My Mum & Dads golden wedding anniversary is rapidly approaching and the old dears want a photo of my brother and me in uniform together (cringe). My sister-in-law got a quote for £400 which made me choke. Is that really the price of a snap in a studio with a posh Box Brownie these days? Am I showing my age with that last question?
By: Snapper - 22nd January 2003 at 11:48
RE: Cost of portrait photography
What date? CD is fine, no problems with that. Raw images and a powerpoint show if you like. Copyright disclaimer etc, giving you no problems if you want prints from wherever. Nowadays, everyone has a flatbed, so they scan the proofs and don’t reorder anyway. I’d far prefer people to put decent copies of my prints on the wall when there friends ask who took them!
I generally do 3 kinds of stuff mixed – some formal lineups (for the parents), reportage / candid style for the memories, and detail shots (close-ups of all the pricey extra stuff you have to get that is forgotten about, or doesn’t show on the normal pictures). It would be kind of fun to do it at Duxford, so the travel isn’t a problem! I shoot on film though, and have it scanned. Reasons being that i’ve had cards go down, images deleted, CD’s that have got corrupted etc. Also, for outside / flash shots I find the tonal seperation to be superior (ie, no bleacehed out highlights). Of course, PJ style kicks medium format out of the window, but then that means no static tripod shenanigans, and more fluid pictures with less boredom, and less hanging around for everyone. And it won’t cost you an arm and a leg!
By: Snapper - 22nd January 2003 at 10:42
RE: Cost of portrait photography
In my area, £400 – £900 is average.
By: T5 - 22nd January 2003 at 10:34
RE: Cost of portrait photography
How much is the average wedding photographer? You could base £400 on that and see if it’s a good deal or not.
By: Snapper - 22nd January 2003 at 10:04
RE: Cost of portrait photography
I do agree with you Damien, there are a lot of people who call themselves pro’s who are either crap, or have gone stale (and lets face it, studio portraits are stale anyway – hence I gave them up almost totally.) I also think £400 is way over the top. I personally wouldn’t use someone charging that. Apparently, so I herad half an hour ago, a photog I know who has a good reputation locally, is charging £500 for ONE 12″ x 10″ inkjet print. He shoots 100 odd shots on a £6k digital camera (he’s got to pay the bank back for that presumably) and you get to choose. But extra prints are only £75 each…..(Personally, I think that that is legal extortion, but there you go.) RE the wedding – I always shoot some candid off the cuff stuff in addition to the formals – and people generally prefer that, although they ask for the formal line up crap. But it’s the formal stuiff that sells in the re-order line, and there are a lot more costs involved than you would imagine. But I would put one of my 12″x16″ prints up against any guests, and in terms of quality, you would not be able to argue in the slightest. Mood is another thing though, and that is why a lot of wedding albums are dissapointing. Something I try not to have happen with the ones I do.
By: Snapper - 22nd January 2003 at 09:13
RE: Cost of portrait photography
Depends what you want. Do you want a snap, or do you want a high quality portrait that will be well lit, well exposed, sharp, with minimal grain, taken by a professional? Do you want a 6×4 glossy print from Boots, or a 20 x 16 canvas bonded framed wall portrait? Is he shooting on 35 mm, 6×6, 5×4, what?
£400 is a bit over the top without knowing what you’ll get – I imagine that you are living in an area that is quite high in salaries. Around here, just for a straight studio sitting, you are looking at £50, plus prints from £25 upwards. Now, £75 for a 10×8 print is still more than it would cost to take on a standard film and have done at Boots – but there is a world of difference. And Boots will charge less than a pro-lab too.
Quality, or crap?
(PS. I am, if you hadn’t guessed, a photographer.)
By: kev35 - 22nd January 2003 at 09:12
RE: Cost of portrait photography
Wys.
That does seem very, very steep. My Goddaughter is a part time model and the most she has ever paidfor a good selection of quality photos was £80.
Just a thought. If you know anyone half-way decent with a camera, get them to take a lot of pictures of you and your brother in different settings, indoors and out. It’s likely that you’ll get at least one that’s good enough. A photo-shop can then mount a print on canvas or turn it into an oil painting etc. etc. And I think it would cost a lot less than £400.
Regards,
kev35
By: ELP - 22nd January 2003 at 05:49
RE: Cost of portrait photography
If we give you good advice, you have to post the photo here }>
Get a friend to take the photo for you. As long as it looks nice and is finished well, they will be more than happy with the photo.
By: T5 - 22nd January 2003 at 01:06
RE: Cost of portrait photography
£400?!
I’m an A Level Photographer and I’m sure I could do it cheaper and in black and white which looks much classier in my opinion. 😉
What exactly do you get for £400? Surely not just one print?
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January 22, 2003 at 12:06 am