the film only days has been a certain contributor to the perception of a modern day photographers worth.

[jasevk]

Regardless of what we are buying, it would be fair to ay none of us pay any more than we feel we have to for things, particularly for service as opposed to goods, because we know that services can be widely negotiated.

We all do it, but it seems many get precious about it when we are talking about photography. Commercial photographers are in business, just like plumbers etc, but it is just a fact of life that there are no formal education or training requirements, and the tools of trade can be bought for not a whole lot of initial outlay. If you want to be a paid photographer, then get used to stiff competition and realise that this is what the industry you have chosen is like. It must also be remembered that these cheap as chips suppliers exist simply because there is a market for them. Society clearly feels that the days gone by where you once paid a kings ransom for photography are over for the most part, and the fact that photography is not as much the black art it once was in the film only days has been a certain contributor to the perception of a modern day photographers worth.

You've missed our points.... we were commenting on the act of some clients trying to use these weekend freebie photographers as leverage against skilled photographers trying to establish a business. Many would argue that 2, 5 or 10 grand is not a kings ransom when up to 3 months can be spent to deliver the final product. Many weekend warriors can actually deliver quality, but I would suggest that with most, you get what you pay for. And when I get a rude and idiotic client calling me trying to screw me over and suggesting my time and effort aren't worth a single cent... Well that just makes me crabby.

[mwkh]

Let me get this straight, you're asking for a friend who isnt in Australia ? And one of the options you want people to consider is "etc" ?


Hardly useful I'm afraid.

How long is the piece of string ?

I'd like a house, I have friend who's a builder and might like to come here and build in Australia.

1) Quote on a roof
2) Quote on building it with walls
3) Etc

Longshots, I'm posting out this question not to ask my friend(which is not australian to come over to do some shoots.

My friend interested to shoot some wedding in Australia to gain more experience.. he is wondering what are the chances and what is possibilities if we work together?
"etc" - what other things/issue that can bring into consideration.


Well in all honesty - I would extend Rick's range from $0 to $100,000 (yep - heard of them).

thanks for the tips.


I would love to help out but the question is too open ended. answers to the following would help -

Where is the photography to take place? eg major city, country town
How many hours of coverage is to be offered? 2 hrs, 4hrs, all day?
What does the client get? coverage, proofs, album, prints, Hi res jpgs?
1 photographer or 2?
Experience of the photographer?

All of these questions will determine what the charge wil be. A jerry Ghionis, Yervant, David Oliver or Marcus Bell can charge much more than Bill Smith or Jane Public in South Countryville for example.

Answers to these questions will allow us to answer your questions more fully.

Hey virgal_tracy,
thanks for helping me to have some extend my questions.

[JM Tran]

which country is your friend from?

pretty much any wedding photography business has an almost 'worldwide' business ethics and conducts, the only difference is in price - and in western countries those prices are very similar ie. US or AUS or UK

unless hes a wedding photographer from Vietnam or Cambodia, then thats a different story with rates:):):):)

[bigdazzler]

raise your hand if youre sick to death of wedding photography threads ... :Doh:

[JM Tran]

raise your hand if youre sick to death of wedding photography threads ... :Doh:

I'd raise a hand if I could

since I amputated my hands as to stop myself from replying to wedding threads everyday LOL:D

[bigdazzler]

I'd raise a hand if I could

since I amputated my hands as to stop myself from replying to wedding threads everyday LOL:D

wow JM ,,, cant wait to see what kinda funky styling you come up with next shooting with no hands :D Can you get a sharp shot firing your shutter with your big toe ?? :D

[trigger]

Answer to this question is ....42..




lol... okay.. enough of Hitchhikers
There are alot of variables but basically comes down to two things.

1. What the client is willing to pay - social class / income etc
2. What the photographer can charge and how much they market towards that section of clients.

I've been approached by couples who think $200 is A LOT for a wedding. And the most lavish ridiculous wedding I been to, the tog cost 180MYR (60kAUD) over two days.

Why? because the couple could pay for it. and also the tog marketed to "celebrities" and the upper class. I suspect its also because he wore aviators. :cool:

http://kidchanstudio.com/v1/

[JM Tran]

Answer to this question is ....42..




lol... okay.. enough of Hitchhikers
There are alot of variables but basically comes down to two things.

1. What the client is willing to pay - social class / income etc
2. What the photographer can charge and how much they market towards that section of clients.

I've been approached by couples who think $200 is A LOT for a wedding. And the most lavish ridiculous wedding I been to, the tog cost 180MYR (60kAUD) over two days.

