- at least two days and several hours scout time to determine the best time of day, lighting, etc.
- prepare equipment, clean lenses, prepare flash cards, check batteries, re-charge equipment, etc.
- review in my mind the person, what style would they like, what I would do or talk about to put them at ease so get that once-in-a-lifetime shot.
- at least one hour or more shoot time, not including the time it takes to load equipment.
- Drive time, props
- shooting, I always go over on time, but I don't charge for it
- post work: opening the files in PhotoShop RAW format and converting to jpeg, depending on images this can take 4 to 10 hours. Especially in group shots when one person doesn't want to smile or a child keeps moving.
- any softening or special effects work
- meeting with the client to go over the images
- more computer/lab work.
Oh, did I mention taxes and bookkeeping? Probably not because this is my least favorite side of the business.
Now, consider this: I pay upwards of $125 plus tip to color and cut my hair. A massage, much needed for someone who likes to workout and also lifts heavy camera equipment, can cost $65 plus per hour. A pedicure is $45 an hour, plus tip...I can go on and on.
In college, I studied journalism and a good two years was concentrated on photography, then 14 years in my darkroom. Currently I'm in my 4th PhotoShop class and will probably take it for another two years. I won't even go into the cost of equipment except to say this...my new lens costs just as much as my new camera.
Photographers don't grow on trees, and we work hard, really hard to get the documentation of your wedding, your precious graduate or your beautifully aging grandmother just the way they would want to be remembered.
My current price for a one-hour portrait session which includes a print package and full cd of images is $175. Pretty fair hun?
