adventure photography

I am not sure where to place this post, can't really seem to find a

specific forum for my specific question.

I have an adventure company in Costa Rica and am looking for someone

to photograph the sites for out web page. The photos would be of

adventure sports, Kayaking, rafting, mt biking, climbing, trekking,

etc.

I was wondering how much would a photographer usually charge for

several weekends of photography. In a per-day fee and/or a per-photo

fee.

Thank you all for your help!

Andres Vargas

Andres-- Interestingly enough, I was asked to spec out this exact thing (except for the Internet aspects) several years ago for an adventure outfit based here in the U.S. They decided to go with another photographer who was willing to do a trade with them for part of his fee.

Back in 1989, the rate I bid was about $500 a day plus travel and expenses. That was cheap, as times were tough then and I didn't really care about residuals. The photographer who took the job felt that he could shoot a bunch of valuable stock shots while he was down there, and thus having the travel paid for was a big bonus for him. They also traded an adventure trip package for him and his wife, which I had no need for, as I'd already done a bunch of that type of stuff.

At any rate, there was about ten days of shooting, for which they ended up paying about $3500, plus airfare for him from the states (I don't know if they paid for his wife). I would expect to pay about 50% additional nowadays (on the straight $500 fee) for a decent shooter who is hungry, and at least twice that for someone who is very good.

The only way you are apt to get a per photo fee is if you use stock photography, but of course those would be generic shots and there is a good chance that your competitors might choose the same images (it happens quite a lot).

Unless you find a photographer who is based in Costa Rica, you will have a very hard time getting one to do weekends only. Often, even on months-long shoots, clients will try to cram in as much photography as possible since they would have to pay the photographer for down time, hotels, etc. since there is no way he could get back to his home base to pick up more work. Most photographers charge half-day fees for travel and "down days," as it takes up working time.

Real prices for commercial shooting like you are proposing usually incurr day rates of about $1500, plus travel, expenses, and use fees. However, since it is an exciting and unusual job and can lead to other opportunities, you might be able to get a good shooter for less. Also, many shooters are willing to lower their per-day rates if there are a number of days of shooting in a row, sort of like a volume deal.

Photographers are much more conscious of use fees and residuals these days, and you should expect to have to deal with several negotiation points on those issues. But I would say that the chances of you getting someone who is a decent enough shooter for the lower prices is probably pretty good. Just be careful and look at portfolios and get lots of references. -BC-