Cheap (rates) photographers
July 1st, 2010 by adminI use to have a totally different view on these types of cheap photographers, I use to hate them, thinking they would eventually bring down the industry. Now, because of the trust of my clients I have realized, the negative effect I was worried about affected them (cheap photographers) more than those who are already well established in the industry.
I have always believed that to be a success in this industry, that you must be hired for what you can create and not for how less you charge. I am blessed with clients who believes in my ability to provide them photos they need rather than because I am cheaper, which is rarely the case.
Here are my thoughts on this:
1. Photography should not always be about money, but Business should always be about money, if you want to make your photography as a business then money becomes very important. If you are doing it for the passion, you are better of not charging than being labeled as a cheap photographer.
2. No one can dictate how much you charge, but make sure what you charge covers everything, not just “GIMIK” money or “GADGETS” money. The biggest mistake newcomers make is only costing for their time and often neglect adding enough money for gear replacement, depreciation, repair and acquisition. Majority of other business start acquiring equipment with clear intention to use it in the business, thus costing of the equipment is included in their overhead expenses. In photography on the other hand, many newcomer acquired their equipment during their hobbyist days, that when they started charging they have forgotten to include the gear as part of the computation, as if it was free.
3. If you charge low (or cheap), you need to accept the fact that you will be labeled as a cheap photographer, weather or not that is an insult or not. So don’t be insulted, in the same way those Jollyjeep food stall owners take no offense when people say “dito na lang tayo, cheap kasi”. Clients who cater to the AB market, tends to get suppliers (photographers included) who also cater to the same market, it could be because both have better understanding of the market or it could also be protecting their own reputation, so do not expect the AB market to start rolling in, because of your label as cheap photographer.
4. If you have to charge really low, since this is the only thing you think you have to do to get into the industry, then you are not ready to get into the industry. Entry to the industry is only part of the battle, longevity is the bigger battle, sadly cheap rates doesn’t help on the longevity department.
5. By charging cheap, you are targeting a budget concious market who hire photographer based on rates and not on quality, so no matter how much better you get in your photography, you run the big risk of loosing all your clients the moment you increase your price. Most companies / clients do budgeting of projects in advance, and tend to use current rates as basis for the budgeting of future projects, so as soon as you increase your rates, they have no other choice but to find someone else willing to do the project at your old rate (or the rate they budgeted for). You can’t really blame them for doing so, since you yourself were the one who made them realize that photographers can be hired cheap.
Posted in Blogroll | 
11 Comments »
July 2nd, 2010 at 1:27 am
It felt funny making a business plan for what I want to eventually establish Sir Ken (kasi parang presumptuous nga since I still am gaining knowledge and experience) At the start, dahil excited nga, akala ko basta bili lang ng bili ng “essential” gears. But once I put it down on paper… oh my, the numbers hit me. It forced me to relive my days in Accounting 101 – which I flunked, btw! You are right about dissecting the hobby part and the business part of it… it puts things in such a different perspective and you would reeeeally take things seriously — not only the quality of you work, but also the financial aspect of it, as well as customer satisfaction. Thank you Sir for your thoughts, learned much as always!
July 2nd, 2010 at 3:29 pm
I agree 100% with your opinion that charging low rates should not be the basis for entering into the photography business. Fees should be based on the projected manhours you are going to use including your assistants if any, then the materials & supplies you will be using,other cost such as meals and travelling expenses, the cost of the equipment (amortization of acquisition cost or replacement cost) and finally to add the Margin or Profit that you want on the project.
July 2nd, 2010 at 11:27 pm
learned a lot from this blog. Now I know that i must include equipment maintenance in mind in terms of pricing.
July 3rd, 2010 at 7:37 am
i’d like to thank you sir ken on what u have shared to us… may God find more ways to bless you and share again to us thank you
July 6th, 2010 at 11:30 pm
It really shouldn’t be a price war. Someone or somewhere, there would be a photographer who can offer the same service cheaper. It should me more on the quality and style that you can offer.
August 6th, 2010 at 9:07 am
thanks sir for this blog you have.. more power sir
August 27th, 2010 at 12:30 am
Good thing I found this blog of yours, sir ken. even professional video editors gives low rates for a freelance video editing job. Like photographers, an editor who has a Macbook Pro usually charge at low rates, even if his or her unit goes blazingly hot due to long hours of editing and rendering motion graphics then the computer dies because of heat. so, how will i have a replacement for that for a small amount of cash? di ba? when they hire you, photographer or video editor for a freelance job, we should include the use of equipments, consumption of power, concept and ideas, and not only skills.
thanks for sharing this. and this will encourage everyone to give quality service.
October 22nd, 2010 at 9:34 am
Nice article Sir!
On general photography, can you suggest what is the basic starting fee for a beginner, so as not to be labeled as cheap?
October 22nd, 2010 at 10:15 am
The best gauge is to see the current market rates and if the prices are acceptable to your profit plan. Do not use undercutting to gain more clients, this will cause more problems in the long run for your business.
October 22nd, 2010 at 2:40 pm
the insight of the article is somewhat textbook in the sense that it works in the premise of assumption that all photographers are equally known in this business.newbies can never be at the same plane as far as pricing is concerned with the big names in photography. no big client will ever take the risk of giving an important project to an “unknown” with a price tag the same as the “big guns”. in any business you have to establish first your name in price, service and quality. and the last two can only be seen by customer when the price is agreed. that is why pricing is very crucial in entering in any business. most business use a low price tag strategy to be noticed and for their presence to be felt and gradually adjust their price according to their market rank and value. if you are a newbie in photography, as sure as the sun will rise in the east tomorrow morning and sets in the east in the afternoon, you’re dead if you put a price tag the same as Ken Go’s.
October 22nd, 2010 at 6:37 pm
You are missing the point, it doesn’t say you can’t charge lower than the established photographers, but instead saying charge not too low that you are not even making a profit after everything has been totaled. How long can one undercut the prices and still survive the time it takes for them to get known? Like what I mentioned, it’s not easy to raise price when your cheap price targets a price sensitive market sector.
Though no one is stopping anyone to price as low as they want, this is a free economy, this post was made not to control pricing but instead make those getting into the industry insights on possible scenarios that I have seen happen in my years in the industry.