Pricing is hugely important to me, because it is the basis of how we run our business. In a way, it defines everything about who we are as photographers. It’s also the source of the most frustration for most photographers I know, so in order to help ease that frustration, I have created a pricing guide that contains a process for determining your pricing and packaging in a manner that accounts for cost, taxes, and profit. If you use this method accurately, you will have no problem accounting for your overhead, paying the Tax man his due, and making whatever profit you desire.
If you’ve enjoyed the guide, PLEASE let me know by commenting on this page. I would love to hear how this guide has helped you and your business! Also, feel free to link anyone else who needs help with their pricing to this page. The guide is completely free, and meant to be shared as much as possible!
Bill Millios from Hopeland Studios has kindly put together an awesome spreadsheet to help you through the pricing guide. This is an incredible resource, and best of all, it’s FREE! You can download the spreadsheet here.
****NEW UPDATE****
I recently added a short chapter on how to adapt the advice in the guide to a portrait photography business. Although most of the advice can be applied to any kind of photography studio, there are a few key differences in calculations for photographers who primarily shoot portraits, so I’ve included a bit more information on how to plan for those differences. Enjoy!
Dallas wedding photographer Stacy Reeves » T4P - Pricing - [...] Photographer’s Pricing Guide [...]
Guide to Wedding Pricing | The Pea Pod - [...] Get it Here [...]
Wedding Pricing | Hopeland Studios - [...] You can download it for yourself from: http://www.stacyreeves.com/photographers-pricing-guide/ [...]
Setting your prices - a comprehensive guide for wedding photographers « LustreColor - [...] The Single Greatest Guide to Wedding Photography Pricing That Ever Was and Ever Will Be [...]
Tacoma Click Chicks » Blog Archive » business stuff - [...] a great link that might be useful for you, if you are working on 2009 pricing. Check out the link HERE. She also offers a lot of other great tips for photographers on her blog. I got a lot out of [...]
shannon - oh my god thank you so much this is amazing.
Alex Nelson - Thanks for the guide, it looks extremely useful.
Lisa Ceaser - I just printed it, and will take it home to read. But wanted to thank you in advance for taking the time and effort to put something so useful together.
Tina - Thank you so much for this! I am working on building a photography business, and while I'm not going to focus solely on weddings, this will still be a HUGE help for me to figure out an appropriate pricing scheme. I will definitely pass this info around!
Marcy Bartholow - What a great resource! Thanks so much!
shauna maness - hi stacy- i just wanted to say that i loved your guide- i teach business classes to photographers and will share it with each of them! i added it to a pricing post faq portion of my blog http://shaunamaness.squarespace.com/expresscreativity/2009/3/10/pricing-for-today-faq.html thanks for the hardwork that it took to put it together- it was done excellently! your work is beautiful!! have a fabulous day!
Jaime Saul - This is amazing information! I have recently moved my business to a small town where unemployment is currently sitting around 25%. I am struggling with pricing, as my only competitor is extremely cut throat. Every time I change my pricing, she prices things $1 more than mine. VERY FRUSTRATING! This helps me have a baseline to go back to ground zero. Although these figures would make my prices substantially higher, I am hoping to sell the "you get what you pay for" concept to my clients. This is just the push and insight I have been needing for a year. Thanks so much for sharing it!!!!!!! This is life changing for me as I am sure, for others as well. I have found that I do very well with a camera...not so much with the "running a profitable business" side of this. I find it very difficult to not "cut everyone a deal" because in this small area, all your clients end up being your friends as well. It is a hard line to draw, but I HAVE to do it or I won't have a business at all. I am sure there are many of us out there that have that same issue. Your help is truly appreciated on many levels. ((Hugs)) -Jaime
stacyreeves - Jamie, if you try to compete on price, you will always LOSE.. Even if you win the client, you won't be able to pay your bills, so you lose in the long run. You need to set your prices where they need to be to run a profitable business, and then forget about money and focus on competing on quality, service, and personality. If you can get people to want YOU, well, that's something your colleagues just can't compete with.
Ceci Flanagan-Snow - Excellent booklet with sound business advice. Regardless of your location (and I'm in a small, rural area in New Brunswick, Canada) you need to go through the exercises of defining your business financially and setting appropriate prices. If you can't sell those prices, perhaps you should find another source of income and enjoy your photography hobby instead of bastardizing the market with ridiculously low pricing.