Why? because the couple could pay for it. and also the tog marketed to "celebrities" and the upper class. I suspect its also because he wore aviators. :cool:

http://kidchanstudio.com/v1/

just had a look through their photos - I dont think he is that good, have seen a lot better photographers in Malay and Singapore - and an incredible number of photos are tilted shots too, which just plain speaks to me as lacking in creativity and composition sometimes and relying on PP to make it look good.

but like you said, he or they, are very well marketed, hence the high pricing:) so good on them

[kiwi]

so what's the price for average wedding photos then ?

[trigger]

Yes he is very well marketed. The photos on the site arent all his. He has a large team shooting for him.


but like you said, he or they, are very well marketed, hence the high pricing:) so good on them

Any way. to answer your question a typical price I charge for

1. E-session (Pre-weddings) approx $700.
2. Typical Weddings - $1.5k+ 1/2 day (More for ethnic weddings and whole days)
3. Location shoots +$500 on the day

Its all about what the couple wants and to communicate with the photographer. e.g. I had to charge more for exotic locations and high risk areas like having to shoot over-water.

[Wayne]

Yes he is very well marketed. The photos on the site arent all his. He has a large team shooting for him.



Any way. to answer your question a typical price I charge for

1. E-session (Pre-weddings) approx $700.
2. Typical Weddings - $1.5k+ 1/2 day (More for ethnic weddings and whole days)
3. Location shoots +$500 on the day


so your pricing is discriminatory based on ethnicity/race or culture? If that is the case, I find your ethics disgraceful.

[mwkh]

Yes he is very well marketed. The photos on the site arent all his. He has a large team shooting for him.



Any way. to answer your question a typical price I charge for

1. E-session (Pre-weddings) approx $700.
2. Typical Weddings - $1.5k+ 1/2 day (More for ethnic weddings and whole days)
3. Location shoots +$500 on the day

Its all about what the couple wants and to communicate with the photographer. e.g. I had to charge more for exotic locations and high risk areas like having to shoot over-water.


Is your price for the typical wedding final productions in printing or soft-copy?

[mwkh]

which country is your friend from?

pretty much any wedding photography business has an almost 'worldwide' business ethics and conducts, the only difference is in price - and in western countries those prices are very similar ie. US or AUS or UK

unless hes a wedding photographer from Vietnam or Cambodia, then thats a different story with rates:):):):)

Currently, my friend is from Malaysia.

[ricktas]

My friend interested to shoot some wedding in Australia to gain more experience.

I think this is the statement we need to know more about before anyone here can give you an informed answer. You say your friend is interested in coming here to gain more experience, well how much current experience do they have? Have they ever shot a wedding? Have they done a few as the second photographer? Do they have a budding wedding photography business that is starting to make some money, but they want to branch out and expand, including Australia in that expansion. Or have they got years of experience as wedding photographer but only within their own culture?

The reason these questions are so important to the final answers given is this; A beginner seeking experience should work as a second photographer, under another wedding photographer to start with, and thus could expect a set hourly rate for their help on the day, etc. A photographer with years of experience but only with their own culture could easily come into Aus and start getting weddings to shoot, as their portfolio of existing work would come into play as to what they could charge.

The other difficulty here is time! Most couples plan their wedding days months and years on advance. They like to meet the photographer over this time, often 3-5 meetings take place before the big day. Is your friend going to be able to do that? Does this mean they will move to Aus for a long period of time, or fly in and out of the country? What costs are associated with this? Who pays for this? the client?

Another thing that no-one has mentioned. Your friend would need a visa to work in Aus, presuming they are not an Australian Citizen (probably a 457 visa), any income would need to be declared and tax paid on it. Often (but not in all cases, depending on the visa sub type) your friend may be required to pay tax at the highest rate, or at least a higher rate than an Australian citizen earning the same amount would pay. They would need insurance..try getting insurance in Australia using a 457 visa, it will cost a lot! or do they already have insurance in Malaysia that they can add an international working component to, and if so, how much does that cost. All this has to be factored into the price charged to the client.

All the above goes to saying, that without full disclosure about your friend's circumstances, experience and position, we cannot in any way give you an 'average' price. Cause the average price may not cover anywhere near all his/her expenses involved in being an international photographer.

[trigger]

Not discriminatory, its about tailoring the package :)

Its the details with the clients, not just their race. So eg. If they are SE Asian chances are there is a 2 tea ceremonies before the wedding ceremony so extra travel and hours. Also the Banquet could last till 1 am before the thing ends. So could turn out to be a 12+hr day.
And so another Indian one could hold a Henna ceremony which is about 4hrs, etc
Then there are orthodox ones where I will need to rent fast lens as they dont allow flashes in the churches.

Starting to see the details? :)


so your pricing is discriminatory based on ethnicity/race or culture? If that is the case, I find your ethics disgraceful.