Why do photographers charge so much?

Sometimes people wonder why photographers charge so much just to push a couple buttons and take a picture. Here are some of the reasons as to why a photographer seems to charge “so much” money.

A photographer had to spend

• thousands of dollars for the camera body. The body of the camera itself, without a lens, can cost anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000.
• thousands of dollars for the lenses. Each lens can range from a few hundred dollars to thousands of dollars.
• thousands of dollars in photography education whether formal or informal
• hundreds of hours learning their craft much like any other professional (dentist, lawyer, consultant) had to spend learning theirs

It’s true that you can take a good photo without a fancy camera. However, the professional photos that people are wanting can only be taken with professional equipment. If people want beautiful photos to hang in their home, they’re going to have to pay a photographer for his or her expertise and use of equipment.

Hiring a professional photographer is not any different than paying a doctor. Both have gained knowledge that provides value to the customer. Whether the customer appreciates the value is another story. Even I have walked into a doctor’s office and thought that nothing amazing was done to justify the expense. Does the doctor really deserve hundreds of dollars for shining a light up my nose and sticking a tongue depressor in my mouth? Without much thought, I’d say “No.” However, it’s easy to discount the service a professional can provide. We must remember that doctors, for example, have invested thousands of dollars and hours into their education and occupation to get to this level. The customer is borrowing that expertise for a short period of time and doesn’t have to spend as much time and money as the professional has.

It is difficult to quantify the value of an image. What is each of the following worth?

• The stunning wall portrait hanging in your bedroom of you and your love one that captures just how much you love each other
• The canvas art collection hanging in your living room of your 6 month old baby who has 2 itty, bitty teeth showing
• The 20×30 family portrait hanging above your fireplace taken the last time all the kids were living underneath the same roof
• The senior portraits of your son or daughter documenting a milestone in their (and your) lives
• The wallet photos that you pull out of your purse to show family and friends just how big the kids have grown

Is the value of each of these just the physical material the image is on? I doubt anyone gets much enjoyment from an empty frame. The value is really in that image and the value of that image is truly in the eye of the beholder. Not everyone is able to appreciate the value of a professional photo, which is completely OK. There is nothing wrong with that. To those who cannot appreciate the image, it will seem as though the photographer charges too much. However, to those who can truly appreciate the art of photography and the everlasting joy it provides, perhaps what the photographer charges is fair and proportional to their level of creativity, skill, knowledge, and type of equipment they own.

Keep in mind we didn’t account for all of the following that comes out of the photographer’s pocket:

• Gas
• Vehicle wear-and-tear
• Overhead
• Taxes
• Equipment
• Insurance for their equipment
• Time spent talking to potential clients
• Time spent traveling to the location
• Time spent at the location
• Time spent traveling back to the photographer’s home or studio
• Time spent editing (1 hour for every hour of shooting — yes, it takes that much time)
• Time spent during the portrait consultation when the images are ready
• Time spent submitting orders to the photo lab
• Etc.

I hope this sheds some light on why photographer charge what they charge.