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Heya all, I kinda haven't been posting as much as I would like, but now getting back into it again. Plus I have upgraded my internet at home which helps.

So getting to the question, I recently got my first ever photography job, paid that is. School formal job.

My cousin, part of the formal comittee, asked me how much do I charge, I was initially shocked cause I was happy just to be asked to take the photos... but then regained my composure and answered "ummmm $200 for the night"

Does that sound right?

Now bear in mind I am no professional....
I shoot with a Canon 30D, 24-70L and will have my 580EX firing away.

I guess I wanted to put the question out there... how much do photographers charge per event?

Thanks in advance

what does the $200 include....

a CD with the photos at the end?

or will you sell prints to the students and make back money that way?

how long is the formal? what do they want you to do? is it just a roam around happy snaps or do they want more?

Hi Trieu...

Here is a thought for you... decide what the quality of the product is likely to be and then multiply by the quantity. In other words, if you lack the experience to do the jobb confidently do not charge too much but at the same time, assuming they want to see at least a couple of hundred reasonable images you should expect a moderate return.

I would be charging the organising committee about $100 to go along, this will cover some material costs. I would then get a friend to go along with you on the night and as you make the photos, they get the job of importing the images into a laptop, putting together proofsheets in photoshop (this is an automatic feature the computer can do unattended) and then printing the images out on an inkjet so that the kids can order the images from you on the night... sell them for about $5-$10 each for a 5x7 and make ssure they pay for them as they order them. Give yourself one week to colate the orders, get them printed and get them delivered.

Shot the traditional group images as they arrive (borrow some studio lights if you can) but also put in the effort to go onto the floor and get some candids. The more variety you have the more you might sell.

Hope this is a help!

foonji wrote:what does the $200 include....

a CD with the photos at the end?

or will you sell prints to the students and make back money that way?

how long is the formal? what do they want you to do? is it just a roam around happy snaps or do they want more?

Here are some more details which I should have added

Probably 3-4 hours, walking around taking photo's, taking the initial incoming photos of couples or groups.
No PP photo's just whack em straight onto a DVD and then charging about $5 per discs. Hoping to get about 40 orders....

Hmm thanks alot Antsl, that makes alot of sense... making money on the prints

what are their expectations of you?

$200 doesn't sound bad especially if its one of your first paid jobs, but for $200 they shouldnt be expecting the world of you.

jamesw wrote:what are their expectations of you?

$200 doesn't sound bad especially if its one of your first paid jobs, but for $200 they shouldnt be expecting the world of you.

Yeah I made it clear I was no pro.... so hoping it all goes well.

Sounds like a fair price for your first paid gig Trieu. Make sure you have spare batteries and cards with you. You don't want to run out of either half way thru the night.


Cheers
John

Most students these days will have digital P&S and I am pretty sure they will just buy one disk (might not buy at all) and copy multiple ones for all there friends.

I would charge a higher fee and give the organisation one dvd of the images and let them do what ever they want.

or

I would print on site to make $$$

Set up location and capture as people (couple) come in and print ALL images and sell onsite.

shutterbug wrote:Set up location and capture as people (couple) come in and print ALL images and sell onsite.

Printing on site has some pros and cons... your print times, combined with the cost of the materials will be rather high.... print proof sheets (batch processed in Photoshop) with nine images to a page... get people to quote the numbers and pay up front then get the images printed at Harvey Norman for about a $1.50 a print. Your aim on the night is to take photos and sell... worry about getting the prints looking good another night.

remember this is a formal, i cannot see them buying prints, if it was say a graduation where parents are there, yeah i think you could do well but not at a formal where they go to parties after, $200 sounds good, an idea take pre-orders for the DVDs at a discounted rate and if they want them after do it a little more, here lies the problem i see you facing, someone will get their hands on a DVD and just copy it for their friends.

one thing you might also want to consider Trieu, is the number of people attending..

IMO, id be intimidated by 200+ people and having to satisfy them all.
as with weddings, i think there are the specific shots that you should aim to get aswell.

Silver City Photos did an awesome job for my cousin's formal in 2004. friendly photographers. i think they did it with just 2 photographers and someone in a van printing the photos out. each person gets a photo. cost of photo (and maybe hire of photographer) is factored into cost of ticket.
you might also want to check out their shots and get some ideas from there.
http://www.silvercity.com.au

Event Photographers did our yr12 formal. they had quite a crew.

as was already suggested, make sure you come with plenty of batteries for the flash and plenty of memory cards. i reckon an assistant would be helpful too.

back on topic, cost - chances are you'll get >40 orders especially since the formal may be one of the final gatherings in highschool.
$200 sounds reasonable in your situation.

-j

Aren't formal photographs generally posed couple/mate shots on a tacky background?

I know for my formal and at least formals I've seen the professional photographs from - its generally two or three photographers working studio setups (nothing fancy, two strobes shooting into brollies) against a backdrop. The kids will come up to you, ask for their shots to be taken with their date or their group of friends.

Most of the companies shoot them on speculation and whack up 20x30" proof sheets at the school afterward and from there they process the ones that are purchased.

Some of the larger mobs in Adelaide, Event and Festival City have an entire barcode system happening and will actually mail prints out to students encased inside a watermarked plastic sheet - if they keep them they'll be billed.

I'd double check with your cousin thats not what they're after else it'll be a pretttttty big job. If its just a case of waltzing around snapping away with the 30D + 580EX, then $200 sounds reasonable, everyone'll be more than happy to pose. For $200 though, wouldn't bother hanging around too long else it'll drag on a bit for you especially if they haven't organised a meal for ya.