Commercial Product prcing

<p>Hi,<br>

I have been working for a large fortune 1000 company for the past 3 years doing intermediate product photography work in a salary position. I now no longer work there, as I have started my own studio taking projects from smaller companies. Yet, this large company still wants me to shoot for them. It is a large billion dollar company so I'm thinking I can charge good/premium rates. It's basic product photography on white backgrounds, but with complicated angles and the product is larger so it can be difficult to work with. An example would be shooting a snow board or skis at unique angles. The work I provide them is flawless, hero shot quality. How much should I charge per photo or hour? If region matters, I live in Los Angeles. <br>

Any help is much appreciated. Thank you.<br>

Wyatt</p>

<p> </p>

<p>There are a few ways to think this through. My advice is, that however you reckon it, that you make a very serious <em><strong>check-reckoning</strong></em> to be sure that you are charging enough, for your business to be viable.</p>

<p>As background: in early 2000's I sold our Studio (mainly W&P but with some product customers) and then, for various reasons I was asked by the new owner to manage the business's cut-over from Film the Digital and after that I continued for quite a few years shooting Weddings for the Studio for a set fee per Wedding - I mention this last point as a reference to explain how I computed my fee, to cover a Wedding. </p>

<p>When I agreed to shoot Weddings for a set fee, I looked at all the LESS hassle that I would have, than when I owned and was running the business. All that I needed to do was meet the Client for the pre-wedding interview and plan the coverage and turn up on the day and perform at an high level for 6 to 8 hours, hand over the cards to the Studio Owner and go and have a beer and a b-b-q on Sunday with nothing buzzing around in my head regarding the job I did the previous night. </p>

<p>On the other hand - you are moving from a position of less responsibility and involvement to much more responsibility and involvement. (Don’t misunderstand me - I am NOT implying that you were not a dedicated employee – I am merely making the point that it is MUCH different now).</p>

<p>So you now have to allow for all the ‘on-costs’ that you have because you are in your own business. For example IN ADDITION TO an equivalent salary that you were getting as an employee, you need to charging enough per hour to re-cover all the business expenses, such as: capital purchases; insurance; office costs; travel; tax agents/accountants fees; medical funds; superannuation; gear replacement and maintenance etc . . . </p>

<p>The <em>“in addition to”</em> phrase is important: so many people staring out in business forget that they have to charge their time out at a rate which first pays themselves their SALARY and then pays their BENEFITS and then pays the BUSINESS RUNNING EXPENSES and if there is any leftover then that is PROFIT.</p>

<p>Obviously I am not familiar with what LA Product Photographers charge - but you would be (or should be) - but Sydney is a big city too and based on my local knowledge here, I think that you’d be considering 3 to 5 times your hourly rate as the previously salaried employee to begin as your preliminary pricing scale for your new business.</p>

<p>But my main advice is to backwards check this rate against ALL the expenses including the business paying you a salary.</p>

<p>Good luck with your new venture.</p>

<p>WW</p>

<p>Hello Wyatt. Congrats on striking out on your own! Pricing is so confusing and complicated. In addition to what William said, one should also consider the value of the photos--who's going to see them, how they're going to be used, how much money is going to be made off of them, etc. I find the Getty pricing calculator really helpful (http://www.gettyimages.com/purchase/price-calculator/sb10069475ab-001) as a starting point or reference point. It always seems a little high, so I scale it down to the size of the company I'm shooting for, but it sounds like you'll be shooting for a big company.<br>

Something else I did when I started getting really busy was created a spreadsheet that tracked per job: time traveling, time shooting, time editing, final shots selected by client and the rate getting paid minus expenses. At the bottom of each column I had a running average which gave me a very clear idea of how much I was getting paid per image and per hour. Now that I'm clear on that, I'm clearer on when I'm getting underpaid and when to say no.</p>