HOW WE CALCULATE ESTIMATES FOR YOUR PHOTO PROJECT

An estimate is typically made up of four parts:

1.    The Photographer's Fees. (The fee for the photographer’s time and talent.)

2.    Production Expenses. (All of the charges, fees and expenses incurred by the photographer in realizing the photos contracted to be shot. These can include expenses for materials, as well as the fees charged by other people involved in the shoot, such as models or stylists or assistants, etc. Travel expenses are not uncommon.  Rental fees are very common, as are meals for all participants to keep all of the contracted people in one place all of the work day. This category can vary widely with the needs and scope of the project.)

3.    Usage License Fees. (Fees charged for the rights to use the photos in the manner and for the time you require them for your specific business needs.  These must be discussed in detail before an estimate can be prepared, as the photographer’s fees do NOT include any fees for usage or reproduction rights, and no rights may by assumed to be held by, or owed to the client without a written agreement about them.)

4.    Taxes and Similar Charges.

Calculating what to charge clients for our work is a complex task that requires considerable time and effort.  Every project is unique, and providing clients with an estimate is not a trivial matter; we take the same care preparing an estimate that we provide when we shoot your project.  This is why we might seem to ask a lot of questions before providing an estimate, and why we avoid taking the time and effort to prepare estimates for clients who are only seeking a quote from us in order to meet company requirements for the number of bids that must be sought for all contract work.  We will also tend to avoid preparing quotes for clients that are not prepared to answer questions about the project, are not yet sure whether photography is necessary for their business plan, or have no clear idea what they need, or for what uses, and seem to have little or no idea how much money they have budgeted for the project.  This is normal practice among commercial photographers.  We will however try to help such clients to understand what they should be thinking about and what they should be prepared to discuss when we speak again, and before we can move on to the next step of preparing an estimate for services and usage.

We have found that the more time we spend with the client asking questions, getting, providing, and discussing details, the more successful the photo shoot is when we get your business and the more accurate the quote reflects the fair cost of the project, and the greater the overall satisfaction of both the client and us at the completion of the project.  

Please keep in mind that what we charge for a photo project or even to license one image (for more informationon usage licensing please see the section on the topic here on our website) maybe completely different from what another photographer in the same area charges. There is nothing wrong with this if we have asked the right questions and calculated our prices carefully. Perhaps the other photographer works out of a basement with old equipment, with no studio lighting available, or no capacity for expeditious digital workflow.  Perhaps the other photographer only works part-time in the business or on week-ends or evenings only, and does not care whether he or she can make a living with their photographic work.  Perhaps the other photographer has a completely different idea of the concept required to meet the client’s needs, or, as is all too common, does not know how to value usage rights (which is usually why the other photographer can only work part-time at photography; professionals appreciate their client’s business needs, but not to the complete neglect of their own).

This kind of photographer can afford to charge less, usually even far less than fair market value.  This is called “lowballing” and is the bane of professional photographers as it is usually easy to find someone with a camera who is willing to work for little or no profit. Clients should always remember that one usually gets the quality and quantity of work that they have paid for, and in the long run no one benefits from seeking unrealistically low estimates. A fee that is far below fair market price could be money completely lost in the long run, since the photographer who is willing to “lowball” usually doesn’t care about his or her long-term reputation.

Why the disparity in approach and fees?  For one thing, professional photographers have a much higher overhead; the continuing costs of running our businesses.  We are also almost certainly delivering a higher quality product and are more able to meet our client requests quickly. We treat our clients professionally, as partners in a special project, and expect the same respect in return.  We want to help you with our images to promote your business so that you will still be in business years from now and doing well, perhaps still licensing images we made for you in the past.  The prices we charge also help to assure that we too are in business years from now to continue working with you as partners in the development of new promotions and advertising for your business!

We encourage you to contact us by the e-mail form to the left if you have any questions, or would like to begin discussing an estimate for your project.  Thanks for reading this information.  We look forward to the opportunity to work together on your projects!

