Product Shoot - Clothing

[ksp]

Hello,

 

I've just been asked to do a product shoot for a retailer in my area and am

not sure what to charge...can someone help? This is my first shoot and it's a

clothing line for their website. They want to pay 'per shot'. I have

researched the net but could not find much on clothing. Other product shots

(i.e. model cars, jewellery, etc) seemed to be in the area of $30-$50 per

photo. However, I don't believe there is nearly the set-up required to shoot

those items vs. clothing that requires pinning, etc. (they specifically

want 'flat', off-model/mannequin shots) so I'm thinking I should be charging

toward the higher end of $30-$50...does this seem reasonable?

 

Any help would be appreciated...including links to websites of known clothing

photographers...thanks, Ken

[art_haykin]

Before quoting a "per shot" fee, look over the range of setups, as you could get hurt on some. I almost always charged an hourly or day rate, plus any and all additional costs, plus prints or slides (in my day). You MUST get an idea of what you're letting yourself in for in terms of the size and degree of difficulty of the gig.

[john_jovic]

Ditto what Art siad. You WILL GET BURNT if you don't know exactly what you are getting yourself into. Will you have to iron every article of clothing firts? Definitely work on an hourly rate if you can, otherwise, work out how long it will take, including all the preperation and post you'll probably have to do and then do the maths to work out a per item rate, than add a bit to be safe. If it's too expensive for your client then consider your self lucky that they rejected your offer 'cos it's better to loose a job that's too expensive then to do one 'cos it's cheap...

 

JJ

[primeimages]

First of all, shooting clothing is totally different from your usual tabletop product photography. The going rate for this type of photography (small single items) would range from a low of $25 to a high of $75 depending on the complexity of the set-up and background.

 

For clothing, I would base my rates like I was doing corporate headshots or simple straightforward portraiture where your lighting techniques will matter. Rates for this would range from a low of $75 to a high of $150 per item.

 

For transactions like this, I'd go for a PER ITEM basis rather than a PER SHOT basis. Offer you client 4 to 6 different shots of the same item and allow them to choose. If they pick all 6 shots, then you'll have to charge them per shot after the first one.

 

This usually works well with some clients. And don't forget to charge them for expenses like the mannequin, the cleaners, etc.

[ksp]

Thank-you all for your feedback. It has been a great help. Now that I have done the job and know what's involved I am charging $100 per shot (this was a pre-requisite by the company...to charge by shot) vs. the $35-$50 range I had originally thought - whew!! You saved me!

 

Thank-you once again.

Ken