The Beautiful Mess {Blog} » {Tip of the Week} - [...] Here is a pricing guide that I’ve read through by Dallas Wedding Photographer, Stacy Reeves, that I think you will find some great advice in. Click here. [...]
Kia - thanks!
see the light. be the light. | Salt Lake City, Utah Wedding and Portrait Photography | Morgan Trinker - [...] another note, I’m really, really working on a pricing guide (with a LOT of help from Stacy Reeves’s Pricing Guide and Nolo’s Small Business Start-Up Kit) and some gallery pages to get this site a little more [...]
Pricing Guide Updated « Dallas Wedding Photographer Stacy Reeves | Vintage Modern Wedding Photography - [...] Photographer’s Pricing Guide [...]
HUMPDATES « Dallas Wedding Photographer Stacy Reeves | Vintage Modern Wedding Photography - [...] Photographer’s Pricing Guide [...]
studios lowering pricing - The Photo Forum - Photography Discussion Forum - [...] single DVD. The best guidance i can offer you is to simply download and work on the following. Photographers pricing guide and also the spreadsheets the accompany it. Put some time and effort into this and plug in some [...]
Stacey Reeves | Photographers Who Blog - [...] photos, she shares lots of great business resources for photographers, including a well-though-out Photographers Pricing Guide. Check out her latest posts (updated [...]
Updates! « Dallas Wedding Photographer Stacy Reeves | Vintage Modern Wedding Photography - [...] Photographer’s Pricing Guide [...]
Pricing Challenges « Meghan Senkel Photography- Annapolis, Baltimore, Washington D.C. Photographers - [...] insight that would be useful no matter what your area is. You can download this fantastic guide here for free. Whoooo…the magic [...]
What do you think of my wedding rates? - Page 2 - The Photo Forum - Photography Discussion Forum - [...] Dawson, this post on setting your package pricing was written last year (not by me), but I thought it may help as it goes through a lot of detail on the cost of doing business... Photographer’s Pricing Guide Dallas Wedding Photographer Stacy Reeves | Vintage Modern Wedding... [...]
FAQs :: Pricing (Part Deux) | Natasha Brown Photography - [...] Read THIS. A while ago, I read Stacy Reeves’ Photographer’s Pricing Guide. And it completely [...]
Pricing - [...] making just a couple dollars an hour after you process the pics and burn them to disc. Read this: http://www.stacyreeves.com/photographers-pricing-guide/ --------------------------- 1Dm3 1DSm2 1Dm2 5Dm2 7D 16-35mm 2.8L II - 17-40mm 4L - 24-70mm 2.8L - [...]
Wedding pricing question - [...] 01:57 PM Photographer’s Pricing Guide Dallas Wedding Photographer Stacy Reeves | Vintage Modern Wedding... Read Stacy Reeves' pricing guide. --------------------------- 1Dm3 1DSm2 1Dm2 5Dm2 7D 16-35mm [...]
Photographers Pricing Guide by Antonina Mamzenko | The Photography Parlour - [...] The Single Greatest Guide To Wedding Photography Pricing: Stacy Reeves is not only an amazing photographer, but also someone willing to share her knowledge with everyone. I wish I discovered this guide earlier: it’s free, and although it’s written with wedding photographers in mind, the general advice applies to any area of photography. [...]
Photographers Tool Kit | Pricing & Sales » Bryan College Station Texas Photographer | Shauna Maness Photography | Destination Wedding Photography - [...] no idea what the next guys investment is, so don’t base your sales on his! check out this AWESOME pricing guide by Stacy Reeves download it, read it, re-read it, and then start calculating your [...]
my recommended reading list « Matthew Dutile Photography – Blog of Phoenix Arizona Lifestyle, Editorial, Advertising and Commercial Photographer Matthew Dutile - [...] if the commercial world really isn’t your goal, there’s a great packet put together by Stacy Reeves and a few other retail photographers on how to price weddings and [...]
FREE Pricing Guides For Photographers « Photo-Treasury - [...] Pricing guide from Stacy Reeves [...]
