You’ve just spent $8,000 on the venue, $2000 on the cake, $2800 on the wedding dress, the flower cost is going up every minute, you’re thinking about serving chicken nuggets and kool-aid at the wedding reception to save money and then you start getting pricing information back from the photographers you reached out to…
Why are wedding photographers so expensive?
Just like the cake and the dress and the catering and the flowers, the wedding photos require skill, specialized equipment, time, and expertise to create. While most couples only see the photographer working the day of the wedding, the photographer actually spends significant time prepping their equipment, loading and unloading, photographing, paying assistants and second shooters, before the ceremony even starts. After the happy couple has departed, the photographer has to sort and cull images, edit and touch-up the keepers, create galleries, upload images, communicate constantly and keep the process moving. Outside of the wedding day, a photographer might spend 40 to 120 additional hours working on photos for each wedding.
Here are a few things to consider when asking yourself “why do wedding photographers charge so much?”
A professional camera is usually around $4000
Lenses run around $2000 to $3000 each
Data cards to hold pictures often cost $100 to $150 each
Flashes and transmitters can cost as much as $1000-$2000 each
Batteries for all of this equipment isn’t cheap either - usually costing around $100 per battery
Photographers need higher end computers to edit, as well as lots of storage space for photos
There are several software services that photographers have to use to manage projects and communicate with clients. These often run anywhere from $20 to $100 per month
The software the photographer uses costs between $20 to $50 per month
8 hours to shoot the wedding, 2 hours minimum prep, at least 40 hours to edit and sort. Photographers spend anywhere from 50 to 120 hours per wedding in labor.
Assistants and second shooters cost hundreds of dollars per day to hire and are completely necessary for medium to large weddings.
This is not an exhaustive list of expenses, but it does give you an idea of the investment in equipment and time that each photographer makes when booking a wedding.
Let’s Approach Wedding Photography Sticker Shock Differently
As a photographer myself, I knew what to expect when it came to pricing for my wedding a few years ago. But I still found myself begrudging the photographer because we had already spent so much money on everything else. One more expense in the thousands of dollars range was the last thing I needed. But once I began to think of things a little differently.
Besides the Rings, the Wedding Photos are the Only Things That are Going to Last
The cake will be eaten, the flowers will die, you’ll never wear that wedding dress again, and once your scheduled time is up at the venue, you’ll never be allowed to have the run of the place again. But those photos are going to last forever! You’ll see them for the rest of your life and its worth investing more and being happy about knowing that the photography is going to bless you for years and years to come. Think about it, when you die, people will be looking at these wedding photos are your funeral! In 2173, your descendants will be posting on whatever social media exists at the time “look at my great great great grandparents on their wedding day!”. You shouldn’t question the necessity to spend some money on these photos!
Don’t Be Wowed by the Portfolio, Determine what Value Your Photographer is Bringing for Their Fees
I had a friend who booked a very popular wedding photographer and paid $10,000 for their services. The pictures were beautiful, but they only got a few prints and a small photo book for their investment. The very popular photographer then upsold them for another $3000 to get more prints and a few digital images. Most of what they paid went to the photographer rather than giving the newlyweds photo products they could actually enjoy.
Part of the value resides in the skill and craft of the photographer, but they should also provide a product. You as the client/customer have to evaluate if you are getting value that equals the photographer’s fees. We paid $3000 to our wedding photographer and we were given prints, a photobook, all of the digitals on a cute custom flash drive, and the images were beautiful. The value we received was definitely worth the price we paid.
How Much Should I Spend on My Wedding Photos?
It is really going to come down to a balancing act. There are a few factors that are going to have a direct effect on the price you are going to end up paying.
The Reputation of/Demand for the Photographer
The Time/Date of Your Wedding
The Size of Your Wedding
The Products You want to Receive (Prints, digitals, photo books, etc)
All photographers are taking these items into account when they determine pricing. Photographers cannot charge more than the market will bear, so often they decrease products if they are more in demand. Less popular/in demand photographers will often offer more products for a similar price. If you’re absolutely in love with a certain photographer, understand that you may not receive as many prints or copies of the digitals. Or that you might have to buy those after the fact. If you’re more interested in the quantity or products you receive, don’t try to compare a prestigious photographer’s pricing and products with someone who is trying to be in a similar price range by providing more value in their products they offer.
Wedding season gets crazy and the date and time of your wedding might come at a premium if you don’t book in advance. An intimate 10 person wedding is also not going to be as much work as a wedding with 250 guests. There is significantly more work involved in larger weddings, so don’t be surprised if you are having a large wedding and ask for a discount and don’t receive one.
It also helps to know what products you’re wanting once the photographer is done with their work. Most couples just take what the photographer is offering but it can be very helpful to have an idea of what kinds of prints you want, how many copies of the photo book you want. You can often negotiate those extras upfront and possibly get them cheaper than purchasing them after the fact. If you know what you want, communicate that to your photographer and negotiate the price at the beginning. It might save you quite a bit of money!
Photos are Forever
Don’t be a grump about the price you have to pay for your wedding photos! Take charge and know what style of photos you want, the products you want, and the coverage you’ll need and shop around just like you did for the cake and the dress and the catering and everything else. And once you decide, just remember that those images are going to be around for a long time. Probably longer than you will be so rather than begrudging the amount you have to pay for pictures, celebrate the fact you have secured a professional to document your beautiful day and that you will be left with beautiful images to last for generations to come!
Shameless Plug Time
If you’re in the Northeast Texas area and looking for a wedding photographer, check out our Wedding Photography Price List and contact us to see if we can help you with your big day!