Bidding for jobs

Clients often ask photographers to supply formal bids for jobs.  In some cases, the bidding process is merely procedural; sometimes only one photographer is asked to quote on the project, and the assignment will go to that same photographer on a regular basis; the one who has completed the assignment before.

Sometimes the same process is used, but several photographers are asked to quote, and the client already knows which photographer is going to be hired; the other quotes are sought only to meet company rules!  Do not be offended if we decline to bid on a project we feel has already been essentially assigned to another photographer, or if our quote is only being sought in order to use it as leverage against another photographer’s bid. We hope none of our potential clients use these approaches, but almost every professional photographer has encountered these situations at some point, and we will not participate in encouraging these practices.

In other instances, with the majority of honest clients out there, two or more photographers are asked to bid on the job and usually the photographer who submits the lowest fair and reasonable bid, with the best understanding and skills for the project, will earn the job.  We are happy to provide you with a precise estimate in this case!

When we are asked to submit a bid or estimate, given what we have written above, we will always ask which kind of bidding process is being used.  We might ask how many other photographers are being asked to quote on the project, and in some cases we might even ask for the name of one of the others!  This is not unusual in the business of commercial photography.  Putting together an accurate estimate takes time, and we do not want to waste our efforts (and your time with all the questions we will ask about your requirements!) if our bid is not going to be considered seriously, and is being sought merely to meet some company quota, or is to be used to manipulate the bid of another professional.

We will ask many questions, and we might even have to ask you what your budget for the project is!  Do not be upset or concerned in this case.  Sometimes the questions and answers reveal that a client simply does not yet understand the costs and the process of professional commercial photography and has not budgeted nearly enough for their project.  This is O.K.  We will always try to figure a way to work with almost any client who approaches us in good faith; in rare cases of severe budget constraints or unrealistic expectations this might not be possible.  In some cases everyone will come out ahead by saving time if we honestly discuss your budget up front if we suspect that it is very tight or unrealistic. Please do not be offended if we ask. It happens sometimes.  If we decide to bid on your project we assure you that our rate will be determined fairly, and not so that it will spend every dollar you had put aside for it!  We will try to find a solution; a combination of services and usage fees; that will both fit your budget, and we will be happy to provide you.

When we both decide to work on a bid for your job, it’s important to consider all costs carefully. We ask questions so we understand what you really need, and what your budget is, so we do not bid too much on projects and get turned down because we did not have enough information.  Of course we also don’t want to bid too low and forfeit income (a process called “lowballing” that is discussed in another section in this website about usage, and elsewhere is this article), or fail to reveal a client’s needs and usage requirements, which will require re-quoting and possible ill-feelings.

When a potential client calls to ask for a bid, these are some of our dos and don’ts:

