A print costs less than $1, so why is photography so expensive?

Before I became a photographer, I would sometimes cringe at the end of my Sears, Walmart or Olan Mills session because the prices were sometimes so high. I would think no way, how come Walmart prints are about $1-$5 and yet these people charge outrageous prices!!! Now that I have become a photographer and have come to learn a lot of things do I finally understand lots of things. I realize how many clients are unaware of all of these things. I came across something from one amazing photographer, Kim Howells. She explains things so very well, much better than I ever would, LOL. Anywho, here is her post. You can also see more of Kim's work on her website www.kimhowellsphotography.co.nz

Kim Howells:A print costs less than $1, so why is photography so expensive?

This is something that I didn't understand until I became a professional photographer. It seemed that portrait prices were extravagant, and those who advertised a free sitting really stung you for the prints! So I thought I would outline a few reasons why professional photographs cost more than what you pay for your own prints in your local photo shop.

1. Photography is a business. Like any other business, there are bills to pay - advertising, fuel, accounting and admin, stationary, insurance (yikes, pricey, as it has to cover not only liability, but also gear that is used off-location), repairs and maintenance, second shooters, etc.

2. A family portrait shoot may only take 1-2 hours, and a wedding may only take 4 hours. But first, there is the preparation. The photographer will check out venues, research what the light is like at the time of day planned, have options for inclement weather, and have ideas on what poses will be used, and where. There is checking the gear - cleaning lenses, making sure batteries are charged, checking backup gear, etc. And all the paperwork including model release forms and contracts.

3. Processing and post-processing. Most professional photographers shoot in a file format called RAW. These have to be processed into JPG files - much the same as a film negative was processed in a dark room. Then there is post-processing - the fine-tuning of each image, or converting into black and white, or special effects - all of which can certainly be more than a 10 minute job per photo. A typical family portrait shoot at the moment takes me around 10 hours of work, from preparation to the finished high-res set of post-processed images. A wedding is more like 40 hours (yes, a whole "standard working week" worth!). So those hours need to be paid for.

4. The gear. Most professional photographers will have their camera, several lenses, and backup gear. Good quality lense start at around $1000, and professional series lenses start at around $2000. Then there is the camera body, which is significantly more than that. And then flashes, reflectors, grey cards, gear bags, maintenance equipment, tripods, rechargeable batteries, spare batteries, huge memory cards - several of them. Then the computer gear - a high speed, fast computer, good monitor, calibration software (several hundred dollars worth), and photo editing software (another few thousand). Then the props - backgrounds, stands, lighting, flooring, chairs, clothing etc. And for some photographers, the cost of a building that is either leased or owned.

5. The photographer's talent. You may think it's easy to pick up a camera, put it in auto, and take photos. But professional photographers spend many hours learning how to take photos - they learn composition, exposure, depth of field, white balance, endless post-processing techniques, and more. As a new photographer (I call myself an "emerging photographer"), I have spent around 20 hours a week for the last 9 months studying, practicing, learning, and getting my photos critiqued by experts. So that is around 720 hours. They say it takes 10,000 hours of practice for complex notions to become second nature. I have a long way to go yet. Plus there is the cost of education.

6. Other time spent with the client, ordering prints, designing storyboards, taking digital files into the lab to get processed, picking them up and checking them, meeting with the client again.

So......add it all up. The time for preparation, the shoot, processing, and meeting with the client. Covering disposable costs like fuel, phone, internet, insurance etc. Being compensated for artistic talent, and time spent learning.

And finally - look at some old family photos from when you were a child. They are fascinating, they evoke memories, they are a moment captured that you will never see again. You can't beat having a great family portrait to look back on. Once that stage of your family has gone, there is no getting it back. Being able to preserve it forever......priceless.