Stacy Reeves’ Pricing Guide — PhotogFreebies.com - Free Photographer Resources - [...] that if you ever got the chance to meet her, you might faint with excitement! She has written an e-book on pricing for wedding photographers that is AMAZING and is incredibly versatile for all [...]
PHOTOGRAPHY // Worth | Nashville Wedding Photographer / Nashville Portrait Photographer / Joshua Gull Photography - [...] Photographer’s Resource: Stacey Reeves’ “The Single Greatest Guide To Wedding Photography That Ever Was and Ever ... (seriously, it [...]
Kimberly Gauthier Photography - [...] to good use this weekend when I finalize my pricing. Wedding Photographer, Stacy Reeves, wrote a photographer’s pricing guide that looks [...]
Fast Track Calgary – November - [...] set your business prices, so you won’t be able to do our business budget, either. Check out Stacey Reeves Photographer’s Pricing Guide for an example. And it’s a free resource, [...]
Photographer FAQ: Lens choices, blogs and profit margins » Suzanne Melissa Photography, Engagement, Wedding, Wedding Photographer, Scottsdale Arizona, Phoenix Arizona - [...] then figure out how to make that happen. I feel like my answer may not have been very helpful, Here is a link to a great resource and guide to [...]
Dec 13th, 2010 Update - [...] Stacy Reeves Pricing Guide – I know several people who have used this. It is geared towards the wedding photographer but I’m sure a portrait artist could use it as well. There was also a spreadsheet made to be able to work with it. Best of all, it’s free! [...]
Pricing info you say?? - [...] 06:06 PM Here are a couple to ad to the reading list: Pricing Guide by Stacy Reeve's Photographer’s Pricing Guide Dallas Wedding Photographer Stacy Reeves | Vintage Modern Wedding... NPPA: Business Practices Toolkit The Road to profitable Photography - Shakodo [...]
Free Pricing Guide for Photographers - Part 1 - [...] of the best free guides I’ve seen is Stacy Reeve’s pricing guide (here). This guide has helped numerous photographers to profitably price their photography. However, even [...]
Steps to Establishing a Business | Kari Campos Photography | Lifestyle Photography for Fun People | Chicago | Western and Northern Suburbs - [...] my pricing with the help of Stacy Reeve’s “Pricing Guide”. Late January [...]
Pricing is Up! | Kari Campos Photography | Lifestyle Photography for Fun People | Chicago, IL - [...] talent is worth. For those trying to do the same, I highly recommend reading Stacy Reeve’s “Photographer’s Pricing Guide”. It took me a bit of time, but I’m happy to announce that my pricing is up, and I’m [...]
About to step my foot into Wedding Photography - [...] 05:12 PM Stacey Reeves did a nice write up on pricing, it's worth a read: Photographer’s Pricing Guide Dallas Wedding Photographer Stacy Reeves | Vintage Modern Wedding... --------------------------- "It is what it [...]
» rebecca watkins photography - [...] to lie. Just recently I found out about a great photographer in Texas named Stacy Reeves and her Photographer’s Pricing Guide. I cannot believe I have gone this long without reading it. It truly made me realize how much I [...]
wedding pricing!! - [...] [...]
McG Answers Interesting Questions » McGowan Images Blog - [...] came up with our current pricing using Stacy Reeves pricing guide, for which I’ll forever be grateful. We base our pricing on the profit we want to make, factoring [...]
Wedding photo albums/coffeebook - [...] [...]
The Single Greatest Guide to Wedding Photography Pricing That Ever Was and Ever Will Be | The Photographer Review - [...] Stacy Reeves Photography Pricing Guide [...]
What Should I Charge? | Pricing 101 | fotoseeds photographic education - [...] to help you get started: the 2005 PPA Benchmark Survey, Expense and Pricing Templates from PPA, Stacey Reeves’ Pricing Guide, and Hopeland Studio’s Pricing Spreadsheet (based on Stacey’s [...]
Note to Self 001. » Alex Beadon Photography - [...] you are making enough profit to get by :). Want to check out an awesome pricing resource? Check out this pricing guide by Stacy [...]
Meet Ruthie Allen :: {Women In Business Series} » VeLvet OwL Photography Blog - [...] to take that step and charge like a professional. A great tool to get you started on pricing is Stacy Reeves Pricing Guide which helped me a [...]