1. We always use a list of questions on the telephone so we can refer to it when bids are requested. The answers to the questions should give us both a solid cooperative understanding of the project and help us reach a realistic and fair price estimate.
2. We will never quote a price during the initial conversation (except for the most basic of projects ... a true rarity to be sure!), no matter how much a client might push for one.  So please don’t ask us even for a “ballpark figure”; we take all projects seriously, treating them all as unique opportunities, and responsibilities.  Any project worth doing is worth thinking about (both from the client’s and photographer’s point of view), and committing some details to paper.  An on-the-spot estimate can only hurt both parties in the negotiating process, as details that are left out and prices arrived at too quickly can lead to ill-feelings and sour the photographer-client relationship, or result in wasted time for both parties.  Most quotes can be put together via e-mail in a short period of time if we have most of the important facts established during the first conversation.  So read on, and also read the section of our website on usage license fees.  Whether we get your business, or some other professional does, this knowledge will serve you well in the future when discussing commercial photography projects with photographers, their agents or reps, as well as ad agencies and the ad departments of publications, and media space suppliers.
3. As mentioned above if we sense that a project is small and on a fixed budget, or that there might be a large gap between a client’s requirements and their budget, we might just ask a client up front what they had budgeted for the project.  The answer can save both parties a lot of time in some circumstances.
4. We need to know immediately what the client intends to do with the photos; we will ask what usage licenses the client needs after the photos are produced.  This is normal.  Please think about, and be ready to answer these kinds of questions when you call.  Where is the work going to be reproduced?  How many times?  In what geographical area will the work be seen?   How will the photo(s) be used?  In printed ads?  Will it go on billboards, or product packaging, in websites, catalogues, on promotional calendars or other such items, in  T.V. ads ... ? Is it a P.S.A. (public service advertisement)?  For how long will you want to use them in each way, and in what locations or publications?  How exclusive do you want your rights to the images?  Potential uses are vast and varied, but most clients with a few minutes thought can list many of the uses they will need, those they are thinking about as possibilities, and those they will certainly not need.  Clients only pay for the uses they need, not those they don’t, so the more accurate the answers here the more accurate the estimate will be.  For more on this issue, and the language used in discussing usage, please refer to our section on this topic in this website.  Commercial photographers make much of their living from the fees charged for the use of their work to advertise or promote another company’s business.  It is important to note that many clients believe if they hire a photographer for a job they’ll own all the rights to the images that are created.  When film was the typical medium of photography, some clients even believed that they would own the negatives or transparencies from the shoot!  These are very, very common MISCONCEPTIONS. While these may be misconceptions, this misunderstanding can nevertheless quickly lead to bad feelings between the photographer and the client if usage is not discussed from the outset; sometimes failing to clarify copyright, and limitations on usage can even ruin any chance of working together.  Still, since usage, and the control of usage and markets forms the basis of a successful photographer’s business, this discussion must take place.  If a client insists on having very broad and exclusive usage rights for very long periods of time, we must be sure that the price that is paid is worth the almost complete loss of the images to the photographer for future revenue.  More detail on the issue of usage licensing, and the language used to discuss it, can be found in another section of this website.  Clients should note that only uses that are specifically listed on the estimate (and later, more importantly, on the final invoice and/or delivery memo) should be considered included in the price you see on the estimate.  If the usage is not listed, then it is not included, and you may not consider using the photos for any use not listed.  This is what the term “all rights reserved” means when you see it associated with copyright material.  The copyright holder (the photographer will always maintain copyright to their images even in very liberal usage arrangements) reserves all rights to the image not specifically licensed to another person or company.
5. If it is an annual project, we might ask who completed the job last time, and then contact that photographer to see what he or she charged.  This too is normal.
6. We will ask who we are bidding against and might contact those people to make sure we have all received the same information about the job.  While agreeing to charge the same price is illegal, and we will never conspire to do so with other photographers, sharing information about a project in order to reach a more accurate but independently arrived at price estimate is not.
7. We might talk to other photographers not bidding on the project and ask them what they would charge.
8. Finally, we must both, photographer and client,  consider all aspects of the shoot, including preparation time, fees for assistants and stylists, rental equipment and other materials costs.  We must be sure not to leave anything out, as there should be no surprises at any point during the production of your photo project that could serve to interrupt the project, especially when other professional providers (such as models, clothing designers, stylists, assistants, ad agencies, graphic designers, and rental companies) are involved and must be paid for their time, and sometimes for the use of their likenesses and their artistic work as well! 

SALES TAXES AND OTHER GOVERNMENT FEES

We complete all projects using estimates, work-orders, delivery memos, and invoices and we must charge Canadian Goods and Services Tax (GST).  Depending on the location of the client (and the models, stylists, ad or design agencies, etc.) other taxes (and occasionally permit fees) may also apply.  Please note that no quote for services will include ANY taxes unless they are specifically calculated and listed on the estimate. Taxes will in most cases only be charged in the full amount at the time of the final invoice.  The client is responsible for paying all applicable taxes, and must remain aware at all times that their budgets must be sufficient to accommodate these taxes when the final invoice is delivered, which will include taxes and other such fees.