Soooooo...you are looking to hire a photographer! Yet, you are looking at pricing and wondering "why in the world do they need to charge that amount?!". YIKES! Well, I am here to tell you that photographers are not just snapping a few pictures and then handing them off to you. That is what most people think! There is also editing time and carrying out all of the other administrative duties that owning a business entails. Even so, there is so much more, but we will get to that in a minute. Without knowing what a photographer actually does, it is easy to say they make a lot of money in a small amount of time. But, in reality, all of the work done before and after a session ends up being way more than you think.
When you hire a professional photographer, you are not just hiring someone with an expensive camera. You are hiring someone who knows what they are doing and can create a usable and presentable product. Considering their professional artistic eye, the skill to see and put subjects at ease is valuable. Awesome images are products of artistic vision, skill and professionalism. You are not just paying for the photograph to be there for the session, but you are also paying for their expertise and time. Let's just look at what a basic photo session can entail:
- Scheduling and booking the session
- Writing the contract, invoice, and collecting personal info
- Travel to and from the session
- Shooting for the amount of time selected
- Setting-up, preparing, and directing the client
- Downloading images to the computer
- Backing-up the images on multiple drives
- Editing time takes hours+ (way more for weddings)
- Exporting images for print size
- Exporting images for social media size
- Uploading images into an online gallery for client proofing/viewing
- Emailing client link to gallery
- Fulfilling client orders and other requests
- Selecting the FAVES and uploading to social media
WHEW! Basically, a FULL TIME JOB! Who doesn't like to get paid a fair wage for the work they do at their job? Not to mention (well, I just did) the living wage of the photographer for them to pay for food, housing, and all other living expenses and be able to continue their service. Plus, continuing education and gear upgrades is a must in an ever-evolving industry.
Yes, you could hire a cheaper photographer. Yes, you could be happy with mediocre images. But, would you truly be satisfied with what you will receive? Will you be anxious to share them with your friends and family? As the famous phrase goes, "you get what you pay for" and paying for a good photographer should produce photos that you can be proud to display and that you can share with others for years to come. Besides, when all else is gone, the memories and photos will be all that is left behind that your family will cherish. Make sure they are good ones!
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