chris_fall Posted May 23, 2004 Share Posted May 23, 2004 hi there, i was wondering, if you ever do a wedding for someone who owns a photography company (or in this case wedding, all in one company) how much do u expect to get paid if you are the main photographer and by the hour or by the job? he charges 1400-1700. and if your a wedding assitant how much do u expect to get paid? see the thing is i do some work for this one guy here in rochester, and he's never actually done any wedding photography himself, only sub contracts other photographers to do the work, and well when i was an assitant, learning the trade getting 6 dollars in hour wasn't bad, but now that i'm doing the weddings on my own he only wants to pay me 7 an hour, and the other photographer gets $100 a wedding (still better then what i get but still not great). and then i went and did two weddings with the other photographer (who i'm friends with and share a studio with and work our full time job together, lol) that were the guy who own the wedding stores. and i told him that i was going as well, and i shot some film (bout 9 rolls) and he wants the film but is saying that he's not paying me for the wedding cause i didn't tell him i was going and it was between me and the other photographer to work things out and split his 100, which deffently does not seem fair! so i've not givin him the film and told him i'm not doing any more weddings for him, what would everyone else do and what do u all think is a fiar rate? thanks a ton! fall Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimstrutz Posted May 23, 2004 Share Posted May 23, 2004 I don't really know, but I do think wedding photographers should use the shift key on occasion. :) Seriously, I wouldn't do anything for $7 per hour, and I wouldn't shoot a wedding for $100. Oh, wait a minute. I once did shoot a wedding for $100. Well, I wouldn't do it again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry_ Posted May 23, 2004 Share Posted May 23, 2004 You have to have a sit-down discussion with the gent. If you are using your equipment at $7 an hour, perhaps he is taking advantage of your situation. (It may be time for you to find your own wedding 'bookings' and decline future jobs at the hourly rate....) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al_kaplan1 Posted May 23, 2004 Share Posted May 23, 2004 I used to shoot weddings for another photographer in the late 1970's for $100, but if I just assisted it was $50. Gas was 27.9 cents a gallon, cigarettes 35 cents a pack, a new Hasselblad 500cm with lens was about $1250.00 and I remember buying a 1980 Honda Civic brand new for $4050.00. You figure it out. You're getting screwed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_fall Posted May 23, 2004 Author Share Posted May 23, 2004 LOL! i know i'm getting screwed, i havn't donbe anymore jobs for him, and won't, but i need a proper price for the weddings i did so i can get paid for those atleast. Lol yea last time someone offered me 100 dollars to work a wedding it was the other photographer who only charged is brother 500 for the wedding! I already have alot of my own bookings, i just figured I'd help this guy out and make some extra money, but 50 bucks is not alot of extra money, espesially while gas isin't 23 cents a gallon is 2.30 dollars a gallon now! Thanks for the help thou guys. P.S. i couldn't use the shift key at work, it opens up patient registration for some reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce_rubenstein___nyc Posted May 23, 2004 Share Posted May 23, 2004 The price of wedding photography varies by geogrpahical area and the level of the shooting (highend/lowend, somewhere in between). Therefore, it makes sense to tie what you get to shoot a wedding for a studio/another photographer to a percentage of what the client is being charged. Shooting for less than 25% is just being used. Perhaps this guy is more interested in paying a amount than quality and figures he can always find someone to shoot for $100. If that's the case, find someone else to freelance for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maureen_m Posted May 23, 2004 Share Posted May 23, 2004 <i>i shot some film (bout 9 rolls) and he wants the film but is saying that he's not paying me for the wedding cause i didn't tell him i was going and it was between me and the other photographer to work things out</i><p>Based on his logic of not needing to pay you because you were not the assigned photographer, I would respond with the logic that he is not entitled to the 9 rolls of film since you were on your own time! If you are in the US, he can only claim ownership of the photos if the shoot was made on his timeclock/payroll <i>and</i> he submitted your withholding taxes as your employer (I say all of this based only on copyright info I have found on this website).<p>If an employer is exploiting the skilled help, it's time for the skilled help to strike out on their own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philip_meadows1 Posted May 23, 2004 Share Posted May 23, 2004 You should be getting $500-600 for 6-7hr shoot. Any les than that, stay in bed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd frederick Posted May 23, 2004 Share Posted May 23, 2004 Regarding working for someone else: I worked for a full-service studio for a summer in 2000 to learn studio operations. It was a good experience, but it was not the way I work on my own weddings. I got $20 and hour to assist and $25 an hour to do the wedding/event myself...wow! The studio limited my photography greatly. I do a documentary wedding style, and I photograph everything related to the event, and put together an event package. The studio wanted to sell only individual after-wedding photos and a big album, so I was not allowed to photograph many events I thought were important because they wouldn't sell as individual photos of those shots. One experience as an example: I photographed a very high level Vietnamese wedding with an Anglo groom...both middle aged. In the Vietnamese tradition, the bride poses with everyone...I mean everyone! My studio does not permit such excessive waste of film. I did it anyway...photos with everyone. I learned later that the after-wedding print sales were $9,000. She bought enlargements for every guest, and send many overseas. I was paid $250 for the job...10 hours! I quit the studio gig! So, be careful working for others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duffy_smith Posted May 25, 2004 Share Posted May 25, 2004 depending on the size of the package ordered, I pay my assistants between $10-15 per hour, and part of the gratuity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emmett_s Posted May 26, 2004 Share Posted May 26, 2004 Gratuity? You get a gratuity? Sheeze....I get someone clearing their throat when they write the check. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shannon_oneill Posted November 14, 2006 Share Posted November 14, 2006 Hi, im a freshmen at high school, and i was wondering if anyone on nhere can answer some questions for me. im doing a HUGE report on what i want to be when i grow up, and this was one of my two choices. it would only be 10 questions to answer, and i'd appeciate <sp??> it dearly. If you want to help, and answer these short and simple questions please e-mail me at, iamangelheartevil@yahoo.com (my dad made it for me), thank you so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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